'How is it possible?': Students protest Indonesian haze

Hundreds of students protested late Friday in Palangkaraya, Indonesia, calling for stronger government action as wildfire smoke blanketed the city and region for months. They urged authorities to declare a national emergency so more aid could be made available. The demonstrators sang a patriotic song and had light skirmishes with police, then dispersed peacefully without reported injuries or arrests.

Nusantara Atlas, a deforestation monitor, estimated that wildfires burned more than 1.9 million hectares in the nine months to September; the government had neither confirmed nor denied the figure.

The haze sickened hundreds of thousands of people in Indonesia and reached Malaysia, Singapore and East Timor.

Protest leader Yuyun Sanjaya called on the Central Kalimantan provincial government to acknowledge it could not mitigate the disaster so it could be officially designated a national disaster.

On Thursday, school children on Java island prayed for rain as fires ravaged several regencies and conservation areas.

Published Oct 24, 2026 8:42 pm KST

A man rides a bicycle on the main road passing a statue as haze from wildfires shrouds the area, Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan province, Indonesia, Oct. 24. Reuters-Yonhap

PALANGKARAYA, Indonesia — Hundreds of students protested late Friday in Indonesia's Palangkaraya, demanding the government do more to tackle a wildfire crisis that has shrouded their city and the wider region in toxic haze for months.

The students, many wearing surgical masks, gathered under an eerily orange sky with severely reduced visibility and waved banners urging authorities to declare a national emergency to free up more aid.

"The officials are morons, yet they get fantastic perks while the lives of the common people are tragic," read one protest placard nailed to a wall outside the office of the governor of Central Kalimantan -- an Indonesian province on the island of Borneo where the fires are taking place.

University students protest against the government's handling of haze and wildfires outside the Central Kalimantan Governor's office, Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan province, Indonesia, Oct. 23. Reuters-Yonhap

The demonstrators sang the Indonesia Pusaka patriotic song and engaged in light skirmishes with police.

No injuries or arrests were reported and as night fell, the protesters cleared up their trash before dispersing peacefully.

"We call upon the Central Kalimantan provincial government to state clearly that it is unable to mitigate this disaster, so that the situation may be officially designated a national disaster," protest leader Yuyun Sanjaya told the crowd.

"How is it possible that such thick, dense smoke is being inhaled by helpless elderly people and newborn infants, and the government simply lets it happen?"

Wildfires have burned more than 1.9 million hectares in the nine months to September, according to deforestation monitor Nusantara Atlas -- a figure the government has not confirmed or denied.

The resulting haze has sickened hundreds of thousands in Indonesia and reached as far as Malaysia, Singapore and East Timor.

Amid diplomatic objections from neighboring countries, patience has also been running thin at home, with sporadic anti-government protests.

On Thursday, Indonesian school children prayed for rain on Java island, where fires have also ravaged several regencies and conservation areas.

上周五晚间，数百名学生在印尼帕朗卡拉亚举行抗议活动，呼吁政府采取更有力的措施应对持续数月笼罩该市及周边地区的山火烟雾。他们敦促当局宣布进入国家紧急状态，以便提供更多援助。示威者高唱爱国歌曲，并与警方发生轻微冲突，随后和平散去，未有人员伤亡或被捕的报告。

森林砍伐监测机构 Nusantara Atlas 估计，截至 9 月的九个月里，野火烧毁了超过 190 万公顷的土地；政府既没有证实也没有否认这一数字。

雾霾导致印度尼西亚数十万人患病，并蔓延至马来西亚、新加坡和东帝汶。

抗议领袖尤云·桑加亚呼吁中加里曼丹省政府承认其无力减轻这场灾难，以便正式将其指定为国家灾难。

周四，爪哇岛上的学童们祈求下雨，因为大火肆虐了多个县和自然保护区。

发布于2026年10月24日晚上8:42（韩国标准时间）

10月24日，印度尼西亚中加里曼丹省帕朗卡拉亚，一名男子骑着自行车经过一座雕像，山火产生的烟雾笼罩着该地区。（路透社-韩联社）

印度尼西亚帕朗卡拉亚——周五晚间，数百名学生在印度尼西亚帕朗卡拉亚举行抗议活动，要求政府采取更多措施应对野火危机。这场野火危机已经笼罩了他们的城市和周边地区数月之久，留下了有毒的烟雾。

学生们大多戴着医用口罩，聚集在能见度极低、天空呈现诡异橙色的天空下，挥舞着横幅，敦促当局宣布国家进入紧急状态，以便释放更多援助。

“官员们都是白痴，却享受着优厚的待遇，而普通百姓的生活却十分悲惨。”一块抗议标语牌上这样写道，它被钉在中加里曼丹省省长办公室外的墙上——中加里曼丹省是位于婆罗洲岛上的印度尼西亚省份，火灾就发生在那里。

10月23日，在印度尼西亚中加里曼丹省帕朗卡拉亚市，大学生们在省长办公室外抗议政府对烟霾和山火的处理方式。（路透社-韩联社）

示威者高唱印尼爱国歌曲《普萨卡》，并与警方发生轻微冲突。

据报道，没有人员受伤或被捕，夜幕降临后，抗议者清理了垃圾，然后和平散去。

“我们呼吁中加里曼丹省政府明确表示，它无力减轻这场灾难，以便将这种情况正式认定为国家灾难，”抗议领袖尤云·桑加亚对人群说道。

“如此浓重的烟雾竟然让无助的老人和新生婴儿吸入，而政府却对此视而不见，这怎么可能呢？”

据森林砍伐监测机构 Nusantara Atlas 的数据显示，截至 9 月的九个月内，野火已烧毁超过 190 万公顷的土地——政府尚未证实或否认这一数字。

由此产生的雾霾已导致印度尼西亚数十万人患病，并远波及马来西亚、新加坡和东帝汶。

在邻国提出外交反对的同时，国内民众的耐心也逐渐耗尽，不时爆发反政府抗议活动。

周四，印尼爪哇岛上的小学生们祈求下雨，岛上多个县和自然保护区也遭受了火灾的侵袭。