Tobacco.org

• Underage smoking targeted 

British American Tobacco joined forces with prominent cooperative societies to launch the Partners in Responsibility youth smoking prevention campaign in Kuwait. The campaign, which aims to raise awareness of laws that regulate underage smoking, was launched on the 4th of May 2008 in all outlets of Dasmah and Bnaid Al-Gar, Bayan, Al-Adeliyiyyah, Kaifan and Al-Rawda and Hawally cooperative societies. Bassem Bekdache, Head of Corporate and Regulatory Affairs for British American Tobacco in the GCC stated that "We hope that the Partners in Responsibility campaign will help increase awareness of the law. We take the matter of youth smoking prevention very seriously and are backing up words with actions. In addition to Kuwait, this campaign has also been rolled out in Bahrain and Qatar with more countries to follow by the end of 2008."

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• Shura Council stubs out anti-smoking law 

A LAW aimed at combating smoking had some of the fire taken out of it by the Shura Council yesterday.

They approved a softened version, without jail sentences for people who sell tobacco products to children.

Councillors dropped parliament's proposed six-month jail sentence for those who sell them to children aged below 14, sticking instead to a maximum fine of BD100. . . .

They also decided to remove an article which stipulated that tax revenue from tobacco products would go to the Health Ministry, rather than the national budget.

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• Bahrain's tobacco industry will be affected by anti-smoking bill 

MANAMA -- Tobacco industry in the kingdom will be severely affected by an anti-smoking bill which is expected to be ratified by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa soon. The bill will ban planting or industrialising any type of tobacco.

Bahrain's muasil (traditional type of tobacco for f+ishishaf-i) trade which has a great demand in the Gulf region, Europe and Northern America will be hit and the ban will affect its export revenues. The f+imuasilf-i comes in many flavours such as apple and strawberry and it is known for its strong smell and fruit taste.

The bill, which was approved by the Lower and Upper Houses, will also ban smoking in closed public places

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• Shura stubs out anti-smoking law 

A DIVIDED Shura Council yesterday stubbed out an anti-smoking law, dismissing it as un-enforceable. Members initially approved the proposal last week, but yesterday decided to refer it back to the services committee for complete re-working.

Some objected to part of the draft, which stipulated that adults who smoke in cars with children aboard be prosecuted, saying it was unworkable. Others said prosecuting people who smoke in malls and other closed areas would be even tougher, as courts demand that offenders be caught red-handed.

Members were also presented with a letter contesting the law by tobacco importing company Talal Abu Ghazaleh & Company International, which has a branch in Bahrain.

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Cigarette Packs May Display More Warnings In Gulf Cooperation Council Countries 

Cigarette companies may have to design new packets to enter the rich oil exporting Arab countries.

According to a proposal which the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries are in the process of finalizing, all cigarette packets must have 50 per cent of the packaging indicating statutory health warning with a mandatory font set to 14 on the surface.

Dr.Mariam Al Jalahma, the Assistant Undersecretary of public health and primary care at the Bahrain Ministry of Health told AHN Media on Tuesday, "The proposal is being studied by the GCC Council for Anti Smoking which is yet to be finalized. All tobacco companies supplying their products to the region will have 18 months to change their look."

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• Smoking draft law is backed 

Council members initially backed an anti-smoking law yesterday, which was originally drafted 14 years ago.

It is a mix between the original draft, which was presented to the former Shura Council in 1994 but never passed, and a parliamentary proposed law.

Under the new law, people who smoke in their cars with children on board could be prosecuted.

Traders who sell tobacco to children aged under 14 years could also face up to six months in jail.

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• 'Tobacco-candy' stores face crackdown 

A NATIONWIDE crackdown on candy containing tobacco, which is being sold to children at cold stores, has been launched, government's consumer protection officials said yesterday.

The "chaini khaini", a mixture of sun-dried tobacco leaves and fruit flavours such as strawberry, lime and mint, is illegal in Bahrain and unlicensed by the Health Ministry, they said.

"However, it is more likely that it was brought to Bahrain by individuals arriving from abroad," said an Industry and Commerce Ministry spokesman.

The product, indigenous to India, is said to be addictive, with its daily consumption among users ranging from three to 30 times.

"After learning from some reports in the media that this product was available at several cold stores, the Industry and Commerce Ministry contacted Food Safety Directorate officials at the Health Ministry, who confirmed it," said the spokesman.

