Society

China slowly adopts tobacco-free laws

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-05-31 16:36

EFFORTS

China promised to ban smoking in public places "in an all-around manner" in March this year in its 12th Five-Year Plan - the first time that the country has included an anti-smoking measure in its five-year plan.

"It's a big decision. China's pace to curb anti-smoking has been rather slow, so the decision was not easy," says Yue Bingfei, a member with the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and a research fellow with the National Institute for the Control of Pharmaceutical and Biological Products.

According to the 2011 China Tobacco Control Report published by China CDC, more than 100 suggestions and proposals on tobacco-control were submitted by NPC representatives and CPPCC members during China's annual "two sessions."

In Tianjin, a port city bordering Beijing, the deputy mayor has signed a commitment on "Promoting A Smoke-free Environment" project, creating strict legislation to guarantee 100-percent smoke-free public venues and workplaces and figure out a feasible and forceful working mechanism to enforce the smoking ban from 2009 to 2011.

Jiang Guohong, director of Institute for Non-Communicable Disease Control under Tianjin CDC, says that compared to the existing local tobacco-control regulations of Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hangzhou, Tianjin's draft specifies that owners of venues catering to the public are primarily responsible for any violation.

The draft now is awaiting its first reading by Tianjin Municipal People's Congress.

"Since 2011, Chinese government, legislators and NGOs have largely had positive reactions to tobacco control," Yang Gonghuan says.

In January, a report entitled "Tobacco Control and China's Future" lamented the country's slow progress in tobacco control and lambasted the tobacco industry's interference for delaying efforts to meet the government's smoking reduction commitments.

The report, as a joint assessment by a group of Chinese and foreign health experts and economists, also disclosed that about 1.2 million Chinese die each year from tobacco-related illnesses and an estimated 3.5 million Chinese will die each year from tobacco-related illnesses by 2030.

In February, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) ordered film and TV studios to restrict smoking scenes and to ban shots showing tobacco brands or minors in scenes while others are smoking.

A revised regulation on health management in public places issued by the Ministry of Health in March has banned smoking in enclosed public locations since May 1.

Moreover, "Smoking Snapshot," a campaign that aims to ridicule smoking in hospitals and public health institutions, began on Thursday.

Initiated by the China CDC and the division of Health Promotion and Education with the MOH, the official campaign encourages netizens to upload photos of people smoking in hospitals and health institutions onto the microblog weibo.com.

Mao Qun'an, director with the Health Promotion and Education Department says the microblog campaign aims to urge the public to join in tobacco control efforts.

"Government policy is one thing, but not the only important part of tobacco control initiatives. Raising public awareness remains the key to succeed in tobacco control," Yang Gonghuan said.