Tobacco.org

• Smoking survey  

A COMPANY'S social report for the year concerning youth smoking prevention revealed it would be stretching the boundaries of their appropriate involvement for it to be directly in contact with underage individuals who chose to smoke.

British American Tobacco Fiji in its 2007 Fiji Social Report stated it had been asked if it could held establish a helpline for children who smoked and who were under the age of 18, during dialogue sessions with stakeholders in August, last year.

The company's response was that they had a number of youth smoking prevention initiatives in place

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Tobacco firm: Give us sports zones  

British American Tobacco’s general manager, Jeff Yoon, left, and businessman Ikbal Jannif, who launched the company’s Fiji social report 2007 in Suva yesterday

British American Tobacco Fiji says it wants to pursue the possibility of providing designated smoking areas in sports venues.

The company will hold discussions with the executive committee of the Fiji Sports Council to pursue the idea, it said in its Fiji Social Report 2007, released in Suva yesterday.

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• A puff will cost $500  

PEOPLE caught smoking in public vehicles will be spot fined $500 from next Friday.

The effort is part of the Land Transport Authority and Health Ministrys campaign to raise awareness and reduce smoking in public places.

At a press conference yesterday, authority chief executive Abraham Simpson said the campaign was spurred on by the two bodies recognition that smoke emissions from motorised vehicles and cigarette smoke in public transportation vehicles had a negative impact on the health and safety of the public and environment in Fiji.

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Doctors back fine against smoking 

THE Fiji Medical Association has supported moves by the Land Transport Authority and the Health Ministry to fine people caught smoking in public vehicles.

Association president Jona Senilagakali said efforts to raise awareness and reduce smoking in public places were beneficial to the public's health.

Dr Senilagakali said raising awareness about smoking was a worldwide issue because smoking caused serious health problems such as cancer of the lungs.

He said nicotine in cigarettes had proved to be the cancer-causing agent.

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• Guests welcome Westin’s no smoking policy 

Hotel guests and clients are applauding the bold non-smoking policy of Westin Hotels & Resorts in Australia & the Pacific, who have become smoke free from yesterday.

The Westin Melbourne, The Westin Sydney and The Westin Denarau Island Resort & Spa Fiji are the first hotel chain in this region to introduce a 100% no smoking policy following customer data and a clear demand from guests for a healthy, totally smoke free hotel experience.

They follow the lead of Westin’s 77 North America hotels who pioneered the smoke-free policy this past January as part of Westin’s new brand positioning around personal renewal and offering guests services, products and amenities that allow them to relax, rejuvenate and restore during their stay.

One of Westin’s largest clients in this region, research-based medicines company, Pfizer Australia has commended the introduction of the new policy.

“We welcome the move by Westin to provide a smoke free environment for our staff away from our own work place,” comments Pfizer’s Suzanne Blake, Product Manager for Nicorette. 

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We welcome the move by Westin to provide a smoke free environment for our staff away from our own work place.
Pfizer Australia’s Suzanne Blake, Product Manager for Nicorette. 

Smoking ban will be tough 

A BAN on smoking in nightclubs and restaurants will be hard to monitor and will need the co-operation of club owners.

Occupational Health & Safety director Osea Cawaru said they would liaise with the Ministry of Health to see the ban is enforced.

"We can help the ministry in enforcing the ban and we can commit employers to include in their OHS policy a safe and healthy working environment for workers and non-workers," he said.

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Tobacco firm backs new imports duty 

The British American Tobacco Fiji has come out in strong support of Government’s newly imposed excise duty on imported tobacco products.

The 10 per cent levy on imported tobacco products will come into effect from Monday.

British American Tobacco general manager Jason Murphy says the introduction of excise duty on imported cigarette of $128.86 per thousand cigarettes indicates that Government is serious about protecting the sustainability of the domestic tobacco industry.

