Indonesia's government sued for "gross negligence" over Borneo wildfire haze

Indonesia’s government was accused of “gross negligence” in a class-action lawsuit that opened on Wednesday at a court in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, over the toxic haze from wildfires blanketing parts of Borneo, AFP reported. (https://www.malaymail.com/news/world/2026/10/07/indonesia-government-faces-gross-negligence-lawsuit-over-borneo-haze/238115)

Four plaintiffs, including a local chapter of the Indigenous NGO AMAN, filed the suit last month at the Pontianak court. President Prabowo Subianto and the governor of West Kalimantan are among the 10 defendants. None of the defendants was present at the first hearing, according to an AFP reporter in the courtroom. (https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/indonesian-court-hears-negligence-complaint-against-state-over-fires-haze)

The plaintiffs’ lawyer, Glorio Sanen, said after the hearing that the case was “a step to address the problem” of annual wildfires, blamed largely on forest destruction and fuelled this year by an exceptionally intense El Nino.

The suit demands the government declare a national disaster, unlocking comprehensive recovery and rehabilitation measures including covering affected residents’ healthcare costs. Fires have shuttered schools and forced hundreds to seek help for respiratory ailments, while hundreds of flights have been disrupted by the smoke.

A similar lawsuit filed in 2025 at a court in South Sumatra was dismissed.