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• Profits going up in smoke say bosses 

SMOKE-FREE workplaces in Bahrain could actually benefit the country's economy, according to a new report. The study revealed that nearly half of employers believe that smoking has a negative financial impact on their company.

Bosses who took part in the survey, commissioned by Pfizer Middle East and conducted by Harris Interactive, said smokers were actually less productive than their non-smoking counterparts.

"Even more surprisingly, almost a third of smokers (31 per cent) agree that they are less productive in the workplace owing to their smoking habits," said Pfizer Middle East policy and external affairs director Dr Ahmed El Hakim.

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Bahrain bans F1 tobacco advertising  

Tobacco advertising on billboards related to Formula One motor racing has been banned in Bahrain in a move to reduce smoking in the kingdom, where one in three adults smoke.

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Bahrain bans F1 tobacco advertising  

Tobacco advertising on billboards related to Formula One motor racing has been banned in Bahrain in a move to reduce smoking in the kingdom, where one in three adults smoke.

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• F1 a victim as Bahrain stamps out smoking. 

Despite the sport having banned such sponsorship since 2005, posters advertising tobacco products using the forthcoming Bahrain Grand Prix are to be pulled down as the country attempts to fall into line with increasingly popular smoking restrictions.

According to the Gulf Daily News, the move is part of efforts to stop cigarette and tobacco advertising at all sporting events throughout the kingdom, including all events at the Bahrain International Circuit. The ban on billboard advertising is seen as an extremely significant development.

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Anti-smoking bill passed 

MPs yesterday approved a tough anti-smoking law that includes fines for people who light up in cars with children on board.

Traders who sell tobacco to children below 14 years could also face up to six months in jail under the new legislation. . . .

The new draft is a combination of the original draft and a parliamentary proposed law.

It will now be discussed and voted on by the Shura Council, before being sent to His Majesty King Hamad for ratification.

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• Drive against under-age smoking 

BRITISH American Tobacco (BAT) and retail partner Jawad Business Group (JBG) have launched a new initiative in Bahrain in an effort to tackle under-age smoking.

The programme, called Partners in Responsibility, has all Jawad supermarkets, Jawad Express and convenience stores in the country displaying point-of-sale materials, stating: "We don't sell cigarettes to under-18s".

"The campaign has been thoroughly researched amongst a target audience of parents and retailers," said BAT Middle East head of corporate and regulatory affairs Donato Del Vecchio.

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Smoking may be outlawed in Bahrain 

BAHRAIN could follow the example of an Indian city where smoking in public has been completely outlawed, the GDN has learned.

Health officials here plan to contact their counterparts in Chandigarh, which banned smoking in public places, including streets, in July, as they prepare new anti-smoking legislation.

They could even provide traffic police powers to fine people caught smoking in a no-smoking area, a top official revealed.

A new law that will penalise people who smoke in malls and introduce health warnings on cigarette cartons could come into force in Bahrain early next year.

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LETTER: Blowing smoke at a toothless law 

I write this to bring to your readers' notice a strange incident that happened with me and my family on June 30, at the Bahrain International Airport, when we were on our way to Delhi.

As we stood in the long queue to await our turn to check in our baggage, I smelt cigarette smoke and found to my horror a very well dressed Bahraini man (I saw that from the passport he was holding) smoking.

Since I know for a fact that smoking is banned at the Bahrain International Airport, I immediately alerted my father who, in turn, requested the man to stub it out.

Imagine my horror as he simply turned around and said: "What is your problem? I have special permission to smoke. You only concentrate on what you are doing." . . .

The last straw was when an airport official told me to tell my father to 'get on with it' and not hold up the queue. . . .

I know I should not make this (racist) comment but I am convinced that had an expat been smoking (he would not have dared to in the first place), he would have been told to stub it out and humiliated. Nothing like that happened in this case.

Will someone at the airport please clarify what could be done in such cases ?

And will someone tell us how to register complaints, if at all? . . .

It was also ironical that our ultimate destination was Chandigarh, in north India, via Delhi! Chandigarh has just a month ago, been declared India's first SMOKE-FREE CITY where it is now illegal to be seen smoking ANYWHERE in public and invites strict penalties.

The law is strictly enforced by policemen, traffic officers, municipal officials as well as designated government officials. That is empowerment!!

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