新加坡：新加坡可以对造成持续雾霾情况的公司采取法律行动，但可能会有外交影响，法律专家本周对CNA表示。
SINGAPORE: Singapore can take legal action against companies responsible for the ongoing haze situation, but there could be diplomatic implications, legal experts told CNA this week.
新加坡可以采取的行动载于《跨界雾霾污染法》，新加坡国立大学（NUS）副教授 Jolene Lin 表示。
The actions that Singapore can take are provided in the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act, said Associate Professor Jolene Lin of the National University of Singapore (NUS).
该法于2014年生效，允许新加坡当局追究在新加坡造成或导致雾霾污染的公司责任，即使相关活动发生在海外。
The Act came into force in 2014 and allows authorities in Singapore to hold companies responsible for causing or contributing to haze pollution in Singapore, even if the activities took place overseas.
根据该法，新加坡有权要求个人提供文件或信息，并可发出预防性通知。
Under the Act, Singapore has the power to require a person to provide documents or information, and can issue preventive notices.
受雾霾严重影响的公民或企业也可根据该法追究与雾霾相关公司的责任。
Citizens or businesses that are badly affected by the haze can also hold the haze-linked companies to account under the Act.
10月16日星期五，可持续发展及环境部长 Grace Fu 表示，新加坡将向印尼负责造成当前雾霾的火灾的七家公司发送预防措施通知。
On Friday (Oct 16), Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said Singapore will send preventive measure notices to seven companies in Indonesia responsible for fires causing the current haze.
这些通知将要求收件公司在其拥有或占用的土地上部署消防人员以扑灭或防止火势蔓延，此外还包括其他要求。
The notices will require the recipient company to deploy firefighting personnel to extinguish or prevent the spread of any fire on land it owns or occupies, among other requirements.
Grace Fu 还警告称，新加坡的空气质量可能进一步恶化并达到危险水平。
Ms Fu also warned that the air quality in Singapore may deteriorate further and reach hazardous levels.
新加坡国立大学副教授 Jolene Lin（同时也是亚太环境法中心主任）表示，采取法律行动不仅仅是一个法律决定。
Taking legal action is not simply a legal decision, said Assoc Prof Lin, who is also director of the Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law.
她指出，新加坡曾在2015年尝试使用该法时，印尼曾出现一些不满。
She noted that when Singapore previously tried to use the Act in 2015, there was some unhappiness in Indonesia.
“有人指责新加坡通过试图在其管辖范围外发出执法通知，利用该法侵犯印尼的主权，”她说。
"There were cries that Singapore was infringing upon Indonesia's sovereignty with this Act by trying to issue enforcement notices outside its jurisdiction," she said.
Jolene Lin 副教授表示，国际法“非常明确”：只要不对其领土外的人造成危害，印尼可以随意处置其自然资源。
International law is "very clear" that Indonesia can do as it wishes with its natural resources as long as it does not cause harm to those outside its territory, said Assoc Prof Lin.
她指出，由于新加坡深受印度尼西亚持续发生的森林火灾之害，因此有权依据本国法律来应对这一问题。“不过，做出这样的决定会带来一定的外交影响，”她说道。
Being on the receiving end of harmful effects from the ongoing forest fires in Indonesia grants Singapore the right to use its own laws to tackle the issue, she said. "The decision to do so, however, has diplomatic implications," she said.
新加坡管理大学的林美珠也指出，新加坡对一家位于“亲密且强大的邻国”境内的企业采取法律行动，这一举动具有高度的政治敏感性。
Singapore Management University's Michelle Lim also highlighted the political sensitivities of Singapore taking legal action against companies operating in the territory of a "close and powerful neighbour".
这位法学副教授指出，新加坡确实拥有管辖权；但即便如此，印度尼西亚方面会如何看待这些举措，则是另一回事了。
The associate professor of law noted that Singapore does have jurisdiction – but with any moves made, how they are then perceived by Indonesia is another matter, she said.
傅女士周五还表示，过往案例让政府更清楚地认识到调查跨境烟霾违法行为所面临的现实困难。在评估当前的烟霾状况并制定应对措施时，政府也会从中汲取经验。
DIFFICULTIES IN PURSUING RECOURSE Ms Fu also said on Friday that past cases have given the government a better understanding of the practical challenges of investigating transboundary haze offences, and that it will learn from those cases as it assesses the current haze episode and the steps to take. Investigations into four companies that began in 2015 are still ongoing, the NEA said this week, underscoring difficulty in taking action under the Act.
国家环境局本周透露，针对四家企业的调查自2015年起便已展开，目前仍在进行中，这也凸显了依据相关法律采取行动的难度。
“It is not easy, I will be the first to admit, but we must try,” she said.
“我必须承认，这绝非易事，但我们必须努力尝试，”她说，“我们必须尽力保护新加坡民众，尽一切力所能及的努力为新加坡争取最好的结果，即便成效未必显著。”林副教授指出，要确立因果关系——即证明某企业的行为导致了新加坡出现烟霾——也存在一定难度。
“We must try in order to protect Singaporeans, try whatever that is within our control to bring the best outcome for Singapore, even if it may not be so effective.”Assoc Prof Lim said there can be difficulty in establishing causation – or proving that conduct by a company caused the haze in Singapore.
“基于主权原则，新加坡能否获取相关信息，完全取决于印度尼西亚在多大程度上为事实调查提供便利甚至予以允许，”她说道。
"Due to the principle of sovereignty, Singapore's capacity to obtain this information depends on the extent to which Indonesia facilitates or even allows the fact-finding to occur," she said.
全球知名律师事务所诺顿·罗斯·富布赖特的合伙人黄伟伦指出，新加坡所需的相关数据包括空气质量监测数据、卫星监测到的热点区域及烟霾分布数据，以及风向与气象数据。
Mr Wilson Ang, partner at global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright, said the relevant data that Singapore needs would include air quality readings, satellite hotspot and smoke-plume data, as well as wind and weather data.
新加坡可能需要与其他国家协调，以获取数据来确定涉及的各方并查明因果关系，他说。
"Singapore may need to coordinate with other countries to obtain data to identify the parties involved and ascertain the causation links," he said.
如果这些公司位于新加坡的管辖范围内，则存在“直接关联”，这可能使其面临执法行动，安先生补充道。
If the companies are within the jurisdiction of Singapore, there would be a "direct nexus" that can expose them to enforcement action, added Mr Ang.
农业种植公司的董事和高级管理层应采取内部措施进行调查，并获取保证，确认他们不对雾霾负有责任或未对雾霾造成贡献，他说。
Directors and senior management of agri-plantation companies should take steps internally to investigate and obtain assurance that they are not responsible for or contributing to the haze, he said.
如果他们确实负有责任，他们应尽最大努力补救情况，他说。“否则，法律责任、声誉受损以及无法获得融资和投资的后果可能随之而来，”他补充道。
If they are, they should remediate the situation as best they can, he said. "Otherwise, legal liability, reputational damage and the inability to secure financing and investments may ensue," he added.