Jakarta (ANTARA) – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will raise the issue of ratification of the establishment of the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Transboundary Haze Pollution Control (ACCTHPC) at the 49th ASEAN Summit in Manila.
The ministry’s Director General of ASEAN Cooperation, Ina Krisnamurthi, said the coordination center has established a secretariat in Jakarta, but it has yet to become operational pending ratification of the agreement.
“Yes (it is a priority issue), because the center must be up and running. Otherwise, there is no point in opening a center without proper operation. We must immediately implement what we envision through the center,” she conveyed in a media gathering on Wednesday.
Krisnamurthi explained that the establishment of the ACCTHPC can take effect if six ASEAN member countries have submitted their instruments of ratification. However, to date, only Vietnam has fulfilled this requirement.
According to her, the establishment of the coordination center could be a game-changer for the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution (AATHP), which officially came into effect in 2003.
“This center will be a game-changer, a reinforcement of the agreements ASEAN has made since 2003. Furthermore, Indonesia is pushing for a monitoring system, established in 2013,” she continued.
Quoting Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Arrmanatha Nasir, Krisnamurthi said that Indonesia’s priority within the ASEAN cooperation framework is a united, capable, and resilient ASEAN, where the government believes that national resilience will shape regional resilience.
“National resilience will improve regional resilience, thereby strengthening each other. If the region’s national and regional strengths are strong, then Indonesia, together with ASEAN, will provide resilience to the world. So the theme is a united, capable, and resilient ASEAN,” she pointed out.
On October 27, Minister Nasir and Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan agreed to establish a Joint Task Force on Strengthening Business Responsibilities between Indonesia and Singapore (JTF).
Indonesia views the JTF as a means of enhancing information sharing and building mutual trust with Singapore in addressing forest and land fires.
Minister Nasir then followed up the formation of the JTF by chairing a ministerial-level coordination meeting on November 3 to strengthen coordination and communication with countries in the region in efforts to combat transboundary forest and land fires.
The meeting, attended by Minister of Forestry Raja Juli Antoni, Minister of Environment Jumhur Hidayat, and representatives from the Ministry of Finance, specifically followed up on the president’s directive to address irresponsible business practices contributing to forest and land fires in Indonesia.
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Translator: Kuntum Khaira, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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