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GUANGZHOU: This southern economic hub may snuff out smoking on official occasions once a new law takes effect.
"The proposal aims to accelerate the implementation of the new regulation and create the environment for a non-smoking Asian Games in 2010," said Su Jinzhong, deputy director of the standing committee of the municipal people's congress and one of the deputies who submitted the proposal.
The law bans smoking in kindergartens, cinemas, auditoriums and meeting rooms of government departments, State enterprises and public institutions, as well as places where there are pregnant women, while limiting smoking in bars, dance halls and game rooms.
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According to the Department of Health commissioned Survey of Lifestyles, Attitude and Nutrition (Slán), rates of smoking among the Irish populace have declined over the period 1998-2007 from 33 per cent to 29 per cent.
However, it is estimated that close to 7,000 people die each year in Ireland from smoking-related illnesses, and tobacco has been identified by the WHO as the leading cause of death and disability in the world.
Introducing an effective tobacco control strategy, including the use of graphic pictorial images on cigarette boxes, is seen as a crucial step in reducing tobacco-related deaths.
In May 2005, the European Commission bolstered the existing EU Tobacco products Directive of 2002 by recommending that member state governments adopt 14 graphic pictorial health warnings from a library of 42 colour photographs and other illustrations for inclusion on cigarette cartons.
According to the HSE, pre-testing of the EU library has been carried out and the images for use on the Irish market have been selected. Proposals have already been submitted to Government to amend the existing tobacco legislation, and one of these amendments will allow the Minister for Health to introduce combined text and photo warnings on tobacco products. It is anticipated that this will be enacted before the Dáil summer recess.
Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) will amend its smoking-control law, banning indoor smoking in all public places, said Lei Chin Ion, director of the SAR's Health Bureau, on Sunday.
Aside from the banning of indoor smoking, new measures such as fixed penalty and image of warning posted on cigarette package will be adopted in the new law, said Lei, on the sideline of local "World No Tobacco Day" campaign.
Myanmar official media Monday warned of the danger of tobacco, calling on the people to actively participate in the control of tobacco consumption, reports Xinhua news agency quoting a local daily.
According to the New Light of Myanmar, Health Minister Dr Kyww Myint stressed the need to organize the citizens to know the danger of tobacco and to join in tobacco consumption control.
He made these remarks in the wake of the warning by the World Health Organization (WHO) that consumption of tobacco and tobacco products killed over five million people yearly and the use of tobacco remained the main factor of causing diseases in the year 2020.
The WHO has designated the motto "Tobacco Health Warning" for this year with a view to enabling the people to understand the danger of tobacco by printing the health warning on packages of tobacco.
According to the paper, Myanmar marked the World No Tobacco Day- 2009 in Nay Pyi Taw ceremonially on Sunday.
YESTERDAY, Uganda joined the rest of the world to mark the World No Tobacco Day. Anti-cigarette activists are vowing to step up the campaign to compel the Government to tighten its grip on smokers who do not care about other people's health.
According to the Uganda Heart Institute, tobacco is the leading cause of preventable cancer deaths in the world, accounting for over 5.2 million deaths annually.
It is projected that the death toll of tobacco-related diseases will rise to 10 million per year, with 70% occurring in developing countries.
Owing to such health risks, in 2004 the Government passed a law barring smoking in public places.
It is considered a violation of non-smokers' rights to life and to a clean and healthy environment.
The then water, lands and environment minister, Kahinda Otafiire, ordered the ban to take immediate effect. . . .
However, despite the heath risks it poses, smoking has continued to thrive even in public places, in total disregard of the law.
And the bodies that should have implemented the legislation have not intervened much.
As a result, mob justice has increased due to increased smoking in public places, as non-smokers struggle to guard themselves from the effects of passive smoking. . . .
Karugaba blames the environmental watchdog, National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) for failing to crack down on smokers.
The Police in Tororo last year arrested one Julius Opondo over allegedly killing a colleague, Desiderio Okecho, by twisting his neck for lighting a cigarette in Wawulere Market.
