Many forest fires in Indonesia—particularly those that contribute to the poisonous haze that drifts across Southeast Asia every year—are exacerbated by the fact that they’re burning on peatlands. For the villagers in the area, a lack of adequate infrastructure means that their struggles continue even after the smoke clears.
The Southeast Asian transboundary haze is an almost yearly occurrence that’s been affecting multiple countries for decades. Alexandra Radu takes a look at the impact on Kuala Lumpur.
In September 2019 New Naratif's Deputy Editor Aisyah Llewellyn travelled to Jambi Province on the island of Sumatra to report on Indonesia's deadly haze. At hotspots like Desa Catur Rahayu, fires raged for months turning the air red and toxic.
Every year, countries in Southeast Asia are affected by the transboundary haze generated by forest fires on peatlands. When cities are cloaked in smog, people complain about the slash-and-burn practices, only to move on once the smoke clears. This artwork is the first in a series of pieces about the haze in Southeast Asia.
Imagine a world without impunity, where everyone is free to exercise their right to freedom of expression and information and able to access, generate and share ideas and information in any way they choose, without fear. We do.
Centuries-old marriage traditions are now being reconsidered and reimagined for contemporary, capitalistic Timor-Leste.
Earlier this year, international attention zeroed in on Brunei and its implementation of the Syariah Penal Code. But the international media attention only focused on specific aspects of the SPC, oversimplifying the situation and neglecting to mention other human rights abuses and concerns.
In Singapore, young people have stepped up to take action, whether it's pressuring their university to reform its sexual harassment policies, or take part in organising the country's first ever climate rally. What is the the role of youth activism in society? What is the state of student activism in Singapore?
An estimated 3,000 tonnes of waste is produced per day in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh alone. Lacking adequate structures to deal with the problem, most of the work being put into recycling is still being done by informal street pickers.
After a successful career as a colonial administrator, John Crawfurd forged a second career as a staunch anti-colonial activist, in particular in opposition to Sarawak’s “White Raja”, James Brooke.
Victoria Milko visits refugee camps on the Myanmar-Bangladesh border around the two-year anniversary of an exodus of Rohingya from Myanmar, Kelly Anissa speaks to Malaysian students protesting against their university's involvement in a problematic event, and Kirsten Han reflects on the state of dissent and activism in Singapore.
Residents of Singkil, a largely Christian area in Muslim-majority Aceh Province, struggle to preserve their houses of worship, highlighting the problematic and even contradictory state of religious harmony in Indonesia.
