From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Dec 30 18:35:38 1999 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id AC72621B08 for ; Thu, 30 Dec 1999 18:35:38 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA20146; Thu, 30 Dec 1999 18:35:55 -0500 Date: Thu, 30 Dec 1999 18:35:55 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Federal Judge Dismisses Guatemala Case Federal Judge Dismisses Guatemala Case / Says Legal Theory Does Not Support Right to Sue (Philip Morris release) Philip Morris Says Ruling Follows Trend Source: Business Wire, Thursday, 12/30/99 WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 30, 1999--A federal judge today dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Republic of Guatemala against Philip Morris U.S.A. and other major cigarette companies, ruling that the claimed injuries were too remote to allow the case to go forward. This is the first ruling from a United States court to decide the legality of claims brought by foreign governments. ``This opinion stands squarely for the proposition that these cases are based on a flawed legal theory and they have no place in our courts,'' said Steven B. Rissman, assistant general counsel for Philip Morris. Today's ruling, by U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman, is consistent with the recent decisions by four federal appeals court panels, each of which unanimously rejected similar health care cost reimbursement claims brought by labor union trust funds and Blue Cross plans against the tobacco industry. The significance of the Guatemala decision is heightened because Judge Friedman has been assigned to decide the merits of all foreign government cost recovery cases in the federal courts. Rissman said today's ruling was an important decision not only for the tobacco industry, but also for common sense and for anyone concerned that U.S. courts might become a dumping ground for foreign lawsuits of every stripe. ``This decision should send a strong message to foreign governments looking to use the U.S. court system to generate cash windfalls for their government's treasuries,'' Rissman said. The case was Republic of Guatemala vs. the Tobacco Institute Inc. et al. It was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington. Contact: Philip Morris Laurie Guzzinati 917/663-2144 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Dec 30 19:17:00 1999 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1DB3021B08 for ; Thu, 30 Dec 1999 19:16:59 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA20573 for ; Thu, 30 Dec 1999 19:17:16 -0500 Date: Thu, 30 Dec 1999 19:17:16 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Guatemala's Suit Against Tobacco Companies Dismissed Guatemala's Suit Against Tobacco Companies Dismissed (Update2) Source: Bloomberg News, Thursday, 12/30/99 Washington, Dec. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Philip Morris Cos. and other U.S. cigarette makers won the dismissal of a U.S. lawsuit filed by Guatemala that accused them of hiding the dangers of smoking from its citizens. In a May 1998 complaint, Guatemala alleged it incurred more than $300 million in unnecessary health-care costs between 1973 and 1997 because tobacco companies concealed the health hazards of smoking. U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman in Washington today ruled that the nation can't claim damages for injuries suffered by individual Guatemalan smokers. The ruling is expected by analysts and the companies to lead Friedman to dismiss similar pending tobacco cases filed by Bolivia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Ukraine and the Brazilian state of Goias. The Guatemala suit was the first U.S. suit filed against the tobacco industry by a foreign government. The lawsuits seek billions of dollars in damages. ``In that Guatemala was the lead case, this is a good indication of what will become of the other countries' cases,'' said analyst William Pecoriello at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. Philip Morris, the maker of Marlboro cigarettes, agreed. ``This opinion stands squarely for the proposition that these cases are based on a flawed legal theory and they have no place in our courts,'' said Steven B. Rissman, assistant general counsel for Philip Morris. New York-based Philip Morris rose 3/8 to 23 11/16 in New York Stock Exchange trading. American depositary receipts of British American Tobacco Plc, parent of the Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp., rose 5/8 to 11 1/8. Brooke Group rose 3/16 to 15 1/8. Guatemala Guatemala argued that the tobacco companies should pay for the government's costs of treating smoking-related injuries. The country contended that it failed to take regulatory actions to reduce smoking by its citizens because it was deceived by the industry. The court ruled that the injuries allegedly suffered by the Central American country's people were too far removed from the industry's actions to merit a trial. ``Plaintiff's claims are simply too remote, contingent, derivative and indirect to survive,'' Friedman said in his ruling dismissing the case. The dismissal helped chances that that U.S. District Court Judge Gladys Kessler will certify for appeal several other legal challenges facing the industry, Pecoriello said. ``Kessler and Friedman both report to the federal appeals court and these are all third-party payer recovery health-care cases,'' he said. Last week, Kessler chose not to dismiss claims brought against the industry by union and welfare trust funds seeking to recoup damages for smoking-related illnesses. In addition, she has been assigned to the federal government's suit against U.S. cigarette makers, in which she will rule next year on motions to dismiss three separate claims brought. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Dec 31 11:21:33 1999 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B085121B55 for ; Fri, 31 Dec 1999 11:21:32 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA25930 for ; Fri, 31 Dec 1999 11:21:30 -0500 Date: Fri, 31 Dec 1999 11:21:27 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Goa/India: ban on cigarette logos Ban on cigarette logos * NGOs help urged Prohibition on Smoking Act from tomorrow Source: Gomantak Times , Friday, 12/31/99 PANAJI: Goa is all set to enforce the new legislation, bringing a prohibition on smoking and spitting in public places from New Year Day, 1 January 2000, with penal consequences of Rs 1000 or imprisonment for violation under the Prohibition on Smoking and Spilling Act 1999. The high power committee, on prohibition on smoking and spitting at a meeting held under the chairmanship of Ashok Nath, Chief Secretary reviewed the measured proposed, and finalised modalities to gearup its machinery to take up the implementation with all seriousners. The areas brought under the purview of the act as public auditoria, cinema, conference, seminar halls, hospital building, health institutions, coast buildings, educational institutions, libraries, places of worship, airports except designated areas, buses, waiting rooms at railway stations. The areas will be immediately notified. Signboard on no smoking, no spitting and default inviting fine of Rs 1000 or imprisonment will be displayed at specific places as part of measures to create awareness at the initial stage. Also as part of the first phase in the implementation of the act circulars have been issued to heads of departments including Goa Medical College, Goa University, KTC for rigorous implementation of the act within their jurisdiction and where public have direct access. Local self bodies, NGOs and volunteers are being asked to lend a helping hand in efforts to create awareness to stop the public nuisance threatening the lives of large number of the public affected by passive smoking. The meeting also felt that advertisement of cigarette brands in the print and displays of electronic media and use of logos on outfits of sports persons by the sponsorers of the respective game should be disallowed henceforth as provided in the act. The meeting instituted a four member committee to review the progress being achieved in the implementation of the act from time to time. MLA Manohar Parrikar also took active part in the deliberations. He observed that several smokers he came across have welcomed the prohibition and opined the act be implemented in phases to provide addicts proper rehabilitation. B S Sharma, Secretary Law, Archana Arora, Secretary Education, Dr N P S Varde, Jt Secretary, Science and Technology and member secretary of the high power committee, K V Prabhugaonkar, Director of Information, Sharad Vaidya of Goa Cancer Society, Dr Pramod Salgaonkar, chairperson of Womens Commission took part in the discussions. !# -- !# Setup: http://www.globalink.org/cgi-bin/gt/mailing_lists.pl?conf !# Support: mailto:israel@globalink.org From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jan 3 10:52:20 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6130A21AFF for ; Mon, 3 Jan 2000 10:52:20 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA22204 for ; Mon, 3 Jan 2000 10:52:20 -0500 Date: Mon, 3 Jan 2000 10:52:20 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Pub staff wear gas masks to get around new non-smoking regulations while others refuse to enforce smoking ban (fwd) Pub staff wear gas masks to get around new non-smoking regulations while others refuse to enforce smoking ban Source: Vancouver Sun, Monday, 1/3/00 VANCOUVER (CP) - In a cavernous pub beneath Vancouver's Granville Street, bartenders are wearing paper suits and gas masks. The new staff uniforms are owner Vance Campbell's answer to the Workers' Compensation Board's tough non-smoking regulations. The regulations, created to protect workers from second-hand smoke, went into effect Jan. 1 and ban smoking from all public facilities, including pubs and restaurants. Campbell, vice-president of the B.C. Cabaret Association and a vocal opponent of the new regulations, said the uniforms are his way of complying with the regulations without banning smoking in his pub, Fred's Uptown Tavern. By wearing the paper suits and gas masks, his employees will inhale less than two cigarettes per year in a smoking environment, he said. "You get more than that coughing up exhaust at a bus stop," Campbell said Sunday. "It's clear to us the agenda isn't workers' health. The real agenda is a war between governments and the tobacco companies. We as an industry cannot get caught in the middle of that tug of war." Lighting up a cigarette, patron Brad Mitchell said the new regulations are too hard on entrepreneurs. "The government comes out smelling like a rose but it's the businesses who suffer," said Mitchell, who is considering going only to pub and bars where he can continue puffing. "The government's not losing (anything), but the businesses are losing customers." Several pub owners and staff in Kamloops said Sunday they are allowing customers to smoke despite the new regulations. "I can't subject my staff to getting into a confrontation with someone who's drinking," said Bob Gradwell, owner of Inlander Neighbourhood Pub. At the Inlander pub, bartender Joanne Merrick said she won't get into a confrontation over a cigarette. "If people continue to smoke, what can we do?" she said. But some pub owners are strictly enforcing the non-smoking rules. The manager of Rookies Sports Bar and Grill said he has told about a dozen smokers to put out their cigarettes. "So far all have been co-operative," said the man, who wanted to be identified only as Wally. "I think there will be problems. "You pick a party night and there will be more pressure." Restaurant and bar owners who allow customers to smoke risk being fined anywhere from $1,500 to $4,000. Charities Bingo Hall in North Kamloops has spent about $35,000 on separate ventilation systems for smoking and non-smoking areas in a bid to comply with the regulations. Manager Doug Perry said employees don't venture into the large smoking area and sales of extra bingo cards, pull tabs, snacks and coffee are way down. Nine employees have been laid off as a result. Clint Cross, owner of Duffy's, said his regular customers understand the new rules and have been smoking outside or leaving early. He said a confrontation with a belligerent drinker who wants to smoke is inevitable. "I'll deal with it when it happens. . . . I'm not going to let a guy light up, throw the smoke on the floor and burn the carpet." Enforcement of the regulations will be driven by complaints from the public, who can call a toll-free "second-hand-smoke" line to report violations. (Vancouver Province, Kamloops News) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jan 3 13:51:59 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5A3A121B09 for ; Mon, 3 Jan 2000 13:51:59 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA27075 for ; Mon, 3 Jan 2000 13:51:57 -0500 Date: Mon, 3 Jan 2000 13:51:56 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Fin Post: BAT Batting for the top rung Saturday, January 01, 2000 Batting for the top rung BAT has swallowed Rothmans, will soon have Imperial Tobacco, and has its sights on an even larger share of the world tobacco market Kathryn Leger in London Financial Post Billion-dollar lawsuits continue to pile up but nowhere does the big tobacco business look less under attack than inside the corporate dining room of British American Tobacco PLC. Top officers of the world cigarette giant set to assume control of almost 70% of Canada's tobacco market dine at a round table replete with crisp white linen, crystal and fine china plates emblazoned with BAT's gold tobacco leaf logo on a royal blue background. Full-length windows lining one wall of the top-floor suite afford a sweeping view of the Thames River and many of the city's most famous landmarks. Indeed, there are few reasons why Martin Broughton, BAT's chairman and chief executive, and his team at London headquarters should not feel on top of the world these days. So what if tobacco stocks have plummeted 30% in recent months because of litigation chill and BAT is spending close to $200-million (US) on legal fees, almost double that of five years ago. "BAT is in a stronger position than ever," says Mr. Broughton, a 28-year company veteran who has overseen a massive shuffling of BAT's assets in the past three years. "We've narrowed the focus [out of financial services to concentrate on tobacco] and seen the business as a growth opportunity. "One of the advantages of all this hassle we get [the lawsuits and government regulation] is that there is a bigger barrier to entry for other businesses." In the past year alone, BAT has orchestrated a blockbuster $11.5-billion merger with Rothmans International PLC and successfully negotiated a $10.6-billion bid to privatize Canada's Imasco Ltd. The Rothmans deal gives BAT capacity to manufacture 900 billion cigarettes a year and 16% of global market share. That puts it almost neck and neck with the 17% controlled by arch-rival Philip Morris Cos. Inc., the world's largest cigarette maker if Chinese National Tobacco Corp., which only serves the domestic market, is excluded. Annual cost savings will be at least $410-million (US). The Imasco transaction, the largest takeover in Canadian corporate history, will also be highly lucrative. It calls for BAT to buy the 58% of Imasco it does not already own and assume full control of Imperial Tobacco Ltd. after selling off the Montreal conglomerate's other businesses, including the Shoppers Drug Mart Ltd. chain, CT Financial Services Inc., owner of Canada Trust, and real estate unit Genstar Development Co. "Imperial fits perfectly, dominates the market [with 69%] and is a wonderful cash-generating business," says Mr. Broughton, calling the deal "largely a tidying up exercise." Instead of an annual dividend as a 42% shareholder of Imasco, BAT, as full owner of Imperial, has access to annual free cash flow of at least $500-million, he says. That represents between 20% and 25% of BAT's current total annual cash flow of about $2.5-billion. What to do with Imasco's cash was bound to lead to a "falling out" over "strategic differences of opinion," adds Mr. Broughton, noting that BAT's current stake in Imasco accounts for roughly 38% of BAT's market capitalization of =A38-billion but gives it no real control over decisions. For some time Imasco had sat on a $1-billion-plus pile of cash and was seriously looking at expanding its presence in financial services, a sector BAT left two years ago. Now, after a full year of complex negotiations over the pricing and sale of the various parts of Imasco's near $19-billion in assets -- including a controversial price tag of $9-billion for Imperial -- shareholders are expected to accept the deal recommended by Imasco's board at a vote scheduled for Jan. 28 in Montreal. Already saved from releasing information about BAT's plans for Imperial or detailed financial information because BAT's proposal is legally classified as a capital reorganization instead of a takeover, Mr. Broughton remains equally tight-lipped about the multinational's next big move. "Our ambitions don't stop there," he says simply. "We've still 84% [of global market share] left to go." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jan 8 12:53:21 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9840A21B05 for ; Sat, 8 Jan 2000 12:53:21 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA24494 for ; Sat, 8 Jan 2000 12:53:21 -0500 Date: Sat, 8 Jan 2000 12:53:21 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Going Public: Korea KT&G gets ready for privatization. (fwd) Going Public: Korea KT&G gets ready for privatization. by Clive Turner =20 Source: Tobacco Reporter, Saturday, 1/8/00 Korea, =93Land of the Morning Calm.=94 Well, it might be peaceful atop the mountains and out in the beautiful countryside, but in Seoul? Flashing cinematic posters astride tall buildings; salarymen sloshing and scurrying through the pavement puddles from five in the morning; a ceaseless flow of speeding traffic and hotel lobbies full of businesspeople glued to their mobile phones, even at the breakfast table. Morning Calm? I don=92t think so! But calm and order was certainly the environment I experienced when talking with Ahn Chung-Ho, executive vice president of Korea Tobacco and Ginseng Corporation (KT&G). Precisely on time he welcomed me, with an interpreter and an aide in a spacious office befitting a man whose responsibility is overseeing the KT&G=92s emerging privatization. Much speculation has surrounded this highly significant move, but within minutes it was obvious that for KT&G, the issue is considered clear-cut and eminently sensible. KT&G is confident it will succeed. The privatization is now completed in legal terms. It=92s been planned over the past two years with the intention of selling 35 percent of the government=92s ownership to private investors, including large institutiona= l buyers. The sale is expected to take place before the end of the year, but, by the end of June, no price had been determined, and the lead investment bank management had not yet been announced. The listing will appear in September. Ahn explained that between 15 and 20 percent of the shares are expected to be sold domestically, with the balance later going internationally, raising between us$500 million and $600 million in depository receipts. =93The take up,=94 he said, =93will be quick and widely welcomed given the = price is acceptable.=94 A SOLID FUNDAMENT. KT&G, founded in 1899 as a small ginseng management division under the control of King Kojong, has a remarkably healthy, if not enviable, financial status. Cigarette production actually began in 1921, and today the company enjoys a very low debt-to-equity ratio and ample cash flow. This has seen to it that the state-owned KT&G was a top candidate for foreign investment and privatization among state companies. KT&G=92s track record speaks for itself. In 1998 the company posted more than $255 million in net income, a 35 percent increase over 1997. This was on sales of $4 billion. Even with the difficult economic times, tobacco sales, which represent by far the majority of the corporation=92s income, rose to $3.9 billion in 1998 from $3.42 billion in 1997. At the end of last year KT&G=92s debt-to-equity ratio stood at 24.8 percent= , a fraction of what is common among other major Korean companies. The company had a liquidity ratio of more than 500 percent, or four and a half times more cash flow than Korea=92s largest electronics company. The Korean cigarette market has been open to foreign competition for a decade, but KT&G has retained 95.1 percent of the market through 1998. Philip Morris came in second last year with a market share of 2.3 percent compared with 6.9 percent in 1997 when KT&G slipped to 88.8 percent. Consumer preferences for foreign brands had been steadily growing at the expense of domestic brands. But then during the economic downturn, consumers shifted to domestic products because the foreign brand retail prices leaped due to the weak currency. However, many observers predict that foreign brands will gain ground once more when Korea=92s economy strengthens. =93Well, we shall see,=94 says Ahn= =2E STREAMLINING OPERATIONS. KT&G=92s 1998 performance was due not only to economic factors. It saw to i= t that the company maintained relatively low cigarette manufacturing costs through reducing the size of its production and management structure. During the economic crisis, KT&G trimmed its work force from almost 8,000 to 6,000 and plans to have only 4,500 workers by the year 2000. Also, some new machines will cut back the number of factories from eight to four or five. If new production is needed, then the present one-shift arrangement would be increased to two shifts. Depending on what happens ahead, a new factory might be in the cards, but the decision about when and where will not be made until next year. Meanwhile, any cutbacks and redundancies required which are not met by natural attrition will be largely paid for by financial resources becoming available through in- creased production. And, said Ahn, =93I can assure yo= u that proper and reasonable compensation will be paid to those who have to go because of company requirements.=94 He mentioned that one advantage of such a situation will be to bring through and give more responsibility to younger people. An abiding KT&G strength has been its well-established distribution network. As of 1998, it operates 159 regional offices and more than 165,000 retail outlets around the country. This means that personal relationships be- tween distributors and store owners have been formed over many years and are virtually impossible to compete with on any kind of level playing field by even the best organized international operation. NATIONAL PRIDE. This situation is compounded by the fact that the industry in Korea has always been advantaged by the unusually strong nationalistic character of Korean people. It has been seen as unpatriotic to buy foreign brands (of any product category) when the economy demanded sacrifice and support of domestic brands and products. In the early 1990s there were instances of international tobacco company points-of-sale and advertising material being torn down by nationalistic activists=97by patriotic smokers who demonstrated a very marked dislike for products they felt were hurting the domestic economy. Ahn recalled those outbursts with displeasure and said that KT&G did what it could at the time to discourage such behavior. =93It should be explained,=94 said Ahn, =93that our farmers, particularly tobacco farmers, are highly thought of by the community at large. It is felt they do a hard job well in difficult circumstances, and enjoy meager rewards. People feel they deserve support against what is perceived as wealthy and intrusive foreign interests.=94 KT&G has contracts with no less than 34,000 tobacco farmers, and the size of landholding is not a discriminatory issue. All tobacco production is purchased and farmers are partially paid in advance. Technical help is also available and freely given to improve quality. Some 9,000 to 10,000 farmers are wholly dependent on tobacco with the larger balance growing other crops or working on a part-time basis. They provide 15 percent of the country=92s GDP. STRENGTHENING ITS PORTFOLIO. Ahn said many changes had taken place over the years, with a rather dramatic rationalization of brands in particular. =93At one time,=94 he sai= d, =93we marketed 123 brands, but today the figure is 30. In 1946 we produced 103 million packs. Last year it was 5.1 billion packs, with the leading brand name being =91THIS=92.=94 Asked about the significance of such an unu= sual brand name, Ahn replied that it simply reflected a trend, like =9388=94 whi= ch came out at the time of the Olympics in Seoul and which proved a great success. =93THIS=94 means just what it says. =93Everyone knows the word and it took = off. It became a best seller in record time.=94 Other brand names reflect traditional Korean names like =93Arirang.=94 One brand was named =93Seung R= i=94 which means victory, and was launched immediately after independence in 1945. Another was =93Saemaeul=94 or =93new village,=94 which was a catch ph= rase for the government=92s modernization program in the 1960s. I asked about North Korea and whether there was any industry cooperation between North and South. =93Not really,=94 said Ahn. =93They have their own operation and although the respective governments talk to each other when appropriate, tobacco contacts North and South are inactive.=94 So what about the future after privatization? Ahn would not be drawn to speculate other than to agree that one or more of the major international companies would likely buy some shareholding because they would regard it as the best way now to get some leverage within the market. But since no shareholding can exceed 7 percent, we are not going to see a phalanx of Philip Morris battalions moving in. JT, BAT or anyone else, won=92t exactly send in the cavalry, either. THE OUTLOOK. This privatization has been very carefully planned and orchestrated. Korea is not about to give up its domestic market to foreign competition even if that foreign competition offers the earth, the moon and the stars in terms of brand status, quality and desirability. But as the economy lifts, the foreigners will make further incursion one way or another and privatization may well be a spur, an opportunity, and a means to gain the crucial distribution that makes the difference between success=97and a long= , painful, expensive and ultimately wasteful haul. Ahn=92s fingers are not crossed=97they don=92t need to be. His elegant, gen= tle style, his company=92s obviously immaculate planning, and his air of quiet confidence exhibit no concern that privatization will unduly damage the domestic operation. He sees the move as entirely sensible, profitable, probably offering the consumer increased choice, and attracting widespread positive nodding of heads throughout the industry worldwide. -TR From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jan 8 12:54:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1108921B05 for ; Sat, 8 Jan 2000 12:54:25 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA24524 for ; Sat, 8 Jan 2000 12:54:24 -0500 Date: Sat, 8 Jan 2000 12:54:24 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] COPYCATS / Around the world, anti-tobacco activists are mimicking U.S.-style litigation. However, the risks appear limited. (fwd) COPYCATS / Around the world, anti-tobacco activists are mimicking U.S.-style litigation. However, the risks appear limited. by Brandy Fisher ; Source: Tobacco Reporter, Wednesday, 12/1/99 The tobacco industry is facing more and more gold diggers. Following the U.S. settlement and recent verdicts against the industry, the number of anti-tobacco lawsuits has spiraled out of control, clogging up the courts. Recently there has been an increase of cases outside the U.S. as well. =93It=92s not a significant increase,=94 says Timothy Lindon, associate gen= eral counsel for Philip Morris, about the number of cases outside the U.S. =93Bu= t certainly there has been an increase. The concept is not new; there have been a handful of suits for many years.=94 The industry has consistently won such cases throughout the world, and many tobacco litigation experts say there is no indication that the status quo will change any time soon. =93All of the significant litigation outside the U.S. has been unsuccessful,=94 says Lindon. =93The industry has prevailed largely on the concept of personal responsibility.=94 There is a long and growing list of recent decisions in which the industry has prevailed, he says, adding that many claims against the industry have been dismissed at a very early stage. =93Judges recognize that people know the risks that smoking may cause disease and may be hard to quit.=94 U.S. MADNESS. Emanuel Goldman, managing director and global coordinator of Beverage & Tobacco Research for Merrill Lynch, says that the major changes to the global tobacco industry have resulted from mergers, with the exception of the U.S. He says the most important changes in the U.S. have resulted from litigation. Outside the U.S., litigation is not a major issue, he says. According to Goldman, =93The U.S. has a unique combination of factors that makes for a tremendous incentive to sue.