Indonesia Deposits Instrument Of AATHP Ratification

Jakarta, Jan 21 (Antara) - The Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry's Director General for ASEAN Cooperation I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja has deposited Indonesia's Instrument of Ratification of the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution (AATHP) with Le Luong Minh, Secretary-General of ASEAN. Ambassador Puja conveyed his Government's appreciation to the ASEAN Secretariat and the other ASEAN Member States (AMS) for the support and encouragement extended to Indonesia in concluding the ratification process, the ASEAN Secretariat in a statement, here, Wednesday. He informed ASEAN Secretary General Minh that the ratification of the Agreement was approved by Indonesia's Parliament through Law No. 26 Year 2014. Minh congratulated Indonesia for the ratification and commended the country for its efforts and commitment to working collectively with other AMS to address the transboundary haze pollution issues under the framework of the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution. The Governments of the ten ASEAN Member Countries signed the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution on 10 June 2002 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and it entered into force on 25 November 2003. The Agreement is the first regional arrangement in the world that binds a group of contiguous states to tackle transboundary haze pollution resulting from land and forest fires. It has also been considered as a global role model for the tackling of transboundary issues. With Indonesia's ratification, the Agreement has now been ratified by all ASEAN Member States.