The war against smoking has been further intensified with a ban on tobacco companies and retailers from giving gifts when selling cigarettes and other tobacco products.
The measure takes effect immediately with the amendment of the Control of Tobacco Product Regulations by the Health Ministry.
There is also a proposal to expand non-smoking zones to cover hotel lobbies and air-conditioned workplaces.
Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said retailers were not allowed to sell tobacco products with any other items or sell items and give away tobacco products for free.
The regulations were also amended to ban anyone from offering tobacco products or items promoting a tobacco product as gifts, and as prizes in lotteries, raffles, lucky draws, games or competitions.
D'oh! The Simpsons could be encouraging another generation of young people to take up smoking.
One of the most popular television shows in history contains a "large number" of tobacco-related scenes, say researchers who watched 400 episodes of the cartoon for science.
"We recorded 795 instances of smoking or references to smoking," says Dr Guy Eslick, a fellow of the International Union Against Cancer and honorary associate of the University of Sydney's School of Public Health.
"The most notable characters who smoked were Marge Simpson's sisters Patty and Selma, Krusty the Clown and Bart's school teacher Mrs Krabappel."
Dr Eslick assessed the first 18 seasons of the program and found the number of smoking references per season ranged from just over 10 to more than 60.
Smoking was presented in a "positive way" in just two percent of these cases, in a negative way in 35 percent of cases and neutrally in 63 percent. . . .
"Even instances of smoking being reflected in a negative way, particularly among young characters, could have an impact on promoting children to smoke cigarettes," Dr Eslick said.
The study concludes: "Viewing The Simpsons characters smoking may prompt children to consider smoking at an early age".
The research is to be published in the Medical Journal of Australia, and today (Sunday) is World No Tobacco Day.
Smoking in Tehran Municipality’s public places is banned, Tehran Mayor Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf announced here on Sunday.
In a statement issued on the occasion of the World No-Tobacco Day, Tehran Mayor warned of the increase in rate of habitual smokers aged between 13 and 15 in the country.
World No Tobacco Day is observed around the world every year on May 31, and this years’ theme is "Tobacco Health Warnings" in a bid to make people aware of the health risks of tobacco use and convincing them to quit and finally reduce over 5 million yearly deaths from tobacco related health problems, the mayor said.
On physical, psychological, cultural, and financial devastating effects smoking has on the society, Qalibaf said that tobacco is responsible for 90% of lung cancers and “is the major cause of heart diseases.”
The government reduced the tobacco industry to the size of a pygmy here Sunday by announcing immediate rollback of the controversial Statutory Regulatory Order (SRO) on Designated Smoking Areas (DSAs) and making the printing of pictorial health warnings on cigarette packs and outers mandatory with effect from January 1, 2010.
The government also prohibited the tobacco companies from offering free giveaways, cash rebates or discounts as a marketing incentive. It also announced to make Pakistan Railways smoke-free from July 1, 2009.
Minister for Health Mir Aijaz Hussain Jakhrani made these surprise announcements at a seminar organised in connection with World No-Tobacco Day 2009 (WNTD) here on Sunday. By doing so, the government not only added a golden chapter to the history of tobacco control efforts in Pakistan but also regained its lost glory in the international health community, which felt the pinch of the country's pro-tobacco industry posture just as much as anti-tobacco campaigners at home. . . .
Jakhrani also announced that all railway trains will be smoke-free from July 1, 2009.
The Dubai Health Authority launched an extensive anti-tobacco campaign on Sunday, targeting women and children in particular, and announced an awareness programme to be conducted in five phases till May 31 next year.
Starting this week, the campaign will also target worshippers through the Friday sermon, according to Dr Ahmad Ibrahim Kalban, the authority's Acting Director of Primary Health Care.
The awareness programme, launched to mark the World No Tobacco Day, follows recommendations by the World Health Organisation, including six policy statements against tobacco outlined in the global health body's mPower project.