=94 He singles out four major factors that have encouraged the proliferation of lawsuits in the U.S. First, it=92s cheap to sue. Anyone can file a lawsuit in the U.S. for a nominal fee. Furthermore, many U.S. plaintiffs=92 lawyers work on contingency fees, which means they will work on cases for free, with the agreement that if they win, they will take a portion of the winnings. This often amounts to 30 percent or more. If the lawyers don=92t win, they don= =92t get paid. Secondly, it=92s expensive to defend. The cost of hiring a defense lawyer= =97or multiple lawyers, which is usually necessary nowadays=97can be mind-boggling. Plus, defendants frequently have to go to great lengths to gather evidence and hire experts to build a strong defense. Lost productivity and bad publicity are costly factors as well. Often, a defendant determines that it is cheaper to offer the plaintiff a monetary out-of-court settlement rather than endure the costs of a lengthy trial, even if his case is strong. Third, the loser doesn=92t have to pay legal costs. The U.S. is one of the few countries in the world that has this policy. There is generally no penalty for filing a case=97even if the claims are unwarranted. Because there is little or no cost to the plaintiff, and little chance of a penalty if the case is lost, plaintiffs have nothing to lose by filing a suit. And the potential gain is huge. This is due to Goldman=92s fourth point that amateur jurors award punitive damages. Punitive damages refers to a monetary award paid to the plaintiff by the defendant that is meant to punish the defendant for supposed wrongdoing. Punitive damages are completely arbitrary, decided by a jury, which is a group of citizens who usually have no legal expertise. Plaintiffs=92 lawyers often appeal to the emotions of the average citizens, encouraging them to award outlandish punitive damages to discourage future wrongdoing. The higher the damages, the more the lawyer makes. =93No other country in the world has this crazy combination of factors,=94 says Goldman. =93Therefore, don=92t look for any litigation outside the U.S= =2E to mean very much.=94 Plenty of other factors explain why the tobacco industry has started losing cases in the U.S. while it continues to prevail throughout the rest of the world. Goldman says there has probably been an increase in =93activist=94 judges i= n the U.S., or judges who want to make political statements with lawsuits. Plenty of U.S. legal experts are suggesting that the judicial system is now acting as a fourth branch of government rather than its intended role as a check on the U.S. three-tiered system. Furthermore, many governments throughout the world have played a more active role and profited more from the tobacco industry than the U.S. government. A country with a former state-owned tobacco monopo- ly that directly profited from tobacco would not have grounds to sue the industry to reclaim healthcare costs. Also, many countries don=92t have product liability laws as permissive as those in the U.S. And few countries have the equivalent of class-action lawsuits. HUNTING ABROAD. The global increase in case loads is in part due to solicitation by U.S. lawyers, who are dashing into other countries to win more tobacco money. Confident from the settlement and recent wins in the U.S., and hoping to further pad their pockets, the lawyers are raising hopes of large rewards. Many industry people suspect that the lawyers are misleading people about the successes in the U.S. as well as exaggerating the potential to win money. =93It=92s an extraordinary situation,=94 says Goldman. =93The plaintiffs=92= firms are flush with money, and they have little to lose by attempting to sue [in other countries].=94 Lindon calls this =93U.S. export of litigation.=94 He adds, =93It appears t= hat U.S. litigation is not a welcome export.=94 In many countries where plaintiffs=92 lawyers have determined that there is little chance for success under their own legal system, they have encouraged their governments to sue to recover healthcare costs through the U.S. court system instead. =93That=92s sheer insanity,=94 says Goldman. =93They have their own legal s= ystems. But they haven=92t gotten plaintiff-friendly like here.=94 So far, two states in Brazil=97Rio and Goias=97have filed cases in Texas an= d Florida state courts. The manufacturers requested to transfer the cases to federal court=97which is perceived as being less friendly to anti-tobacco plaintiffs=97and are awaiting the decision. Also, governmental bodies from Guatemala, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Bolivia and Panama have filed suits against U.S. cigarette manufacturers. The cases were filed in different locations, but a federal judicial panel ruled that the federal cases should be consolidated and heard before one judge for pretrial purposes. The group of cases is now before a federal court in Washington, D.C. If the cases proceed through the pre-trial phase, they will be returned to the original locations for trial. A suit had also been filed on behalf of Thailand, but it was recently voluntarily dismissed after it became evident that no one in the Thai government had authorized the suit. Many believe that these cases will not be successful. =93The cases filed by foreign governments are legally and factually very different than those filed by states=92 attorneys general,=94 says Lindon. They are actually closer to those filed by unions seeking to recover healthcare costs, he says, virtually all of which have been dismissed by federal courts. The courts have consistently ruled that unions and other third-party payors are too remote from any alleged damages to recover in these types of suits and should not proceed on an aggregate basis. The manufacturers have filed a motion to dismiss the Guatemala case based on remoteness. At press time, a decision was expected soon. Meanwhile, the government of the Canadian province Ontario an- nounced in early 1999 it is planning a us$40 billion lawsuit against U.S. tobacco manufacturers selling cigarettes in Canada to recover healthcare costs for the treatment of diseased cigarette smokers. The government has been considering filing the case through the U.S. court system. Analysts doubt that the U.S. judicial system will let such cases proceed. =93These cases involve policy choices on smoking made by foreign governments,=94 says Lindon. =93I doubt U.S. courts are going to want to ge= t involved in other governments=92 policy choices.=94 TWISTING THE LAW. Although the chance for success of these cases is slim, the industry has no choice but to continue shelling out money to defend itself. The stakes are high. While current legal and judicial systems do not allow the madness as in the U.S., the systems themselves could change. In fact, as far-fetched as it seems, a Canadian province recently passed a law that makes it easier for anti-tobacco cases to succeed. British Columbia enacted the Tobacco Damages and Health Care Costs Recovery Act in November 1998, which allows lawsuits against tobacco companies to recover costs of treating diseased smokers. Then the government filed a suit against the industry seeking to recover several hundred million dollars per year in healthcare costs. =93The statute changed the rules of evidence dramatically,=94 says Simon Potter, an attorney with Ogilvy Renault in Montreal, which represents Imperial Tobacco, though not in the British Columbia matter. The statute requires the judge to find that if any tort has been committed by any tobacco company, then all companies are jointly responsible for that tort, and assumes that tort be applied to all smokers. It also allows proof of healthcare costs on a purely statistical basis. The industry filed a motion claiming the law constitutes legislative interference with the independence of the judiciary. A decision is expected in December. Essentially, says Potter, tobacco manufacturers claim that the statute unconstitutionally removes the power of assessment from the courts. He says it=92s one thing to attempt to streamline cases, but another to tell a judge how to rule. The government=92s case against the industry was put on hold until the statute is reviewed. Potter says that no cases have succeeded in Canada thus far. Furthermore, he says, Canada has had the largest warning on cigarette packs in the world for quite some time. The government has also been involved in the growing of tobacco and has encouraged the export of tobacco. =93They=92ve been collecting enormous amounts of money from tobacco,=94 say= s Potter. =93They=92ve essentially licensed the sale of tobacco and endorsed it.=94 Whether other governments will change their laws to facilitate anti-tobacco suits remains to be seen. It seems outrageous that a government would compromise its legal integrity for money. But greed is infectious, and everyone seems to think that =93Big Tobacco=94 is a gold mi= ne with plenty of gold for the taking. -TR From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jan 8 12:56:39 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A8A0421B67 for ; Sat, 8 Jan 2000 12:56:39 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA24587 for ; Sat, 8 Jan 2000 12:56:39 -0500 Date: Sat, 8 Jan 2000 12:56:39 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Russia Getting Back on its Feet (fwd) Russia Getting Back on its Feet Source: Tobacco Journal International, Saturday, 1/8/00 [This item is undated.--gene borio] The Russian cigarette market was negatively affected by the country=92s financial crisis that started in mid 1998. A trend towards more expensive and quality brands slowed down, and many smokers turned back to cheaper cigarettes and filterless =93papirossy=94. However, there are signs now indicating that the worst may be over. =20 The situation in Russia is getting better, simply because it can't get any worse=94 =96 this rather sarcastic view, expressed by a Russian tobacco executive is shared by many of his compatriots regarding the state of the country's economy. Russia went through a painful financial crisis that started in August 1998 and has strongly devaluated the rouble; it prompted international investors to quickly take their money out of the country. The effects of the crisis were soon felt in the tobacco market as the purchasing power of the population went down dramatically. Smokers started to buy cheaper products, and more expensive quality cigarettes remained on the shelf. Impact on the industry was significant as the crisis also affected business in other CIS and eastern European countries. After the crisis cigarette prices in Russia had gone up 2.5 times, while the dollar rate went up 3.5 times. This clearly shows that margins were squeezed and the consumer became even more price sensitive. Still, tobacco was one of the only sectors able to increase production volumes in the immediate post-crisis era. The demand is still there; it's just the question of how it's being fulfilled. According to statistics by Tabakprom, the Russian Tobacco Industry Association, Russian cigarette production will achieve around 235 billion pieces in 1999 =96 a considerable increase against 1998, when 200 billion cigarettes were produced, and almost the double of the 1994 figure (136 million). This is mostly due to the involvement of multi-nationals in Russia, but also due to the appearance of several small businesses throughout the country. There are no less than 86 cigarette factories registered at the Russian finance ministry; of those, around 60 are sizeable plants, and 30 are major factories where the best-selling brands are manufactured. 20 factories are associated to Tabakprom, and ten factories are joint-ventures with foreign companies. According to Mr Terevtsov, the head of the Russian association, around 95 per cent of all legal cigarettes sold in Russia will be made locally by the year 2000. Imports have gone down from 65 billion pieces in 1997 to 51 billion in 1998 and should fall further, being gradually replaced by domestic production. A lot has changed since foreign companies started to get into the Russian market. Modernisation was carried out in several factories =96 many of them now have state-of-the-art equipment =96 and production capacity went up fast. So far, a total of US$ 2 billion was invested in the Russian tobacco industry since 1990; 75 per cent of the money came from foreign companies. Smuggling is also better under control now, in comparison to the days immediately after the breakdown of communism. Contraband and counterfeit goods make up around 4 to 5 per cent of the total market, according to Tabakprom estimates. The percentage of smokers in Russia stands at around 30 to 40 per cent of the population, and this number is increasing, says Tabakprom. Filter cigarettes are rapidly gaining importance at the Russian marketplace; the growth rate for this segment in the coming years is estimated to reach up to 10 per cent a year =96 but only if the fragile stability of Russian economy holds up. The lack of planning is a problem for foreign companies operating in the country, who often complain about unnecessary bureaucracy and a changing legislative environment. However, over time these companies have learnt to expect the unexpected in Russia, and to cope with the sudden changes in economy and politics. Visitors to the capital Moscow, now a bright city with an increasing amount of billboards carrying advertising for western goods, have to make a true effort to remember the fact that not long ago socialists had the power in the country. Even less time has passed by since rebel tanks fired at the Duma, the Soviet parliament, and tried to destabilise the government. Russia still has to adapt to the enormous changes it has been through in the past years. Changes have also taken place on the leaf tobacco side. During an event in Moscow Mr Petry Garlick, sales manager for the CIS at leaf dealer Standard Commercial, remembered what he called the =93enormous hunger for tobacco=94= in the time right after the fall of the iron curtain, between 1993 and 1995. =93Factories bought cheap tobaccos from all possible sources,=94 he remembered. Deliveries came mainly from India, China and the CIS, Russia's most traditional leaf sources, but also from Greece, Italy and Indonesia. After that period, multi-national investment started to pick up and in 1996 a new category of mid-priced cigarettes was introduced; better tobaccos from India and China as well as, to some extent, tobacco from Brazil and Zimbabwe started to be used. Light air-cured leaf from Indonesia became popular and was included in blends of filterless cigarettes. This development was jeopardised by the August 1998 financial crisis, which prompted manufacturers to go back to cheap tobacco and to buy more leaf from CIS countries as well as scrap tobacco. =93Price remains the key issue in this country as far as leaf tobacco is concerned, and this is unlikely to change in the short term,=94 said Mr Garlick. Standard Commercial has introduced CRES, cut rolled expanded stems, to the Russian market as a way of improving the filling value of cigarettes and make them cheaper while lowering tar and nicotine content. The company started up a new CRES factory in St. Petersburg in September 1999 with a capacity of 24000 tonnes. Tar and nicotine delivery is a hot topic in Russia as the government plans to lower maximum levels from 2002 onwards. If approved, the new law would lower the maximum tar delivery from 15 to 12 mg, and the maximum nicotine level would go down to 1.1 mg per cigarette. Nowadays, imported cigarettes can have a maximum of 15mg tar/1.3 mg nicotine, and the content of tar in local, filterless cigarettes can go up to 24mg. There is another proposal by the government to introduce regional tax banderoles for cigarette packs in addition to the existing ones. This is being fought by Tabakprom as a unnecessary measure, just as they are fighting another proposal to completely ban cigarette advertising in the country. So far, the anti-smoking campaign has failed to pick up in the country. Tobacco is a major source of revenue for the Russian government. A representative of the finance ministry mentioned to TJI that cigarette tax revenue is equivalent to 8 per cent of the government budget. The tobacco industry gives direct employment to thousands of workers. The future perspectives for the tobacco industry in Russia are not bleak, although the consequences of the financial crisis are still being felt. Demand will continue to be strong, and manufacturers and suppliers seem to believe that, at some point, the consumers will turn back to quality products. The fact that House of Prince is soon going to start building a new factory 400 km South of Moscow is proof of that confidence, as is the recent announcement by Rhodia Acetow that it will expand its Russian plant in Serphukov. The question that remains is as to when this positive development will finally take place, something nobody dares to predict. At least for the moment, Russian companies are happy if they're able to plan what they'll do the next day or next week. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Jan 9 13:25:09 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A1E2B21B05 for ; Sun, 9 Jan 2000 13:25:09 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA31130 for ; Sun, 9 Jan 2000 13:25:09 -0500 Date: Sun, 9 Jan 2000 13:25:09 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris unit to shut Argentine plant (fwd) Source: Reuters, Wednesday, 1/5/00 Wednesday January 5, 3:56 pm Eastern Time BUENOS AIRES, Jan 5 (Reuters) - The Argentine subsidiary of tobacco giant Philip Morris Cos Inc. (NYSE:MO - news) said Wednesday it would shut down a plant employing 500 workers because a tax increase on cigarettes. Massalin Particulares , the country's largest cigarette producer, said an increase in a special tax to 21 percent from 7 percent would hurt margins, reduce consumption and increase the black market sale of tobacco products. As a result, the company said it was being forced to close its plant in Goya in the impoverished province of Corrientes. ``The company must adjust its productive capacity to the new market created by these new circumstances and more efficiently use its productive resources,'' Massalin said in a letter to the Buenos Aires Stock Exchange. The increase is part of a $2.6 billion tax plan pushed through last month by President Fernando de la Rua, who hopes to use the funds to rein in Argentina's yawning budget deficit. Tobacco accounted for $2.0 billion in fiscal revenue a year before the tax increase. Massalin Executive Vice President Jorge Vives told Reuters last month the increase would raise the total taxation on cigarettes to 72.5 percent of the total price from 68 percent. Massalin, which employs nearly 3,000 of Argentina's 4,000 cigarette workers, operates two other plants in the country. In 1991, it closed a plant that employed nearly 1,000 workers. Other companies have also said they may have to lay off workers and close plants as a result of the tax scheme, which affected levies on alcoholic drinks, jewelry, mobile phone use and transportation vehicles, among others. Massalin earned $48.8 million in the first half of 1999 while Argentina's only other cigarette maker, Nobleza Piccardo , a unit of British American Tobacco Industries Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L), earned $12.5 million in the first nine months of 1999. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jan 10 10:53:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B693221B5A for ; Mon, 10 Jan 2000 10:53:17 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA07640 for ; Mon, 10 Jan 2000 10:53:16 -0500 Date: Mon, 10 Jan 2000 10:53:15 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] European News Bulletin 2001 - 10 January 2000 (fwd) EUROPEAN BULLETIN EU20 01 =96 10 January 2000 Headlines GERMANY: BAT increases market share in Germany NETHERLANDS: Government says it might sue tobacco industry=20 TURKMENISTAN: President Bans Public Smoking UK: Court rejects challenge against smoking report UK: Campaign urges smokers to quit for Millennium INTERNATIONAL AUSTRALIA: Children may sue smoking parents GUATEMALA: Court dismisses Guatemala=92s tobacco lawsuit but State will app= eal Full Text GERMANY: BAT increases market share in Germany The German cigarette market is still slowly expanding, according to figures released by British-American Tobacco (Germany) GmbH. In 1999, 173 billion cigarettes were smoked in Germany, an increase of 1% on 1998. The market volume at the end of the 1990s thus corresponds roughly to that from the beginning if the decade. Sales in Germany of factory-finished cigarettes rose to 141.2 billion, a total increase of 1.9% in 1999. BAT=92s leading brand was Lucky Strike, which increased its market share from 3.1% to 3.8% and now is ranked fifth. Gauloises, also a BAT brand, jumped two places to seventh place on the market. It now has a 3.2% share. BAT=92s overall market share in Germany for 1999 rose 5.5% to 18.6%, or by 1.4 billion cigarettes to 26.3 billion. In addition, BAT (Germany) produced 15.9 billion cigarettes under licence abroad, which count as exports. Thus worldwide sales for the firm totalled 42.2 billion cigarettes. Total revenue, including tobacco taxes but excluding indirect taxes, was DM6.1bn. BAT forecasts that this figure will reach DM8bn in 2000. The merger of Rothmans and parent group BAT, effective from January 1, will add the Dunhill, Winfield and Lord brands to BAT=92s portfolio. The adjusted German market share thus stands at 24%, with sales increasing to 33.9 billion cigarettes. But as a consequence of its merger with Rothmans, BAT must give up its Benson & Hedges brand to Reemtsma and therefore remains in third place behind Philip Morris (40.4% market share in 1999) and Reemtsma (23.6% share including Benson & Hedges). Source: Handelsblatt Interaktiv, Friday, 7/1/00 NETHERLANDS: Government says it might sue tobacco industry The Netherlands is considering suing for damages from the country=92s tobacco industry for smoking-related health costs, the Health Ministry has announced. "We have asked the government prosecutor to look into the matter and see if there=92s any real chance of being successful," spokesman Benno Bruggink told Reuters. The government spends an estimated 6.5 billion guilders ($2.99 billion) per year on health costs linked to smoking, but it was unclear what the size of any government claim would be, he added. The review by the prosecutor would be completed sometime next year. About a third of the Dutch adult population smokes, a proportion that has remained stable in recent years. Dutch Health Minister Els Borst told the daily newspaper Trouw that in environmental matters it had been established that polluters pay for damages they caused. "In health, we should also be able to do that," she said. The Netherlands currently spends about seven million guilders per year on anti-smoking campaigns, which Borst termed "a pittance". To make a serious impact in that area, much more money was needed, a major portion of which should come from the industry, she said. Earlier in 1999 a Dutch smoker sued the tobacco industry for damages after contracting lung disease and then extended his claim to include the Dutch state for not taking sufficient steps to inform the public about the health hazards of smoking. Source: Reuters, Saturday, 18/12/99 TURKMENISTAN: President Bans Public Smoking Smoking will be banned in public places of Turkmenistan, said President Saparmurad Niyazov at a government session on December 27. Niyazov, who wants to raise the life expectancy in his country, signed the decree "in the name of the health of the nation", the Interfax news agency reported. Violators will be fined the equivalent of a month=92s salary. Source: Associated Press, 27/12/99 UK: Court rejects challenge against smoking report Britain=92s High Court has dismissed a challenge by the tobacco industry against a government report on the dangers of passive smoking. The Tobacco Manufacturers Association (TMA) said they were not consulted by the report=92s authors as promised and argued that it should not be used by the government when framing anti-smoking legislation. But judge Anthony Hidden rejected the groups=92 claims that the report=92s findings were unlawful. He said the report, by the Scientific Committee on Tobacco and Health (SCOTH), had been part of an on-going consultative process and contained a number of recommendations already in the public domain. "The report should not be...susceptible to judicial review," Hidden said. The report By SCOTH, which was set up as an advisory group in 1994, found that passive smoking caused numerous medical problems including childhood respiratory disease, mouth and pharynx cancer and heart problems. The TMA, which represents all the major tobacco manufacturers operating in the UK, argued that in light of such claims they should have been consulted before its conclusions were accepted by the Health Secretary. In dismissing the charge, Justice Hidden said he considered the function of the SCOTH had been to advise, not to decide, and its report was only a stage in an ongoing decision-making process. Responding to the Court ruling, Yvette Cooper, Public Health Minister, said: "We are delighted with the outcome of this judgement. The role of bodies such as SCOTH is to provide scientific advice on tobacco and health issues. The tobacco companies were suggesting that SCOTH should have consulted the industry before presenting the Government with advice. This assertion, which the High Court has now dismissed, is both inappropriate and inconsistent with the nature of the function of this advisory body. The Government will not allow this type of action to deflect us from our goal of saving lives by reducing tobacco use." Source: Reuters, Tuesday, 12/21/99; NewsEdge, Thursday, 12/23/99 UK: Campaign urges smokers to quit for Millennium Government Ministers are hoping record numbers of smokers will mark the Millennium by stubbing out their last cigarette, prompted by a major advertising campaign. A series of television adverts, running under the slogan "Don't Give Up Giving Up" will feature video diaries by smokers and tips on kicking the habit. Support messages will also be screened between programmes showing a regularly updated ticker tape of viewers names who are pledging to give up and also offering details of the anti-smoking campaign=92s telephone helpline and website. The package, which began earlier this month with a poster campaign, has been designed to get the message across that the start of the millennium is the ideal opportunity to give up tobacco. Launching the initiative earlier this month, health minister Yvette Cooper said more than a million smokers already planned to try stopping in the New Year, and that the campaign was intended to get the message across to everyone. Some estimates claim that up to one quarter of the nation=92s 11 million smokers could give up, and pharmacies reportedly have been stocking up on nicotine patches and gum in anticipation of a New Year=92s rush. The adverts are part of the three year Government campaign to tackle the causes of cancer, heart disease and stroke, the nation=92s major killer diseases. Billed as part of "the biggest ever tobacco education campaign run in England", it includes a telephone helpline - 0800 169 0169 - to provide information and support for people wanting to quit. Source: ITN, Sunday, 12/26/99 INTERNATIONAL AUSTRALIA: Children may sue smoking parents Children exposed to their parents=92 smoking may soon begin suing them, a prominent public-liability lawyer has predicted. Parents who smoke could also find that it counts against them in custody battles. In a report released this month, Mr Eugene Arocca, a partner at Maurice Blackburn Cashman, says the Australian focus in tobacco litigation is about to shift from exposure in the workplace to family law and the hospitality industry. He argues that children whose parents smoke, regular patrons of hotels, restaurants and nightclubs, and prisoners exposed to smoke in the prison system could all make future legal claims. "The medical and legal issues raised by such cases will expand to the extent that ultimately actions will be contemplated against relatives who smoke, occupiers of residential premises and even expectant mothers," Mr Arocca says. In his report, Mr Arocca says cases in the United States show that parents who refuse to stop smoking while in the company of their children may lose custody rights. "If parents contesting the custody of a child have equal attributes other than one being a smoker, then one would presume that this would be a most persuasive factor in determining the issue of custody." Mr Arocca said children, young or grown-up, who contracted cancer, asthma or related diseases could sue their parents, relatives or other caregivers for passive smoking. Children would be reluctant to bring such claims, he conceded, but not if the parents=92 home and contents insurers were the opponents. Source: The Age, Monday, 12/27/99 GUATEMALA: Court dismisses Guatemala=92s tobacco lawsuit but State will appeal Guatemala plans to appeal a US federal judge=92s decision to throw out its $800 million lawsuit against US tobacco companies, Attorney General Carlos Garcia announced. "Our arguments are similar to those in complaints filed by other (US) states, and they were allowed to proceed," he said. If the appeals court upholds the dismissal, Garcia said he was prepared to take the case to the US Supreme Court. The US federal judge=92s decision on Dec 30 to dismiss Guatemala=92s lawsuit was the first to rule on the legality of tobacco lawsuits introduced by foreign governments, according to tobacco lawyers. Guatemala filed suit against Philip Morris, the Liggett Group and other tobacco firms, claiming it incurred more than $800 million in unnecessary health care costs between 1973 and 1997 from smokers. The opinion by Judge Paul Friedman said Guatemala=92s claimed "injury is too remote" to allow the case to continue. Bolivia, Nicaragua, Panama, Venezuela and the Brazilian states of Rio de Janeiro and Goias have filed similar suits against tobacco companies in US courts. Similar lawsuits filed by 46 US states resulted in a $246 billion settlement with the tobacco industry, to be paid over a period of years. Tobacco companies still face a suit by the US federal government and smuggling charges brought by Canada. =20 =20 Source: Agence France-Presse, January 6, 2000 Amanda Sandford Research Manager ASH 102 Clifton Street LONDON EC2A 4HW tel: 0171 739 5902 fax: 0171 613 0531 =20 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jan 10 10:56:33 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8FF7221BCE for ; Mon, 10 Jan 2000 10:56:33 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA07757 for ; Mon, 10 Jan 2000 10:56:33 -0500 Date: Mon, 10 Jan 2000 10:56:33 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Monks Win Lawsuit Against Cigarette Factory (fwd) Monks Win Lawsuit Against Cigarette Factory by XINHUA via NewsEdge Source: NewsEdge, Monday, 1/10/00 NANJING (Jan. 7) XINHUA via NewsEdge Corporation - Monks of the Daming Temple in Yangzhou City of east China's Jiangsu Province recently won a lawsuit against a factory making "Daming Temple" brand cigarettes, and the factory must pay 20,000 yuan in compensation for infringement of the temple name, according to a court ruling. The use of the temple name as trade mark for cigarettes is regarded as an offense against Buddhist practices, which forbids smoking. The temple's monks were unable to negotiate with the Laifeng Cigarette Factory privately and were forced to resort to the court. The cigarette factory, based in Hubei Province, central China, began to produce "Daming Temple" cigarettes last year. The 1,000-year-old Daming Temple is considered one of China's most important Buddhist sites, enjoying high prestige among Buddhists in China and abroad. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jan 10 11:00:19 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id CA82021B5A for ; Mon, 10 Jan 2000 11:00:19 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA07887; Mon, 10 Jan 2000 11:00:19 -0500 Date: Mon, 10 Jan 2000 11:00:19 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco firms eye Afta avenue / Tax exemption may boost availability Tobacco firms eye Afta avenue / Tax exemption may boost availability by Aphaluck Bhatiasevi Source: Bangkok Post, Monday, 1/10/00 Concern has been raised over the effect Asean Free Trade Area (Afta) will have on increasing availability of foreign tobacco products in a number of countries, particularly Thailand. Speaking at the World Health Organisation's International Conference on Global Tobacco Control Law which ended in the Indian capital yesterday, Hathai Chitanond, president of the Thailand Health Promotion Institute said cigarettes should not be on the list of products exempted from taxation. According to the 1998 Asean Summit in Vietnam, member countries agreed to implement Afta by the year 2002, and tariffs of 0-5% would be effective on 90% of taxable items. Dr Hathai said the Thai government's policies in supporting a continuous increase in taxation would be obstructed by Afta, for it would make foreign brands of cigarettes cheaper and more easily available in the country. "The recent establishment of a manufacturing plant in Malaysia by tobacco giant Philip Morris is obvious that they want to increase their sales market in the region, particularly in Thailand," he said. Bungon Rithipakdee, director of Action on Smoking and Health, said Afta will impose its tariff reduction scheme on tobacco products as well. Accordng to her, the Asean pact makes it more advantageous for multinational cigarette companies to set up production in one of the member countries. "Malaysia is therefore replacing Hong Kong as the Asian hub for cigarette manufacturing due to its cheaper labour and more favourable trading arrangements," Ms Bungon said. Dr Hathai urged the World Health Organisation to intervene by raising the issue of exempting tobacco products from the list of items that would enjoy free trade. Derek Yach of the WHO's Tobacco Free Initiative, said though the role of the WHO has not been outlined on the issue, continuous increase in the price of cigarettes was the most effective tool in reducing cigarette consumption. He pointed out that WHO has an "open channel of communication" with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, where discussions about trade policies can be made to diversify policies at the local level. Ms Bungon said if foreign brands of cigarettes became cheaper in the country, it could lead to faster privatisation of the government-owned Thailand Tobacco Monopoly (TTM). According to her, the TTM would find it difficult to survive and would eventually be taken over by a multinational tobacco firm. Similar scenarios have occurred in a number of countries, said Dr Hathai. He said transnational tobacco companies have been expanding their production bases and businesses in Eastern Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. "Philip Morris, British-American Tobacco and R.J.Reynolds each own or lease cigarette plants in at least 50 different countries around the world," said Dr Hathai. Faced with a difficult business environment in the US, the transnational tobacco companies have now shifted their base to developing countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe, said Luk Jossens of Belgium's International Union Against Cancer. At the same time, mergers and acquisitions made a few tobacco companies even more dominant, and the top four cigarette manufacturers now enjoy over 70% of the global market, Dr Luk said. Major firms which recently merged include British-American Tobacco and Rothmans, Japan Tobacco and R.J.Reynolds, and the French Seita and Spanish Tabacalera. Mongkhol Na Songkhla, director-general of the Medical Sciences Department, said the only tool to keep the youth away from cigarettes was to increase awareness of the health consequences of smoking. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jan 10 11:01:39 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3BAA721B05 for ; Mon, 10 Jan 2000 11:01:39 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA08009 for ; Mon, 10 Jan 2000 11:01:38 -0500 Date: Mon, 10 Jan 2000 11:01:36 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] correction to European Bulletin 2001 10 January 2000 (fwd) Dear Friends It has been pointed out to me that there was an error in the reporting of the UK Court victory on the SCOTH report. The SCOTH report did not conclude that passive smoking caused mouth and pharnyx cancer as stated in the Reuters news report. The cancer which was the subject of the legal wrangling was lung cancer. Apologies. Amanda Sandford Research Manager ASH 102 Clifton Street LONDON EC2A 4HW tel: 0171 739 5902 fax: 0171 613 0531 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jan 13 12:21:29 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 661D621BF9 for ; Thu, 13 Jan 2000 12:21:29 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA13702 for ; Thu, 13 Jan 2000 12:21:29 -0500 Date: Thu, 13 Jan 2000 12:21:28 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Canada: Big, shocking images eyed for cigarette packages (fwd) Big, shocking images eyed for cigarette packages Graphic designs to discourage young smokers by Tim Harper / Toronto Star Ottawa Bureau=20 Source: Toronto Star, Thursday, 1/13/00 OTTAWA - Health Minister Allan Rock is set to up the ante on tobacco control by unveiling a range of cigarette package designs, which could include images of a cancerous mouth, a dead lung or a fragment of the human brain. Another new, bold message under consideration features a smiling, attractive girl holding a cigarette, under the heading ``Children See, Children Do.'' A warning to pregnant women depicts an empty crib while others show pictures of dead infants, including one linking smoking with Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). They were among 13 designs tested during 13 focus group sessions conducted in Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa. The results were released by Health Canada yesterday. If Rock proceeds with the images, Canada may have the largest, most graphic health warnings on cigarette packages in the world. The images are expected to take up 60 per cent of the packaging, about double the size of current anti-smoking warnings. A source close to Rock confirmed yesterday the minister would move soon on the ``size and content'' of warnings on cigarette packages. Rock is expected to unveil the new regulations next week, most likely on the national anti-smoking day dubbed ``Weedless Wednesday.'' An anti-smoking advocate said she is pleased with Rock's response to the health community's call for shocking, graphic images that could jolt adolescents who are just taking up smoking. ``We have recommended that they move to the photos and we're expecting to be pleased,'' said Cynthia Callard of Physicians for a Smoke Free Canada. The revised images could be included in so-called slides of the package, the portion that smokers flip up when they reach for a cigarette. It is often blank, or, in the case of the popular Player's brand, it provides a calendar. Marie-Jose=E9 Lapointe of the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers Council, the organization that acts for the country's three big cigarette makers, said Rock could face difficulties on two fronts. She said the technology might not be available to print such images. She also repeated an earlier warning that the tobacco companies could challenge in court any move to use up to 60 per cent of the package because it infringes on the companies' trademarks. ``We don't think legislation should be made based on focus groups,'' she said. Young smokers told Environics Research, which did the study in late May and early June, that they were most affected by the images of mouth cancer, the diseased lung, the young child holding the cigarette, the brain fragment accompanied by a warning about strokes and a dead baby to illustrate the link to SIDS. But the response wasn't universal. Some young smokers told researchers they didn't believe smoking could cause mouth cancer. They also laughed off another image, under the heading ``Kiss Me,'' of a woman kissing an ash tray. The image was chosen to illustrate that smoking diminishes sex appeal. ``Clear visuals,'' Environics says, ``where the picture actually does say a thousand words, will have greatest across-the-board impact on the smoking population.'' It supports Health Canada's view that black-and-white text messages may no longer have the impact they had when they were introduced in 1994. Meanwhile yesterday, Manitoba doctors called for smoking bans in bars and restaurants, citing efforts in British Columbia to protect workers from second-hand smoke. The Manitoba Medical Association is urging the Winnipeg city council to pass a bylaw that would ban of smoking in public places. They say a survey of more than 900 Manitobans last month showed that about 70 per cent supported a total ban on smoking in restaurants. In B.C., the Workers Compensation Board is forcing smokers to butt out in bars and restaurants, saying employees deserve the right to work in a smoke-free environment. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jan 13 15:11:07 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A522621AFF for ; Thu, 13 Jan 2000 15:11:07 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA18552 for ; Thu, 13 Jan 2000 15:11:07 -0500 Date: Thu, 13 Jan 2000 15:11:07 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] U.K. Tobacco Executives Acknowledge Smoking, Cancer Connection (fwd) U.K. Tobacco Executives Acknowledge Smoking, Cancer Connection Source: Bloomberg News, Thursday, 1/13/00 London, Jan. 13 (Bloomberg) -- British American Tobacco Plc and other tobacco executives acknowledged there is a link between smoking and disease during testimony before the U.K.'s House of Commons Health Select Committee. Executives from BAT, the world's second-largest cigarette maker, Imperial Tobacco Plc, Gallaher Plc, Philip Morris Co. and R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Corp. presented evidence to the committee as part of a British government's inquiry into the health risks of smoking, which began last year. ``British American Tobacco believes and has for decades recognized that along with the pleasures of smoking come real risks of serious diseases such as lung cancer,'' BAT Chairman Martin Broughton said in a statement. Gallaher said on its Web site it ``has proceeded on the assumption that cigarette smokers are more likely to contract lung cancer and other diseases.'' The company makes Benson & Hedges cigarettes in Britain. Executive were questioned today about addiction, the risks of passive smoking and other issues. Tobacco companies face less pressure from the U.K. government than in the U.S., where the Justice Department is suing them to recoup the cost of treating sick smokers. The inquiry isn't likely to have much impact on the companies' British business, analysts said. ``The implications are relatively modest,'' said Nick Bunker, an analyst at HSBC. ``The real thrust of government policy is through the fiscal system and taxes, and these committees don't normally have influence over tax matters.'' In the U.S., Philip Morris shares rose 5/16 to 24 9/16. RJR rose 5/16 to 19 7/8. Philip Morris, the world's largest tobacco company, started a marketing campaign in October aimed at improving its image that includes an acknowledgment that there is scientific evidence smoking can cause cancer. Industry executives will appear before the committee a second time Jan. 27. BAT shares rose 11.25 pence, or 3.6 percent, to 323.25p ($5.33). Shares in Imperial, maker of Embassy and John Player cigarettes, rose 13.5p, or 2.4 percent, to 566.5p. Gallaher shares fell 2.25p, or 0.8 percent, to 283p. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Jan 14 11:06:11 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8B21C21B49 for ; Fri, 14 Jan 2000 11:06:11 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA00850 for ; Fri, 14 Jan 2000 11:06:11 -0500 Date: Fri, 14 Jan 2000 11:06:10 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] India: Plea to stop MNCs from entering tobacco market (fwd) Plea to stop MNCs from entering tobacco market Source: The Times of India, Friday, 1/14/00 HUBLI: The Karnataka State Beedi Workers Federation has urged the Union government to restrict the multi-national companies (MNCs) from manufacturing cigarettes in India to safeguard the interests of the domestic beedi and cigarette industry. In a statement issued here on Thursday, the Federation president A.J. Mudhol said the USA had already imposed a ban on an Indian beedi company citing the reason that the company was employing child labourers. He said, large number of MNCs were entering the cigarette manufacturing industry in India which would badly affect around 75 lakh beedi workers in the country as the manufacture of mini-cigarettes was much cheaper than manufacturing beedi. He alleged the Union government was offering a red carpet welcome to the MNCs at the cost of the domestic industries. The state government, political parties and labour organisations should bring pressure on the Union government to take immediate measures to restrict the MNCs from manufacturing cigarettes. --UNI From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 2 11:25:28 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3F74421AFF for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:25:28 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA13711 for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:25:27 -0500 Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:25:27 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] intl-tobacco list update Friends: I have been off line for the last couple weeks, which explains why the list has been dormant. In the last couple days, our friends at ASH UK and the Center for Public Integrity in the United States have broken a major story on tobacco smuggling. In a series of messages to follow this one, are clips and updates related to this breaking news. Tomorrow, I will send a selection of international tobacco stories from the previous couple weeks, and then the list will return to its normal volume. Best, Robert Weissman Essential Information | Internet: rob@essential.org From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 2 11:32:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id CF28321AFF for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:32:24 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA13938 for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:32:24 -0500 Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:32:24 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Investigative Report: Major Tobacco Multinational Organized CigaretteSmuggling, Evaded Taxes, Documents Show (fwd) Investigative Report: Major Tobacco Multinational Organized CigaretteSmuggling, Evaded Taxes, Documents Show by Maud S. Beelman, Maria Teresa Ronderos, and Erik J. Schelzig ; Source: Center for Public Integrity, Monday, 1/31/00 International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, the Center for Public Integrity British American Tobacco, the world=92s second-largest multinational tobacc= o company, for decades secretly encouraged tax evasion and cigarette smuggling in a global effort to secure market share and lure generations of new smokers, internal corporate documents reveal. Contrary to tobacco companies=92 long-standing claims that cigarette smuggling is the work of organized crime or rogue employees beyond their control, the files show that senior personnel of the parent company and its subsidiaries sought to control and exploit smuggling as part of a worldwide marketing strategy to increase revenue. Note: Links will open in a new browser window. : Link to Adobe PDF file : Link to footnotes More than 11,000 pages of documents from BAT and its subsidiaries, including the U.S. company Brown & Williamson, were analyzed over a six-month period by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), a project of the Center for Public Integrity in Washington, D.C. Part of a depository of about 8 million pages, the documents were selected based on region and subject matter. In some cases, the complete files on a specific country or individual were reviewed. The selected documents, covering mostly 1990-1995, do not suggest that BAT employees themselves transported contraband cigarettes across customs borders, where taxes would be due. Instead, they show that corporate executives in Britain, the United States, and other locales controlled the volumes, brands, marketing campaigns, timing, and price levels throughout the smuggling distribution networks they exploited. Company officials worked closely with their local agents =96 giving them perks such as ticket= s to Wimbledon =96 and provided incentives to local black-market distributors= =2E In response [http://www.public-i.org/BAT.pdf] to a series of detailed questions prompted by a review of its corporate documents, BAT said: "We do not intend to answer questions or address allegations apparently based on highly selective and out-of-context documents, about matters which are more properly addressed - and in many instances are being addressed with our full co-operation - by governments and customs authorities around the world." The company said it knew that some of its products "are handled other than through official channels," but added that "we cannot control the distribution chain all the way to the final customer." But the documents clearly show that BAT and its subsidiaries did attempt to control the distribution chain all the way to the final customer and employed a carefully coded language to discuss and plan those operations. Only occasionally did they use such terms as "smuggled" or "contraband." The preferred euphemisms of company correspondence were "DNP" (Duty Not Paid), "transit," or "GT" (general trade), as well as "parallel market," "second channel," and "border trade." The euphemisms were used interchangeably and contrasted repeatedly with references to imports that were legal and "Duty Paid" (DP). Since 1997, three BAT managers have either pled guilty to or been convicted of charges related to tobacco smuggling. Two pled guilty in a scheme that shipped cigarettes marked "Duty Not Paid" and "Not for Sale in Canada" back into Canada from Louisiana, where they had been sent allegedly bound for offshore fishing boats. One of the men left the company before pleading guilty to the charges; the other retired in December 1997, six months after pleading guilty. The next year, a BAT executive in Hong Kong was convicted of taking bribes in connection with a cigarette smuggling syndicate. The judge in that case, Justice Wally Yeung Chun-kuen, said in sentencing export manager Jerry Lui, "that management of BAT (HK) was aware duty-not-paid cigarettes =85 would ultimately be smuggled in China and other countries. There could be no other explanation for this enormous quantity of duty-not-paid cigarettes worth billions and billions [Hong Kong] of dollars." The judge, according to Hong Kong press reports in June 1998, commented that BAT=92s "irresponsible behaviour amounted to assisting criminals in transnational crime." Suspicions about industry involvement in cigarette smuggling have grown since 1997 when researchers demonstrated, by comparing annual global exports with global imports, that about one-third of all cigarettes entering international commerce each year could not be accounted for. The industry=92s sanguine reaction to apparently losing a third of its inventor= y annually only fueled those suspicions. But proof remained elusive until last year, when millions of pages of corporate documents, unearthed during numerous health-related lawsuits, became publicly available as part of the tobacco industry=92s November 1998 settlement with the U.S. states. The information contained in those documents could prove far more costly to the companies than the $246 billion U.S. settlement because BAT, as well as its multinational rival Philip Morris, has focused on expanding business into international and newly emerging markets =96 precisely the areas where smuggling seems to have flourished. BAT reported 1.01 billion pounds ($1.8 billion) in profits in 1998 on its worldwide cigarette business, according to its latest available annual report. Of BAT=92s six regional operating groups, its Latin American sales volumes were the highest. Philip Morris, the world=92s largest internationa= l cigarette company, reported tobacco profits of $6.5 billion (3.9 billion pounds) in 1998 -- $5 billion of that in non-U.S. sales, which represented a 10% increase over the previous year. Both companies=92 bottom lines were reduced in 1998 for payouts to the U.S. national tobacco settlement, and profit margins were expected to be higher for 1999. Although tobacco companies now face health-related lawsuits involving about 20 countries, proof of involvement in tax evasion or smuggling schemes could trigger a host of new prosecution, civil and criminal. There are already signs that may be happening. A majority of Colombia=92s state governors and the mayor of Bogota have retained U.S. lawyers to prepare lawsuits in the United States against British American Tobacco and Philip Morris, said Jose Manuel Arias Carrizosa, executive director of the Federation of Colombian Governors. He added that the 21 governors and the mayor of Bogota were seeking "an indemnification for damages caused through contraband of cigarettes into the country." He would not say exactly how much would be demanded of the two companies. "We think there are two markets, one legitimate that pays its duties and taxes, and the other much bigger, illegal," Arias said in an interview. "That cannot be happening without the knowledge of the producing companies." A lawyer hired by the Colombians, who spoke only on condition that neither he nor his firm be identified, said the governors had "a viable cause of action" under civil provisions of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO. Canada filed a civil RICO lawsuit against R.J. Reynolds and its related tobacco companies in New York state in December 1999 for smuggling across the U.S.-Canadian border. Several people, including a former RJR senior sales manager, have already been convicted on U.S. criminal charges stemming from that same smuggling operation. Speaking of Smuggling Glossary of acronyms: DNP: Duty Not Paid DP: Duty Paid GT: General Trade DF: Duty Free The BAT documents make two points clear =96 ranking executives of BAT and its subsidiaries exploited smuggling as part of their overall strategy to increase market share, and they employed a series of euphemisms to plan and mask their activities. In order to understand the company=92s involvement, its corporate dialect must first be decoded. The documents, especially as they relate to company operations in Latin America, repeatedly identify legal imports as either "Duty Paid" (DP) or "Duty Free" (DF), for traditional duty-free stores. Those phrases are consistently used in opposition to terms such as "DNP," "transit," or "GT," and those contrasting terms appear regularly throughout the memos, letters, charts, and graphs of import/export data and sales figures. For example, a memo from the early 1990s, entitled "Venezuelan Market Definitions and Assumptions," explained that "Duty Paid" goods owed the government legal excise taxes of 50%. No such requirement was noted for the "Duty Not Paid" goods, which were identified as cigarettes produced in Venezuela, exported mainly to the free-trade zone on the nearby island of Aruba, and then re-entered into the Venezuelan market as "transit." The memo came from the file of Keith S. Dunt, then BAT=92s regional director fo= r Latin America who is now the company=92s chief finance officer. In another memo, a Feb. 16, 1993 fax to BAT headquarters in Britain, its Venezuelan subsidiary explained: "The fact is that since November 1992 the transit (DNP) products into Venezuela have been very low due to tighter border controls." During a fierce trademark dispute with Philip Morris over which company had the right to use the Belmont brand name in Colombia, a Feb. 22, 1995 memo outlined contingency options should BAT lose. One was to "launch new brand in DP and maintain Belmont in GT channel." However, a noted drawback of keeping Belmont in the GT channel was that the company "cannot support Belmont in GT via advertising." Advertising for a product that had no government-registered imports apparently would raise questions. A January 1993 status report on Peru stated that BAT=92s "basic strategy ha= s been to set up a local importer/distributor to handle legal exports rather than rely on transit sales." Jon Ferguson, former senior counsel for the Washington state attorney general=92s office and head of its antitrust division, used BAT corporate documents in his 1998 prosecution of tobacco companies to recoup state costs of treating smokers. He said the term "Duty Not Paid," or DNP, obviously referred to smuggled cigarettes. "That=92s clearly my understanding of what =91Duty Not Paid=92 means," Ferguson, now in private practice, said in an interview. Les Thompson, the RJR senior sales manager who pleaded guilty in 1999 to money-laundering charges stemming from the U.S.