Tobacco.org

EDITORIAL: Smoking in public not acceptable 

The anti-smoking Bill was back in Parliament yesterday with MPs discussing the restriction of smoking in public places and its implication on the industry.

This is not the first time the Bill is finding its way to Parliament; it was extensively discussed last year in inconclusive debates, yet the risk smoking poses to the public is well known.

Smoking, the medical profession has told us time and again, is bad for the health of both smokers and passive non-smokers who are unnecessarily exposed to secondhand smoking.

The Bill should seek to protect the passive non-smokers who are exposed to health risks that they don't deserve, and which are completely unjustified. The debate should, therefore be about lives, not the pleasure of smokers. They have the right to enjoy their puffs as long as they do not pose any danger to the rest of us. . . .

The bottom line is that smoking in public is bad for our health. Are we the only ones seeing such an obvious point?

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• EDITORIAL: The Anti-smoking law should be expedited 

The Anti-smoking legislation was, last year, in and out of Parliament and 2010 ended without any final decision taken by the house.

The bill, that seeks to restrict smoking in public places, is spearheaded by the Ministry of Health, and should, this year, be considered among the priorities for the House . . .

People who smoke in public remain not only an inconvenience but a grave health hazard. It is unacceptable for a person to enjoy a smoke without caring about the health of non-smokers.

Research conducted by the ministry revealed that approximately 880,000 Rwandans smoke. Among these, 58.9% start smoking between the age of 11 and 15 - the school going age. Once the bill is passed, the numbers of school-going children who smoke would go down since the habit is acquired largely through imitation.

While some may argue that the ban would affect revenues generated from tobacco, compared to the damage it causes, the losses are minimal

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Public Reacts to Anti-Smoking Bill 

The Minister of Health, Dr. Richard Sezibera on Monday, tabled before members of the Lower Chamber of Parliament a bill that will restrict smoking in public places.

The bill lists offices and office buildings, court premises, factories, cinema halls, theatres, video houses when they are open to the public; hospitals, clinics and other health institutions, restaurants, hotels, bars or other eating places as areas among which smoking should be restricted.

Several other restricted places are children's homes, premises with commercial childcare activities, schools, places of worship, prisons, police stations and cells. . . .

The New Times set out to find out what the public thinks about the bill and compiled the following views. According to Jackson Karangwa a trader, the bill is all he has been waiting for and that he is looking forward to see it being passed.

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LETTER: Ban smoking in public 

As we observed the World No smoking day on May 31, something crossed my mind. We seem to ignore the effects of passive smoking. So many people still smoke in public even with children around.

I would like to urge the law makers to consider setting up legislation that would require smokers to be confined to designated areas.

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• Anti-smoking bill goes to parliament 

The Minister of Health, Dr. Richard Sezibera, yesterday tabled a bill before parliament that seeks to restrict smoking in public places.

The bill comes as a response to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) which Rwanda ratified in 2005. "Cigarette manufacturers have increased their advertisement and they target mostly women and children," Sezibera told lawmakers. . . .

According to the bill; 'No person shall smoke in any public place, including workplace, or in any part of a public place.' It lists the restricted areas being; offices and office buildings, court premises, factories, cinema halls, theatres, video houses when they are open to the public; hospitals, clinics and other health institutions, restaurants, hotels, bars or other eating places.

Other restricted areas include, children's homes

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EDITORIAL: Regulating smoking is the way to go 

'NO SMOKING' signs are common inscriptions on and inside most public buildings, in Rwanda. However, these expressions are not backed by legislation that would otherwise serve to define penalties for offenders. . . .

Research presented to parliament, on Monday, by the Ministry of Health revealed that approximately 11 percent of the population are smokers. The worrying thing is that among these, 58.9 percent start smoking between 11 and 15 years.

Since Rwanda is an member of the WHO and actively working to discourage smoking, the call to parliament to put legislation in place that safeguards children, adolescents as well as women, is timely.

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Sezibera urges students to join fight against smoking 

The Minister of Health, Dr. Richard Sezibera, has urged the youth to engage with the ministry and other government institutions in the fight against smoking and its effects.

While addressing over 1000 secondary students from various schools in Kigali City on the World No Tobacco Day at the Amahoro National Stadium yesterday, Sezibera advised the students against Tobacco smoking as it's the main cause of Lung Cancer and Tuberculosis.

"According to a recent survey carried out by the Global Youth Tobacco Survey team, smoking is on the increase among the youth aged between 13 and 15," he revealed.

"I call on you, as future focused students, to join the government in its efforts in sensitizing and encouraging all Rwandans to fight against all sorts of smoking because smoking is dangerous to our health".

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• Tobacco company dismisses workers' health complaints 

Days after the employees of Premier Tobacco Company (PTC) protested against unhealthy working conditions, the Managing Director of the firm, Assinapol Rwigara, has reacted by dismissing their complaints. Employees of PTC have previously claimed that the company does not avail adequate facilities like facial masks to protect them from contracting tobacco-related illnesses while on duty.

