Tag: Jakarta

Indonesia Finally Takes Up Singapore’s Offer To Fight The Haze

Indonesia has indicated it will now take up Singapore’s offer to help fight the ongoing haze, Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said on Facebook today (Oct 7).

Jakarta had declined Singapore’s assistance package several times since the smog descended last month, saying it has the resources to manage.

But Dr Balakrishnan wrote last night that his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi has now indicated Jakarta will take up the offer following a “good discussion” the pair had this evening. “Good for our countries to work together to resolve this as soon as possible,” he added.

Singapore’s assistance package includes assets and personnel, such as a C-130 aircraft for cloud-seeding operations, a Chinook helicopter with a water bucket for aerial fire-fighting, and up to two C-130 aircraft to ferry the Singapore Civil Defence Force fire-fighting assistance team. In addition, Singapore also offered to provide high-resolution satellite pictures and hotspot coordinates.

Earlier in the day, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a statement that the Indonesian government had yet to turn over the names of errant companies suspected of playing a part in causing the haze that has plagued Singapore since last month.

A formal request for the names of these companies was sent to the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Singapore, the ministry added.

“This was in response to the request by the Indonesian Environment and Forestry Minister, Ms Siti Nurbaya Bakar, who had previously said that if Singapore wanted the names of these companies to be officially sent to it, then this had to be done through the Government-to-Government channel,” an MFA spokesperson said.

“We look forward to an early response from the Government of the Republic of Indonesia on our requests so that we can take the necessary action against those who are responsible for the haze.” In its note to the Indonesia embassy, Singapore also reiterated its haze assistance.

Air quality and visibility improved significantly today, thanks to rain in the early morning. As at 7pm, the 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) reading was 86 to 108, the three-hour PSI was 70 and the one-hour PM2.5 concentration was 22 to 41 microgrammes per cubic metre.

The NEA said prevailing winds are forecast to be weak and to blow from the east or southeast tomorrow, and the 24-hour PSI is expected to improve to the moderate range.

Eight hotspots were detected in Sumatra today, and the NEA attributed the low hotspot count to partial satellite pass, when the orbiting satellite’s field of view covers just part of a region of interest. The agency added that widespread haze continues to persist in parts of Sumatra, and some haze spreading westward from Kalimantan was observed over the sea at the far south of Singapore.

Source: www.todayonline.com

October 8, 2015
Indonesia: 1 Month Needed To Fight Fires

Indonesia will take 30 days to bring smouldering forest fires under control, the national disaster management agency said on Friday (Sept 18), as smog from the fires pushes pollution in Southeast Asia to record highs.

The region has suffered for years from annual bouts of smog caused by slash-and-burn practices in Indonesia’s islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan, but governments have failed to tackle the problem.

“We expect there will be a potential for haze because of the El Nino effect until the end of November, but we are targeting to put out the majority of the fires by mid-October,” agency spokesman Sutopo Nugroho told Reuters.

Indonesia has faced criticism from neighbours and green groups for not doing enough to prevent the fires, which cause millions of dollars worth of damage to health and the environment every year.

This week, Indonesia said it was investigating about 100 companies, including an unnamed Malaysian firm, in the latest crackdown to tackle smog worsened by a prolonged dry season. The rainy season usually begins in November.

Next week, authorities will name several companies likely to face sanctions for starting fires, including possible withdrawal of licenses, Indonesia’s environment and forestry minister, Siti Nurbaya Bakar, told a news conference on Friday.

Meanwhile, Malaysia on Friday announced plans to evacuate 173 of its citizens “badly affected by the haze surrounding Riau province”from provincial capital Pekanbaru, using two C-130 Hercules aircraft.

Plantation companies, some of which are listed in Singapore, and smallholder farmers often get blamed for using slash-and-burn practices to clear land for palm oil and agriculture.

Indonesian law allows smallholders to slash and burn up to 2ha of land, according to the disaster management agency, which has said the policy is being misused.

Asia Pulp and Paper (APP), one of the world’s biggest pulp and paper companies, says it is fighting fires on its large concession areas and that thousands of hectares of its plantations have been destroyed.

“We are just seeing the tip of the iceberg here. El Nino will last until March next year,” Aida Greenbury, managing director of sustainability at APP, told Reuters.

Indonesia has deployed nearly 3,000 troops and 24 aircraft to help fight the fires. Bakar said an offer of assistance from Singapore was turned down.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

September 19, 2015
Companies Behind Indonesian Forest Fires To Be Blacklisted, Face Criminal Sanctions

Companies found guilty of forest fires in Indonesia would be blacklisted and could face criminal sanctions.

Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Luhut Panjaitan said President Joko Widodo has agreed with the proposal.

Speaking to reporters at the Istana on Wednesday (Sep 16), Luhut said five to 10 companies will be blacklisted. The companies were on a list compiled by authorities, which includes the names of company directors, commissioners and owners.

