Indonesia haze school closures
News · Heat 2.1 / 10 · 3 shows · 19m airtime
Malaysia closed schools in several states on October 9, 2026, after toxic smog from Indonesian wildfires pushed air quality to unhealthy levels. Timor-Leste closed schools the following week when haze spiked in Dili, and President Ramos-Horta is seeking an independent international cost evaluation. Indonesians protested in the capital demanding the government hold corporations linked to the fires accountable; police later used tear gas and water cannon on Jakarta protesters. Singapore issued preventive measures notices to several Indonesian companies under its Transboundary Haze Pollution Act, then formed a joint haze task force with Indonesia. Protesters want the president to declare a national emergency; he says only rain will fix it. The fires continue to burn underground in peatland, with illegal slash-and-burn…
How 3 podcasts covered it
- Global News Podcast, 2026-10-09 (25:14 to 27:26)
Reports Malaysia school closures from Indonesian smog
First coverage of the regional haze crisis: schools shut across several Malaysian states, families reporting respiratory symptoms, and orangutans in Sumatra and Borneo left without food and water as 400-plus fire spots burn.
New angle: Schools in several Malaysian states closed Friday as Indonesian wildfire smog pushed air quality to unhealthy levels. - Global News Podcast, 2026-10-20 (20:47 to 23:39)
Adds Timor-Leste school closures to the haze
Reports from Central Kalimantan on the scale of the burn and the health toll, then adds a new front: Timor-Leste closed schools last week after haze spiked in Dili, and President Ramos-Horta calls for an independent international cost assessment and accountability.
New angle: Timor-Leste closed schools last week after toxic haze spiked in Dili; Ramos-Horta seeks an independent international cost evaluation. - Global News Podcast, 2026-10-21 (17:07 to 20:02)
Files from Palangkaraya on the peat fires
Field report from Palangkaraya on the worst fire season in a decade: hazardous air, months-long peat fires, a Leeds scientist on the hidden long-term harm to children, and Tuesday protests in Jakarta demanding corporations be held accountable.
New angle: Indonesians protested in the capital on Tuesday demanding the government hold corporations linked to the fires accountable. - The Intelligence from The Economist, 2026-10-22 (21:32 to 28:00)
Widens the haze story to Singapore
Widens the haze story beyond Malaysia and Timor-Leste: Singapore is the world's most polluted city at points, masks and a library haze shelter are in use, and Singapore issued preventive measures notices to several Indonesian companies under its Transboundary Haze Pollution Act. Also adds Indonesia's 98 corporate cases and Prabowo's new peatland agency.
New angle: Singapore issued preventive measures notices to several Indonesian companies under its Transboundary Haze Pollution Act. - The Headlines, 2026-10-23 (7:10 to 8:31)
Reports the protests and the illness count
Reports on the protests spreading across Indonesia, with demonstrators demanding a national emergency declaration and an end to slash-and-burn clearing. Adds the Health Ministry's count of hundreds of thousands of acute respiratory illnesses and the president's defense that the only real solution is rain.
New angle: Protesters are demanding the president declare a national emergency; he says the only real solution is rain. - Global News Podcast, 2026-10-29 (18:15 to 21:02)
Adds tear gas at Jakarta protests and a haze task force
Correspondent segment on the Jakarta protests, adding that police used tear gas and water cannon on the crowds and that Singapore has formed a joint task force with Indonesia on the haze. Otherwise a retelling of the season, the health toll and the pressure from neighbours.
New angle: Police used tear gas and water cannon on Jakarta protesters; Singapore formed a joint haze task force with Indonesia.