RENDEZ-VOUS 24
Wednesday, April 21 1999
Thank you Mary for accepting our " rendez-vous ".
May I ask you to introduce yourself ?
I am trained in communications and am the Media Officer with the Consumers' Association of Penang (CAP) since 1983.
I coordinate several campaigns in CAP including the anti tobacco,
anti alcohol and the anti sugar campaign among other media related responsibilities.
CAP launched a nation wide anti tobacco campaign in 1982 which has steadily intensified over the years.
Although we are a Penang state based association, our activities and campaigns
stretch beyond the borders of Penang to the national level.
For an issue like tobacco it is vital to address it at the national level
and even extend beyond to the international level.
Our campaign activities include conducting nation-wide educational activities, lobbying the federal government, monitoring the industry and media activities.
We also distribute educational materials such as posters and pamphlets on tobacco.
1. I have read in the winter 99 Inwat's newsletter about your presentation at the 5th Asia Pacific conference on tobacco or health, held in Manilla in November 98.
What are the main aspects of the multinational tobacco companies invasion of Asia?
Asia is the fastest growing market in the world today.
We are an attractive market for multinational tobacco companies because of our sheer numbers and of course to replace the shrinking market of North America and Western Europe.
The companies also take full advantage of our dependent economies, vulnerable
governments and the lack of awareness of the people about the dangers of smoking
and the absence of a strong well coordinated anti tobacco lobby.
In such a situation they are able to employ marketing tactics that will never be allowed or tolerated back home.
In Malaysia Dunhill for example sponsored the telecast of the World Cup last year
although the whole event was tobacco free.
The English League may be smoke-free in England but Malaysians view these matches courtesy of Dunhill.
There are numerous other examples of such advertising and promotions involving concerts, contests, adventures, movies on television, etc.
2. You are with the Consumer's Association of Penang.
Can you tell us a little about this organization?
It is not so frequent to see a consumer's association very active in tobacco control.
Are there other anti-tobacco groups in Malaysia?
CAP is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that fights for the rights and interests of Malaysian consumers through research, educational and representational activities.
The issues we take up include the fulfillment of basic needs such as food, health, housing, transport, product safety, environmental pollution, the rational use of resources and business malpractice.
We work with both urban and rural consumers, students, women's groups,
youth groups, farming communities and others.
It is not so frequent to see a consumer's association very active in tobacco control.
Are there other anti-tobacco groups in Malaysia?
It is unfortunate that consumer's organizations are not more involved in tobacco
control. I see tobacco as an important consumer issue.
If ever there was a consumer product so lethal, responsible for so many
deaths worldwide, an industry notorious for fraud, worst record on non-disclosure of product information - no other product comes anywhere close to tobacco.
It is the only consumer product that kills when used exactly as the manufacturer intends. If it had been any other consumer product it would have been banned.
So if we are not calling for its ban, the least we should be doing is actively
fighting to phase it out.
There are only a handful organizations that are fighting tobacco in Malaysia.
Even among these few none of us work fulltime on tobacco control.
3. You say that "in Malaysia the government-run radio and television earns 40% of its revenue from tobacco companies" and that Malaysia has become a testing ground for the new tactics of the tobacco industry.
Can you give us some examples of these new tactics and elaborate about the relationship between the government and the industry?
Since cigarette advertisements are banned, tobacco companies circumvent the law by advertising their brand names with non tobacco products such as travel, apparels, and sporting events.
This is done to such an extent that tobacco companies are the single
largest advertisers in the electronic media.
While this is legal, it certainly makes a mockery of the ban on cigarette advertisements.
Because this form of "indirect advertising" is done so successfully in Malaysia,
we are now being used as a testing ground for new tactics - if it
works in Malaysia, it can work elsewhere.
The Benson & Hedges Bistro is the first of BAT's international chain of coffee shops. BAT tested out this "cigarette & coffee" concept in preparation for the EU Directive on ban on cigarette advertisements.
The Malaysian public were subject to aggressive media blitz, on national television, newspapers and billboards for a single coffee shop located somewhere
in Kuala Lumpur.
Because the government-run television station is so dependent on its revenue from the tobacco industry, the industry has a supporter and spokesperson through the Minister of Information, who will represent their interest each time a debate on banning tobacco promotions comes up.
The same can be said of the Sports Ministry which accepts tobacco sponsorship.
4. As a member of INWAT (the International network of Women Against Tobacco) you are particularly concerned with the growth of smoking among young girls and women.
Do you have data about this trend?
Can you explain how the tobacco industry promotes smoking among women in Asia?
How do you feel an organization like INWAT can help?
Very few women smoke in Malaysia because culturally it is still unacceptable.
The statistics indicate only 4 percent of our women smoke.
The tobacco industry however views women and girls as a market that can be further exploited.
I see evidence of increasing promotional activities by tobacco companies targeting women, especially young girls.
RJ Reynolds' Salem and Rothman's Peter Stuyvesant for example sponsor live concerts and bring in international superstars who are popular with women and young girls such as Jewel, Alanis Morissett, Paula Abdul, and Asian stars such as Eric Moo and Aaron Kwok.
Both Salem and Peter Stuyvesant also organizes disco parties for young people.
Radio stations run contests for listeners who can call in and answer trivial questions about these stars and win tickets to these events.
A lot of young girls call in to these shows.
Over the past ten years smoking among Malaysian teenaged girls, though small in number, has nevertheless doubled.
Organized and sustained activism against tobacco in developing countries is generally lacking.
Only about a third of the members of INWAT are from the developing countries.
Members of INWAT can act as catalyst to initiate strong tobacco control actions among other women's organizations, especially in Third World countries.
There are a lot of expert information available that can be shared so that we don't have to reinvent the wheel in the developing world.
5. Litigation by tobacco victims is an important development in the "Western world".
Are there such cases in Malaysia?
Are the tobacco companies sued when they do not respect the law for instance concerning eventual restrictions to advertising?
To date there have been no suits against the tobacco industry in Malaysia.
Unlike in the western world, going to courts is usually the last resort for us, and it is not a popular option.
The legal process is tedious, lengthy and more importantly too expensive.
An individual taking on a large company or industry is not common in this part
of the world and it won't guarantee justice either.
In the case of indirect cigarette advertising the companies are not breaking the law.
It appears at the moment that we have no clear ground to sue them.
This is one area we need to explore further.
Do you have any concluding remarks?
We need to form strong allies with the experienced tobacco control lobby from developed countries, particularly the US and the UK.
Some of the key consumer battles we have fought against transnationals
in the past on other issues were successful because of help from our allies
in the North.
We could do the same for tobacco with similar support and collaboration.
Thank you Mary for taking the time to be with us today.
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