Year after year, the haze comes back.
For those of us who are old enough to remember one haze episode after another, even knowing that those tiny particles can damage our health and nervous system, most of us as middle-aged men and women can do little more than curse at the haze for a while.
Then we get used to it. We stop asking questions. We stop paying attention.
A few days ago, I called home. My mother told me that my little nephew had suddenly developed asthma. After seeing the doctor, taking his medicine and having a nap, he woke up teary-eyed, crying that he wanted to go to the public park with playground.
Now, which normal adult would allow a child go to the outdoor playground during hazy days? So, we had no choice but to let him cry his heart out.
The seriousness of the haze is partly reflected in how little we can see with our own eyes. News reports were also saying that Indonesia had more than 1,000 hotspots, and these forest or peat fires were certainly not going to disappear overnight.
\u201cGrandma told me you were asking to go to the park, is that right?\u201d, I asked my nephew in a video-call.
He nodded.
\u201cDo you remember what Gugu (auntie in Mandarin) told you? When you are sick, there are many good soldiers inside your body helping you to recover?\u201d
\u201cHmm. There are good soldiers, so I won’t get sick?\u201d he asked.
\u201cThat’s right. But look, when the sky is hazy, when there are no blue skies and white clouds, there are lots of bad soldiers in the air. If you go to the park, those bad soldiers can get inside your body, and you might get sick again. Because someone is burning the forest far away, the air becomes dirty. Those bad soldiers get inside our bodies and fight with the good soldiers!\u201d
And there he was, acting out a little battle with his hands.
\u201cSo, when the sky isn’t blue and you can’t see clearly, you have to stay at home and protect the good soldiers inside your body. Otherwise, they will keep fighting and fighting, and they’ll get very tired!\u201d
\u201cDaddy goes to work inside the office too, right? Daddy works inside. He doesn’t keep going outside. What about Mommy? Mommy teaches ukulele inside the classroom too.\u201d
\u201cCan Gor Gor (twin elder brother) and I go out to school?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n\n
\u201cYes. You go to school, but you stay inside the school building. You’re not outside.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
He nodded.<\/p>\n\n
Then, suddenly, he said: \u201cGugu, those people who burn the forests should be arrested.\u201d
I often bring children’s books home and tell them stories about forests, so perhaps he connected the dots in his own little way. But for a moment, I was stunned and didn’t know how to answer.
Because, yes, those who deliberately caused forests or peat fires should be held accountable. But we also know that the people responsible for forest fires have been notoriously difficult to hold accountable.
And in the real world, doing something wrong does not always mean you will face punishment.
So I simply said: \u201cExactly. They should be arrested!\u201d
Then I added: \u201cSo you also have to look after Grandpa and Grandma, okay? When the sky is hazy, they shouldn’t go outside either. Understand?\u201d
He nodded.
I feel heartbroken that the little ones\u2019 blue skies, fluffy white clouds, and the freedom to play in parks and playgrounds have been taken away by shameless adults. I couldn’t help writing down this little conversation.
A child who is barely three years old understands something so simple: when the air is polluted, we need to protect ourselves. And those who cause the pollution should be held responsible.<\/strong>
Yet somehow, the \u201cadults\u201d running our countries can continue to look away from the people and activities responsible for the haze.
I’ve seen Indonesian netizens joking about their president finding opportunities to travel overseas for official business to escape the haze. And what about our big shots, many of whom earn at least RM30,000 a month?
…Never mind. Let’s not go there.
Friends who run businesses often tell me, \u201cIf money can solve the problem, then it’s not really a problem.\u201d Perhaps.
But every time the haze returns, low-income communities are the ones who pay the highest price. If you cannot afford an air purifier, you cannot afford an N95 mask, and you cannot afford to stay home because you need to go out to work, what exactly are your choices?
The haze should never become something \u201cnormal\u201d. It should never become something we simply \u201cget used to\u201d.
And yet, across several countries, from top to bottom, the haze seems to have gradually disappeared from the work agendas of governments, policymakers and even many experts.
Except, perhaps, environmental organisations, civil society organisations, and activists who are actively raising issues and more importantly solutions to this crisis.
But haze is not merely an environmental issue.<\/p>\n\n\n