Jump to full article: Reuters, 2008-04-24
Intro: Banning smoking completely in Beijing is "impossible" but the city will do its best to ensure a smoke-free environment for the Olympics through new regulations to come into force on May 1, officials said on Thursday.
The new regulations ban smoking in sports venues, parks, on public transport and in schools but restaurants and hotels are exempted.
The Olympic host city had pledged to restrict smoking in most public places before the August 8-24 Games and is committed to achieve a "thorough indoor smoke-free" environment required by the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control by 2011.
"But smoking is closely related to people's lifestyle, and particularly Beijing has a large smoking population," Li Lingyan, Vice Director of Beijing Legislation Office, told a news conference on Thursday.
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