Franciscans call for solidarity as haze from Indonesian fires blankets Southeast Asia

Members of the Franciscan Network for Peace and Integral Ecology in Asia discussed the impact of air pollution during an assembly in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, from Oct. 5 to 11. Friar John Wong, OFM, general definitor for Asia-Oceania of the Order of Friars Minor, said participants addressed how haze from Indonesian forest and peatland fires affects vulnerable communities.

A Capuchin Franciscan from Kalimantan, Indonesia, reported to the assembly that schools in one area closed for a month due to the haze and that poor families lost homes to peatland fires.

In Singapore, the National Environment Agency reported that the Pollutant Standards Index reached 225 in the central region at 7 p.m. on Oct. 16, placing three of the city-state's five regions in the very unhealthy range. Singaporean Sustainability and Environment Minister Grace Fu stated that haze originated from fires on lands belonging to seven companies in Indonesia. These companies are to receive preventive measure notices under the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act.

Parishioners at the Church of the Holy Family in Singapore used a prayer written by a member of their community during a faith formation session on Oct. 13 to ask for the clearing of the haze.