New WHO Head Speaks Out on Tobacco (fwd)

[Robert Weissman <rob@essential.org>]

U.N. health boss declares war on tobacco
            9:06 a.m. ET (1708 GMT) April 28, 1998

 GENEVA, April 28 — The incoming head of the United Nations health agency,
 Gro Harlem Brundtland, vowed on Tuesday to open a new front in the global
 fight against the damaging effects of smoking. 

 The former Norwegian prime minister, nominated to be the new head of the
 World Health Organisation (WHO), told a seminar at the annual meeting of
the Asian Development Bank that she would make the anti-tobacco fight a
policy priority.

"The battle against tobacco pitches immense long-term, hard-to-calculate
costs against short-term, very visible economic gains,'' said Brundtland,
whose nomination is certain to be approved by a WHO assembly next month.

Supporters of the tough-talking one-time medical doctor, who is 58, say
she is the "new broom'' who aims to clear out a musty institution. She has
a reputation as a strong leader and able diplomat. 

The WHO, created to lead worldwide campaigns against disease, has come
under fire for lack of focus and a top-heavy bureaucracy. Advocates of
U.N. reform single it out as one agency in urgent need of restructuring. 

She will take over in July from longtime Director-General Hiroshi Nakajima
of Japan. 

Brundtland said smoking was one of the top three causes of premature
deaths in the Asia region, where China alone accounted for at least
750,000 deaths each year attributable to tobacco. 

 "Tobacco is a net negative factor in their (Asian) national economies,
threatening sustainable development,'' Brundtland declared. 

In an interview with Reuters, she said her focus in the battle against
tobacco would be on the Third World, where cigarette manufacturers have
been trying to expand markets to make up for reduced consumption in Europe
and the United States where they often face restrictive legislation and
lawsuits.

"There is no choice other than making a difference on tobacco consumption.
It is detrimental to health,'' she said. 

"If you make decisions at the governmental level and if parliaments pass
the necessary types of regulation, you can make an improvement. We know
that. It has been done in Europe.''

Brundtland urged governments in the developing world to join in the
battle.

"Tobacco is really a major health challenge in Asia, so the governments
are responsible. Governments work on behalf of their people and the people
are threatened by this health challenge,'' she said. 

"It is the governments and the civil societies of Asia that have to be
taking it seriously.'' ^REUTERS@

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