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• Macedonia to ban smoking in bars, restaurants from January 2010  

Macedonia has become the latest country in South Eastern Europe to announce a ban on smoking in restaurants and bars, and the latest to hear vociferous complaints from restaurant owners that their businesses will be ruined.

Currently, the law says that smoking may be allowed in no more than half the area of a bar or restaurant, but Macedonian media reports said that this rule is widely ignored.

Macedonia intends banning smoking in restaurants and cafes from January 1 2010. Customers caught smoking will face fines of the equivalent of 150 to 300 euro, while restaurants and cafes that break the rules will be fined from 2000 to 4000 euro.

The new law also bans the sale of cigarettes to people younger than 16. Those who do will be fined 2000 to 4000 euro.

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JTI enters the FYR Macedonian market 

Japan Tobacco International (JTI), the third tobacco company in the world, enters the Macedonian market with its famous brands Winston and Camel

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Macedonian customs officers prevent smuggling of over 10 t of tobacco 

Skopje. Macedonian customs officers at Tabanovce border checkpoint, at the railway line to Serbia, prevented the smuggling of over 10 tons of tobacco, the Macedonian A1 TV channel informed. The tobacco was meant for the Greek market. The shipment was hidden in a truck trailer that was loaded on a train wagon. An Austrian company had tried to smuggle the tobacco.

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Vecer: Tobacco mafia causes about EUR 40 mln loss to Macedonia 

Skopje. The telephone numbers and whereabouts of all people arrested in a huge action of Macedonian police for combat against Pepel cigarettes smuggling were presented to the police authorities of the Balkan countries, Macedonian Vecer newspaper writes on Tuesday. Police officers in Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro, Romania and Bulgaria received the information send by their Macedonian colleagues and reached agreement for the action to be expanded to a regional level. . . .

The Tobacco mafia managed to cause a loss of nearly EUR 40 million to Macedonia in less than two years, the newspaper states.

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Macedonian police seize cigarettes of tobacco boss Bajrus Sejdiu 

Skopje. The Macedonian police have seized 5,500 cartons of cigarettes without an excise label in a warehouse of the Kumanovo company Smeki, the Macedonian A1 television reported.

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Macedonia is second in Europe according to tobacco consumption 

Macedonia is in second spot according to tobacco consumption per capita in Europe. Poland takes the top spot. According to data collected by the World Health Organisation (WHO), approximately 35% of the total population in Macedonia (700.000) smoke and the number of smokers constantly rises. Globally, trends prevail with regard to cutting down indoor or outdoor smoking.

WHO announced this recent data on the occasion of May 31 - World No Tobacco Day.

Macedonia observes May 31 with the logo "Youth Without Smoking - Cut the Network of Tobacco Advertising".

Latest global survey involving the youth, showed soaring tobacco consumption amongst adolescent girls in many countries. The increase is considered to be influenced by aggressive marketing of the tobacco industry.

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• Anti-smoking campaign underway in Macedonia  

The Macedonian government amended the Law on Tobacco and Tobacco Products and the Antismoking Law last month, launching an intensified nationwide campaign against smoking. Starting in mid-2009, cigarette packs will be required to depict photos of smokers' diseased organs. . . .

The government, in addition, amended the Antismoking Law to outlaw lighting up on all public premises, including those that were not covered by the 2006 law. The ban comes after the previous policy of setting aside separate tables for smokers in restaurants and other establishments proved ineffective at improving air quality for nonsmokers.

Currently, almost every restaurant or bar in Macedonia has designated smokers' and nonsmokers' tables. However, the smoke-filled atmosphere generally is unchanged

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Greek customs officials charged over cigarette scam 

Three Greek customs officials were charged Thursday with helping a cigarette smuggling scam and defrauding the Greek state of an estimated ¤100 million (US$144 million) in lost taxes, authorities said.

The three officials work at the Evzoni border crossing with Macedonia and were all charged with fraud and falsifying and concealing financial documents _ criminal offenses that carry a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison.

They are accused of falsifying papers to allow the tax-free export of 55 container loads of tobacco, cigarette paper and filters bound for Germany and Austria.

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• Customs Administration, Japan Tobacco International sign MoU 

Macedonian Customs Administration and Japan Tobacco International signed Thursday a Memorandum of Understanding.