-Canadian smuggling operation, said that DNP was also a euphemism his company used to talk about smuggling. "It=92s an industry-wide term," Thompson told the Center. "It=92s essentially a long-winded term used by senior folks when they=92re talking around the topic of smuggling." Other euphemisms for smuggled cigarettes, Thompson said, were "re-entry" goods, the "parallel market," and "transit." Thompson, who is to begin serving a 70-month sentence in mid-February, said he knew of other tobacco companies involved in smuggling and that he was cooperating with federal investigations in the United States and Canada. In response [http://www.public-i.org/RJR.pdf] to a request for comment on both the civil and criminal cases, an RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company spokeswoman said the company was not involved in the "day-to-day business operations of any international operations," and that the company had not been implicated in the criminal investigations. But she did not comment on the allegations in the civil RICO suit. Ironically, the most glaring exception in the records to BAT=92s carefully coded language involved its Canadian subsidiary, which was not named in Canada=92s recently filed smuggling lawsuit. In a June 3, 1993 letter [http://www.public-i.org/ITL_to_Herter.pdf] to Ulrich Herter, BAT=92s managing director, Don Brown, the president of Imperial Tobacco Limited, wrote: "As you are aware, smuggled cigarettes (due to exorbitant tax levels) represent nearly 30% percent of total sales in Canada, and the level is growing. Although we agreed to support the Federal government=92s effort to reduce smuggling by limiting our exports to the U.S.A., our competitors did not. Subsequently, we have decided to remove the limits on our exports to regain our share of Canadian smokers. To do otherwise would place the long-term welfare of our trademarks in the home market at great risk. Until the smuggling issue is resolved, an increasing volume of our domestic sales in Canada will be exported, then smuggled back for sale here." In reply [http://www.public-i.org/ITL.pdf] to questions about that letter, Brown said, "My comments in my letter to Mr. Herter were simply of the nature of a factual observation. =85 Our company never knowingly sold cigarettes to smugglers. We only dealt with legitimate buyers, who had all of the appropriate government permits to purchase cigarettes from us." The documents show that BAT executives were aware of the "sensitivity" of the issue. One of them, Delcio Laux who was then president of C.A. Cigarrera Bigott, Sucs., BAT=92s Venezuelan subsidiary, wrote in an April 21, 1992, faxed memo to Dunt that "it is clear that Bigott can=92t be seen as a clean and ethical Company by continuing with DP and DNP in parallel." Dunt later recommended Laux=92s replacement, noting among other things that his "exceptional" ethical norms had been exploited by the Philip Morris competition. In June 1992, Dunt wrote Eduardo Grant, president of BAT=92s Argentine subsidiary, Nobleza-Piccardo, about the "DNP market" there. "We will be consulting here on the ethical side of whether we should encourage or ignore the DNP segment. You know my view is that it is part of your market and to have it exploited by others is just not acceptable," Dunt said. Notes on the conclusions of a meeting in Colombia in late February, which Dunt attended, said it had been agreed that "the Bogota office will be clean by Q3/94 in reference to DNP information. Management of DNP will be in Caracas." Another memo in Dunt=92s files said "documents dealing with DN= P have been separated and should now be forwarded to Caracas. A good quality safe and shredder are required." Setting the Pace Aside from the euphemisms, what stands out most in the documents is how senior management of BAT and its subsidiaries factored smuggling into their overall market strategy and sought to control where and to what extent it occurred. As far back as 1971, BAT was positioning itself in the "transit" market. A 1983 memo described the creation of a new office in Hamburg, Germany, after a BAT study on "transit in Europe" showed that the company "was years behind the competition in transit." Although BAT already had a headquarters in Hamburg, a separate office was opened in 1972 in the same city. "One of the main reasons for establishing this office independent from a B.A.T. company was, that due to the delicate business the customers could visit Hamburg-Office without involving a B.A.T. Company directly," the memo explained. The full extent of BAT's involvement in Latin America was made clear in a stern note [http://www.public-i.org/BAT_to_Herter.pdf] from Dunt to his fellow directors questioning the wisdom of allowing BAT=92s wholly owned Brazilian subsidiary, Souza Cruz, to smuggle cigarettes into Argentina, where they would cannibalize the sales of BAT=92s majority-owned Argentine subsidiary, Nobleza-Piccardo. "I am advised by Souza Cruz that the BAT Industries Chairman has endorsed the approach that the Brazilian Operating Group increase its share of the Argentinean market via DNP," Dunt wrote in the May 18, 1993 memo. "As the Director entrusted with responsibility for the management of Nobleza-Piccardo I need to advise you of the likely volume effect on N-P of this decision and of course the financial impact." At the time, Sir Patrick Sheehy was the chairman of BAT Industries, Plc, then the name of the cigarette group=92s parent company and one of Britain= =92s largest multinational concerns, a position he held until 1995. Another memo found in Dunt=92s file, summarizing a Feb. 23-24, 1994 visit to Colombia, indicated that BAT wanted to control the timing and products it entered into the DNP market. Regarding BAT=92s Kent Super Lights brand, the memo noted that "DNP product should be launched two weeks after the DP product has been launched." As for the Lucky Strike brand, it was planned "to withdraw from the DNP market the 20=92s and 10=92s versions." Tobacco companies contend they have little control over the end use of their product once it=92s legally sold to distributors. But on June 25, 1992, Dunt wrote to the director of BAT=92s Venezuelan subsidiary, saying h= e disagreed with plans to limit the number of cigarettes bound for BAT=92s Aruban distributor and for the Colombian end market. "I notice =85 the intention to limit Romar=92s sales to Maicao to 18,000 cases per month. I would not wish for any reason for sales to be limited =85 unless it is a proven strategic necessity." Further examples include a "restricted" note of a Chief Executive=92s Committee meeting on Feb. 7, 1994, which said that a new marketing unit for Latin American countries aimed to achieve annual cigarette sales of 50 billion, "including duty not paid." The meeting was chaired by Barry D. Bramley, then chairman of BAT=92s tobacco operations. And BAT=92s Latin American "Marketing Guidelines for Company Plan 1995-1999" instructed local managers in Colombia that "your plan should cover the launch of variants on the DP and DNP markets." The documents also show that BAT sought to use the presence of legal imports, however small, as an "umbrella," or cover, to advertise its brand of cigarettes, which would reach the market in far larger quantities via DNP. "It is recommended that BAT operate under =91Umbrella=92 operations," Dunt wrote in August 1992 to Bramley. "A small volume of Duty Paid exports would permit advertising and merchandising support in order to establish the brands for the medium/long term, with the market being supplied initially primarily through the DNP channel." One year later, in a Sept. 1, 1993, memo to Nick Brookes, then a director of New Business Development at B.A.T. Industries, Dunt said in an industry analysis of the Colombian market, "DNP now represents =B150% of the local cigarette industry (vs. =B135% in 1989). DP imported product now possible due to freeing up of import restrictions, however although tariffs reduced from 63% to 5% this only constitutes 1.5% of market share, it being apparent that multinationals are using the DP route for imports as an umbrella operation to facilitate publicity campaigns etc." Brookes, now chairman and CEO of Brown & Williamson, told reporters in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 11, that B&W wanted to host a forum on "the growing risk of black market cigarettes and illegal sales across state lines. We don=92t believe government officials, legislators and others have focused enough attention on this critical issue, and we hope to change that." Brookes did not respond to a request for comment. Smuggled cigarettes, by evading import, sales, and other forms of taxes, usually are sold more cheaply than legally imported cigarettes. That makes them affordable to a greater number of people, increases corporate profits, and secures future markets. But because smuggling puts cigarettes in more hands, especially younger ones, it=92s not just an issue for government tax collectors. The World Bank last year predicted that by 2030 smoking would kill one in six adults to become the single leading cause of death in the world. With smoking rates in the United States and other Western countries declining, the Bank warned that smoking deaths increasingly would occur in low- and middle-income countries, least able to afford the costs of treating smoking-related illnesses. The Bank recommended raising taxes on tobacco, and therefore the price of cigarettes, as a way to reduce consumption. The Aruba-Colombian Connection Colombia =96 a country wracked by decades of civil war and cocaine trade, with a long history as a crossroads of contraband =96 proved to be fertile ground for cigarette smuggling. The BAT records show that millions of cigarettes were shipped from BAT subsidiaries in the United States, Venezuela, and Brazil to BAT=92s distributor in the free-trade zone of Aruba, an island in the Caribbean just off the coast of Colombia that historically had been a mecca for contraband. From Aruba, the cigarettes would be sold to dealers who would bring them by boat to Colombia=92s La Guajira region, an isolated and lawless haven along the Caribbean coastline. The Guajira peninsula, which straddles the northern border of Colombia and Venezuela, has itself been a smugglers=92 paradise since colonial times. Maicao is a town in La Guajira that was given special customs status in 1991 in order to spur job growth. The government=92s intent was to allow ra= w materials to enter the zone untaxed, have workers there turn them into finished product, and then re-export the finished goods outside Colombia. The law allowed for a certain amount of goods to pass from Maicao into the Colombian interior, but only if they were declared to customs officials and duty was paid on them. BAT records indicate, however, that its cigarettes moved outside the Maicao special customs zone "duty not paid" and from there into the black market. A "DNP Distribution" diagram in Dunt=92s files showed DNP cigarette= s traveling from Aruba to Maicao and from there westward to the "consumer" in Barranquilla. Another document in the files [http://www.public-i.org/COL_GrMeeting.pdf] showed that officials from BAT and its subsidiaries supplying Colombia =96 Brown & Williamson, Souza Cruz, Cigarrera Bigott =96 agreed at a Miami meeting in January 1992 that Souza Cruz would give a 5% "free goods incentive in Maicao and in the San Andresitos to expand distribution in Bogota and Medellin." The term "sanandresitos" =96 from the Colombian island of San Andres that has been a tax-free port since the early 1950s = =96 refers to the clusters of small stalls found in many Colombian cities that for decades have been widely known as locations that sell mostly contraband goods. An attachment to those minutes gives a detailed breakdown of prices per brand for cigarettes as they left Aruba, as they left Maicao, and in the "sanandresitos." Asked if a company doing business in Colombia might not know about "sanandresitos," Fanny Kertzman, the director of the country=92s tax and customs office, responded, "This question is ridiculous. It is obvious, so evident, that if you distribute goods through sanandresitos you know most of the merchandise sold there is smuggled." In 1993, corporate records show that BAT subsidiaries imported a total of 3.98 billion cigarettes into Colombia. However, 3.89 billion of those cigarettes entered as Duty Not Paid goods. By BAT=92s own estimate, its Dut= y Paid imports accounted for only 2% of its in-country business that year. = =20 BAT=92s 1993 figures, showing that across all local and imported brands there was a total of 13.9 billion cigarettes on Colombia=92s Duty Not Paid market, match almost exactly a Colombia government report on the contraband cigarette problem. In 1998, the Federation of Colombian governors circulated a detailed and confidential report to several public officials to draw attention to cigarette smuggling and the underpricing of legal imports. The report estimated that in 1993 there were 13.4 billion cigarettes on the black market. The report further said that by 1997 smuggling accounted for 44% of Colombia=92s total cigarette market and 93% of all foreign brands coming into the country. Kertzman echoed that in her June 1999 testimony before the U.S. Congress, saying that 90% of all cigarettes entering Colombia were doing so illegally. An internal 1999 document from Colombia=92s DIAN office, the country=92s customs and tax authority, calculated the value of contraband cigarettes coming from Aruba into Colombia to be around $400 million dollars per year. The BAT documents show that cigarettes also moved from Aruba to Panama=92s free-trade zone of Colon as a staging point into nearby Turbo, another special customs zone in Colombia. In addition, some of the cigarettes shipped from Venezuela to Aruba and on to Maicao went back into Venezuela. (The Caracas daily El Nacional estimated in 1998 that Venezuela=92s annual loss from cigarette smuggling was around $35.4 million dollars.) Similar operations went on farther south, too, with cigarettes from BAT=92= s Brazilian subsidiary Souza Cruz being shipped through Paraguay into Argentina. Notes from a visit to Paraguay in July 1994 show that "excellent work has been done in the border town, which is the main supply point of DNP product for the Argentinean market." Another notes that BAT=92s Brazilian and Argentine subsidiaries "recycle product through Paraguay and back into their respective markets making use of the lower excise rates in Paraguay." BAT=92s main distributor in Latin America was Romar Free-Zone Trading Co. N.V. of Aruba, run by Roy Milton Harms, Jr., the documents show. BAT=92s three wholly owned subsidiaries in the region "use Romar in Aruba as their transit agent into Colombia. =85 Romar also sells Belmont 70 mm and Consul 70 mm into Colombia with Venezuela as the end market," Mark Waterfield, then an executive at BAT=92s Venezuelan subsidiary Bigott, wrote in a Feb. 12, 1992 memo [http://www.public-i.org/BAT_Proposal.pdf]. The documents paint a close relationship between BAT and its distributor. In the same letter where Dunt halted attempts to limit Romar=92s sales to Maicao, he noted that the issue "was mentioned to me by Harmes [sic] yesterday on his U.K. visit =96 and with some forcefulness =96 as you can imagine." Harms and his father, Roy Harms Sr., were in London at BAT=92s invitation [http://www.public-i.org/BAT_to_Harms.pdf]. They were booked into the Carlton Tower Hotel in Knightsbridge, near Harrods, and given two tickets to Wimbledon. Cousin Bryan Harms said in a March 5, 1998, letter to Colombian authorities that he "personally gave windsurf lessons to Mr. Pat Sheahy [sic], top director of BAT when there was a great meeting of BAT and Bigott in Aruba in those times." "Those times" refer to the period before the Harms family split into two factions in 1988, with one side taking the exclusive BAT business. That family feud prompted Bryan Harms to contact Colombian and Venezuelan authorities in 1998 with allegations that BAT and Romar were in the cigarette smuggling business. Before the family business split, Harms told authorities he had accompanied officials of BAT and its Venezuelan subsidiary several times for "marketing work to Maicao," the special customs zone in northern Colombia. Romar did not respond to faxed questions and several calls requesting comment. In BAT's faxed statement, it refused to respond to a list of specific questions, including about Romar. Bryan Harms confirmed he told Colombian and Venezuelan authorities that he had witnessed high-ranking BAT officials coordinating the shipment of cigarettes from Aruba to the Colombian and Venezuelan coasts. But he refused to elaborate. Harms Brothers Limited of Aruba, started by Bryan=92s father, Lionel, and I.D.F. International Duty Free Trading N.V., which Bryan Harms directed from 1996-1998, were identified in last December=92s Canadian RICO lawsuit as being part of RJR=92s smuggling operation but were not named as defendants. Competitors or Bedfellows? Fierce competition for market share drove many of BAT=92s actions in Latin America, the documents suggest. However, they also show that company executives had discussions with representatives of Philip Morris International about "DNP" and "transit." At a meeting on Feb. 14, 1992, at John F. Kennedy airport in New York, Philip Morris=92 then president for the Latin American region, Peter Schree= r and his deputy Fred Hauser met with BAT=92s Keith Dunt and David Etchells. "Transit business from Paraguay into Argentina needs to be watched, particularly bearing in mind Industry agreement on quantum level of excise," said a file memo written by Etchells, summarizing the discussions. The two sides agreed to have "more regular meetings," and in August 1992, the BAT and PMI representatives met again, this time at the posh Pennyhill Park country club near BAT headquarters outside London, according to a "SECRET" document summarizing their talks [http://www.public-i.org/Meeting_w_PhilipMorris.pdf]. "PMI raised the =91contraband from Honduras=92 issue which was counteracted by BATCo=92s ra= ising the price gap argument. No ground conceded on either side," the notes said. "BATCo suggested an aggressive price increase to be negotiated at a local level for DNP to be implemented if possible by the end of August," the notes later said, referring to Venezuela. "Following action on DNP PMI suggested we should pursue a DP price increase. PMI wanted linkage between the DNP increase. This was not supported by us." Philip Morris confirmed there were meetings between Schreer and Dunt in 1992 "to discuss general industry issues in Latin America," but was unable to say "what precisely was discussed." Beyond the issues of smuggling, tax evasion, and undermining governments=92 attempts to set health policy, there have been allegations that the activities of tobacco multinationals have complemented drug money laundering. The 1998 Colombian governors=92 report and two other independen= t studies said that smuggled cigarettes had become a vehicle for money laundering, and the subject was the focus of a U.S. congressional hearing last summer. The nexus of cigarette smuggling and drug money laundering in Latin America is known as the black market peso exchange, in which "peso brokers" convert U.S. dollars from drug lords into clean pesos. Their sources of clean pesos are smugglers who need U.S. dollars in order to purchase international goods. James Johnson of the U.S. Treasury Department has called the system "primarily an exchange of currencies" but one that is "perhaps the most dangerous and damaging form of money laundering that we have ever encountered." With access to U.S. dollars regulated by Colombian law and administered by banks, requiring proof of legal import, the peso broker "offers a businessman a choice and the drug trafficker an opportunity," Bonni Tischler, U.S. Customs Service Assistant Commissioner for Investigations, told the June 1999 congressional hearing. She said the cigarette industry was one of the "most affected" by the black market peso exchange. "Some American companies, and I would give Philip Morris as an example, have been accused of implicitly supporting the black market peso exchange in order to increase their market share in Colombia and avoid paying hefty Colombian taxes," noted the hearing=92s chairman, Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA). "Some Colombians have gone so far as to threaten to sue Philip Morris, arguing that the volume of advertising that Philip Morris chooses to have in Colombia is not justified by levels of legitimate sales." For over 50 years, Philip Morris=92 main distributor in Latin America was the Mansur Free Zone Trading Company, N.V., run by a rich and politically powerful family in Aruba. Cousins Eric and Alex Mansur were indicted on federal money-laundering charges in August 1994 for allegedly being part of a network that laundered proceeds from the Colombian drug trade. In a Dec. 2, 1996 letter to Congress, President Clinton identified Aruba "as a major drug-transit country," and took the unusual step of publicly identifying the family, saying that "a substantial portion of the free-zone=92s businesses in Aruba are owned and operated by members of the Mansur family, who have been indicted in the United States on charges of conspiracy to launder trafficking proceeds." Philip Morris International broke its contract with the Mansurs at the end of 1998 "for business reasons," company spokeswoman Elizabeth Cho said in an interview. She refused to elaborate. But a source close to the family said the two sides agreed to a $22 million settlement and that the Mansurs continue to work with Philip Morris=92 non-tobacco product lines. The Mansu= r company changed its name last year to Glossco Freezone N.V. following six years of unwelcome scrutiny. Eric and Alex Mansur, meanwhile, have yet to go on trial, their case initially delayed by years of extradition battles between the United States and Aruba. Now they are in Miami, where U.S. and Colombian sources say they have been offered a plea bargain by U.S. prosecutors that would greatly reduce or eliminate any jail time in return for cooperation with investigations into cigarette smuggling and money laundering. Their lawyer, Robert Josefsberg, refused to comment. "We will not condone, facilitate or support contraband or money laundering," Philip Morris International said in its statement [http://www.public-i.org/PMII.pdf]. Twice in the last two years, the company has defeated shareholder resolutions that have suggested corporate complicity in smuggling and called for an internal review. The BAT documents suggest that its officials were aware of the linkage between cigarette smuggling and money laundering, and they discussed how black market money flows in Aruba affected their business. On March 8, 1995, Keith Dunt received an e-mail [http://www.public-i.org/BAT_to_Dunt1.pdf] about the "difficulty of obtaining =91clean=92 $" that BAT=92s Venezuelan subsidiary had in January.= "It was necessary, in December, to reduce the selling price from US $125.00 to US $96.00 per case, ie in line with Belmont HL price (such that Romar could then sell through at US $106.00 per case and receive =91clean=92 US$)= =2E" Epilogue The publicly available BAT documents end, for the most part, in 1995. Since the mid-1990s, legal imports of cigarettes have risen exponentially in Colombia. DIAN figures show that while only $4.6 million in cigarette imports were registered in 1994, that number had leapt to $39.9 million by November 1999. In August 1999, BAT signed a letter of commitment with the DIAN promising, according to director Fanny Kertzman, "that if they have any evidence that distributors to whom they sell their products are, in turn, selling to smugglers, they will stop selling to these distributors." In a final desperate attempt to crack down on its contraband problem, Colombia two weeks ago (Jan. 18) announced a new ban on bringing cigarettes, liquor, or home appliances =96 the three most common types of contraband goods =96 from Maicao and Turbo into the rest of the country, effective July 1. Despite street protests, President Andres Pastrana vowed, "The government has already bit into contraband and is not going to let go until this scourge is eradicated." Researcher Kathryn Wallace contributed to this report. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 2 11:42:56 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 32EB421B0B for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:42:56 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14365 for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:42:55 -0500 Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:42:55 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco giant implicated in global smuggling schemes (fwd) The Guardian (UK) has published a series of articles on the smuggling schemes: Tobacco giant implicated in global smuggling schemes Exposed: How billions of BAT cigarettes end up on black markets by Kevin Maguire and Duncan Campbell ; Source: The Guardian/The Observer, Monday, 1/31/00 British American Tobacco condoned tax evasion and exploited the smuggling of billions of cigarettes in a global effort to boost sales and lure generations of new smokers, secret company documents reveal. The London-based corporation, the world's second-largest international tobacco company with sales of 900bn cigarettes a year, has benefited from black marketeering on a massive scale. Senior BAT executives arranged to supply huge numbers of "sticks" a year - the industry term for cigarettes - to wholesalers and distributors, expecting that they would find their way into crooked hands and onto black markets after being smuggled across national borders, without duty being paid. In some countries the company also knowingly advertised and promoted smuggled cigarettes to improve its market share. Facts and figures about the contraband trade are detailed in internal company documents, including memos and faxes marked "restricted" and "secret", found among 8m pages BAT lodged at a depository in Guildford, Surrey, as part of the settlement of a 1998 US court case. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, a group based within the Center for Public Integrity in Washington DC, spent six months analysing 11,000 pages of the papers that BAT agreed to make public. They suggest that the background to the growth of international cigarette smuggling in the 1990s included rivalry between BAT and its major competitors, as well as the tobacco companies' joint wish to bring down high taxes and increase smoking markets. The disclosed documents, which span a period up to 1995, do not suggest that BAT employees committed any crime in Britain. They show that the smuggling "channels" which the company's cigarettes travelled along were always operated and managed by others. But the documents do show how euphemisms - including "duty not paid", "general trade" and "transit" - were often used to describe unorthodox cigarette sales channels, which could be as an alternative to legal "duty paid" deals. Sometimes the duty paid and duty not paid markets were combined so sales of smuggled goods could benefit from advertising for the legal products under so-called "umbrella operations" which expanded sales. Marketing strategies and sales drives in Canada, Latin America and Asia were uncovered by the CPI team. Well-know BAT brands involved included Kent, Kool and Lucky Strike as well as regionally popular brands such as State Express 555 and Belmont. Since the 1997 general election Kenneth Clarke, the former Tory chancellor and health secretary, has been appointed deputy chairman of BAT, a FTSE-100 company that reported profits of more than =A31bn for the first nine months of last year. BAT declined to answer specific questions about its activities and those of individual executives named in the papers, including Ulrich Herter, the managing director, and Keith Dunt, finance director. The company issued a general statement denying the "allegations of smuggling". It claimed that researchers "have 'cherry picked' a selected number of documents from the 8m pages in the depository, and could be at high risk of drawing and publishing conculsions which are at variance with the facts". BAT went on: "We do not intend to answer questions or address allegations apparently based on highly selective and out-of-context documents about matters which are more properly addressed - and in many instances are being addressed with our full co-operation - by governments and customs authorities around the world." Many of the disclosures concern routes that go through the Caribbean island of Aruba and enter Colombia, where they finish up in contraband markets. In an interview on Channel 4 News tonight, Ricardo Ramirez, the Colombian government minister responsible for tax and customs, says BAT recently agreed not to sell to any unauthorised dealers. "We have told them not to sell through the San Andresitos markets but through official channels. If we have evidence that directors or anyone else in the organisation promotes smuggling we will not hesitate to prosecute them." Today's disclosures, however, could lead to Martin Broughton, BAT's non-smoking chairman, being recalled before the Commons all-party health select committee to explain his company's policy. David Hinchcliffe, the committee's Labour chairman, said last night: "This information is of direct relevance to our current inquiry. I will be suggesting to the committee that we seek further evidence on this matter from the company concerned." Another member of the committee, the Liberal Democrat MP Peter Brand, said: "It's as clear as a pikestaff that they are deliberately trying to undermine the governments' efforts by, if not in in cahoots with the black marketeers, certainly doing nothing to hinder them." The UK government alone loses an estimated =A32.5bn in duty from smuggled cigarettes. Clive Bates, director of Action on Smoking and Health, today challenges Mr Clarke to order an internal BAT inquiry and calls for an independent Whitehall inquiry into the corporation. "The deputy chairman of BAT, former chancellor Kenneth Clarke, should immediately launch an internal inquiry and report back to the BAT AGM on April 27," he says. "The DTI should begin an in-depth inquiry into BAT's business practices and conduct. It is up to the government to ensure British multinationals do not treat developing countries like some lawless wild frontier." