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• Smugglers, makers of counterfeit cigarettes: FBR mobile squads to conduct major operation  

The specialised mobile squads of the Federal Board of Revenue would conduct a major operation against smugglers of foreign brand cigarettes and the manufacturing premises of counterfeit cigarettes in the border area of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Southern Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhawa.

In this connection, the Directorate General of Intelligence and Investigation FBR on Thursday sought a formal permission from the tax authorities for launching crackdown against the smugglers and manufactures of counterfeit cigarettes.

Sources told Business Recorder here on Thursday that the directorate of intelligence customs is planning to conduct these operations against the manufactures of fake and counterfeit cigarettes by deputing eight dedicated mobile squads at KPK, border of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Southern Punjab.

These mobile squads would not only check movement of foreign brands of smuggled cigarettes, but also conduct raids on manufacturing premises of counterfeit cigarettes. . . .

The largest consumer market of counterfeit cigarettes is rural area of southern Punjab.

The cigarettes are usually smuggled from country of origin to UAE and from there via Bandar Abbass to Afghanistan.

From Afghanistan cigarettes are smuggled into Pakistan and dumped into warehouses in tribal areas and from thereon smuggled to down country in small quantities.

The raw material of cigarette is also smuggled into Pakistan.

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• Furore over Durham's tobacco funding for Afghan scholarship 

When Durham University launched an appeal to fund postgraduate scholarships for female students from Afghanistan, the last thing it must have expected was criticism. But despite the successful chancellor's appeal raising more than £600,000, and rapidly being put to use, with two women from Kabul University already enrolled in postgraduate studies at the northern university, the initiative has put Durham at the centre of controversy.

The reason? £125,000 of the money used to bring the Afghans to the UK was a donation from British American Tobacco (BAT), the cigarette giant that last year made a £2.5bn profit selling brands including Lambert & Butler cigarettes and Rizla papers to smokers around the world. That, say students, academics, charities and alumni, is putting the university's reputation at risk. They are uniting to condemn the funding of Durham's Afghan Women Appeal, and to ask the university to send the cash back.

"Although it may seem admirable to take funds for a worthy cause, BAT's efforts to look respectable come at a very cheap price," says Jean King, director of tobacco control at Cancer Research UK. "The death and disease caused by BAT's products dwarf this small award." The cancer charity – which itself will not financially support institutions working with the tobacco industry – believes Durham may have contravened the World Health Organisation's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. . . .

But its mollification doesn't seem to be working. On and off campus, outrage is growing. "Academic institutions should not take funding from any tobacco company," says Martin Dockrell, for the campaign group Action on Smoking and Health (Ash). "The industry has a long record of systematically undermining academic health research – notably on the role of smoking in causing cancer, the addictiveness of nicotine and the effect of second-hand smoke."

Dockrell adds that BAT could use Durham's acceptance of cash to boost its own credentials. "Internal tobacco industry documents show how the industry uses corporate social responsibility to preserve its 'licence to operate'," he says. . . .

The Durham tobacco funding controversy isn't the first. Back in 2000, Nottingham University's acceptance of £4m in sponsorship from BAT caused a stream of academic resignations as campaign groups said it had sold out by accepting "tainted" money. More recently, contentious donations have included the £1.5m given to the London School of Economics from the family of the Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, which led to the resignation of its director Howard Davies.

The latest controversy proves just how seriously universities need to think about their "mission statement" before accepting cash, says Jonathan Wolff, professor of philosophy at University College London.

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• Durham University defends British American Tobacco cash 

Durham University has been criticised for accepting £125,000 from a tobacco firm to help fund scholarships for women from Afghanistan.

The British American Tobacco (BAT) donation was one of 2,700 which raised about £630,000 in 2010 for a programme of postgraduate scholarships.

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) described the donation as a "cynical attempt" to tap into a new market.

The university said the cash was only accepted after "careful consideration".

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• Judge gives tobacco exec probation, fine for bribery  

DANVILLE -- A federal judge on Thursday cited the CIA's routine bribing of Afghan warlords as a reason for leniency to a tobacco executive who illegally paid more than $3 million to central Asian officials.

Bobby Jay Elkin Jr., who pleaded guilty in August to violating the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, drew three years' probation and a $5,000 fine for payments he made to officials in Kyrgyzstan during years he spent there as a manager for Danville-based Dimon Inc., which described itself as the world's second-largest independent leaf tobacco merchant.

The sentence was much less than the five-year minimum prison term recommended by federal sentencing guidelines or the 38 months suggested by the prosecutor.

U.S. District Court Judge Jackson Kiser said probation was appropriate because of the detailed help Elkin gave to investigators. The judge also noted that in making the bribes, Elkin faced a choice of "either you do this or lose your job."

