‘I can’t bear it’: young family takes refuge in bedroom as choking haze engulfs Indonesian city

Live updates

1. 14m ago

   Indonesian haze crisis forces families indoors as regional tensions rise

   Thick smoke from Indonesian forest fires is blanketing cities across Sumatra and Kalimantan, driving a young family to seal themselves in a bedroom because they "can't bear it." The haze has disrupted university operations, damaged tourism across Southeast Asia, and sparked public anger directed at Indonesia's leadership. Diplomatic friction has resurfaced between Indonesia and Singapore over transboundary pollution, while Greenpeace reports growing citizen activism demanding accountability for the annual burning season.

   Why it matters

   Seasonal slash-and-burn land clearing for palm oil and pulp plantations creates recurring toxic haze that crosses borders into Malaysia, Singapore, and beyond. The crisis tests ASEAN's 2002 Transboundary Haze Pollution Agreement, which Indonesia ratified only in 2014. Economic losses from health costs, flight cancellations, and school closures run into billions annually, yet enforcement against corporate and smallholder burning remains inconsistent.

   What is confirmed

   • A young Indonesian family has taken refuge in their bedroom to escape choking haze engulfing their city.
   • Haze from Indonesian fires is disrupting university life across Southeast Asia.
   • Tourism in Southeast Asia is being damaged by smoke from Indonesian forest fires.
   • Indonesia and Singapore are experiencing another diplomatic rough patch over transboundary haze.
   • Public anger in Indonesia is turning toward the country's leader over the haze crisis.

   Still unconfirmed

   • Growing people power movements may force stronger government action on fire prevention.

   What to watch next

   • Indonesian government emergency response measures and deployment of firefighting resources
   • ASEAN coordination meetings or activation of the Transboundary Haze Pollution Agreement mechanisms
   • Corporate accountability actions against plantation companies linked to fire hotspots
   Sources used for this update (7)

   1. The Guardian — ‘I can’t bear it’: young family takes refuge in bedroom as choking haze engulfs Indonesian city
   2. The New York Times — As Fresh Air Becomes a Luxury, Many Indonesians Turn on Their Leader
   3. Leiden Law Blog — Haze: a burning issue for ASEAN
   4. The Jakarta Post — Analysis: Indonesia, Singapore’s ties hit another diplomatic rough patch
   5. Greenpeace — “If we burn, you burn with us”: People power grows amid Indonesia’s fire and haze crisis
   6. Times Higher Education — Toxic haze disrupts university life in South-east Asia
   7. Seoul Economic Daily — Haze From Indonesian Fires Guts Southeast Asia Tourism
   confidence 82%