The basic goal of the MoU, signed by Customs Administration Director Vanco Kargov and Japan Tobacco International Vice-President of Corporative Affairs Kent Brown, is promotion of mutual cooperation in joint activities in dealing with illegal trade with tobacco products, especially in the part of protection of legal tobacco trade, prevention of smuggling of original tobacco products, as well as prevention of illegal production, trade and distribution of falsified tobacco products.

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Passive Smoking – There’s Nothing Passive About It 

Skopje-- The Ministry of Health and USAID have launched an innovative public information campaign tackling the subject of passive smoking; that is, the effects that smoking has on other people in the environment. This is the first time in Macedonia the issue of passive smoking has been raised in an advertising campaign. The message is clear: there’s nothing passive about it – passive smoking is harmful to health. . . .

Speaking at the launch of the campaign, USAID Mission Director Dick Goldman said, “For years research has shown that exposure to second-hand smoke not only worsens existing health problems but also directly harms health. For instance, passive smoking can increase your risk of lung cancer by 20 to 30%, heart disease by 25 to 35%, and stroke by 80%. The air in a room where people are smoking contains around 4,000 chemicals, some of which are known to cause cancer.  The facts are clear: passive smoking is a deadly serious threat to people’s health and well-being.”

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Macedonian authorities adopt new anti-smoking rules 

A new law that restricts smoking in many public areas went into effect in Macedonia on Monday (2 January). Smoking is now prohibited on public transportation, in schools, universities and at indoor sporting and cultural events. Government offices, bars and restaurants will have to set up non-smoking areas.

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• Macedonian Smokers Say Health Drive Is A Drag 

Since the start of 2006, Skopje has finally started enforcing an anti-smoking law which had previously been largely ignored since being passed more than ten years ago.

The law bans smoking in all public places outside designated areas, outlaws advertisements for cigarettes and curbs the sale of cigarettes to anyone under the age of 18 and in outlets near schools and hospitals.

Businesses found to be in violation of this legislation can face fines of 100,000 to 250,000 denars, between about 1,940 and 4,850 United States dollars. Individuals who break the law can be charged between 5,000 and 15,000 denars, around 100 to 300 dollars.

The law, passed in 1995, remained a dead letter owing to the power of the tobacco lobby in this tobacco-growing country.

Macedonia has also signed an international convention for the control of tobacco, though the parliament has yet to ratify it. . . .

Government health inspectors are less happy, saying the law is incomplete and unclear.

They say it has failed to specify the size and appearance of special smoking areas and how smoking and non-smoking areas in caf?s should be separated.

The proprietors of such businesses are equally mystified. . . .

the change has already come to other areas.

In hospitals there are no more ashtrays . . .

The same change is apparent in government offices.

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• Ban on Public Smoking Enforced Today in Macedonia 

A law banning smoking in public places and advertisement of cigarettes is enforced today in Macedonia.

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• Ministry of health and USAID promote passive smoking campaign 

Passive smoking – there's nothing passive about it is the motto of the campaign promoted Monday by the Macedonian Ministry of Health and USAID.

Minister of Health Vlado Dimov said that passive is not less dangerous than the active smoking.

"In direction to decrease in smoking the Government adopted a strategy for tobacco control and the Law on Protection against Smoking which is due for implementation in January 1, 2006. The Government also adopted the changes in the Health Care Law for increase in the price of cigarettes, " Dimov said. . . .

Campaign objectives are to increase knowledge of the major health effects of passive smoking, specifically regarding children, to encourage smokers not to expose others to the damaging health effects of their smoking, to encourage non-smokers to be less accepting of passive smoking, to increase the number of smokers likely to seriously consider quitting or making a quit attempt and to encourage ex-smokers not to start smoking again.

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40% of Cigarettes in Macedonia Smuggled 

t. Smuggled cigarettes occupy 25% to 80% share from the markets of Southeastern European states, and 40% of the cigarettes at the Macedonian market had been imported illegally, a publication in today’s Romanian Gandul newspaper reads. According to the edition, Albania ranks first in smuggled cigarettes with a share of 80%, followed by Bosnia and Herzegovina with 47%, Macedonia – 40%, Bulgaria – 38%, Serbia and Montenegro – 37%, and Romania and Croatia – 24%.

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