Tobacco.org

Internet cafes flouting tobacco ban, group says 

The number of reported cases of Internet cafes violating new tobacco regulations has tripled in the past month, an anti-smoking group said yesterday.

The John Tung Foundation said it received reports last month of 129 cases of Internet cafes violating the new Tobacco Hazard Prevention and Control Act (菸害防制法). This number is about equal to all reported cases from January to March, showing a steep climb in the number of Internet cafes that violate the rules, the foundation said.

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Health surcharge on cigarettes in Taiwan to double starting June 1  

The health surcharge on tobacco will be increased from NT$10 to NT$20 per pack of cigarettes starting June 1 to discourage smoking and raise funds for the country's health insurance program, Taiwan's top health official said Friday.

Yeh Ching-chuan (葉金川), minister of the Department of Health, said that the price of a pack of cigarettes is expected to increase by between NT$10 and NT$15 following the increase in the health surcharge.

Currently, a pack of cigarettes sells for NT$55 on average. . . .

The John Tung Foundation, an anti-smoking group, recently criticized the DOH for only spending NT$160 million from the surcharge funds to help the public kick the habit of smoking, while shelling out NT$600 million to subsidize tobacco manufacturers to print or affix the new marking.

Yeh replied, however, that the DOH has already received confirmation from four major tobacco manufacturers, including Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corp., that they will do the markings themselves at no extra cost to the government.

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• Foundation slams firms that sell ‘cute’ cigarettes 

“Many young ladies, perhaps because they are unable to consume enough servings of fruit, believe that by smoking peach [cigarettes], they are getting the same amount of nutrition as they would from a real peach.” — Lin Ching-li, director of the John Tung Foundation’s Tobacco Control Division

Tobacco companies that sell cigarettes in cute or fashionable packaging in an attempt to attract young ladies may be violating new tobacco rules, a foundation said yesterday.

Under the new Tobacco Hazard Prevention and Control Act (菸害防制法) that took effect on Jan. 11, businesses can be fined if they encourage the purchase of cigarettes by means of advertisement posters, electronic panels, animation, bonus points or any discount program, placing more than one box of cigarettes on the counter and selling candies, snacks or toys in the form of cigarettes.

Despite the tighter regulations, tobacco companies still market fruit-flavored cigarettes to young ladies to give the impression that smoking these cigarettes has the same health benefits as eating fruit, the anti-smoking group John Tung Foundation said.

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Take the fifth: Baseball in Taiwan features a smoke break  

In Taiwan baseball, there is a 15-minute smoke break between the fifth and sixth innings. There is no seventh-inning stretch.

Andrew Lorraine wasn't required to smoke, but that delay was just one of the adjustments the former Angels left-hander had to make in 2007-08 playing for the La New Bears in the Chinese Professional Baseball League.

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Thoughts on Taiwan's new 'smoking ban'  

DOH to combat smoking with new ash trays 

The Department of Health (DOH) will work with local authorities to provide more places for smokers to dispose of their cigarette butts in light of the recent indoor smoking ban, a spokesman said yesterday.

DOH Public Relations Office chief Wang Che-chao (王哲超) said it appeared that street cigarette bins were in higher demand now that smoking had been forbidden in restaurants and KTV parlors.

Under the ban, public establishments are not allowed to provide ashtrays for customers.

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Passengers fume over lack of smoking rooms  

Taoyuan International Airport has sent a letter to the Department of Health, requesting permission to open smoking rooms in its terminals following passenger complaints.

Passengers have complained that there are no smoking facilities in any of the terminals. Taoyuan's old smoking rooms were closed after the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act came into effect two months ago. The rooms did not comply with the Act, media reported yesterday.

The dearth of smoking facilities has forced the desperate to secretly smoke in the toilets.

“You get fined NT$3,000 if you get caught,” he said.

“There is simply nowhere else I can smoke, let me just take two puffs!” a cleaning lady who cleans toilets at Taoyuan said.

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More bins to be installed to cope with increased cigarette litter 

The Department of Health (DOH) is working with local authorities to have more cigarette bins installed in public outdoor spaces, in light of the recent increase in cigarette litter following the enforcement of an indoor smoking ban in the country, a DOH spokesman said Thursday.

According to Wang Che-chao, head of the DOH's public relations office, it appears that street cigarette bins are in higher demand now that smoking is forbidden in indoor public areas such as restaurants and KTV parlors.

Under the ban, such public establishments are not allowed to provide ashtrays for customers.

"In the past, smokers could have taken their live cigarette butts into a restaurant and dumped them in an ashtray, but now they have to find a place outside," Wang said.

However, he stressed that the move to install more bins should not be seen as encouraging smoking, as is a transitional step to help smokers adapt to the newly instituted ban.

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Health surcharge on tobacco stalled by enforcement issue  

Department of Health (DOH) Minister Yeh Ching-chuan on Monday attributed a delay in implementing a mandatory increase in the health surcharge on cigarettes to a legal snag over how the measure will be enforced.