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 2 11:47:44 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id EDF7921AFF for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:47:43 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14527 for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:47:43 -0500 Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:47:43 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ex-minister under pressure over BAT (fwd) More from the Guardian: Ex-minister under pressure over BAT by Kevin Maguire and Duncan Campbell Source: The Guardian/The Observer, Wednesday, 2/2/00 =09 Kenneth Clarke was under growing pressure last night to investigate fresh evidence that British American Tobacco exploited cigarette smuggling. The former chancellor and health secretary, now the London-based multinational's deputy chairman, has a legal duty to protect the company's integrity. BAT documents reveal that huge numbers of cigarettes produced in Southampton, one of the most modern tobacco plants in the world, and other factories were made for the Far East, Middle East and Asia - markets which are dominated by black marketeers. Mr Clarke, paid nearly =A368,000 for the part-time post, yesterday failed t= o respond to repeated requests for a comment about the serious allegations. When pressed, Michael Prideaux, BAT's director of corporate and regulatory affairs, said: "We don't propose to answer any questions." Mr Prideaux, a member of the company's management board, said it would reply at an unspecified time in the future. Today's revelations about the exploitation of smuggling in the Far East, Middle East and Asia follow Monday's disclosure in the Guardian of how the company benefited from black marketeering in Latin America. BAT stonewalled as Labour MPs demanded explanations from the world's second largest tobacco company. Kevin Barron, the chairman of the all-party group on smoking and health, said: "Ken Clarke holds his position within BAT because of his past office as chancellor and health secretary. "He has a wider public duty to answer what are very serious allegations about smuggling." Fraser Kemp, Labour MP for Houghton & Washington East, said: "The company cannot bury its head in the sand and hope all this will go away. "Very serious allegations have been made and Kenneth Clarke and his fellow directors have a responsibility to answer them now." The all-party Commons health committee is considering whether to recall BAT's non-smoking chairman, Martin Broughton, or ask for fresh evidence as part of its inquiry into the tobacco industry. On Monday night, a senior World Health Organisation official promised a clampdown on powerful tobacco companies with an international treaty planned to curb their activities. BAT sells 900bn cigarettes a year and is challenging US-based Philip Morris for pole position in the global tobacco business. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 2 11:52:30 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A99C621AFF for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:52:30 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14673 for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:52:30 -0500 Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:52:30 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT denies black market allegations - report BAT denies black market allegations - report Source: Reuters, Monday, 1/31/00 Sunday January 30, 9:54 pm Eastern Time LONDON, Jan 31 (Reuters) - British American Tobacco (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) has denied allegations it benefited from black market sales of its cigarettes, Britain's Guardian newspaper reported on Monday. The Guardian said the allegations were based on internal BAT documents found in a depository in Britain and analysed over 11 months by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, a group based within the Center for Public Integrity in Washington. It was alleged that the world's second largest cigarette-maker arranged to supply cigarettes to wholesalers and distributors expecting they would find their way into the hands of smugglers. A spokesman for British American Tobacco (BAT) contacted by Reuters on Sunday said he had not seen the Guardian report and could not comment on it. The documents -- which covered the period from 1990 to 1995 -- were alleged to show the smuggling channels which the company's cigarettes travelled along were always operated and managed by others. They were also alleged to show how euphemisms, such as ``duty not paid,'' ``general trade'' and ``transit,'' were used to describe unorthodox sales channels, the Guardian said. It said BAT, which sells cigarette brands Kool, Kent and Lucky Strike, had issued a general statement denying all allegations and saying that researchers had selectively chosen documents. ``We do not intend to answer questions or address allegations apparently based on highly selective and out-of-context documents about matters which are more properly addressed -- and in many instances are being addressed with our full cooperation -- by governments and customs authorities around the world,'' the Guardian quoted BAT as saying in its statement. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 2 11:54:59 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8F15921B08 for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:54:59 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14813 for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:54:59 -0500 Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:54:59 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Vietnam's losing battle against the tobacco smugglers (fwd) Vietnam's losing battle against the tobacco smugglers Source: The Guardian/The Observer, Wednesday, 2/2/00 =09 In the years since the end of the war, Vietnam had fought a seemingly losing battle against smugglers. Until 1990, the "transit" or smuggled market into Vietnam was estimated by BAT to be 12-18 billion cigarettes a year. Then, after a clampdown that September, "smuggling was virtually eliminated for 18 months", according to a report to Paul Adams, Asia-Pacific regional director. The hiatus did not last long. As border conditions relaxed, contraband routes again appeared, particularly through Cambodia. In 1992, the company's Cambodia business plan referred to this situation as, apparently, a temporary contingency: "Cambodia will continue to service the Vietnamese market until the [Vietnamese cigarette import] ban is lifted". Soon, contraband into Vietnam was climbing to pre-1990 levels. In 1992, Mr Adams was told that BAT's State Express 555 brand cigarettes was the "major smuggled brand in the area ... there is no doubt it has a tremendous image and sales potential". Sales of smuggled SE555 were then estimated to be about one billion cigarettes, worth roughly =A310m a year. A series of company papers showed that from 1991, BAT pursued a twin-track strategy to maximise earnings from Vietnam. One track was to negotiate with the Vietnamese government and its tobacco monopoly, Vintaba, to produce international brand cigarettes locally. The other track was monitored from BAT's Asia-Pacific Regional Business Unit, where one executive made notes on "the high margins on illegal product [being] justified on grounds of risk. The amount of handling associated with imported distribution [is] coupled with the requirement of frequent concealment". Both projects went ahead. By mid-1993, BAT State Express 555 brand cigarettes were being sold as "Made in Vietnam". Meanwhile, back in Britain, executives in BAT's Far East Support Unit (FESU) juggled complex calculations to assess what balance of trade channels would deliver maximum profit. In a document suggesting the clarity and precision of BAT's understanding of pricing in the GT trade, Brookes was told that: "Ex-factory price should be such that retail price falls at parity with GT (not fully controllable). GT price structure is: BATUKE to SUTL, $245, SUTL to importer, $290, Importer to Wholesaler, $348, Wholesaler to Trader (Cambodian border) $350". In other words - and in recognition of the independence of smugglers - BAT staff in Britain seemed to wish to adjust the sale price of their cigarettes to their agent to set the final end-market price in Vietnam. BAT's records suggest that Vietnamese officials treated the company's conduct with suspicion - and told them so. Company executives had a series of meetings with Le Dinh Thuy, director general of the Vietnamese Vintaba tobacco company. A letter from Singapore to BAT's headquarters, then in Staines, Middlesex, reported that at a June 1991 meeting "Mr Thuy was obviously fully aware of both BATUKE's and SUTL's activities in Vietnam, stating 'what are these people doing visiting Vietnam when the import of cigarettes is banned?' It is a point I think should be taken very seriously". Similar enterprises took place across Asia. In Taiwan, BAT reckoned in the early 1990s that it had about a one billion share of the four billion a year "transit" market. In Thailand, the market was more than 555 million a year. In Vietnam, it was one billion. In 1993, BAT employed a single senior executive to take charge of GT sales around the world. The post of "senior regional export manager" was based at BATCo's HQ in Staines. Although the job was to co-ordinate sales in Asia and the Pacific, the executive's second task was "co-ordinator of GT worldwide". In this capacity, the manager was made "responsible to all five regional directors for the co-ordination of all BATCo general trade sales worldwide". This person was charged with the "maintenance of profiles of all main dealers, and monitoring of supply routes; negotiation of trans-regional accounts, [for example] SUTL". But there was a special warning "due to the nature of export general trade business, the distributors handling this are not easy to manage and difficult to motivate. Their loyalty is sometimes questionable. Due to the type of business and the sums involved, bribery attempts are frequent ... [The person appointed] must be permanently alert to the confidentiality needed in some areas of the business". The executive had to be on continual alert for new trade by conducting a "proactive search for new GT business". The report concluded, without any apparent irony, that "integrity is an absolute must". The disclosed BAT documents indicate that "GT", "transit" or, more plainly, smuggling, seemed to be seen by BAT Industries in the early 1990s as a necessary and substantial part of being competitive and successful in the international tobacco business. Its directors were told in a 1993 paper that "a significant proportion of the world export trade is transit. It exists wherever there are widely different excise rates and trade restrictions, and is expected to continue. Guardian Unlimited =A9 Guardian Newspapers Limited 2000 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 2 11:55:44 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B949E21BCA for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:55:44 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14862 for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:55:44 -0500 Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 11:55:44 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Paper trail to markets of the East (fwd) Paper trail to markets of the East Papers leave little doubt that company's top directors and executives were far from blind to smuggling activities by Duncan Campbell, Maud S Beelman and Erik J Schelzig Source: The Guardian/The Observer, Wednesday, 2/2/00 British American Tobacco's Southampton complex is one of the most modern tobacco plants in the world and will soon be capable of churning out 96bn cigarettes a year. Virtually all the tobacco is exported, with 20 huge containers loaded most days on to ships bound for the Middle East, the Far East and Asia. Many go to Singapore, a key hub in Asian distribution routes, and to Hong Kong and Dubai. In their search to maintain and enlarge cigarette markets, BAT exploited a sophisticated network of smuggling routes operated by others in Asia and the Near East, company documents reveal. Unlike in Latin America, where company executives commonly used the euphemism "DNP", meaning duty not paid to denote smuggled goods, BAT documents discussing Asian operations mainly used a different term, "GT" or general trade. Company documents repeatedly contrast legal export sales with GT, and break down the total trade into particular countries into the categories of legal or "GT". One plan for Singapore refers to how "the legal market fell but the shortfall was taken up by GT product". Another plan, for Taiwan, showed "the split between Legal and GT." Legal routes Other pointers to the meaning of GT in company documents include references to difficulties with customs or closed borders, indicating that the reason why GT trade was illegal was because it involved smuggling. In relation to moving cigarettes into Myanmar (formerly Burma) from Thailand, a fax of November 30, 1992 from BAT's Singapore subsidiary warns: "Duty-paid sales to Myanmar had been strong but the political situation had closed all legal routes in from Thailand, leaving only GT trade..." The report added: "This closure coincided with the monsoon season and the consequent redeployment of security forces from rebel engagements to internal security activities. The GT route thereby became more difficult." A large part of BAT's GT sales in Asia were handled by one Singapore distributor Singapura United Trading Limited (Sutl). According to company papers, Sutl handled both legal and GT products in the region. Its normal market channels were broken down into domestic sales, duty paid exports, which were legal, duty free sales in airports and to ships and GT. A document of December 10, 1991 identified risks to the company's GT business "Sutl appreciate that dependency on GT leaves them very vulnerable to market liberalisation (Thailand) and market closure (Vietnam), therefore they are seeking to move that core business to long-term legal ventures involving ownership interest." Other company documents from Latin America and Asia used GT interchangeably with DNP and "transit", internal euphemisms which also appeared on BAT papers in place of direct references to smuggling. This and other similar evidence from the BAT papers leads to the conclusion that, within British American Tobacco, references to GT in the papers of directors and managers were references to smuggled cigarettes. Network of agents The documents from their Guildford depository do not suggest that BAT employees themselves ever transported contraband across borders. But they took advantage of smuggling markets around the world, using a network of agents who on an annual basis transferred billions of cigarettes into the hands of smugglers. But so large was the role of GT that, according to the most recent information available, a plan covering the period from 1993 to 1997, more than one fifth of the output of BAT's UK factories were made for this market. From their factory at Southampton billions of cigarettes are made annually by BAT (UK and Export) Ltd (Batuke). The information appears in the Batuke company plan for 1993 to 1997. This was one of thousands of documents examined by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, part of the Centre for Public Integrity (CPI) based in Washington DC in the course of their BAT investigation. The copy of this document obtained by CPI and seen by the Guardian is identified as being the copy provided to the then chairman of the BAT Company Ltd, Barry Bramley. Batuke was then the main UK tobacco manufacturing subsidiary of BAT Industries plc. It is marked "Secret". According to the plan, Batuke operates in 125 different markets, shipping tobacco products to these markets through 360 agents. The markets are broken down into "domestic", "duty free" and "general trade (GT)". During the period covered by the disclosed documents, extending to 1995, BAT anticipated that over one fifth of its UK and export production would be "GT". Under the heading "General Trade", it states that "two key General Trade markets "will account for 4.7bn units or 22% of Batuke's total shipments". The two key centres identified in the report are Sutl and "Unit 1". Sutl covered countries from Afghanistan to the Philippines, while Unit 1 was involved with Africa. Other centres which can be identified as playing a major role in BAT's GT trade are Dubai, and Hong Kong. The company plan suggests that BAT then proposed to invest in expanding its utilisation of GT methods to reach its end markets. The company "strategy [focuses] on maximising the GT market opportunities to provide funds to build a stable volume/profit base for the long term ... via investment in duty free and domestic markets". It added that "=A33.8[m] wil= l be invested to grow our business in the GT markets". BAT has refused to comment on the meaning of terms like GT, or to discuss the implications of any particular document. The company's public affairs director, Michael Prideaux, said in response to earlier allegations that "if people wish to draw the inference that we are turning a blind eye to smuggling, they are free to do so. Deterring smuggling is a matter for the governments concerned. The only sure way is to cut tobacco taxes". But the hundreds of documents in BAT's files on marketing activities in Asia and around the world leave little doubt that some of BAT's top directors and executives were far from blind to smuggling activities. They received reports about new opportunities in GT trade, as well as regular assessments of sales levels that went through legal and GT channels. Important markets in the region for GT cigarettes, according to a report prepare by Fred Coombe, Batuke area manager for Far East, were Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, North Korea, Afghanistan, and Taiwan. The largest potential market was mainland China. Evidence from Hong Kong suggests that BAT cigarettes worth more than =A3490= m were smuggled into China during the 1990s. Floating corpse In the late 1980s, competition between Hong Kong based rival traders smuggling BAT cigarettes into China became so intense that bribes were paid to the BAT local director whose job was to deal with them. After one jilted trader exposed the system to Hong Kong's anti-corruption commission, former BAT (HK) export director Jerry Lui was extradited from the United States. BAT itself was not charged with any offence. The case against Lui nearly foundered after the chief witness against him, trader Tommy Chui, was murdered. In 1995 his body was found floating in Singapore harbour. His corpse had been placed in a rubbish bag, with tape over his mouth. The warning to other witnesses could hardly have been clearer. Another potential witness committed suicide. Nevertheless, in June 1998, Lui was convicted and sentenced to three years and 8 months imprisonment. He later launched an ultimately unsuccessful appeal and awaits the outcome of a continuing appeal application. BAT company documents disclosed during Lui's trial led judge Mr Justice Wally Yeung Chun-kuen to comment: "The evidence suggests that management of BAT (HK) was aware duty-not-paid cigarettes ... would ultimately be smuggled in China and other countries. There could be no other explanation for this enormous quantity of duty-not-paid cigarettes worth billions and billions of [Hong Kong] dollars. "To some extent such irresponsible behaviour amounted to assisting criminals in trans-national crime". The company claimed at the time that the smuggling was the work of "rogue employees", and replied "British American Tobacco does not smuggle. It does not condone smuggling and its business is entirely lawful". But the documents now disclosed show that in many Asian countries BAT not merely tolerated GT trade channels, but exploited traditional smuggling routes when they would maximise sales. The documents also trace the rise and fall of Mr Lui within BAT ranks. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 2 12:11:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6F7DD21AFF for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 12:11:17 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA15446 for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 12:11:17 -0500 Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 12:11:16 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] list of links on smuggling story The following combines two messages from Clive Bates of ASH UK listing links on the story: There are three launch vehicles - the research done by each is independent but draws on much of the same material: 1. The ASH (London) web site www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/ which has about 150 relevant scanned documents (PDFs), summaries, follow-up letters from ASH to BAT etc and links to background material and other sites. 2. The London-based Guardian newspaper www.newsunlimited.co.uk with the story at http://www.newsunlimited.co.uk/bat/ 3. The Washington DC-based Center for Public Integrity www.publicintegrity.org with the story at http://www.public-i.org/story_01_013100.htm A second in-depth story on Asia from the Center for Public Integrity: Global Reach Of Tobacco Company's Involvement In Cigarette Smuggling Exposed In Company Papers www.public-i.org/story_01_020200.htm There are many gems in this piece, for example the first public admission that Colombian Govenors may be seeking a RICO [Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organization] action against BAT. There are rumours that this may start in the next few weeks. www.public-i.org/story_01_013100.htm Finally, we are updating the ASH smuggling site with links to press coverage about BAT and other reaction.... www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/ From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 2 12:24:42 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6EB8E21AFF for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 12:24:42 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA15853 for ; Wed, 2 Feb 2000 12:24:42 -0500 Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 12:24:41 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Global Reach of Tobacco Company's Involvement In Cigarette Smuggling Exposed By company Papers Global Reach of Tobacco Company's Involvement In Cigarette Smuggling Exposed By company Papers Source: Center for Public Integrity, Wednesday, 2/2/00 "With regard to the definition of transit it is essentially the illegal import of brands from Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, etc. upon which no duty has been paid. A. George-Perutz, BATUKE In a second report by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, a project of the Center for Public Integrity in Washington, D.C., British American Tobacco=92s exploitation of smuggling routes in Asia and the Third World are examined. (Washington, Feb. 2) In their search to maintain and enlarge cigarette markets and corporate revenue, British American Tobacco =96 the world=92s second largest tobacco multinational and parent company of Brown & Williamson =96 exploited a sophisticated network of smuggling routes throughout Asia. A review of more than 11,000 corporate documents, conducted over a six-month period by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists at the Center for Public Integrity, shows that, as with corporate operations in Latin America, BAT managers and executives used a series of euphemisms in corporate correspondence to discuss smuggling operations that helped them gain a greater share of smokers and profits. But unlike Latin America, where company executives commonly used the euphemism =93DNP,=94 meaning Duty Not Paid, to denote smuggled goods, BAT documents discussing Asian operations most often used the term =93GT=94 or General Trade. The company documents, on Asia, mostly covering the years 1990-1994, repeatedly contrast legal export sales with GT and break down the total trade in particular countries into the categories of legal or =93GT.=94 One plan for Singapore, for example, refers to how =93the legal m= arket fell but the shortfall was taken up by GT product." Another plan for Taiwan showed =93the split between Legal and GT.=94 http://www.public-i.org/bat_to_cotter.pdf Other pointers to the meaning of GT in company documents include references to difficulties with customs or closed borders, indicating that the reason why GT trade was illegal was because it involved smuggling. In relation to moving cigarettes into Myanmar from Thailand, a Nov. 30, 1992 fax (http://www.public-i.org/Combe_to_Horne.pdf) from BAT's Singapore subsidiary warned that duty-paid sales to Myanmar had been cut off because of political turmoil. "The closure of the Thai border as the result of the May political upheaval meant that Embassy, legally border traded and duties paid, no longer had a legitimate route into the country." The same report also noted that "this closure coincided with the monsoon season and the consequent redeployment of security forces from rebel engagements to internal security activities. The GT route thereby became more difficult =2E.." A large part of BAT=92s GT sales in Asia were handled by one Singapore distributor, SUTL (Singapura United Trading Limited). According to company papers, SUTL handled both legal and GT products in the region. Its normal market channels were broken down into domestic sales; duty paid exports, which were legal; duty-free sales in airports and to ships; and GT. A Dec. 10, 1991 document identified risks to the GT business. =93SUTL appreciate that dependency on GT leaves them very vulnerable to market liberalisation (Thailand) and market closure (Vietnam), therefore they are seeking to move that core business to long term legal ventures involving ownership interest.=94 Other company documents from Latin America and Asia used the phrase =93GT= =94 interchangeably with =93DNP=94 and =93transit,=94 internal euphemisms that = also appeared on BAT papers in place of direct references to smuggling. This and other similar evidence from the BAT papers lead to the conclusion that, within British American Tobacco, references to GT in the papers of directors and managers were references to smuggled cigarettes. The reviewed documents, part of a cache of about 8 million pages made public as a result of the 1998 U.S. tobacco settlement, do not suggest that BAT employees themselves ever transported contraband across borders. But they sought to exploit and control to their advantage smuggling markets around the world through a network of agents who, on an annual basis, transferred billions of cigarettes into the hands of smugglers. So large was the role of GT that, according to the most recent information available, a plan covering the period from 1993 to 1997, more than one-fifth of the output of BAT=92s United Kingdom factories was made for this market. From its factory at Southampton, in southern England, more than 60 billion cigarettes are made annually by BAT (UK and Export) Ltd (BATUKE). On average, about 20 containers of cigarettes leave the port every day. The information appears in the BATUKE company plan for 1993 to 1997. Marked =93SECRET,=94 the document is noted as having been provided to the then-chairman of the BAT Company Ltd, Barry D. Bramley. BATCo was then the main tobacco manufacturing subsidiary of BAT Industries Plc. According to the plan, BATUKE operates in 125 different markets, shipping tobacco products to these markets through 360 agents. The markets are broken down into =93domestic,=94 =93duty free,=94 and =93General Trade (GT)= =2E=94 During the period covered by the disclosed documents, BAT anticipated that more than one-fifth of its UK and Export production would be =93GT.=94 Under the heading =93General Trade,=94 it states that =93two key General Tr= ade markets will account for 4.7 billion units or 22% of BATUKE=92s total shipments.=94 The two key centers of distribution identified in the report are SUTL and =93Unit 1.=94 SUTL covered countries from Afghanistan to the Philippines, while Unit 1 was involved with Africa. Other centers that can be identified as playing a major role in BAT=92s GT trade are the Gulf state o= f Dubai and Hong Kong. The Company Plan suggests that BAT then proposed to invest in expanding its utilization of GT methods to reach its end markets. The company =93strategy [focuses] on maximising the GT market opportunities to provide funds to build a stable volume/profit base for the long term via investment in duty free and domestic markets.=94 It added that =93=A33.8 [million]. . . will be invested to grow our business in the GT markets.=94 BAT has refused to comment on the meaning of such terms as =93GT,=94 =93DNP= =94 or =93transit,=94 or to discuss the implications of any particular document. I= n a statement last week, BAT said the 11,000 pages of reviewed documents were taken out of context. However, a year ago, the company=92s public affairs director, Michael Prideaux, said in response to smuggling allegations that "if people wish to draw the inference that we are turning a blind eye to smuggling, they are free to do so. Deterring smuggling is a matter for the governments concerned. The only sure way is to cut tobacco taxes.=94 But the hundreds of documents in BAT=92s files on marketing activities in Asia and around the world leave little doubt that some of BAT=92s top directors and executives were far from blind to smuggling activities. They received reports about new opportunities in GT trade, as well as regular assessments of sales levels that went through legal and GT channels. Important markets in the region for =93GT=94 cigarettes, according to a 199= 2 report prepared by Fred Coombe, BATUKE Area Manager for Far East, were Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, North Korea, Afghanistan and Taiwan. The largest potential market of all was mainland China. Evidence from Hong Kong suggests that BAT cigarettes worth more than =A3490 million ($810 million) were smuggled into China during the 1990s. In the late 1980s, competition between Hong Kong-based rival traders smuggling BAT cigarettes into China became so intense that bribes were paid to the BAT local director whose job it was to deal with them. After one jilted trader exposed the system to Hong Kong=92s anti-corruption commission, former BAT (HK) export director Jerry Lui was extradited from the United States. BAT itself was not charged with any offense. The case against Lui nearly foundered after the chief witness against him, trader Tommy Chui, was murdered. His body was found floating in Singapore harbor in 1995, stuffed in a garbage bag with tape over his mouth. Another potential witness committed suicide. Nevertheless, in June 1998 Lui was convicted and sentenced to three years and eight months=92 imprisonment. He later launched an ultimately unsuccessful appeal and awaits the outcome of a continuing appeal application. BAT company documents disclosed during Lui=92s trial led Justice Wally Yeun= g Chun-kuen to comment: =93The evidence suggests that management of BAT (HK) was aware duty-not-paid cigarettes . . . would ultimately be smuggled in China and other countries. . . . To some extent such irresponsible behaviour amounted to assisting criminals in transnational crime.