Southeast Asia’s haze crisis will persist until polluters pay

Across Southeast Asia, the haze has returned with a familiar cruelty. Malaysia has closed schools as air quality deteriorated, Singapore has experienced dangerous levels of air pollution, and even parts of the Philippines have been affected, underscoring how far the smoke has travelled. In Indonesia, meanwhile, forest and peatland fires, a major source of the region’s haze, have threatened communities and livelihoods, particularly in parts of Kalimantan. What begins as land burning in one country can become a public health emergency across an entire region.The immediate response is predictable: extinguish fires, distribute masks and seek regional cooperation. All are necessary, but none explains why the emergency keeps returning. Malaysian children missing school, Singaporean residents breathing polluted air, Filipino communities exposed to drifting smoke and Indonesian families living near burning land all bear different costs from the same regional failure.Dry weather and El Nino can intensify fires, but many are deliberately started to clear land for agriculture. The deeper question is why practices that create enormous public losses can remain attractive to those who benefit fr...