Putrajaya Mulls New Law Against Malaysian Companies Liable For Haze

The rules will apply only to Malaysian companies operating overseas.

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 18 – The Malaysian government is considering enacting legislation to allow for action to be taken against Malaysian companies operating overseas that contribute to the haze here.

Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said that the rules will apply only to Malaysian companies with estates in foreign countries that have failed to stop the fires.

“We want to take action against Malaysian companies that have estates outside Malaysia, which are contributing towards the haze because of burning in their estates,” he said, according to The Star.

“We will ask them to put out the fires. But, of course, if we find that they are unwilling to take action, we may have to pass a law that will make them responsible for fires on their property even if it is outside Malaysia.”

He further explained that this is one of the measures that will be taken by the cabinet to combat the ongoing haze situation.

“The Cabinet also discussed and agreed that we should give more information on where the hotspots are through government statements,” he said.

Until 1pm, a total of 1,484 schools have been shut down around the nation in response to the worsening air quality in those places, as per a statement from the Ministry of Education, affecting over a million students.

Malaysia and Indonesia have traded blame over the current haze crisis, with the latter accusing four Malaysian companies of causing some of the forest fires in their palm oil plantations in Indonesia.

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