Kiser compared Elkin's actions to those of the CIA in Afghanistan. The CIA payments do not violate federal law, Kiser said, but "it sort of goes to the morality of the situation."

Elkin's punishment is part of a U.S. bribery investigation into the company that now owns Dimon, Alliance One International Inc., a Morrisville, N.C., tobacco merchant with 2010 sales of $2.3 billion. Alliance One Osh, the company's Kyrgyzstan operation, and Alliance One International, were sentenced by Kiser on Thursday to $9.45 million in fines.

The penalties result from charges to which the corporations pleaded guilty in August. They stemmed from Elkin's bribery in Kyrgyzstan and from similar payments uncovered in Thailand.

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• Senate gives final approval to cigarette tax increase  

The Senate tonight stripped down a bill to increase the cigarette tax and earmarked almost all of the money it would raise toward future health care costs as a way to prepare for an expected veto from Gov. Mark Sanford.

The bill would raise the tax by 50 cents to 57 cents a pack and is expected to generate $136.1 million to be used to plug expected shortfalls next year in the state budget.

The bill now returns to the House, which passed it last year.

Most of the money would go toward Medicaid expenses. Additionally, $5 million would go to the Hollings Cancer Center at the Medical University of South Carolina for lung cancer research and another $5 million toward helping people quit smoking and stop them from starting.

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EDITORIAL: Memorial's smoking stand 

Memorial Hospital's decision to stop hiring workers who smoke beginning February 1 can be broadly justified as a symbolic standard for a health-care provider. Yet its challenge to traditional standards of fair treatment for employees and job applicants is a bit more tricky. Ultimately it leads to question of whether employers should attempt to regulate the private, legal, off-premises, life-style behaviors of their employees, and, if so, where to draw the line. . . .

Yet other risky behaviors abound. Many people, for example, drink too much alcohol. Others ride motorcycles, which produce a high incidence of catastrophic brain injuries and exorbitant medical costs that is often shifted to the public. One could argue that rock-climbing, hang-gliding, sky-diving, and bicycle, ATV and horse-back riding are needlessly risky.

It is imminently fair to ban smoking and other tobacco use at work, and to charge differentiated health insurance premiums. But if it is fair to discriminate against smokers by barring them from jobs on the grounds of a commitment to health, why stop there. Or better yet, why begin down that slippery slope.

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• The Taliban diversify into tobacco  

LAHORE // The smuggling of tobacco is helping to fuel the Taliban insurgency in Pakistan, according to analysts and officials. While the poppy trade still contributes nearly half of the funds funnelled to the Taliban - both in Afghanistan and Pakistan - officials now believe the militants are increasingly turning to other sources, including tobacco sales and smuggling, kidnappings, logging and mining.

"We believe tobacco has been second only to drugs as a source of finance to the Pakistani Taliban," David Kaplan, the editorial director of the US-based Center for Public Integrity (CPI), a non-profit organisation based in Washington, DC, said in a report last month.

With the US and Pakistan both engaged in fighting the Taliban, there is a growing consensus among officials that the only way to defeat the militants is to hit them where it hurts the most - their pockets.

But that is becoming increasingly difficult as the Taliban appear adept at switching sources of financing. . . .

But with efforts by the US to wipe out poppy farming in Afghanistan showing some success, and sanctions by the Pakistani government on charitable donations, the Taliban have been forced to look elsewhere for financial support.

According to the World Health Organization, cigarette and tobacco smuggling provides about $40bn a year to extremist groups, including the Taliban. Analysts inside Pakistan estimate the group receives about 20 per cent of its funding from counterfeit cigarette production and smuggling.

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Smokers Fight SCHIP With Tea Bags 

Cigar stores and pro-smoking organizations are encouraging smokers to send tea bags and images of tea bags to the White House or members of Congress to protest the increased taxation on cigarettes and cigars to fund the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).

"Sending a tea bag is a relatively easy, non-expensive way to express your dissatisfaction," said Eloise Ensminger, owner of the Pipe and Tobacco Shop in Little Rock, Arkansas. Ensminger is one of many tobacconists who are encouraging their customers to send the politically charged leaf-filled pouches to Washington, D.C., sometime before April 15.

Ensminger fears she will not be able to keep her store open much longer due to the combination of SCHIP taxation and the recent Arkansas state excise tax increase from 32 to 68 percent on cigars, pipe tobacco and chewing tobacco. . . .

Since Santelli's tirade on February 20, several Web sites and organizations have been created to encourage those dissatisfied with recent government taxations and bailouts to protest in-person or through tea bag-filled packages. Many involved in the cigar industry have decided to protest the SCHIP tax increases by the same means.

