Indonesia says working "tirelessly" to douse fires

JAKARTA, Oct 5 (Reuters) Indonesia rebuffed neighbouring nations' complaints about haze from its forest fires today, arguing that a tireless drive involving thousands of people and costing many thousands of dollars was under way to put them out.

Forestry Minister Malem Sambat Kaban's defence of efforts to douse hundreds of blazes on Sumatra island and in Kalimantan on Borneo came as Greenpeace urged Jakarta to ''break the cycle of fire and haze'' threatening the health of millions across the region.

''Thousands of residents have been working with fire brigades to extinguish the fires,'' Kaban told Reuters.

''We don't know when we can put out the fires but we are working tirelessly and have spent billions of rupiah in our efforts.

''As for complaints from neighbouring countries, there's nothing else we can do. We don't cause the fires deliberately.'' He said recent satellite images had shown more than 1,600 hotspots on Sumatra and on Borneo.

Environment group Greenpeace meanwhile urged the forestry minister to halt all land-clearing in virgin forests.

It blamed big industrial concerns for being behind many of the fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan, home to endangered animals such as orangutans, tigers and the Asian elephant.

''The Forest Minister must immediately stop all new conversions to minimise the possibility of large and uncontrolled forest fires in Indonesia,'' Hapsoro, forest campaigner for Greenpeace Southeast Asia, said in a statement.

The fires are a regular occurrence during the dry season, but the situation has worsened in the last decade, with timber and plantation firms often blamed for deliberately starting fires.

MORE REUTERS PB BST1622