How haze data shapes socio‐political relations in Malaysia: Extending Mostafanezhad et al.'s analysis of technocratic narratives
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Haze affects almost all Southeast Asian states, but it affects all Southeast Asian states differently.Mostafanezhad et al.'s (2025) insightful analysis argues that the haze narrative in Thailand is shaped by economic and political drivers, which influence policy and governance outcomes related to fires and haze.They contend that an excessive focus on technocratic challenges obscures the social dynamics underlying haze data, rendering simplistic governance regimes ineffective.I found particularly compelling the discussion on how the Thai government has utilized haze data to control narratives surrounding fire and haze for politico-economic objectives, as well as the public's response.In this commentary, I will offer comparative observations on how haze data has shaped narratives in Malaysia and what this reveals about socio-political relations in the country.By examining the interplay between haze data and socio-political relations, this commentary sheds light on the unique challenges faced by Malaysia and situates these issues within the broader context of environmental governance, as explored in my work on 'Seasons of the Anthropocene'.Throughout Malaysia's history with haze, the Malaysian public has struggled with access to high-quality scientific data on which to make informed decisions about their health during hazy periods.Malaysia is famous for having an 'Official Secrets Act 1972' (OSA), which allows the government to mark any document 'secret' for an unspecified period of time.In June 1999, in the aftermath of the region's most serious haze episode spanning the years 1997-1998, the Malaysian Cabinet used the OSA to withhold the dissemination of daily Air Pollution Index (API) updates to the public (Varkkey & O'Reilly, 2019).Malaysian API figures were only declassified in 2005 (Varkkey & O'Reilly, 2019), however quality remained an issue.Publicly available API data was based on PM10 calculations, which reported the levels of particulate matter with a diameter of 10 micrometres (μm), and was maintained even after the Malaysian government started measuring and tracking PM2.5 levels.However, the smaller PM2.5 is generally understood as the most dominant pollutant during periods of haze, as this is the parameter of most concern for health.In 2015, Wong Chen, a Malaysian opposition MP, highlighted that Singapore's Pollution Standards Index (PSI) had shifted to PM2.5 reporting the previous year, while Malaysia's API still maintained a lower standard of air quality reporting.This resulted in air quality readings that were much higher in Singapore
DOI: 10.1111/sjtg.70010
Author: Helena Varkkey
Institution: University of Malaya
Language: English
Subfield: Environmental Engineering
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W4409438802