At ASEAN Summit, Prabowo Apologizes for Indonesia's Forest Fires Affecting Singapore and Malaysia

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto issued an apology for the forest and land fires (karhutla) in Indonesia that have impacted the people of Singapore and Malaysia.

Prabowo emphasized that the Indonesian government is doing its utmost to address the issue of forest fires.

He made these comments during his intervention at the plenary session of the 49th ASEAN Summit in Manila, Philippines, on Sunday (15/11/2026).

Prabowo stressed that the government will not tolerate corporations involved in forest fire incidents.

He mentioned that various law enforcement actions have been taken, including the revocation of concessions and legal proceedings against companies believed to be responsible.

"We have revoked 17 concessions from companies. Currently, 26 companies are under investigation. 11 companies have been charged. 23 other companies are on the list to be charged. In total, 104 companies are under investigation by our police," Prabowo said in a press release from the Presidential Secretariat on Sunday evening.

In front of ASEAN member state leaders, Prabowo also conveyed that Indonesia has deployed various efforts to control the forest fires that have been raging for nearly four months.

However, he acknowledged that the effects of the haze crossing national borders have also been felt by the populations in Malaysia and Singapore.

Prabowo further explained that the Indonesian government has mobilized 71,000 personnel to combat the forest fires.

This firefighting effort has come at a considerable cost, with 16 personnel losing their lives, several others injured, and two helicopters lost during firefighting operations.

"We have deployed 71,000 forest firefighters. We lost 16 people who died, and many more were injured while battling the fire. We also lost two helicopters," he explained.

Meanwhile, Prabowo highlighted the importance of changing the approach to wildfire management, shifting from a focus on extinguishing fires and mitigation to systematic prevention efforts.

The Indonesian government is preparing to establish a new agency and various programs to strengthen wildfire prevention in the future.