Presidential Agency and Indonesia’s Ratification of the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution

• Published in: Contemporary Southeast Asia Vol. 46; no. 2; pp. 243 - 270
• Main Author: Dannhauer, Pia
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Singapore ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute 01-08-2024; ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute
• Subjects: Agreements; Cooperation; Decision making; Foreign policy; International cooperation; Leadership; Petroleum industry; Political leadership; Political power; Pollution; Presidents; Ratification; Regions; Role theory; Roles; Vegetable oils; Yudhoyono, Susilo Bambang; Jakarta Indonesia; Indonesia
• ISSN: 0129-797X; 1793-284X
• DOI: 10.1355/cs46-2c

Indonesia, the leading source of haze in Southeast Asia, signed the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution (AATHP) in 2002 to demonstrate its commitment to regional cooperation. However, it took another 12 years for the country to ratify the accord, hindering effective collaboration. This delay is puzzling, especially since Indonesia faced pressure from its ASEAN neighbours to take action. At the same time, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (2004-14), as the key decision-maker in Indonesia's foreign policy, wanted his country to play a leadership role within the bloc. While ASEAN's norms of non-interference and consensus may explain why the regional bloc struggled to pressure Jakarta to ratify the agreement, they do not fully explain why it took Indonesia 12 years to do so. Domestic resistance and institutional obstacles are alternative explanations, but they overlook the agency of the Indonesian president in pushing for ratification. Instead, this article uses role theory to argue that domestic contestation prevented President Yudhoyono from mobilizing his power for regional leadership and that he only asserted his institutional authority and resources to support the AATHP once he no longer depended on domestic political support. Thus, this article offers new empirical insights into the role of the Indonesian president in shaping foreign policy and ASEAN decision-making, as well as new theoretical insights on how leaders influence their country's international roles.