- Title: CHINA: Government launches new smoking ban in indoor public venues
- Date: 2nd May 2011
- Summary: BEIJING, CHINA (MAY 1, 2011) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF CHEFS SMOKING ON STREET PEOPLE IN EATING IN RESTAURANT NO SMOKING SIGNS ON RESTAURANT WALL BEIJING RESIDENT LI FEI SITTING AT TABLE (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) BEIJING RESIDENT LI FEI SAYING: "Actually, I am a smoker but I support the ban on smoking in public places, especially in restaurants. Usually the air in restaurants is not that good and they are quite crowded, if there are people smoking then its very smoky and, sometimes, when I go out to eat with my wife I am not very happy with the atmosphere." SOUP BEING LADLED PEOPLE EATING AT TABLE (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) BEIJING RESIDENT YANG FAN SAYING: "In public places everyone is a stranger and there is no way to stop someone from doing this harmful action, so I think that while a government ban on smoking in public places might affect a few people's rights, it is for society's public benefit and in the interest of people's health, so I support it." MAN SMOKING AS HE WALKS DOWN STREET MAN SITTING AND SMOKING SHANGHAI, CHINA (APRIL 27, 2011) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF SHANGHAI RUIJIN HOSPITAL NO SMOKING SIGN MEDICAL WORKERS AND PEOPLE WALKING OUT OF HOSPITAL DOCTOR OF SHANGHAI HOSPITAL LU ANKANG TALKING TO PATIENT PATIENT HOLDING LUNG TESTING TOOL IN MOUTH ANTI-SMOKING BROCHURE ON DESK (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) DOCTOR OF SHANGHAI RUIJIN HOSPITAL LU ANKING SAYING: "The result of the smoking ban greatly depends on how strongly the ban will be enforced. If it is carried out in a strong manner, smokers will change their habits and start to quit smoking. There may be hope of yielding results through anti-smoking campaign." BEIJING, CHINA (APRIL 29, 2011) (REUTERS) MAN SMOKING AND WALKING CONSTRUCTION WORKER SMOKING AND PUSHING CART MAN SMOKING AND WALKING MAN HOLDING CIGARETTE BETWEEN HIS FINGERS MAN SMOKING MEN SMOKING OUTSIDE BUILDING MAN SMOKING CIGARETTE BEING EXTINGUISHED
- Embargoed: 17th May 2011 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: China, China
- Country: China
- Topics: Health,Domestic Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA9I9GWNADEXCW0EMGTYCJJXXAN
- Story Text: China launched a ban on smoking in indoor public venues on Sunday (May 1) in an effort to protect the world's most populous nation and the largest cigarette producer from the harmful effects of the habit.
Beijing signed the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control five years ago, and promised to enforce a complete ban on smoking in all enclosed public places and workplaces by January 9, 2011.
Starting Sunday, business are now required to display prominent no-smoking signs, ban vending machines which sell cigarettes, and ensure that designated outdoor smoking zones do not affect pedestrian traffic.
Customers eating lunch at a local Beijing restaurant welcomed the move.
"Actually, I am a smoker but I support the ban on smoking in public places, especially in restaurants. Usually the air in restaurants is not that good and they are quite crowded, if there are people smoking then its very smoky and, sometimes, when I go out to eat with my wife I am not very happy with the atmosphere," said Beijing resident Li Fei.
"In public places everyone is a stranger and there is no way to stop someone from doing this harmful action, so I think that while a government ban on smoking in public places might affect a few people's rights, it is for society's public benefit and in the interest of people's health, so I support it," added another Beijing resident Yang Fan.
China has around 300 million smokers and another 740 million people suffer from the effects of second-hand smoke, a number which has been increasing in recent years, Lu Ankang, a lung disease specialist at Shanghai Ruijin hospital said.
But how effective the policy will be depends on its enforcement.
"The result of the smoking ban greatly depends on the how strongly the ban will be enforced. If it is carried out in a strong manner, smokers will change their habits and start to quit smoking. There may be hope of yielding results through anti-smoking campaigns," Liu said.
Chinese smokers consume a third of the world's cigarettes. One in three smokers in the world is a Chinese man, with nearly 60 percent of men in China smoking, puffing an average 15 cigarettes per day.
An estimated 3.5 million people are expected to die from smoking or related diseases in 2030, accounting for 25 percent of all deaths in China.
Chinese cigarettes, among the cheapest in the world, are considered an important part of socializing.
Less smoking could reduce smoking-related health costs, but would also hurt government revenue, as the tobacco industry provides nearly one-tenth of tax revenues.
The world's largest cigarette producer has embarked on years of half-hearted campaigns to stub out the habit in most cities.
In 2008 Beijing formally pledged to restrict smoking in most public venues in the city, including government offices and public transport, but most of these venues remain choked with smoke and non-smoking signs are routinely ignored.
In the southern city of Guangzhou smokers who light up in some public places only have to pay a 50 yuan ($7.625) fine, a limited deterrent in one of China's richest cities, even as state news agency Xinhua dubbed it "the nation's toughest smoking ban". - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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