Source: L'Express Weekly, Interview by Touria Prayag
That is flattering! Indeed, I feel great solidarity with all those who are committed to bringing a better quality of life to all through their fight for a tobacco free world.
Would you say that this country has made progress in its fight against tobacco smoking?
Mauritius is now referred to as an example for successful tobacco control in the region and in the world. The tobacco regulations of the Public Health Act were amended in 2008 to protect the health of the population from tobacco smoke by introducing strong measures like smoke free public places and workplaces, as well as gory graphic health warnings on cigarette packs.
Are you satisfied that that is enough?
Well, there is still much work to do to close some loopholes in the law and for its implementation such as the sale of single stick cigarettes that is still in breach of the law.
So would you say then that there is a genuine will to fight this scourge?
I think that the Ministry of Health has a genuine will to fight the tobacco epidemic but the Ministry of Finance still has to be convinced that it could find a better way of getting money by raising the tax on cigarettes and that it should also fight the tobacco industry as the World Bank recommends in its report "Curbing the Epidemic". The ministries of women and children, youth and sports, social security and the ministry of education, among others, should also add tobacco control to their agenda as a priority issue.
How has Mauritius responded to these anti-tobacco laws?
It seems that the Mauritian population was informed at the right time that the new legal measures concerning tobacco were meant to protect it and not to harass it!
What about the tobacco lobbies?
The tobacco lobbies are strong and what is worse, they are insidious. Fortunately, Mauritius has banned the Corporate Social Responsibility of the tobacco industry that was used for public relations and to disguise the real nature of its lethal business.
Did that sound the knell for the lobbies?
Not exactly. The tobacco industry still sends delegations to ministries that are even seen in the corridors of the ministry of health! It has apparently intervened to weaken the law or create loopholes that it uses to its advantage, like the provision for a ban on electronic cigarettes and flavoured cigarettes. These provisions were removed overnight from the already approved draft before it was presented to parliament!
This year, the emphasis is on protecting women, doesn't it?
Yes, understandably. Women and children in Africa are targeted by the tobacco industry as there is a serious decline in smoking in the West and because there are no proper laws in most African countries to protect the population from the tobacco epidemic. Recruiting new smokers from poor countries is essential for the tobacco industry to replace its 5 million most faithful 'clients' that die from its addictive, debilitating and lethal products every year.
Children are of course not just an easy target but a long-term one too.
Yes, if you consider that more than 90% of smokers started smoking before the age of 20.
So, how are the tobacco companies reaching out to women?
Smoking was considered until recently as a manly attribute. The tobacco industry promoted cigarettes among women as a 'liberation' symbol. And many women fell into that trap through direct advertising that featured women smoking as glamorous and through the indirect advertising of actresses of Hollywood and Bollywood who are most often paid to smoke in films. Unfortunately, women are generally much more at risk than men regarding alcohol, drugs and tobacco as they are physically more vulnerable to these products.
We have heard this week about magical electronic cigarettes which, it is being claimed, have helped scores of people give up smoking. How exactly do they work?
Electronic cigarettes do not present any guarantee of safety. It is just a dummy used to circumvent the law. The government will have to address that issue as soon as possible as a precautionary principle.
I thought it was a new invention the world has not heard about yet?
Electronic cigarettes were launched a few years ago but in 2009, the US Food and Drug Administration warned on the potential health risks posed by the use of this product, both to the user and to the people around them.
But have they helped achieve any results in other countries?
Some manufacturers claim e-cigarettes can help smokers to quit or cut down on smoking but there is no evidence to suggest these devices will help people to quit smoking. Even more troubling, the e-cigarettes come in a variety of flavors including chocolate and strawberry, likely to hook kids and other first-time users into trying the product.
How do you react to companies offering services to help people quit smoking?
Companies have a great interest in helping their employees to quit smoking. Employees in good health have less absenteeism, their productivity is enhanced and the workplace is safer regarding toxic environmental tobacco smoke and fire risks!
Are nicotine patches of any help?
The chances of quitting successfully are doubled by chemical help...but the relapse occurs more rapidly than if the smoker has had psychological help and follow-up as well.
What should we do that we have not done yet to reduce people's dependence on nicotine?
I would just go a little further and put the question differently: what should we do or what have we not done yet to stop the tobacco industry that manufactures a drug delivery device with nicotine to hook people purely for the sake of profit? Nicotine being six times more addictive than cocaine or heroin, it is a real challenge to quit smoking but as many people have already succeeded, there is still hope! There is the 'Plan de Cinq Jours' which is a form of group therapy (Norman Latchman: 6866682). The ministry of health offers a quit service at Odette Leal Health Centre in Beau-Bassin: tel 4647128. I have been sending people there and the service has done wonders for many.
Are you satisfied then with the role you have personally played in the fight against tobacco?
I have done my utmost during these last 12 years. The successes in tobacco control in Mauritius are attributable to the close work of the NGO ViSa with the Ministry of Health. However, there is still much work ahead for the implementation of the law. I received the special award of recognition from the Director General of the World Health Organisation, Margaret Chan, on the occasion of the World No Tobacco Day 2010 for my dedicated work in the fight against tobacco. This is a great honour for me and for my country.
Congratulations! It is a great honour for us too, but your critics might say that you owe it to your extremist views on the issue.
Such criticisms can only come from smokers or from the tobacco industry representatives who feel threatened by tobacco control. But in fact, I never criticize smokers because I have experienced what it is to be trapped in the nicotine addiction. Smokers are not to be blamed but to be given help with quitting if they wish to. They are just the victims of their addiction that benefits the tobacco industry. The mission of ViSa is to give the right information on smoking and on the tobacco industry that puts profits above health. And as far as informing people is concerned, there is never any excess of information. There can never be any extremism. I will not allow death companies to live on ignorance!
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