Entitled Tobacco-free Dubai -- Together for a Society Free from Smoking, the campaign will begin the first phase by training physicians, raising awareness and inviting volunteers for the phases to follow.
The second phase of the campaign will start in September and will target students from G7-12 through lectures and campaigns to raise awareness.
We advise our readers to go out on May 31 and to see how many smokers are there. Anyone who comes to Russia or any other former Soviet republic will be in for a big surprise. Those going to China or India will be horrified and will realize that World No Tobacco Day is something far-fetched. . . .
It appears that tobacco health warnings are a sign of despair. Although this will now be the twenty-first World No Tobacco Day, the ranks of smokers continue to swell. The WHO estimates that global tobacco consumption has soared by 20% since 2003, primarily in Africa and Asia, which have been targeted by transnational tobacco companies over the last nine years.
China leads the global smoking spree. . . .
Contrary to a widespread opinion, the U.S. government has not declared a federal ban on smoking in public places. Only 25 states have banned smoking on the local level. In 12 more states, adults are allowed to smoke in bars, restaurants and casinos. Although some municipal councils have banned smoking in 13 remaining states, no federal smoking ban is envisaged there.
The WHO estimates that at least five million will die from tobacco-related causes throughout 2009 worldwide, and that this figure will reach 8-10 million by 2020, unless smokers' ranks are reduced. Smoking may claim a billion lives in the 21st century.
Cigarette packages should include images of sickness and suffering caused by tobacco, along with written warnings, the World Health Organization said Friday.
The U.N. agency urged governments to make people more aware of the health consequences of smoking. It said most countries still do not warn consumers of the risks on packages of cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco.
"Health warnings on tobacco packages are a simple, cheap and effective strategy that can vastly reduce tobacco use and save lives," said Dr. Ala Alwan, a senior WHO official. "Warnings that include images of the harm that tobacco causes are particularly effective at communicating risk and motivating behavioral changes, such as quitting or reducing tobacco consumption."
Tobacco-control advocates are hoping the workplace smoking ban in Saskatchewan, which takes effect Sunday, will reduce smoking rates in this province.
For three years running Saskatchewan has had the highest smoking rates in the country and the highest youth smoking rate, said Donna Pasiechnik, the Canadian Cancer Society Saskatchewan's tobacco control co-ordinator.
"That is a big concern to the Canadian Cancer Society, and should be a concern to everyone living in this province, because tobacco use is the No. 1 preventable cause of deaths and sickness in this country,'' Ms. Pasiechnik said.
The workplace ban is a first step towards reducing those rates and providing Saskatchewan workers protection against second-hand smoke, she added.
Sunday's launch of the workplace smoking ban coincides with World No Tobacco Day.
Manufacturers and retailers of cigarettes and tobacco products in the city could be in for a tough time on May 31, World No Tobacco Day, and the days following.
Starting Sunday, several three-member police squads will be doing the rounds in Chennai, covering petty shops and retail outlets to check whether pictorial warnings against smoking are printed on tobacco packs, mandatory as per specifications provided by the Union health ministry. Each team will comprise a police official, health officer and school headmaster. Violations would attract fines, with or without imprisonment, commissioner of police K Radhakrishnan said here on Monday.
At a function organised by the directorate of public health to flag off the campaign van, Radhakrishnan said that his department would ensure that the rule was followed for the sake of a healthy future. "In my own family I have seen members suffer because of tobacco. They have faced the direct consequences it," he told reporters.
Download individual sections
1. Introduction [pdf 925kb]
2. The importance of packaging [pdf 924kb]
3. Consumers do not know enough about the health risks of tobacco use [pdf 5.06Mb]
4. Health warnings on packages do work [pdf 4.82Mb]
5. How to make warnings most effective [pdf 4.30Mb]
6. Countering tobacco industry arguments against effective health warnings [pdf 2.55Mb]
7. A call to action [pdf 356kb]
8. Picture gallery (by WHO region) [pdf 4.66Mb]
9. References, acknowlegments, credits [pdf 291kb]