Students protest haze in Indonesia’s Palangkaraya
The students gathered under an eerily orange sky with severely reduced visibility, waving banners that urged authorities to declare a national emergency to free up more aid.
Students in Indonesia's Palangkaraya city took to the streets on Friday, protesting against the ongoing forest and land fires that have blanketed their region in a thick haze for months. Wearing surgical masks to protect themselves from the toxic air, hundreds of students gathered outside the Central Kalimantan governor's office, waving banners and singing the national anthem.
One protest sign read, "The officials are morons, yet they get fantastic perks while the lives of the common people are tragic." Protest leader Yuyun Sanjaya called for the government to declare a national emergency and admit the disaster's magnitude, emphasizing the plight of elderly and infants suffering from the smoke inhalation.
The fires have burned over 1.9 million hectares in the past nine months, affecting not only Indonesia but also neighboring Malaysia, Singapore, and East Timor.
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- Students protest haze in Indonesia’s Palangkaraya freemalaysiatoday.com
- 'How is it possible?': Students protest Indonesian haze nst.com.my
