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JAKARTA \u2013 Singapore and Indonesia will establish a joint task force to hold companies accountable for forest fires, as both countries seek to strengthen cooperation against transboundary haze and tackle deliberate burning blamed for the blazes.<\/p>\n
The proposed task force would facilitate information sharing, financial intelligence and cross-border evidence gathering, with the possibility of recovering assets linked to companies responsible for the fires.<\/p>\n
The initiative was announced by Indonesian Foreign Minister Arrmanatha Nasir following talks with his Singapore counterpart Vivian Balakrishnan in Jakarta on Oct 27.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe discussed establishing a joint task force on strengthening business responsibility,\u201d Arrmanatha said at a joint press conference. \u201cIt will link information sharing, financial intelligence and cross-border evidence gathering, with, where possible, hopefully asset recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said Singapore had offered to share data on firms linked to the fires,<\/span><\/a> an offer Indonesia welcomed.<\/p>\n \u201cSmoke can cross borders, so can money. That is why we must follow the money trail these companies have left behind,\u201d he said. \u201cNo border should shield those who profit from burning our forests,\u201d Arrmanatha added.<\/p>\n Speaking after Arrmanatha, Balakrishnan said he has shared with his counterpart how Singapore will take action against companies responsible for the haze, including those based in the Republic.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are going to exercise all, every single legal and regulatory power, and we are prepared to use an even wider range of legal, regulatory and economic measures to deter future violations by companies,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He said Singapore had agreed to Indonesia\u2019s proposal to establish the joint task force, which would allow both countries to coordinate enforcement action and share information more closely to deter future violations.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are in effect putting all the companies on notice that the joint task force will ensure that there is a very close coordination of actions and sharing of information between Indonesia and Singapore. And we expect, therefore, the deterrence impact of this joint task force to make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n Singapore\u2019s National Environment Agency (NEA) has issued preventive-measures notices to 10 companies in Indonesia linked to fires suspected of contributing to the haze in the Republic.<\/p>\n Separately, the NEA has asked 10 Singapore-based companies<\/span><\/a> to provide information and documents about their activities as part of investigations under the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act.<\/p>\n The announcement comes amid renewed concerns over forest and land fires in Indonesia, which have sent thick haze across parts of South-east Asia and prompted calls for stronger action to prevent the problem from recurring.<\/p>\n Arrmanatha stressed that Indonesians were the first to suffer from the fires, particularly communities in Sumatra and Kalimantan. \u201cThe first victims of these fires are Indonesians. It is our farmers, our children and our families in Sumatra and Kalimantan who have to breathe the smoke first,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He said President Prabowo Subianto had made tackling the fires a national priority, with around 71,000 ground personnel and 51 aerial units mobilised across priority provinces.<\/p>\n Indonesia was also using water bombing and weather modification to contain the blazes, although severe El Nino conditions had complicated firefighting efforts, he added.<\/p>\n Arrmanatha said hundreds of individuals and more than 50 corporations had been investigated or prosecuted over the fires, with some already found guilty under Indonesian law.<\/p>\n Balakrishnan echoed his counterpart\u2019s remarks, acknowledging that Indonesians bore the brunt of the fires.<\/p>\n \u201cI completely agree with Pak Tata that, in fact, the first and the primary victims of the haze are Indonesian citizens, especially those in Kalimantan and in Sumatra,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He also acknowledged Indonesia\u2019s firefighting efforts and paid tribute to the thousands of Indonesian firefighters and emergency personnel battling the blazes in dangerous conditions, describing them as \u201cpeople literally on the front line\u201d.<\/p>\n Beyond the haze issue, both foreign ministers reaffirmed the strength of Singapore-Indonesia relations, stressing that differences between the neighbours should be addressed through open dialogue and mutual respect.<\/p>\n Their talks on Oct 27 marked their first official meeting as foreign ministers since Arrmanatha was appointed to the post on Oct 1, succeeding Sugiono in a Cabinet reshuffle.<\/p>\n \u201cIndonesia and Singapore are more than just neighbours; we are partners in a shared future,\u201d Arrmanatha said.<\/p>\n \u201cToday, (the) Indonesia-Singapore relationship is mature enough to speak candidly, especially when we differ. What matters is not what we differ, but how we resolve our differences constructively, respectfully and openly,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n He said both countries had agreed to establish a hotline at the ministerial and senior official levels to strengthen communication and help manage differences.<\/p>\n Balakrishnan described their discussions as fruitful and sincere, emphasising Singapore\u2019s confidence in Indonesia\u2019s future and the close links between the two countries. \u201cWe want Indonesia to succeed, and we want this because our futures are intertwined. Singapore\u2019s success also depends on a prosperous, stable, peaceful Indonesia,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Both ministers also agreed to build on the outcomes of the Singapore-Indonesia Leaders\u2019 Retreat in July, when Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and President Prabowo witnessed the signing of 26 agreements spanning economic, energy, defence, digital, environmental and other areas of cooperation.<\/p>\n The two countries are preparing to mark 60 years of diplomatic relations in 2027, when Singapore will also chair Asean. Arrmanatha pledged Indonesia\u2019s support for Singapore\u2019s chairmanship, while Balakrishnan said both countries would work closely to strengthen Asean\u2019s unity and resilience.<\/p>\n Reflecting on the relationship, Balakrishnan acknowledged that neighbours would sometimes have differences, but said what mattered was how they understood those differences and overcame challenges together.<\/p>\n He cited the Indonesian proverb, \u201cberat sama dipikul, ringan sama dijinjing<\/i>\u201d \u2013 meaning, \u201cheavy burdens are shouldered together, light loads are carried together\u201d \u2013 saying it reflected the spirit of mutual assistance and cooperation between the two countries, even in difficult times.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n JAKARTA \u2013 Singapore and Indonesia will establish a joint task force to hold companies accountable for forest fires, as both countries seek to strengthen cooperation…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":95950,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2611],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-95949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buzz-headlines","wpcat-2611-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95949","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=95949"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95949\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/95950"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=95949"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=95949"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=95949"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Close bilateral ties<\/h2>\n
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