=94 The company claimed at the time that the smuggling was the work of =93rogue= =94 employees and replied that =93British American Tobacco does not smuggle. It does not condone smuggling and its business is entirely lawful.=94 The documents obtained and reviewed by the Center=92s international consortium of investigative reporters show that in many Asian countries BAT did not merely tolerate GT trade channels, but exploited traditional smuggling routes when that would maximize sales. The documents also trace the rise and fall of Lui within BAT ranks. http://www.public-i.org/bat_to_korfhage.pdf At first, Lui worked for BAT=92s U.S. subsidiary Brown & Williamson. His jo= b was =93aiding and abetting our efforts to get U.S. brands well established in export markets,=94 a BAT document said. At the end of 1991, he was appointed the director of exports for British American Tobacco (Hong Kong) Ltd. His job was to supply export distributors in the region. Many of them transported contraband cigarettes into China. In internal BAT documents, the job that Lui had held in Hong Kong was described more clearly as =93Director of Exports to China." The same BATCo file also noted company worries about the =93dependence of continued transi= t trade into China.=94 According to court proceedings in Hong Kong last year, Lui had to report to BAT (HK) executive meetings on the volume of cigarettes being supplied to each distributor. =93It was because the market in China was the largest source of profit for BAT (HK) Ltd that the post of director of exports was so important within the BAT organisation,=94 according to the Hong Kong Court of Appeal. At the time, only the Chinese Tobacco Import and Export Corporation was legally allowed to import cigarettes and charged heavy duties to do so. When officers from the Hong Kong Independent Commission Against Corruption raided the offices of BAT=92s largest Hong Kong distributor in 1994, they found accounts showing that $5.36 billion [HK] dollars worth of cigarettes had been purchased =96 about 50 billion cigarettes. In Vietnam and other nations, where the documents note that all cigarette imports were illegal in the early 1990s, files held by BAT Asia-Pacific Regional Director Paul Adams show that the company monitored, encouraged and facilitated =93GT=94 or =93transit=94 sales imports when these suited corporate needs. It is clear from the documents, many of which are marked =93SECRET,=94 that the senior directors and staff who handled such sales understood what they were doing. One company document referred to =93transit=94 as =93essentially the illegal import of brands =85 upon which= no duty has been paid.=94 http://www.public-i.org/bat_to_syta.pdf Marketing Intelligence Another report noted that transit sales created =93apparently paradoxical requirements of an arm's length approach and close supervision.=94 In 1992 and 1993, for example, smugglers about whose activities the company were informed faced particular difficulties in getting cigarettes into Bangladesh through adjacent Myanmar because of =93(a) Increased custom= s surveillance in Chittagong/Cox's Bazaar; (b) border confrontation between Bangladesh and Myanmar over the Rohinga Moslem refugee crisis.=94 The same report also promised that SUTL would =93strive to improve this situation by developing land routes via Myanmar and optimising duty free leakage." Another problem encountered was that BAT representatives were unable to visit countries such as Vietnam, Bangladesh, and Pakistan because of =93legal or political sensitivities.=94 SUTL was a Singapore company, Singapura United Trading Ltd (SUTL), and is characterized in BAT files as a family dynasty run by Chinese patriarch Tay Choon Hye. During a decades-long relationship, Tay and SUTL had developed an intimate working partnership with BAT. BAT staff oversaw many aspects of company activities while others were seconded to work inside SUTL. SUTL=92s significance to BAT=92s trading was such that Tay, its boss, was felt by some BAT staff to have access to the highest levels of BAT Industries Plc. SUTL was responsible for serving four duty-paid markets, 20 duty-free markets, and 11 =93GT=94 markets, according to a 1993 BAT =93Asia-Pacfic st= udy.=94 SUTL was not itself involved in smuggling cigarettes across national borders, according to the reviewed documents, but sold them on to other distributors or wholesalers. Attempts to reach SUTL for comment before publication were unsuccessful. Company executives examined which mix of these channels would serve BAT best. In August 1994, Asia-Pacific Regional Director Paul Adams received a lengthy report on BAT=92s plans for SUTL from 1995 until 1999. The report defined the company=92s responsibilities as =93to maximize BAT=92s market a= nd profit shares in South-East Asia / Indian Sub-Continent export business through the most efficient distribution of our international and regional brands, irrespective of sub-channel (Domestic, Duty Free, GT).=94 While other BAT companies took responsibility for sales channels into China, SUTL focused on developing new markets such as Vietnam. This plum Asian market had a population of 71 million and was viewed as a strong prospect for new business. In the years since the war had ended, Vietnam had fought a seemingly losing battle against smugglers. Until 1990, the =93transit=94 market into Vietnam was estimated by BAT to b= e 12-18 billion cigarettes a year. Then, following a clampdown that September, =93smuggling was virtually eliminated for 18 months,=94 accordin= g to a report to Adams. The hiatus did not last long. As border conditions relaxed, contraband routes again appeared, particularly coming through Cambodia. In 1992, the company=92s =93Cambodia Business Plan=94 referred to this situation as, apparently, a temporary contingency: =93Cambodia will continue to service the Vietnamese market until the [Vietnamese cigarette import] ban is lifted.=94 Soon, contraband into Vietnam was climbing toward pre-1990 levels. In 1992, Adams was told that BAT=92s =93State Express 555=94 brand of cigarett= es was the =93major smuggled brand in the area . . . there is no doubt it has = a tremendous image and sales potential.=94 Sales of smuggled SE555 were then estimated to be about 1 billion cigarettes, worth roughly =A310 million ($1= 6 million) a year. A series of company papers showed that from 1991 BAT then pursued a twin-track strategy to maximize its earning from Vietnam. One track was to negotiate with the Vietnamese government and its tobacco monopoly, Vintaba, in order to produce international brand cigarettes locally. The other was track was monitored from BAT=92s UK-based =93Asia-Pacific Regional Business Unit,=94 where one executive noted that =93the high margi= ns on illegal product are justified on grounds of risk. The amount of handling associated with imported distribution [is] coupled with the requirement of frequent concealment.=94 Both tracks went ahead. By mid-1993, BAT State Express 555 brand cigarettes were being sold as =93Made in Vietnam.=94 Meanwhile, back in Britain, executives in BAT=92s =93Far East Support Unit=94 (FESU) juggled complex calculations to assess what balance of trade channels would deliver maximum profit. A memorandum found in the file of then-New Business Development Manager Nick Brookes =96 now CEO of Brown & Williamson =96 set out BAT=92s pricing strategy, which attempted to predict the final consumer price of BAT cigarettes smuggled into Vietnam. In a document suggesting clarity and precision of BAT=92s understanding of pricing in the GT trade, the document noted: =93Ex factory price should be such that retail price falls at parity with GT (not fully controllable). GT price structure is: BATUKE to SUTL, $245, SUTL to importer, $290, Importer to Wholesaler, $348, Wholesaler to Trader (Cambodian border) $350.=94 (http://www.public-i.org/McPhail_to_Millbank.pdf) In other words (and recognizing the independence of smugglers), BAT staff seemed to wish to adjust the sale price of their cigarettes to their agent so as to set the final smuggled end-market price in Vietnam. BAT=92s records suggest that Vietnamese officials treated the company=92s conduct with suspicion and told them so. Company executives had a series of meetings with Le Dinh Thuy, director general of the Vietnamese Vintaba tobacco company. A letter from Singapore to BAT=92s then- headquarters in Staines, England, reported that at a June 1991 meeting, =93Mr Thuy . . . wa= s obviously fully aware of both BATUKE=92s and SUTL=92s activities in Vietnam= , stating =96 =91what are these people doing visiting Vietnam when the import= of cigarettes is banned?=92 It is a point I think should be taken very seriously.=94 http://www.public-i.org/bat_to_watterton.pdf Similar enterprises took place across Asia. In Taiwan, BAT reckoned in the early 1990s that it had about a 1 billion share of the 4 billion a year =93transit=94 market. In Thailand, the market was over 555 million a year. = In Vietnam, it was 1 billion a year. In 1993, BAT employed a single senior executive to take charge of GT sales around the globe. The post of =93senior regional export manager=94 was based at BATCo in Staines. Although ostensibly the job was to coordinate sales in Asia and the Pacific, the executive=92s second task was =93Co-ordinator of GT worldwide.=94 In this capacity, the manager was made =93responsible to all five Regional Directors for the co-ordination of all BATCo general trade sales worldwide.=94 He was charged with the =93maintenance of profiles of all mai= n dealers, and monitoring of supply routes; negotiation of trans-regional accounts, e.g. SUTL =85 .=94 But there was a special warning. =93Due to the nature of Export General Trade business, the Distributors handling this are not easy to manage and difficult to motivate. Their loyalty is sometimes questionable. Due to the type of business and sums involved, bribery attempts are frequent . . . [The person appointed] must be permanently alert to the confidentiality needed in some areas of the business.=94 He had to be on continual lookout for new smuggling routes, by conducting a =93proactive search for new GT business.=94 The report concluded, without apparent irony, that =93integrity is an absolute must.=94 The disclosed BAT documents indicate that =93GT,=94 =93Transit,=94 or, more plainly, smuggling seemed to be seen by BAT Industries in the early 1990s as a necessary and indeed substantial part of being competitive and successful in the international tobacco business. BAT Industries directors were told in a 1993 paper: =93A significant proportion of the world export trade is transit. It exists wherever there are widely different excise rates and trade restrictions, and is expected to continue where these conditions exist.=94 But, as with their Singapore agent SUTL, they also had a long-term desire to move, when and if advantageous, to legal markets =96 provided always that national taxes were low and that current and future smokers were easy to reach. Brown & Williamson Brands: American, Barclay, Belair, Capri, Carlton, GPC, Herbert Tareyton, Kool, Lucky Strike, Misty, Pall Mall, Prime,=20 Private Stock, Raleigh, Richland, Silva Thins, Summit, Tall, Tareyton, Viceroy From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 11:37:42 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1C74021AFF for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 11:37:42 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA04463 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 11:37:41 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 11:37:41 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Action on smuggling If you want to take action to follow up on the recent revelations relating to international tobacco smuggling, here are a couple suggestions: 1) Write a letter to Stephen Byers at the Department of Trade and Industry. Points you might want to cover (in your own words): + you have seen some of the documents and coverage and are shocked/disturbed by what they show + that smuggling undermines efforts of developing countries to control the epidemic of smoking related-disease + point out that although the smuggling was happening abroad and BAT does not do the smuggling itself, the company seems to be orchestrating it. This raises serious issues of corporate conduct and governance that are appropriate matters for the DTI rather than HM Customs and Excise or other arm of the government. + call for a DTI investigation and ask what he intends to do, if he doesn't call an inquiry. Rt. Hon Stephen Byers, MP Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Department of Trade and Industry 1 Victoria St London SW1H 0ET United Kingdom Fax: 44-207-215-5468 2) Write to Kenneth Clarke calling for British America Tobacco to immediately launch an internal investigation that will provide answers to these serious allegations. Clarke as Deputy Chairman of BAT is the most senior non-executive Director and is responsible for corporate governance and the conduct of the executive management of the company. Clarke was former Chancellor of the Exchequer and Secretary of State for Health. Letters could have the following form: + you have seen the serious allegations and hope that BAT will act to stop this if it is still going on + that as Deputy Chairman, Kenneth Clarke has a special responsibility to supervise the actions of the company + what ihe intends to do if anything Rt. Hon Kenneth Clarke, MP Deputy Chairman British American Tobacco Globe House, 4 Temple Place London WC2R 2PG United Kingdom Fax: 44-207-845-2191 You can see what ASH UK, which helped uncover the smuggling documents, said in its letters at www.ash.org.uk/smuggling. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 11:54:59 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0383B21B3D for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 11:54:59 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA05000 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 11:54:58 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 11:54:58 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Clarke admits BAT link to smuggling (fwd) Clarke admits BAT link to smuggling by Kevin Maguire Source: The Guardian/The Observer, Thursday, 2/3/00 Thursday February 3, 2000 Kenneth Clarke, the former Tory chancellor who is now deputy chairman of British American Tobacco, today admits that the multinational company supplies cigarettes knowing they are likely to end up on the black market. Mr Clarke publicly defends the world's second largest tobacco company for the first time after the Guardian disclosed how it profits from smuggling. Writing in today's paper, Mr Clarke says it is "faced with a dilemma" because smokers switch to other brands or counterfeiters cash in if it restricts supplies. "Where any government is unwilling to act or their efforts are unsuccessful, we act, completely within the law, on the basis that our brands will be available alongside those of our competitors in the smuggled as well as the legitimate market," says Mr Clarke. Internal BAT documents analysed by the Guardian were dated up to 1995 but the non-executive director makes no attempt to deny that the exploitation of smuggling is continuing. The all-party Commons health committee will today consider recalling Martin Broughton, BAT's chairman, as part of an investigation into the tobacco industry. Audrey Wise, a Labour member of the committee, said: "If there was ever a case of being within the letter of the law but clearly outside the spirit of the law then this is a gem. Smuggled goods are illegal goods, so if you're deliberately making your goods available for smuggling knowingly and deliberately you are an accessory to the fact." Clive Bates, head of the anti-smoking group Ash, said: "It is now absolutely clear that vicious competition for cigarette sales in developing countries has led BAT into the manipulation of illegal markets through intermediaries. "However they try to distance themselves from it, Clarke's incredible and candid admission does mean that they are treating smuggling as a normal part of tobacco business. "Once they started down this route, they were inevitably led into the kinds of controlling actions we see described in the memos released in the Guardian." The documents obtained from the firm's Guildford depository revealed widespread exploitation of smuggling around the world. BAT had previously claimed it merely turned a blind eye to smuggling but the papers show it is central to the company's operation. Mr Clarke went public after pressure from MPs for a statement. He said it was "not in our wider commercial interests" but blamed governments levelling high taxes on cigarettes for the trade. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 11:55:29 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A1E8721BBC for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 11:55:29 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA05031 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 11:55:29 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 11:55:29 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] CLARKE: Dilemma of a cigarette exporter (fwd) CLARKE: Dilemma of a cigarette exporter by Kenneth Clarke Source: The Guardian/The Observer, Thursday, 2/3/00 =09The Guardian this week disclosed 1993 BAT plans to "grow our business" in smuggled markets. We invited the former Conservative chancellor of the exchequer, now BAT's deputy chairman, to respond Kenneth Clarke =09 British American Tobacco is a good corporate citizen which maintains high ethical standards. We reject allegations that we have "condoned tax evasion and exploited smuggling". We seek to work with governments around the world to find solutions to the problem of smuggling. Smuggling is a serious global problem faced by many industries including alcohol, electronic goods, cars and tobacco. It is caused by high tax levels, different levels of tax on two sides of a border and the imposition of national trade barriers to legal imports. Tobacco products command high values. They are easily transportable, making them an easy target for smugglers. Too many governments follow a policy of raising tobacco taxes to excessive levels and ignore dramatic tax differentials between neighbouring countries. Smuggling is boosted by every tax-change that improves the profit margin for the smugglers. The effect of such a policy can clearly be seen here and now in the erosion of the legitimate tobacco market in the UK, due to far higher British taxes than those in mainland Europe. The level of tobacco smuggling into Britain today is higher as a proportion of the total market (over 25%) than it is in Colombia (below 10%). British American Tobacco sells goods through wholesalers and distributors. We invest heavily in building a legitimate business through proper and well-managed distribution networks. In many markets we suffer from smuggling. It is not in our wider commercial interests to encourage or condone smuggling and it is certainly contrary to our standards as a responsible company. Our policy therefore is to engage in constructive dialogue and to cooperate with governments to try to eliminate the causes of the smuggling. British American Tobacco group companies work with governments and customs and trade authorities around the world and we sometimes have successes, proposing solutions and supporting initiatives to help reduce the problem. We have reached an agreement with the government of Colombia, for example, which has dramatically reduced the proportion of their market taken by smugglers despite the long-standing tradition of smuggling many products that is endemic to parts of that country. However, where governments are not prepared to address the underlying causes of the problem, businesses such as ours who are engaged in international trade are faced with a dilemma. If the demand for our brands is not met, consumers will either switch to our competitors' brands or there will be the kind of dramatic growth in counterfeit products that we have recently seen in our Asian markets. Where any government is unwilling to act or their efforts are unsuccessful, we act, completely within the law, on the basis that our brands will be available alongside those of our competitors in the smuggled as well as the legitimate market. British American Tobacco group companies around the world are good and reliable taxpayers. We provide some =A313bn annually to national exchequers through excise duties and other taxes which is well over 10 times as much as the group's combined profit after tax. Governments are, and always have been, significant stakeholders in our business. We aim to act responsibly to the benefit of all our stakeholders: shareholders, customers, consumers, governments, employees and suppliers. We are as aware as every member of the public that our products are often smuggled. Our business interests are damaged by the prevalence of smuggling. When governments and health campaigners are prepared to accept policies to reduce and control smuggling we will always welcome such policies and cooperate with them. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 13:35:39 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0FD9A21AFF for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 13:35:39 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA08560 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 13:35:38 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 13:35:38 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Cigarette firms launched secret tactics to fight plain packs, documents show (fwd) Here is the first of a series of posts that I'm sending out today from the past two-plus weeks. Please be careful to check the dates on them. Robert Weissman Essential Information | Internet: rob@essential.org Cigarette firms launched secret tactics to fight plain packs, documents show Industry moved to harm reputation of health minister by Mark Kennedy / Ottawa Citizen Source: National Post, Monday, 1/17/00 OTTAWA - The Canadian tobacco industry secretly mounted a campaign in the mid-1990s to "undermine" and "attack the motives" of the then federal health minister when she advocated a plan to strip cigarette packages of their distinctive labels, internal industry documents reveal. Health groups say the documents provide a hint of what is to come once Allan Rock, the Health Minister, unveils a government proposal on Wednesday to force cigarette makers to place photos of diseased lungs and cancerous mouths on their packages. Government insiders and anti-tobacco activists are expecting a fierce pressure campaign from the tobacco companies to force Mr. Rock to back down. "They will put in a full-court press against these measures," says Cynthia Callard of Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada. "They've done it before, they'll do it again." In 1994, the industry was so fearful of the proposal for generic cigarette packs -- commonly known as plain packaging -- that the tobacco companies banded together to launch a special "campaign organization" within their Ottawa-based lobby group, the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers' Council. At the time, the Chretien government had just dramatically lowered tobacco taxes to stop the cross-border smuggling phenomenon. To appease outraged health groups, the government also said the Commons health committee would hold public hearings on plain packaging. It was apparent at the time that the tobacco companies were unsettled by the notion of being forced to sell their products in similar drab packages, with no distinctive colours or markings to make them attractive to smokers. But only now is it clear how worried they were. Last year, as part of a U.S. lawsuit settlement, the companies were forced to file previously secret internal documents in public depositories in England and Minnesota. It is from the British depository that the files on plain packaging have emerged. They show how the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers' Council established a special squad -- organized "much along the lines of a political campaign" -- to stop plain packaging. Among the pressure tactics they formulated: - They used so-called "third-party" allies with more public respectability (printing companies, retailers and union officials) to help wage the tobacco companies' battle, including helping them write the presentations they delivered to the Commons committee. Those groups warned of job losses if generic packages were adopted. - They curried favour with "selected" journalists to ensure sympathetic media coverage. - They "targeted" certain cabinet ministers and Liberal caucus members to be hit with "continuing pressure from appropriate sources." But perhaps most revealing is how the industry moved beyond arguing its case on the merits to discredit the personal reputation of Diane Marleau, then health minister. One document that outlined the various tactics to be pursued by the industry's internal group noted that it would "feed selected journalists material attacking motives of [the] health minister and undermining credibility of [the] anti-smoking lobby." The Commons health committee issued a report that endorsed plain packaging, but Ms. Marleau decided not to move until she had the results of a special study that her department commissioned. According to the internal industry documents, Ms. Marleau had been given a "blank cheque" by the committee and it was "inconceivable" the study would oppose plain packaging. Under the heading "strategic considerations," the document noted that Ms. Marleau would likely present draft legislation on plain packaging to the caucus and cabinet. "This dictates two basic strategic approaches," the document concluded. One approach was to continue the pressure campaign on Liberal MPs and cabinet. The other was "undermining [the] credibility of the study and minister on the grounds it is rigged." Ultimately, the study did support plain packaging. But just a few months after it was released, the momentum toward plain packaging hit a sudden halt. The Supreme Court of Canada released a decision that struck down previous legislation that banned tobacco advertisements. The government focused on recovering lost ground through a new bill that would set limits on how the industry used sponsorships of arts and sports groups to create "lifestyle ads." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 13:36:27 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3472821AFF for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 13:36:27 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA08602 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 13:36:26 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 13:36:26 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Govt may consider suing tobacco firms -- The Press -- Monday, January 17, 2000 (fwd) Govt may consider suing tobacco firms -- The Press -- Monday, January 17, 2000 NEW ZEALAND; Source: The Press, Monday, 1/17/00 WELLINGTON -- Tobacco companies say they will vigorously defend any legal action taken against them by the Government to recoup health costs associated with smoking. Prime Minister Helen Clark said yesterday she would meet Action on Smoking and Health (Ash), an anti-tobacco smoking group that was urging the Government to sue the industry. New Zealand's biggest tobacco company, British American Tobacco (New Zealand), would fight any legal action, spokesman Tony Maguire said. But the tobacco industry hoped the Government would focus on smoking prevention rather than throw money at lawyers. Mr Maguire said the industry was already working with Ministry of Health officials to educate retailers that selling cigarettes to smokers under 18 was illegal and not supported by cigarette companies. Ms Clark received a letter from Ash asking the Government to consider suing tobacco firms, and said she would be happy to discuss the possibility. However, a lawsuit would take resources, staff and policy away from the prevention focus that Labour had had on smoking for the past 10 years, Ms Clark said. "Obviously there would be tremendous satisfaction in holding the tobacco industry legally accountable and extracting large sums of money from them. "However, it's not a foregone conclusion that you would extract large dollops of money in our legal system." Ms Clark said the key question she would ask ASH was whether a lawsuit would stop anyone smoking. It was essential that efforts were still put into reducing the number of New Zealanders who smoked, particularly Maori numbers, she said. "Maori are really facing the most horrendous death figures from tobacco and the only thing that will bring that death toll down is concerted effort to prevent smoking or get people to quit." A 1999 Ministry of Health report, Taking The Pulse, showed that one-quarter of all New Zealanders were smokers, while 45 per cent of Maori were smokers. The report said that smoking had cost the health system at least $185 million in 1989 due to increased hospital, GP and prescription costs. Another report, by economist Brian Easton, said the overall social cost of smoking was $22.5 billion for 1990. The figure took into account the loss of human capital when people took days off work for smoking-related illnesses. Ash director Trish Fraser said it was time that New Zealand took real action against the tobacco industry. Ash and its lawyer, Wellington medico-legal expert David Collins, would meet Ms Clark, Health Minister Annette King and Justice Minister Phil Goff to discuss possible legal action, Ms Fraser said. The Queensland and South Australian state governments were already investigating legal action against tobacco companies. In the United States, four tobacco firms signed a $391.4 billion settlement in 1998 after 46 states sued for the public health costs incurred through smoking.