During a press conference that was held Friday at the company's headquarters in Gikondo, Rwigara, the proprietor said that the employees' idea to make such claims through the media was a carefully planned scheme to tarnish the company's reputable name.

"Our staff members gathered representatives of various media houses and complained that we do not do the necessary interventions to protect their health from tobacco effects." This is not the case as we have provided everything that a tobacco company should to ensure a healthy working environment for employees. Some of these include facial masks, nutritious food and milk among others," he said.

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• BAT Donates to Needy Students  

British American Tobacco, Rwanda (BAT) Friday awarded over Rwf 5 million to twelve needy students at the Kigali Independent University(ULK).

The Rwf 5,430,000 will cater for the students' education needs, scholarships and internships. The company's sub-Saharan Africa Area Regulatory Affairs Manager, Kabir Kaleechurn, underscored the role of the private sector in promoting community development.

He said BAT believes in adding value to the community in which it operates not only by being one of the major contributors in terms of taxes but also through helping the needy in Rwanda.

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Public Tobacco Smoking Down - Minisante 

The permanent secretary in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Agnes Binagwaho has revealed that the country's public consumption levels of tobacco have relatively gone down compared to the previous years.

"Through various programmes such as sensitization campaigns on radio, billboards and stickers among others, the government has successfully managed to discourage people from smoking tobacco in public and in turn the levels have gone down."

"We can not however reveal any statistics yet as these will be highlighted during the World Health Day celebrations that are set for next month," Binagwaho told the Sunday Times.

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NTAYOMBYA: To ignore or not to ignore, that, my friends, is the question 

But thrashing the Governors amusing directive isn’t the point of this piece. How many people have heard about the anti- public smoking directive?

I can bet that many people have heard that it was enacted. But here is the million dollar question, “who has actually heeded it”? I have the answer, NOBODY.

If you are like me, a frequent night owl, you’ll notice that there is always a hint of tobacco smoke wafting about. This is whether you’re in a bar, restaurant or nightclub.

I remember an incident a month that got a relative of mine quite hot under the collar. We’d gone to the Sole Luna restaurant to have some pizza, when to my companions chagrin we were soon enveloped by a cloud of smoke from the neighbouring table.

As everyone should know by now, smoking in public areas is illegal but surprisingly enough, when we called the manager he made us leave while the smokers kept puffing away in peace. . . .

I find a law that is unenforceable rather painful.

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High school teens heavy smokers --survey 

A survey by the Rwanda-National Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) which was conducted in 2008 in schools of Rwanda shows that nicotinism prevalence in teenagers is high.

The survey which was aimed at gathering information relating to the prevalence of the nicotinism in children between 13 and 15 years includes data on prevalence of cigarette and other tobacco use and information on five determinants of tobacco use which are; access/availability and price, exposure to second-hand smoke (SHS), cessation, media and advertising, and school curriculum.

According to the survey, the problem of nicotinism, like everywhere else remains a great concern especially among the youth.

A survey of tobacco in secondary schools carried out in 2004 jointly by the Ministry for Health and the Ministry for Education, with the support of World Health Organisation (WHO) indicated that 24 percent of students in secondary school smoked.

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Retailers hike cigarette prices 

A mini-market survey carried out in Kigali City shows that prices of Embassy, Intore and SM cigarettes manufactured by British American Tobacco Rwanda (BAT Rwanda) have increased, some by Frw30 per cigarette.

Most shops in the city are retailing a dozen packets of Intore, that used to sell at Frw3,500, at Frw3,500. A packet that used to be retailed at Frw400 is now Frw500. The World Health Organisation says smoking cigarettes kills almost 5 million people world wide each year. Perhaps it is most significant that smoking drains public health services.

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Parliamentarians oppose tax reduction 

With more than half the 2008 Budget expected to be funded through taxes, parliamentarians have expressed fear that if government goes ahead to reduced or scrape some of the tariffs the move would hurt the economy. . . .

On the issue of cigarettes and tobacco parliamentarians said BAT should be taxed like a foreign company since it ceased its operations in Rwanda.

The parliamentarians were reacting to the Private Sector Federation’s (PSF) demand that some taxes be reduced and those that make Rwanda unattractive for investors; be scrapped completely.

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Editorial: When they smoke we suffer 

Are there smokers in your workplace or at home? Then, there are good reasons for you to get them to quit, or at least stop smoking around you.

If you are exposed to someone else's cigarette smoke, you risk having many health problems. You may not smoke but the second-hand smoke which you are exposed to puts you at risk of several health problems. . . .

We live in a country where smoking in bars and restaurants, etc is already banned, how is the ban enforced where you are? But the ban has not been a success at all and people continue to be silent about It.!

Asking someone who is smoking near you not to smoke is not easy. Let smokers know that you are not objecting to the fact that they smoke but you are asking them not to smoke near you.

Be firm but polite. It is between life and death and you cannot afford to be silent. Smokers too should learn to accept situations where they are offended by non smokers who tell them to keep distance. The too offend many non smokers and their rights do not over weigh the latter's.

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