Luhut added that their business permits will be revoked, and that the government would punish companies which are found to be guilty of negligence.

“After the blacklist, there will be no more chances for the firms and businessmen and there is no chance for them to ever receive a plantation or forest clearing permit,” said Luhut.

Earlier, Luhut said that he was coordinating with the police and there would be no compromise on the issue.

“As a result of their actions, millions of people have breathing difficulties. I’m putting my reputation on the line to say this will not happen again,” said Luhut as quoted by news portal Detik.com

However, he did not disclose the names of the companies suspected of starting the fires. National police chief Badrodin Haiti is expected to announce the names of the companies soon.

General Badrodin had said that slash-and-burn cases were more difficult to solve than those involving drugs or terrorism.

“In terrorism and drugs, we have access to preliminary information, there are the links and networks (of offenders),” he said. “However, for forest fires, the problem is how we get this preliminary information fast, who started it.”

General Badrodin said hotspots can be detected with satellites, but often, it is not immediately clear whether the fire was started deliberately.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

September 17, 2015
Indonesian Student Arrested For Sending Bomb Threats To SIA

JAKARTA — Jakarta Police today (July 8) said they had arrested a 21-year-old male student from a private university in Banten who had sent a bomb threat to Singapore Airlines, causing flight delays.

Ilham, a senior college student reportedly majoring in information technology, was apprehended yesterday at his home in the Baleria housing complex in Tangerang, Banten after sending an email containing a bomb threat to Singapore Airlines on July 1.

“Because of the terror, there were three flights (from Singapore’s Changi International Airport), delayed for a while,” said Brigadier General Victor Edison Simanjuntak, chief of Jakarta Police’s economic crime unit, today.

According to Brig Gen Victor, Singaporean authorities tracked the source of the email and contacted the Indonesian police force.

The information technology and cybercrime unit of the National Police conducted an investigation that led to Ilham’s arrest.

“We are still investigating his motives,” Brig Gen Victor said.

The police intend to charge Ilham with article 335 of the criminal code and article 45 of the 2008 Law on Information and Electronic Transactions. The student faces a maximum ten years’ imprisonment.

When contacted, Singapore Airlines told TODAY: “As the matter is the subject of an ongoing police investigation, we are unable to provide further details.”

Source: www.todayonline.com

July 9, 2015
Jakarta Seeks To Introduce ERP By End Of This Year

JAKARTA — The Jakarta provincial government is expected to begin an intensive public campaign to educate motorists on its Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system in the next few months.

The city’s administration wants to implement ERP by the end of 2015. It has been studying the system to reduce traffic congestion since 2006.

“We have prepared the concept for an intensive socialisation in two to three months’ time on how the community can be informed of the ERP concept in a big and complete way,” said Mr Leo Armstrong, head of the ERP management unit at Jakarta Transportation Agency. “The government will lead the campaign.”

Two ERP gantries have been erected at two busy roads to test the system. Trials have already been completed and the local government says the results are encouraging.

PUBLICITY STUNT

However, transport analysts are not convinced. “This is like a publicity stunt where they just put some fancy gantries in the middle of the road,” said Mr Yoda Adiwinarto, country manager at the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy.

“The transport agency claimed that they want to try the effectiveness of the gantry; they want to try whether the on-board unit will work well. The problem is that all the on-board units that they installed were only for the official vehicles. So why bother putting the giant gantries on the public roads? Just try it somewhere nobody knows.”

The tender for the implementation of the ERP system is expected to be released in June. A one-day workshop will also be conducted among various stakeholders to discuss road pricing regulations.

One of the challenges facing the implementation of ERP concerns motorists using small shortcut roads. Jakarta has a complicated network of roads which includes small shortcut roads.

The provincial government is well aware that motorists may try to bypass the ERP by using shortcut roads. But while taking such a route may save some money, it may not save time because during peak hours shortcut roads are even more congested.

Jakarta governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama has set a target for the ERP system to be completed by the end of 2015.

Transport analysts believe this may not happen because of the lack of progress on the ground. In addition, the project has been hit by numerous delays over the years.

MIXED VIEWS

Motorists have mixed views about the effectiveness of electronic road pricing.

“Sometimes electronic pricing can be a solution for the traffic but sometimes I think a collaboration system electronic and manual system could be integrated to be a solution in Jakarta because not all the people in Jakarta support electronics,” said one motorist.

“I think we need more, wider roads,” added another motorist. “The ERP will not have any effect on congestion.”

Jakarta is struggling to keep vehicle population down, and it hopes electronic road pricing, which means higher costs for private vehicles, will help to solve the problem.

At the same time, it is improving the public transport infrastructure to encourage motorists to turn to buses and trains instead.

Source: www.todayonline.com

June 3, 2015