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• Troops raise awareness of efforts to quit smoking  

BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan -- More than 600 soldiers participated in a Cold Turkey Trot run held at Bagram, Nov. 20, to raise awareness of the many resources available to people trying to quit tobacco.

"We, in the military, have a lot of people who are addicted to nicotine, both through smoking and smokeless tobacco," said Maj. Heidi Whitescarver, a public health nurse in the Command Joint Surgeon's office for Combined Joint Task Force-101. "This event brings that fact to light. I just wanted to have one day to say, 'Hey, if there's people out there who want to quit, there are people here on BAF (Bagram Air Field) and around Afghanistan that are willing to help them do that."

Whitescarver, an Anchorage, Ala., native, coordinated the run and also created a proclamation that was signed by the commanding general of Combined Joint Task Force-101, officially declaring Nov. 20 as the CJTF-101 tobacco-free day. According to Whitescarver, the proclamation also talks about the resources available to help individuals who want to quit tobacco.

The "Great American Smokeout Day" was the perfect opportunity for Whitescarver to express her devotion to the health of soldiers, urging all tobacco users to quit for just one day.

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15PC OF GIRLS SMOKE IN FIVE AFGHAN PROVINCES 

Nearly 15 per cent of girl students in five provinces of Afghanistan smoke cigarettes while smoking prevalence among boys around 36 per cent, the Public Health Ministry said on Saturday.

"Smoking prevalence is 35.9 per cent for boys and 14.5 per cent for girls in schoolchildren of five provinces," the ministry said on the World No Tobacco Day. It urged the government to protect the youth by imposing a ban on all tobacco advertisements, promotion and sponsorship.

In a press release, the ministry said this year's campaign focussed on thwarting multi-billion dollar efforts of tobacco companies to attract young people to its addictive products through sophisticated marketing.

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Afghanistan begins campaign to cut smoking  

Afghanistan may be the world's largest producer of heroin, but the government has taken the first step towards to a ban on smoking in public places.

Local media said on Tuesday that the council of ministers had ordered a campaign through the media and mosques to inform the public that smoking in educational institutions, hospitals and government offices has been outlawed.

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• A Good Cigar, From Friends 

Amid the explosions echoing through the mountains of Afghanistan, or the ruins of an Iraqi neighborhood, the robust aroma of a fine cigar is helping U.S. troops remember life back home.

Quality cigars, by some estimates, are second only to Starbucks coffee on the wish list of troops overseas. Where but Tampa, Cigar City, can the need best be met?

Enter Thompson Cigars, a 92-year-old retailer near Tampa International Airport, along with a dedicated employee and an ex-Navy man with a passion for helping the troops overseas. . . .

A month after terrorists struck New York and Washington on Sept. 11, 2001, Thompson began getting requests from overseas troops for cigars. Initially, the company just sent free boxes of cigars to those who asked.

Now, it's a big-time giveaway. About 10,000 free cigars of all brands and varieties were shipped last year to troops, mostly in Iraq and Afghanistan. That amounts to $50,000 worth of finely rolled tobacco, said Thompson Cigars' owner, Carlos Franzblau.

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• Afghanistan begins campaign to cut smoking  

Afghanistan may be the world's largest producer of heroin, but the government has taken the first step towards to a ban on smoking in public places.

Local media said on Tuesday that the council of ministers had ordered a campaign through the media and mosques to inform the public that smoking in educational institutions, hospitals and government offices has been outlawed.

The ban will be widened later to cover hotels and restaurants.

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Support Our Troops With Cigars 

Many of America's Finest who are serving overseas in places like Afghanistan and Iraq greatly appreciate being able to enjoy at least a few small luxuries, such as fine cigars. I have exchanged emails with cigar smoking members of the military, including those who have served multiple tours of duty, and even some older officers who were redeployed because of their special skills. One such officer is Major Mitchell E. Fadem, Ph.D. (age 56), who is a frequent visitor to this website. Mitch was recently deployed to Afghanistan, and would like to be able to distribute cigars to the troops . . .

Calling All Cigar Manufacturers and Retailers

If you would like to donate cigars to our troops serving in Afghanistan, here is the contact information:

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Sniper celebrates with cigar after killing Taliban officer 

A ROYAL Marine sniper from Edinburgh has described marking his first kill with a cigar after "slotting" a Taliban commander from more than 1000 metres.

British troops fighting in southern Afghanistan are embroiled in some of the most intense combat involving UK forces since the Second World War.

Meanwhile, Nato-led troops and Afghan police killed two suspected Taliban militants and detained four others in the latest round of fighting, a police official said today. . . .

"I just graduated from sniper school late last year after nine weeks' training.

"It was my first kill. I had a cigar afterwards. I didn't lose any sleep about it. He was a Taliban commander after all."

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