As we peer through the haze to find anyone other than ourselves to blame, spare a thought for the victims of the forest fires that are raging across the region. These include the natural vegetation and its inhabitants who are being burned and the human beings who are being choked - up to 36,000 premature deaths caused by atmospheric pollution are predicted over the next decades in Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia alone. Locating the source of the fires will not stop them from being started.