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Enforce smoke rules: Singh 

ENACTING regulations to stop people from smoking on public service vehicles was commended but there was a need to ensure the rules are enforced.

The comment was made by the president of the Fiji Bus Operators Association Pyara Singh and general secretary of the Fiji Taxi Union Rishi Ram on the decision by the Ministry of Health to enforce no smoking rules on public service vehicles.

Mr Ram, the FTU general secretary, said this law should have been in existence a long time ago.

"But the most important thing to do would be to have a body that would enforce this no smoking law," he said. . . .

He said the police should be the force responsible for making sure that the rules and regulations were followed. Minister for Health Solomone Naivalu said the this law has been in existence since 1999.

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Church cracks down on excessive kava, smoke 

MINISTERS and officials of the Methodist Church who drink kava and smoke excessively will face heavy penalties under a new policy.

Church assistant general secretary Reverend Tuikilakila Waqairatu said the new policy was being drawn up because of the need to control the abuse of kava and cigarettes among members.

"There is a motion raised by one of the divisions for the issue to seriously discussed at the conference in Narewa, Nadi at the end of this month because it was becoming a problem in the church," he said.

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Cigarettes kill 50 people per month in Fiji 

Up to 50 people die each month in Fiji due to cigarette smoking related illnesses. But the Ministry of Health says the most alarming, is that while the rate of smoking was increasing rapidly, the age group of smokers has been going down just as fast, with children as young as 10-years-old now smoking cigarettes. The ministry's tobacco control unit legal officer Rai Ligabalavu told Fijilive today that the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which came into effect yesterday, was timely both economically and socially for Fiji. She said ministry would now be able to better control the consumption of cigarettes as oppose to being largely powerless in the past.

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Cigarette query 

Passengers arriving in Fiji from overseas can get away with buying more than 250 grams or 250 duty free cigarettes.

In his latest audit of the Fiji Islands Revenue and Customs Authority, Auditor-General Eroni Vatuloka said the Customs card limit for passengers arriving in Fiji was still 500 grams or 500 cigarettes.

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Cigarette manufacturing on the decline 

Fiji's Health Minister Solomone Naivalu says cigarette manufacturing is on the decline in Fiji.

Answering queries in Parliament, Naivalu said cigarette companies update the ministry on local manufacturing and the importation of cigarettes.

On whether the ministry would declare the precincts of Parliament a no-smoking zone, Naivlau said it was the Speaker's prerogative.

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Tobacco Act has not effect on smokers 

NO one has been prosecuted in the past two years for smoking in a public place or selling cigarettes to minors.

Health Minister Solomoni Naivalu said the Tobacco Control Unit was disbanded last year because of lack of funds.

Mr Naivalu said in Parliament that since the Tobacco Act came into force, there was little done to enforce it.

He said no one had been charged for selling cigarettes to those under 18 years or smoking in a public place because the Act did not include the provision of notices and forms to be used for the enforcement of the Act.

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Tobacco company maintains stand 

BRITISH American Tobacco maintains that an advertisement criticised by the Health Ministry does not promote smoking.

The company claims the advertisement informs people of the dangers of smoking.

Company managing director Andrew McDonald said the poster advertisements given to retail outlets "clearly states the dangers of smoking and health warnings". . . .

The ad shows a child with a red X across his body, an adult beside him and a cigarette roll in front of them. Mr McDonald said the X across the child was a reminder to business operators that cigarettes must not be sold to children under the age of 18 years.

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Expert urges tax on tobacco 

MORE than 140 people die in Fiji each year from smoking, according to a report presented yesterday at the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control workshop.

Doctor Harley Stanton from the Secretariat of the Pacific Community in Noumea, who compiled the report, said the rate of death caused by smoking was expected to increase.

He said the age group varied from 30 to 40 and was common among men. To control the situation, Dr Stanton said the Government should increase the tax on tobacco.

"The Government did the best and most effective choice last week in announcing the increase in tobacco prices.

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