Yeh told lawmakers that under existing law, the surcharge could not be imposed until cigarette vendors had sold their current inventories of tobacco products and would only take effect on new inventory.

The DOH would prefer, however, that cigarette vendors pay the tax on their existing inventories in advance, but such a procedure has no legal basis, Yeh said.

He promised to resolve the legal quandary as soon as possible to prevent the smuggling and hoarding of tobacco products due to the delay.

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John Tung Foundation takes aim at e-cigarettes 

The John Tung Foundation yesterday urged the Department of Health (DOH) to place electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) in the same legal category as regular cigarettes.

“E-cigarettes contain liquid nicotine. In terms of Article 2 of the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (菸害防制法), e-cigarettes should be regarded as regular cigarettes,” foundation president Yau Sea-wain (姚思遠) said.

The article stipulates that anything made from tobacco or related products designed for smoking, chewing, swallowing or snuffing should be classified in the same category as cigarettes.

“E-cigarettes are cigarettes, as they fit the profile and definition,”

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Cigarette prices may rise soon 

Cigarette prices could be raised as soon as next month if a mandatory hike in the tobacco surcharge takes effect, Department of Health (DOH) Minister Yeh Ching-chuan (葉金川) said yesterday.

Yeh was referring to an amendment to the Tobacco Hazards Prevention and Control Act (菸害防制法) that cleared the legislature on Jan. 12, according to which the health and welfare surcharge imposed on tobacco products should be increased by between NT$10 and NT$20 per pack.

With cigarette prices now averaging NT$50 per pack, the average price is likely to increase to over NT$60 after the new surcharge comes into force.

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Most smoking ban violations occur in workplace: activists 

A month after the new tobacco regulations took effect, the John Tung Foundation yesterday said it was disappointed with the way health officials had implemented the law, saying officials had caused confusion.

The Tobacco Hazard Prevention and Control Act (菸害防制法), that came into effect on Jan. 11, prohibits smoking in public spaces and offices with three or more employees, as well as requiring businesses to display no-smoking signs. It also limits tobacco marketing activities to a minimum.

The anti-smoking group said yesterday that in the one month since the tobacco ban went into effect, it had received 142 reports of violations. As many as 80 percent, or 110 of the reports, were complaints filed by workers who reporting violations in the workplace.

Yau Sea-wain (姚思遠), president of the foundation, said that because the law prohibits smoking in “offices with three or more employees” and “public indoor spaces,” it would be a violation of the law to smoke in stairways, corridors and restrooms, all of which are commonly mistaken by smokers to be places where smoking is allowed.

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Most anti-smoking violations in workplace: foundation  

The non-profit John Tung Foundation has received 142 complaints since a law banning smoking in public indoor areas took effect nearly a month ago, the anti-smoking group said Sunday.

Speaking at a news conference at the foundation's headquarters, foundation CEO Yao Shi-yuan said that to many people's surprise, as many as 80 percent of the alleged cases, or 110, took place in the workplace, including in offices of superiors, stairwells or bathrooms.

According to Yao, the finding confounded the expectations of foundation workers, who thought most violations would occur at coffee shops, restaurants, bus or train stations and outdoor areas surrounding hospitals.

Yao blamed the Bureau of Health Promotion under the Cabinet-level Department of Health (DOH) -- the agency in charge of enforcing the anti-smoking amendment -- and its misguided interpretation of the law and lax law enforcement for the high rate of violations.

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Tobacco surcharge hike will help smokers quit habit: official  

Although smokers are complaining over an impending increase in the tobacco surcharge from NT$10 (US$0.29) to NT$20 per packet after a recent law amendment, a government official said Sunday that the higher price should spur smokers to quit the habit.

Department of Health (DOH) Vice Minister Cheng Shou-shia said he thinks that the higher surcharge, which will raise the price of cigarettes from the current NT$55 to NT$70 per pack, will push some people to stop smoking in these hard economic times.

The current average price of cigarettes in Taiwan is quite low compared to other countries or areas like Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Australia, Cheng noted.

Despite the planned surcharge hike, cigarette prices in Taiwan will remain lower than most other countries in Asia, he said.

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Taiwanese confused about smoking ban 

Taiwan recently banned smoking in all indoor public areas to help create a smoke-free island. These places include sheltered transport stations, KTVs, Internet cafes and comic-book stores.

Those who defy the ban, which has been described as a milestone by lobbyists, face a fine of up to US$320.

Taiwan is now the 17th territory in the world and the second in Asia to ban smoking in public indoor spaces. But grey areas remain in the enforcement of the new law.

Some said they are unaware that open areas outside hospitals are considered smoke-free zones. Others said they are not sure if they can light up at open spaces in temples which are already filled with smoke from burning incense most of the time.

To clear the confusion, Taiwan's Department of Health has promised to issue official notices. Parliament has also approved a doubling of a health duty imposed on cigarettes, with each pack costing 50 cents more, at around US$2.20.

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