Indonesian Environment Minister Panangian Siregar promised yesterday that the nation would draft legislation to crack down on those who light forest fires to clear land for plantations. He was under pressure from the environment ministers of other Southeast Asian nations, which have been plagued by unhealthy, choking haze caused by slash-and-burn fires in Indonesia. The ministers from other nations plan to meet next month with Indonesian and Malaysian plantation owners to try to convince them to stop setting fires.
