New Report Shows Progress in Adoption of Smokefree Air Laws But Challenges Remain with Tobacco Industry Marketing Worldwide

Durban, South Africa, 20 November – A new report presented here in Durban at the World Health Organisation's 3^rd Conference of the Parties (COP) finds that significant progress has been made on the implementation of comprehensive smokefree policies at national and sub-national levels around the world. But a second report shows that the tobacco industry is continuing to engage in aggressive and often manipulative marketing worldwide.

 

The report, called the "Status Report: Article 8 of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC)," was developed by The Global Smokefree Partnership, a multi-partner initiative formed to promote effective smokefree air policies worldwide. Currently, there are 32 countries who have adopted smokefree air laws versus only 7 in 2004.  This progress is linked to the development and promotion of guidelines from the FCTC, the world's first public health treaty, which provided a roadmap and a legal framework for protecting citizens against exposure to secondhand smoke.

Cassandra Welch of the American Cancer Society and Director of the Global Smokefree Partnership said, "This report promises to be a call to action for governments to protect people from secondhand smoke by providing positive examples of good practice and illustrating where guideline-standard legislation is working."

While there is a positive trend toward greater tobacco regulation, there remain concerns about the impact of aggressive tobacco industry marketing practices worldwide. 

A second report called "How Do You Sell Death?" was presented at the COP here in Durban and provides graphic examples of tobacco industry's advertising, promotion and sponsorship worldwide.  Developed by The American Cancer Society, in partnership with the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and the Framework Convention Alliance, the report is a visual testimony of Big Tobacco's tactics to lure and addict new smokers, in spite of countries' attempts to curtail marketing of tobacco products.

Ms Welch states, "Every year, the tobacco industry spends billions of dollars around the globe to market their deadly products.  The tobacco industry's manipulative advertising tactics have exacerbated the health consequences of tobacco use, which is responsible for 5 million deaths every year."