Kuala Lumpur: Haze has become a trending topic in Malaysia, with local groups intensifying efforts to combat it. Greenpeace Malaysia has commissioned public murals, billboards, a short satirical film, and an activist art exhibition to demand urgent action on haze pollution.
The Haze: Coming Soon art exhibition will feature artwork from prominent artists such as Ernest Zacharevic, Cloakwork, Pangrok Sulap, Wong Kai Yi, Fahmi Reza, Trina Teoh, and Bibichun. It will also feature the film premiere of “Haze-zilla”, a satirical short film that tackles the issue of corporate greed and environmental destruction.
This series of creative interventions will culminate in an art exhibition entitled “Haze: Coming Soon”, which will run from May 5th to 14th at REXKL. It brings together artists, filmmakers, and activists. The event will feature artwork from prominent artists such as Ernest Zacharevic, Cloakwork, Pangrok Sulap, Wong Kai Yi, Fahmi Reza, Trina Teoh and Bibichun; offering an educational and inspirational space for the public to engage with the issue of transboundary haze and understand its origins.
Fahmi Reza and Ernest Zacharevic have both created murals to alert Malaysians about the imminent haze, with Fahmi Reza’s warning of “Caution! Jerebu (Haze) is coming back” and Ernest Zacharevic’s “Transboundary Haze” signaling the arrival of another season.
“We want to get people to engage with the conversation and explore positive creative solutions to the problems, and get inspired to do anything they can regardless of their background. Even a conversation with a friend or family member or a Facebook post is better than silence, there’s silence in between every haze season and we want to keep the conversations going so that people remember to look for solutions,” said Ernest Zacharevic, artist and curator of Haze: Coming Soon.
The “Haze: Coming Soon” event is a call to action for Malaysians to take responsibility and demand meaningful action from policymakers. It is free and open to the public from May 5th to 14th.
Greenpeace Malaysia and CERAH filed a landmark complaint with Malaysia’s Human Rights Commission (SUHAKAM) in December 2021 to demand that the government make outdoor air quality standards legally binding and enforceable. SUHAKAM has taken on the issue with a Roundtable Discussion of experts and is set to soon release a report that presents recommendations to the Malaysian government. It is time to fight for a future with clean air.
