🇮🇩 West Kalimantan Haze Lawsuit

Residents in West Kalimantan have filed a class-action suit against President Prabowo Subianto, Vice-President Gibran Rakabuming Raka, and 25 other officials and state bodies over the government’s response to forest and land fires. According to the SCMP report, the coalition Nafas Kalimantan Barat filed the case on September 17, with the first hearing scheduled for Wednesday.

Indonesia’s worst wildfire season in 11 years has sent haze across borders into Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines since at least August. More than 48,000 hectares have burned in West Kalimantan this year, while the Health Ministry has recorded over 175,000 acute respiratory infections nationwide, including more than 116,000 in the province and nearly 28,000 cases involving children under five.

The plaintiffs want the fires to be declared a national disaster, arguing local authorities lack the budget and resources to respond effectively. The case also tests Indonesia’s weak record in environmental litigation, where lawsuits have often struggled to produce enforcement.

#Indonesia #Malaysia #Singapore

@asianomics