--NZPA From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 13:40:03 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 236B621AFF for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 13:40:03 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA08752 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 13:40:02 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 13:40:02 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco firms behind tax protest (fwd) Tobacco firms behind tax protest "Spontaneous grass-roots" tobacco-tax protests were secretly organized by big cigarette companies to press the federal and provi by WILLIAM MARSDEN / The Gazette Source: Montreal Gazette, Monday, 1/17/00 While Canada's major tobacco companies were funneling billions of cigarettes into the United States only to be smuggled back into Canada, they staged a series of so-called "spontaneous grass-roots" tobacco-tax protests, tagging one of them with the code name Boston Tea Party. Secret industry documents that have recently come to light in U.S. civil actions show the degree to which these protests, which took place between 1991 and 1994, were little more than well-orchestrated industry initiatives designed to press the federal and provincial governments to reduce taxes. They demonstrate the determination of the industry to dominate the government agenda and push the questionable view that smuggling was a direct result of high taxes. The documents show the careful planning that went into orchestrating the so-called "grass-roots" protests, letter-writing campaigns and the organizing of industry-favourable reports on smuggling. One document admits that RJR-Macdonald used smuggling and offshore production as "political leverage" against high taxes. In many ways, the tobacco companies were playing a deceitful role - on the one hand, feeding and encouraging the smuggling; on the other hand, pretending to offer the government support in its law-enforcement attempts. But the strategy worked. It escalated the smuggling and the political protests to such a level that in 1994 the federal government and the eastern provinces rolled back tobacco taxes by about $20 a carton. "Throughout this period, the industry played the government like a violin," former RJR-Macdonald sales executive Les Thompson said in an interview. "They played the government like the dumb kid next door. They lied to them," he added. "They complained about smuggling and, meanwhile, they were fueling the black market. They were speaking out of both sides of their mouths." Thompson is the only tobacco executive to have been convicted of a smuggling offence. He pleaded guilty last year in U.S. Federal Court in Syracuse, N.Y., to a money-laundering charge and now faces 70 months in a U.S. prison. In interviews with The Gazette, he said the tobacco companies organized the tax protests "from the bottom up." Michel Descoteaux, public-relations director for Imperial Tobacco, played a major role in co-ordinating and writing press releases for the tax protests. Asked whether, while organizing protests, he was aware that Imperial and RJR-MacDonald were shipping cigarettes to New York state to be smuggled back into Canada, Descoteaux said: "Well, uh, sir, the company certainly was (aware). The extent to which I personally was, the answer to that was, I don't know. =C9 That would be irrelevant, sir." The so-called "Boston Tea Party" was the first of the protests organized by the tobacco companies in 1991. They spent $3 million to mobilize smokers for a mail-in campaign to oppose high tobacco taxes. Working through their industry association, the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers Council, or CTMC, Imperial Tobacco and RJR-Macdonald financed marketing and focus-group studies to gain support for the campaign and to show that it was "spontaneous." According to Imperial Tobacco documents, the impression of spontaneity was a prerequisite for a "successful program." The protest itself consisted of forms printed on the slide-out back of cigarette packs. The forms were titled "Tax Protest" and carried the following message to the prime minister: "I want you to stop the unfair taxation of tobacco products in Canada." Because they were addressed to the prime minister, postage was free. The protester simply printed his or her name and address on the form and slipped it into a mailbox. A protester could send any number of these tax-protest "postcards." The companies printed 50 million forms. Before issuing them, they launched a public-relations campaign to ensure smokers and non-smokers alike knew about the "spontaneous" campaign against high taxes. According to Imperial documents, RJR-Macdonald and Imperial spent $1.8 million advertising the tax-protest forms in 66 newspapers across the country and another $932,000 for 30-second spots on 46 radio stations. They also spent additional funds tracking the protest to gauge its effectiveness. The companies also ordered their field salesmen to push cigarette retailers to promote the protest. Thompson, who at the time was in charge of tobacco sales in Ontario for RJR-Macdonald, said his company was responsible for pushing the convenience-store chains while Imperial had the drugstore chains, some of which their parent company, Imasco, owned. He said that while Rothmans didn't print the tax forms on their packages, they agreed to lobby the food and other chain stores. The campaign, officially launched May 31 by the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers Council, received front-page coverage in many dailies. The industry never disclosed the fact that it code-named the project the Boston Tea Party, a reference to an event in U.S. history that marked the beginning of the American Revolution. At the launch, CTMC president William Neville read a statement approved by the tobacco companies in which he claimed smokers had been "calling and writing our member companies to protest the tax increases." He added that smokers approached manufacturers "out of a sense of helplessness." "They felt they were lone, unheard voices and were frustrated and angry," he said. "That is why we decided to do what we could to help them vent that frustration and anger. =C9 Again, our only role in this exercise is that of a conduit." Descoteaux said in an interview that he could not remember how many calls tobacco companies received from irate smokers. Also unanswered was the question of why smokers, if they were so irate, couldn't just write to the government themselves. Postage was free, after all. Internal documents show that in April 1991 the tobacco companies formed focus groups from which they obtained a string of comments they claimed supported their contention that the movement was "grass roots." Cited Focus-Group Comments Included: - "It's not fair. Smokers and drinkers always get screwed." - "The tobacco industry has shown no inclination to support smokers in the past. Will we be alone again?" A CTMC document, stamped confidential and titled "Boston Tea Party II - Possible Questions and Appropriate Answers," instructed CTMC officials to state that high taxes were causing smuggling: "The cause of smuggling is simple: Canadian tobacco taxes are much too high in relation to those in the United States." The industry never disclosed to the public or the government that during this time, RJR-Macdonald was supplying smugglers through Buffalo, N.Y., free-trade zones and was switching production offshore. The smuggling market became so lucrative for RJR-Macdonald that by the end of 1991 as much as 50 per cent of its shipments were going to the United States to be smuggled back into Canada. Thompson, who was one of the RJR-Macdonald executives overseeing the sales into the black market, told The Gazette that by 1993 more than 60 per cent of the company's net profits came from cigarettes sold to smugglers. The Boston Tea Party protest lasted two weeks. Tracking reports by the tobacco companies showed that about 9 per cent of Canadians (26 per cent of smokers) mailed the protest form. The complete story of the tobacco industry's lobbying attempts is contained in a report written in August 1994 by Descoteaux. The report was sent to David Bishop, tobacco-tax manager for British American Tobacco Co. Ltd., which owned 42.3 per cent of Imperial Tobacco's parent company, Imasco. (BAT says it will close a deal Feb. 2 to buy the remaining shares of Imasco.) The report refers to the Boston Tea Party project as the "most spectacular 'untraditional' initiative" pulled off by the industry. ' But that was only part of the industry's anti-tax campaign. Descoteaux notes that to give the government an indication of the size of the smuggling problem, the industry in 1992 hired outside expert Rod Stamler, a former RCMP superintendent working for a private investigation company in Toronto. Stamler came up with a series of reports that the industry distributed to government departments. The reports indicated that smuggling in 1993 accounted for as much as 40 per cent of the tobacco market, a figure the government used when it reduced taxes in February 1994. His reports have since been criticized by anti-smoking organizations for broadly overstating the smuggling problem. The government has since admitted the 40-per-cent figure was exaggerated. The industry sent Stamler on a publicity tour across Canada to push the argument that high taxes caused massive smuggling. Descoteaux's report goes on to state that the industry arranged for Stamler to meet politicians and government officials "so that his report could become the document of reference on these aspects of the issue." Stamler's reports never mentioned that the tobacco companies were actively feeding the smuggling networks. (Stamler also hired himself out to the National Coalition Against Crime and Tobacco Contraband, a Washington, D.C., lobby group financed by RJ Reynolds Tobacco Co. Big tobacco in the United States has been lobbying heavily against increased tobacco taxes. Stamler has written a series of reports for the coalition, titled Organized Crime and the Smuggling of Cigarettes in the United States. The latest is dated 1999. It describes the smuggling situation in Canada during the early 1990s and gives the same erroneous figures he used in his Canadian smuggling reports. (The coalition sent Stamler on a 16-city tour during which he warned that gun-toting smugglers from Mexico would be pushing black-market cigarettes on U.S. children. The coalition boasts that Stamler's reports have been referenced by U.S. government agencies. Nowhere in his reports does he mention the part played by RJR-Macdonald or its parent RJR-Nabisco in smuggling.) Stamler did not return phone calls. Under the subtitle "More Mobilization," Descoteaux described how tobacco companies helped organize in 1993 a protest by growers, wholesalers and unions called the Quebec Coalition for Fair Tobacco Taxation. He states the protest finally caused the Quebec government to agree to lobby the federal government to roll back taxes. "The government did not want to face the electorate without having solved a problem that showed up daily in question period and in the media," Descoteaux said. Finally, Descoteaux describes a small group of retailers in Quebec who publicly announced that they would sell black-market cigarettes, "in effect daring the government to arrest them." He says this "last initiative" was "probably the straw that broke the camel's back" and forced the federal government to roll back taxes on Feb. 8, 1994. But that wasn't enough for Imperial. Descoteaux bemoans the fact the five western provinces did not join the rollback, that the tax reductions are probably temporary, and that with tax increases in the United States, tobacco taxes in Canada will probably rise anew. He said this still represents a "problem" for the industry. That tobacco-company executives used smuggling as a lever against the government is probably best summed up by a statement made by RJR-Macdonald president Ed Lang. In a 1993 strategic report that commented on taxation issues in Canada, Lang states: "Offshore production will be maintained to optimize (market) share and political leverage." He was referring to the fact that RJR-Macdonald had transferred production of Export A cigarettes to Puerto Rico, from where they were shipped to smugglers. The company was also producing fine-cut tobacco out of a plant in North Carolina. This production was also shipped to smugglers. The Canadian government launched a $1-billion lawsuit in Syracuse, N.Y., last month against RJR-Macdonald, several affiliate companies and the CTMC, claiming they defrauded and lied to the government. The lawsuit claims the CTMC knew RJR-Macdonald was involved with smuggling but nevertheless "falsely claimed, through meetings, letters and agreements with Canada, to be engaged in active steps to combat smuggling." Federal justice and revenue ministers have stated that the government is also examining the conduct of Imperial Tobacco and Rothmans Benson & Hedges. The government initiated a policy of high taxes in the mid-1980s to discourage people, mostly adolescents, from smoking. The tobacco industry hired Ottawa consulting firm Informetrica Ltd. in 1990 to prepare a report that said the federal government was losing huge revenues because the "prevalence of cigarette smoking has plunged with the price increases." When this argument failed to reverse the tax hikes, three years later big tobacco again hired Informetrica. This time the report stated that high taxes were not discouraging smoking because of cheaper black-market cigarettes. Smuggling and the subsequent tax rollback have caused the government to lose at least $5 billion in taxes. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 14:01:23 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5D74421AFF for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:01:23 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA09384 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:01:23 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:01:22 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco Council calls for total smoking ban in restaurants (fwd) Tobacco Council calls for total smoking ban in restaurants Source: Norway Post, Tuesday, 1/25/00 The National Council on Tobacco and Health wants to introduce a total ban on smoking in all bars and restaurants within three years. The reason is that laws governing smoking are not working satisfactorily. Up to now, bars restaurants have been charged with providing smoke-free areas for their customers, but many have not complied with this. Director of the Tobacco Council, Liv Urdal, says that workers in the restaurant trade must have a reasonable work environment. A new study shows that 32 percent of all adult Norwegians were smokers in 1999. The number is the same for both men and women. In the age group 16-24 there was a reduction from 32 to 28 percent last year. (NRK) Rolleiv Solholm From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 14:01:53 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6BD4621BB5 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:01:53 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA09434 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:01:53 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:01:52 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Industry opposition thwarts ministry plan to cut smoking (fwd) Industry opposition thwarts ministry plan to cut smoking Source: Yomiuri Shimbun., Wednesday, 1/26/00 The Health and Welfare Ministry's antismoking policy that aims to halve the number of smokers by 2010 seems unlikely to be launched this month as scheduled due to resistance from industry groups and a Liberal Democratic Party committee, ministry sources said. The ministry on Tuesday briefed the panel, comprising physicians and health and hygiene specialists, established to develop the policy, about the new development, and requested that the plan be reviewed, the sources said. According to a draft of the policy, which was announced last year, the number of smoking-related disorders, including lung cancer, is soaring and that the number of deaths annually from such disorders has reached 95,000. The ministry, therefore, announced in the draft that it would seek to halve the number of smokers aged 20 or older--52.8 percent of the male population and 13.4 percent of the female population, according to a 1998 survey. In response, a special committee on the tobacco and salt industries under the LDP's Policy Research Council criticized the draft in a resolution it submitted to the health and welfare minister in November. "It is inappropriate under the Constitution if a government office set a numerical target and attempts to alter adults freedom of choice," the resolution said. "Such a move will have a grave impact on the tobacco industry." The content of the resolution was almost identical to that of a petition presented earlier to the minister jointly by Japan Tobacco Inc. and organizations of tobacco farmers and other related industries. More than 50,000 were contained in the petition. During the Tuesday meeting, many panel members expressed opinions such as "The detrimental effects of smoking are now universally understood" and "The policy will pose no problem as it will only provide information. Adult consumers will still have the freedom to make a choice based on the available information." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 14:04:15 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 25B5621B0A for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:04:15 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA09559 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:04:14 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:04:14 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris, RJ Reynolds to Boost Production in Russia (fwd) Philip Morris, RJ Reynolds to Boost Production in Russia Source: Bloomberg News, Thursday, 1/27/00 Moscow, Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Tobacco companies Philip Morris Cos., the world's largest tobacco company, and RJ Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc., the No. 2 U.S. tobacco company, plan to start producing their international brands in Russian plants next month to take advantage of low manufacturing costs, the Moscow Times reported. Philip Morris plans to begin producing Marlboro cigarettes in Russia for the first time since 1986 when its new $330 million factory open in the Leningrad region in mid-February. RJR plans to begin production of Winston and Camel cigarettes at its RJR-Petro factory in St. Petersburg next month, the paper said. Foreign tobacco manufacturers have invested about $1 billion in the country since 1992, with nearly 80 percent of that going to the Leningrad region and St. Petersburg. (The Moscow Times 1/27 13 www.moscowtimes.ru) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 14:06:26 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A9D0321B0A for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:06:26 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA09648 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:06:26 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:06:26 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Argentina Seeks Crackdown on Contraband Cigarettes, Other Goods (fwd) Argentina Seeks Crackdown on Contraband Cigarettes, Other Goods by John Lyons Source: Bloomberg News, Thursday, 1/27/00 Buenos Aires, Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Argentine President Fernando de la Rua wants to crack down on sales of contraband goods such as cigarettes, which are estimated to cost tobacco companies more than $340 million in lost sales this year. The government is working with companies such as Massalin Particulares SA, a unit of the world's No. 1 tobacco company Philip Morris, to deliver a bill to congress next month that will propose retraining and expanding Argentine border enforcement units, and arming them with advanced vehicle scanning equipment. Contraband cigarettes account for as much as 12 percent of the $3.3 billion Argentine cigarette market, a jump from 1 percent in 1992, based on a Massalin study. Cigarette makers are concerned illicit tobacco will capture more of the market as the price of legal cigarettes is jacked up by recent tax increases. ``Contraband has a great impact on potential sales,'' said Massalin President Rafael Arguelles. He noted that the legal market for cigarettes had stagnated around $2.9 billion as contraband cigarette consumption grew in the last half of the decade. ``Two separate markets are developing, and once that starts, it's very hard to turn back.'' Massalin, which has about 64 percent of the legal market, could be losing more than $200 million in possible sales to contraband cigarettes, the company said. Paraguay Much of the contraband cigarettes originate or pass through Paraguay, a landlocked country that's winning a reputation for lax enforcement along its borders with Brazil, Argentina and Bolivia, officials said. Smugglers and contraband profiteers there are taking advantage of growing demand for cheap black-market goods in Argentina, where consumers are squeezed by new taxes and a yearlong recession. Argentina, which recently raised taxes on cigarettes, has a higher such tax than all of its neighbors. About 73 percent of the price of a Massalin cigarette is tax, the company said Today, Argentine customs officials confiscated 140,000 packs of cigarettes in Argentina's Cordoba province -- much of which originated in Paraguay, Officials say the Argentine cigarette market is supplied mainly through two methods. First, excess production of cheap cigarettes from Paraguayan factories, which have an estimated capacity of 20-times local demand, is smuggled over the border into Argentina. In a second scenario, called ``round-tripping,'' Argentine cigarette manufacturers export their cigarettes to buyers in Paraguay and Chile, where the cigarettes are smuggled back into Argentina. Massalin, which earned $70.6 million in the first nine months of 1999, up from $57.7 million in the year-ago period, nearly closed its 500-employee plant in Corrientes province this month because rising tax and contraband pressure was hurting profits there. The plant remained open after the government delivered assurances that extraordinary measures would be taken to block the flow of contraband cigarettes From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 14:08:55 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E938321AFF for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:08:54 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA09795 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:08:54 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:08:54 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Korean Companies Hope Smokes Will Extinguish Fires of Animosity (fwd) Korean Companies Hope Smokes Will Extinguish Fires of Animosity by MEEYOUNG SONG / Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREETJOURNAL Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Friday, 1/28/00 CIGARETTE COMPANIES in North Korea and South Korea are hoping citizens of the two countries soon will be smoking their way to improved ties. A new cigarette brand called Hanmaum, or "One Spirit," goes on sale next month, the product of an unusual manufacturing and marketing alliance by companies on opposite sides of the demilitarized zone that divides the Korean peninsula. "This is the first time a same-brand product will be manufactured and distributed both in North and South Korea," says Lee Cheul Soo of Korea Tobacco & Ginseng Corp., the South Korean partner in the joint venture. "It was a very long and difficult process, but we made it." The two Koreas are still technically at war, but mixing marketing with reunification politics has become all the rage. The trend partly has been spurred by South Korean President Kim Dae Jung's "sunshine policy" toward the North, which aims to increase business interaction between the neighbors in the hope of improving relations. The most publicized project has been Hyundai Group's tours for South Koreans to the popular Kumkang Mountain in North Korea. In late 1998, Korea Fuji Film used the same mountain as a backdrop for a film ad, using the catch phrase "Bring back a picture of Mount Kumkang." A more recent print ad by Sammi Fur Co. shows a young woman dressed in a typical black-and-white hanbok, or traditional dress common in North Korea. The caption reads: "When Korea is reunified, we dream of wearing our Sammi fur coats with you at Kaema Heights," an area in the North known for its cold climate. Korea Tobacco is one of 581 South Korean companies authorized to do business with North Korea. Most take part in small-scale businesses, importing primary goods such as agricultural products and exporting industrial goods, or are related to the larger conglomerates' businesses. But Korea Tobacco is taking things to a whole new level, because the cigarettes are both made and sold in North Korea as well. The smokes will be made in a factory near Pyongyang in North Korea, with raw materials and machinery supplied by Korea Tobacco. The North Korean partner is the state-owned Kwang Myong Song General Corp. The company couldn't be reached for comment. ALTHOUGH the final touches to the marketing campaign haven't been completed, the strategy will be to focus on the joint manufacturing. "The ads will be explanatory, to help consumers understand how the cigarettes were made," says Jang Koo at Korea Tobacco's business-support bureau. He didn't know if North Korea would run its own ads. Although promoting an unhealthy, cancer-provoking product as the first cross-border project between the two Koreas may seem worrisome to many countries that spend large amounts of money trying to make people quit smoking, Korea Tobacco hasn't heard of complaints so far. "Cigarettes are luxury products," says Mr. Lee. "It appeals to one's emotions. Therefore, people in North and South Korea will feel a togetherness when they smoke Hanmaum." Korea Tobacco currently manufactures 21 brands of cigarettes. Last year's sales are estimated to total 4.22 trillion won ($3.74 billion). Hanmaum is expected to eventually to account for 2% to 3% of that figure. When Korea Tobacco got the idea of doing business with North Korea in 1996, it didn't know where to start. The company spent two years doing research and simply trying to find potential partners. "People in North Korea are hard to contact," says Mr. Lee at Korea Tobacco. The big break came in 1998, when a North Korean businessman advised them to contact a North Korean government office that oversees business relations with the South. That office appointed Kwang Myong Song, a trading company, to be Korea Tobacco's partner. The companies contacted one other through Kwang Myong Song's representative office in Beijing. A joint manufacturing contract was signed in July 1999. THE MACHINERY had to be shipped to North Korea on Chinese ships traveling between South Korea's Inchon port and North Korea's Nampo port, on the western coast. It shouldn't be shipped by land because a heavily armed border separates the two Koreas. The name Hanmaum was chosen because it was the only one that both companies had put on their separate lists of suggested names. The logo, three mountains in a circle, was suggested by Korea Tobacco, and modified by Kwang Myong Song. Korea Tobacco invested $2.4 million in Kwang Myong Song to manufacture a total of 100 million packs of cigarettes a year. A pack of 20 cigarettes will cost about 1,500 won in South Korea; in the North, most will be rationed or sold at luxury shops and hotels. Though the cigarettes only go on sale in March, early samples have fans in at least one South Korean office. "It's a bit mild," says an official at the Ministry of Unification, "But even if it doesn't taste good, just the thought that North and South Koreans will be smoking the same cigarettes together makes it taste good." Write to Meeyoung Song at meeyoung.song@awsj.com From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 14:09:56 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id F387C21AFF for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:09:55 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA09868 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:09:55 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:09:55 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Kenya Braces for Battle as War on Smoking Hits Third World (fwd) Kenya Braces for Battle as War on Smoking Hits Third World by ANN M. SIMMONS / Times Staff Writer Source: Los Angeles Times, Friday, 1/28/00 =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0NAIROBI, Kenya--Officials and health care activists, determi= ned to fight an increase in smoking-related diseases in another Third World market, are pushing legislation to reduce Kenya's growing demand for tobacco. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0A bill sponsored by the Ministry of Health with the backing = of anti-smoking activists calls for a crackdown on placing cigarette billboards in areas accessible to children under age 18 and would prohibit tobacco companies from sponsoring sporting events. It also would ban tobacco advertising on television and radio, impose stiff penalties for selling cigarettes to underage smokers and declare most public places to be smoke-free. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0The bill comes as concern is rising about an explosion of ci= garette smoking in Third World countries. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0With the United States and Europe beginning to win their own= wars against smoking, research by the World Bank shows that cigarette manufacturers are seeking to boost markets in developing countries. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Kenyan health care officials seem determined not to allow mo= re of their citizens to get hooked. Although no official statistics exist, medical observers estimate that as many as 5 million people, about a third of Kenya's adult population, are smokers. And the numbers are rising. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0The Tobacco Control Committee, affiliated with the Kenya Med= ical Assn., accuses the tobacco industry of using advertising strategies that target young people. It blames lax regulations for the increase in smoking among youth. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Only a basic warning is required on cigarette packs, and in = some cases it is nearly illegible. Some billboards carry no warnings at all. Unlike in the United States, proof of age is not required when purchasing cigarettes in Kenya. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0"[Cigarette] advertisements are very attractive, especially = to young people like me, because we normally want to look like the people we see in the advertisements," said Edwin Onyango, 18, a high school graduate who started smoking at age 13. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0"Tobacco is a drug, and at any kiosk you can get a [cigarett= e] stick," said Dr. Charles Maringo, vice chairman of the Tobacco Control Committee. "We need to change those dynamics." =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Anti-smoking activists want the final tobacco bill to requir= e that at least 30% of a cigarette pack be covered with a stronger warning, such as "smoking kills," and state the quantity of substances contained, such as tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Anti-smoking forces also are pushing for the creation of a T= obacco Products Regulatory Board, which would monitor and regulate marketing and sales. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Kenya's poor may suffer disproportionately from smoking-rela= ted diseases because tobacco is cheap. Individual cigarettes can be purchased for less than 4 cents apiece. The most popular brands here retail for less than $1 for a pack of 20. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Medical officials confirmed an increase in the number of cas= es of tobacco-related lung cancer, asthma, cardiovascular disease and premature death. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Still, it is unclear whether parliament will approve new con= trols. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0More than a million Kenyans owe all or some of their livelih= ood to tobacco through farming, retailing or advertising. Cigarette manufacturers say that, without tobacco, the Ministry of Finance's revenues would suffer a shortfall of nearly $100 million a year. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Those who oppose new regulations also argue that banning ind= oor smoking would hurt Kenya's lucrative tourism and hospitality industries because patrons of restaurants and bars would be likely to avoid facilities that enforce a smoking ban. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0"Smoking is purely an adult choice," said Titus Mutiso, mana= ger of corporate and regulatory affairs at British American Tobacco (Kenya), which has done business in the country since 1907. "The public is appropriately informed of the risks. . . . Our advertising is targeted at adults who have already made a decision to smoke." =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Mutiso said his company limits its advertising on television= to after 9 p.m. and that none of its billboards are placed near schools. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Regardless of who wins the political tussle, many Kenyans sa= id anti-smoking laws would do little to curb the urge to smoke. =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0"I feel cool and relaxed after smoking," said Phillip Peyie,= 32, a company administrator, who smokes a pack a day. "It's a way of getting rid of all my mental stress." * * *=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Samuel Hinga Mwangi of The Times' Nairobi Bureau contri= buted to this report. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 14:13:50 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6B99F21B0A for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:13:50 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA10016 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:13:50 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:13:49 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Japan Tobacco Unveils a New Plan To Revamp Former RJR Operations Japan Tobacco Unveils a New Plan To Revamp Former RJR Operations by Dow Jones Newswires Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Tuesday, 2/1/00 TOKYO -- Japan Tobacco Inc. unveiled a new management plan Tuesday to revamp the international tobacco operations recently purchased from RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp., in an effort to improve the operations' efficiency and profitability. RJR Nabisco Holdings is now called Nabisco Holdings Corp. Japan Tobacco said it will cut overseas staff by 2,000 by the end of the fiscal year through March 2003. After this, the company will further slash the work force "as needed," it said in a statement. Domestically, the tobacco and foodstuffs maker said it will continue reducing its head count, cutting the number of employees over the next five years by a total of 2,500. This includes 1,200 jobs cut through an early retirement program and the remaining 1,300 by natural attrition. The measures aim for group annual costs savings of $237 million in the business year starting in April 2004, to be achieved mostly through the restructuring and integrating factories and branches and by reducing staff. Japan Tobacco sees its group net profit rising to 35 billion yen ($326.2 million) in the fiscal year starting in April and 140 billion yen in the fiscal year starting in April 2004. This compares with an estimated 48 billion yen in net profit for the current fiscal year ending in March 2000. The company aims for group sales of 4.58 trillion yen for this fiscal year and 4.8 trillion yen for the fiscal year beginning April 2004. It expects group sales of 4.33 trillion yen for the current business year to March. The early retirement of 1,200 staff, all employed in manufacturing, will result in special losses of 12 billion yen, which company is considering reporting in the fiscal year ending March 31, said Takao Seki, executive director of the JT planning group. In May, the Japanese tobacco company acquired the non-U.S. tobacco business of RJR Nabisco, which it has merged with its own international tobacco business and renamed JT International S.A. Sales in East Europe and the former Soviet Union, which the company sees as major overseas markets, unexpectedly slumped. Because of this, sales from overseas operations fell short of the company's projections for the first year. http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=SB949394767510220610.djm From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 3 14:15:10 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8F7C621B0A for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:15:10 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA10061 for ; Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:15:10 -0500 Date: Thu, 3 Feb 2000 14:15:10 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Investors Reopen Azerbaijan's Sole Tobacco Plant (fwd) Investors Reopen Azerbaijan's Sole Tobacco Plant BAKU, Feb 2, 2000 -- (Reuters) Investors in the sole tobacco plant in the former Soviet state of Azerbaijan reopened the plant on Tuesday after spending $50 million on its modernization. European Tobacco Inc. won a 92.5 percent stake in the tobacco factory last August through voucher and cash auctions of the company's shares. European Tobacco's Baku director, Nabil Al-Asfar, said that by mid-February the factory would be working at full capacity producing one million cigarettes a day and would satisfy demand in the Azeri market. The factory is to buy tobacco mainly from regions in western Azerbaijan, where it is grown. Production at the plant had fallen to 12,000 metric tons of tobacco a year down from 60,000 metric tons in Soviet days. (C)2000 Copyright Reuters Limited From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Feb 4 12:00:13 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 789B421C10 for ; Fri, 4 Feb 2000 12:00:08 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA28714 for ; Fri, 4 Feb 2000 12:00:07 -0500 Date: Fri, 4 Feb 2000 12:00:07 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] MPs to question BAT bosses (fwd) MPs to question BAT bosses by Kevin Maguire Source: The Guardian/The Observer, Friday, 2/4/00 The former Tory chancellor Kenneth Clarke and the chairman of British American Tobacco are to be grilled by MPs about how the company exploits cigarette smuggling. Mr Clarke, now the deputy chairman of BAT, and Martin Broughton will be questioned about black marketeering. The all-party Commons health committee agreed yesterday to question the pair after the Guardian disclosed the extent to which the company benefits from the illegal trade. MPs believe Mr Broughton was less than forthcoming recently when he claimed BAT worked closely with the authorities to combat smuggling. His third appearance during the course of a select committee inquiry is exceptional. Mr Clarke, a non-executive director of the world's second-largest tobacco firm, was "invited" after the MPs were astonished by his admission that BAT supplied cigarettes knowing they would end up on the black market. Both men will appear on February 16 alongside the investigative journalist Duncan Campbell, whose research on BAT inolvement in Latin America, Asia and the far east has been published this week in the Guardian. Peter Brand, a Liberal Democrat member of the committee, said Mr Broughton had previously maintained that the company worked to prevent its cigarettes ending up on the black market. Mr Clarke admitted in yesterday's Guardian that BAT made its brands "available alongside those of our competitors in the smuggled as well as the legitimate market". The admission supported evidence in documents obtained from BAT's Guildford depository and went way beyond the "blind eye" the company had previously claimed it turned. Audrey Wise, a Labour member of the committee, said: "I expect Kenneth Clarke will be appreciative of the chance to explain his extraordinary views expressed in the Guardian. It's obvious that [Mr Broughton] has proved good at avoiding some of the most important issues. We will now have a chance to concentrate on the smuggling which is after all a big unsavoury racket." BAT said last night it welcomed the opportunity for Mr Broughton to appear again. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Feb 4 12:40:43 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5C8E921AFF for ; Fri, 4 Feb 2000 12:40:42 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA29802 for ; Fri, 4 Feb 2000 12:40:41 -0500 Date: Fri, 4 Feb 2000 12:40:41 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] MINUTES OF EVIDENCE: Examination of witness: DR DEREK YACH MINUTES OF EVIDENCE: Examination of witness: DR DEREK YACH Source: House of Commons, Wednesday, 2/2/00 Examination of witness (Questions 259 - 279)=20 THURSDAY 9 DECEMBER 1999=20 DR DEREK YACH Chairman =A0=A0259. Good morning. Can I welcome you to this session of the Committee= =2E Can I particularly welcome Dr Yach and thank you on behalf of the Committee firstly for your written evidence and for your willingness to come rather a long way to meet us this morning, we do appreciate that. I wonder if you would like to briefly introduce yourself and say a little bit about the WHO in the context of work on tobacco and your own role within the work of that organisation? (Dr Yach) Thank you. We also appreciate the opportunity to participate in this. My name is Derek Yach. I am from the World Health Organisation where I am the Programme Manager for what is called the Tobacco Free Initiative. This is one of the two new Cabinet projects that Dr Brundtland initiated when she took office as Director General of the WHO in July last year. The prime focus of it is to try to increase advocacy and action for tobacco control on a global basis. The decision to do that was based upon the extraordinary evidence of human health impacts around the world. My past activities have been for three years in the World Health Organisation as leading an international consultative process on policy development, that is all policy development not just in relation to tobacco, and previous to that I have been involved in a range of community based community health research and epidemiological activities in South Africa. =A0=A0260. Thank you. I wonder if I could immediately focus on to an area which has obyiously become one of the most important areas of our investigation. That relates to the tobacco industry's internal documents. You refer to these internal documents in your evidence to us. If I can just quote from your evidence. You say: "Only one of the tobacco companies in the UK, the BAT Group, has been subject to significant document disclosure requirements (through US litigation and through the US Congress). In addition, even with respect to the BAT Group, the disclosures are in need of supplementation; for example, most of the document disclosures from BAT Group were subject to a 1994 cutoff date and should be supplemented with more recent documents." I wonder if you could say a little bit about your views of the significance of these documents and the point about supplementation post-1994. How do you believe that this Committee can be of assistance in addressing the contents and implications of these documents? (Dr Yach) I think that for many years we have felt in tobacco policy that we have had to work in the dark. The tobacco industry documents provide us for the first time, in the words of our policy adviser, Judith MacKay, to really walk through the minds of the tobacco industry. The equivalent for us in tobacco, the problem we face, can be seen if you think of malaria. There is no possibility of advancing malaria research and policy if you do not understand the mosquito, its structure, its function, how it works. We now have that opportunity for our programme, which is the tobacco industry. Since the documents started becoming available in the early 1990s and particularly over the last few years it has helped us understand the science of addiction, it has helped us to understand the way in which international, WHO and NGO policy has been thwarted, the way the research direction has been undermined. It has put in the eyes of the public the truth about a range of facts that previously we only had suspicions about. What it is basically doing is it is making the potential for an international dialogue on the true policy very transparent. We believe that will help the policy debate at a global level. Many governments around the world are now looking at the tobacco industry documents from their perspective to find out in their country how has it been that they have had such difficulties in the past in introducing advertising bans or restrictions, trying to move the excise tax process forward. We have found through many of the documents very detailed strategies developed by the tobacco industry over many years to try to thwart that policy process. So we believe that this is an incredibly important resource equivalent to the epidemiological data which actually put the health case out in the first place. Whereas many of the documents in the US and that have been based in the US are now in the Minnesota depository and have been put on-line and are available both by the tobacco industries based in the US as well as by the Government, the US Department for Justice, the Centres for Disease Control, they have all provided support to scan all the documents, the same has not occurred with regard to those that are based in the UK. The first limitation is public access. The intention of the US court case was to make it fully accessible. There is a physical reality in the case of BAT Co`s UK d++epository limited space, limited time, complex searching ability. Making the material available through the Internet we believe is the best and simplest solution. It would mean that everybody would have equal access. It would mean that you would have a fully transparent system. We believe that BAT may have has already scanned all of its documents and this may be something that you would want to ask them about so that you would save the costs of having to scan them yourselves. In addition, the deadline of 1994 was set by the US court cases. This inquiry is happening at the end of 1999. We believe that it needs to be supplemented with information from all the tobacco companies that are selling products in the UK until the point at which the inquiry completes its deliberations. =A0=A0261. You would presumably argue that we have so far only slightly lif= ted the curtain on what is available. What do you think the significance would be of completely drawing back the curtain in relation to the moving of policy, not just in this country but globally on tobacco policy? (Dr Yach) The people who we speak to involved with tobacco products regulation have fairly sound reason to believe that the science of addiction, the science of tobacco product modification, has been considerably advanced within the tobacco industry and much of that has not seen the light of day. We would save enormous public resources by having that information now and not having to repeat a lot of research that may be required. =A0=A0262. Can I just interrupt. To simplify what you are saying, you are implying that the tobacco companies could have produced a much safer product a long, long time ago but chose not to. Or have I misunderstood what you are implying? (Dr Yach) Yes, that is correct. We have good reason to believe, again going back for many years, tobacco companies agreed not to compete in the area of safety and improved health consequences. There were no economic incentives then for any individual company to do that. =A0=A0263. So there was a cross-industry agreement on this issue? (Dr Yach) We believe that there was. I think the documents that we already have at our disposal show that has occurred in many areas of research, that denial of the evidence has been done jointly by many of the companies, the way in which the direction of research in their own areas has occurred, the way many of the animal experiments, the mouse house in Germany and others were closed down. That was all when lines of research were leading into areas where they did not want it to proceed. I need to explain where WHO is in the question of product modification. We must admit that we have come to realise relatively late the critical importance of this as an additional component of comprehensive control. Dr Brundtland announced to the international regulatory authorities in Berlin this year that she would be convening a scientific meeting to look at what do we know about the basis for setting stronger product modification rules. That meeting will be held in Norway in February. Many of your own scientists will be present at that meeting. Part of the problem we have is that not all of the evidence will be on the table because some of it is still being held within the vaults of the tobacco industry. =A0=A0264. You have referred to the Guildford documents. (Dr Yach) Yes. =A0=A0265. Have you accessed those documents? What problems do you perceive= in respect of public access? What assistance might this Committee offer in terms of not just accessing the Guildford depository but also the other archives that you have obviously referred to in respect of other companies? (Dr Yach) First of all, with regard to the US based companies, I think that access has improved considerably. Philip Morris, for example, provided updated information until late 1998/1999 under the terms of the settlement. Much of the material is on-line. We have sent some of our staff to Guildford and in the initial searches, really being able to go through only a few thousand documents, we have found some of the most important information showing the way in which the tobacco industry worked globally compared to the US where probably a lot more of the science is based. So from an international perspective we would regard what is really contained in Guildford as being crucial for many of our developing countries, particularly those, of course, where BAT has historically played an important role. The same probably occurred elsewhere. Step one must be to see whether the documents have already been scanned and, if they have, to make them available on the Internet. Step two would be if they have not been scanned to ensure that we find the public resources to scan them. We believe the costs would be minimal compared to the enormous public benefit. We also believe that a range of research institutions, public and private, should be encouraged to work together with the British Government to actually make that a high priority to occur very fast. We are currently involved in developing the first international treaty WHO has ever been involved in. That will focus on tobacco control. We need that evidence as the treaty making process starts moving ahead. We would also hope that UK institutions, your Medical Research Council and others, for example, would see this as a legitimate area for public funds to be used to do research on the benefits of using the tobacco industry documents to advance public policy. The National Cancer Institute for the National Institute of Health has invested reasonable funds in making this an important research topic in the US. So this is now regarded as the appropriate line of research to advance cancer control as well. =A0=A0266. Over and above pursuing the research issue, clearly in the State= s the action that has been taken arising from the Minnesota action has resulted in a significant amount of money accruing to individual states from the settlement. Some of the states have used this money to invest in anti-smoking policies in quite a detailed and radical way. Do you see the access to records issue possibly leading on to similar litigation elsewhere outside the States, possibly in this country and other countries that globally would be concerned with the tobacco issue? (Dr Yach) A number of countries have approached us for support with regard to finding out whether litigation is a sensible option. Our advice is very simple: we support those activities that advance public health goals. The primary focus of litigation should not necessarily be to regain fund money per se, but to ensure that healthy public policies are put in place. The truth and the information coming out of the documents in itself, independent of the funding, we believe is a means of advancing that policy debate. The answer is absolutely clear that many countries are seriously considering litigation in different forms. There are already a number of court cases under way. The Indian Supreme Court is one of those examples. We suspect that over time they will recognise that fundamental to any court case is the ability to have information about the behaviour of the tobacco industry and certainly in the case of many of the multinationals that would be very important, as with other UK companies. Dr Brand =A0=A0267. A quickie on this. You said that the cost would be minimal compa= red to something. Would you speculate and put a figure to putting the Guildford documents on-line? (Dr Yach) Sure. =A0=A0268. Because clearly that is the raw material from which further research can then be done. That is for the scientific bodies. The actual getting the stuff in the public domain, how much would that cost? (Dr Yach) We would estimate, based upon roughly how many pages of documents there are and how much the scanning costs are, we are probably talking about $2 million to $4 million as a single cost for scanning the material and making it available on the Internet. The comparison would be against the hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars going into all forms of treatment and other research activities and tobacco control which are run either by the Medical Research Council or the Wellcome Trust or others. Mr Burns =A0=A0269. Earlier in one of your answers you were talking about your belie= f that the companies at some point had joined together to stop progressing any further research in certain areas. Do you have any actual concrete evidence of this or is it more anecdotal? (Dr Yach) No, it is not anecdotal. I think one of the earliest documents goes back to 1980 when a document prepared by the tobacco industry stressed the role of ICOSI, which stands for the International Commission on Smoking Initiatives and was formed by the tobacco companies in the 1980s. One of the goals stated by them=97we will leave the document numbers with you=97was "the first initiative on a worldwide scale to counter the actions of anti-smoking groups". That was their professed aim. Under it they then went on to disclose what specific steps they should take. These were then elaborated further in a range of documents, including one of those held in a conference in Boca Raton in 1988 sponsored by Philip Morris but joined by many of the other companies where Geoffrey Bible, who was then the President of Philip Morris International and now is the Chief Operating Officer of Philip Morris, talking about WHO stated "this organisation has an extraordinary influence on government and consumers and we must find a way to defuse this and reorientate the activities to their prescribed mandate. In addition, we need to think through how we can use our food companies' size, technology and capability with governments by helping them with their food problems and giving us a more balanced profile with the government than we now have against WHO's powerful influence". They went on in the document to talk about the International Labour Organisation. The aim of their plan was to inhibit corporation of ILO into WHO's anti-smoking programmes and to take urgent steps to contact worker and employer leaders of these groups in the ILO governing bodies. One last comment: also in the same period the Boca Raton plan discussed "countermeasures designed to contain, neutralise, reorientate the World Health Organisation" and stated "the necessary resources should be allocated to stop WHO in their tracks". Because of this Dr Brundtland felt this was such a serious influence on WHO historically that it hampered us being able to move ahead with great enough clarity and in October she called for an inquiry into the way in which WHO and the UN systems have had their policies thwarted by the industry and appointed a member of our executive board, Dr Zeltner, who is Head of the Federal Swiss Health Department, to head the inquiry which will be getting under way very soon. This is unprecedented. I need to say that the World Bank has also joined the inquiry and has nominated a top anti-corruption expert to join the inquiry. Chairman =A0=A0270. Would that inquiry have any bearing on the way in which individu= al governments, such as our own, may have had their efforts thwarted by the tobacco companies over the years? (Dr Yach) The terms of reference are mainly to focus on the international domain. Dr Brundtland made it clear in her statement that we would hope that individual governments would carry out their own separate inquiries. I think this is an excellent example of one which would be able to contribute to what WHO is doing and, similarly, I think our insights at the global level will also help to put in perspective the importance of this national initiative as having global relevance. =A0=A0271. So you would be urging us to press the British Government to establish a similar inquiry, but we had ministers in this place in 1954 actually talking about the connection between smoking and ill health. It has taken so long for any meaningful initiatives to be brought in. You would see that as very relevant? (Dr Yach) Very relevant. I think we have to realise the global relevance of the work done by Sir Richard Doll and colleagues afterwards, that is regarded as ground breaking globally important research right from the 1940s and early 1950s. We have looked to the UK epidemiologists to provide the lead on tobacco, and have received it, and increasingly they have played an international role as well. =A0=A0272. You used the word "corrupted" in terms of how your organisation = had been prevented from being effective on this issue. Do you believe that other governments and parliaments have been corrupted by the influence of the tobacco companies? (Dr Yach) We believe certainly the policy process has been thwarted and certainly we would be able to show that there have been severe efforts to stop policies being put in place that are regarded as simply sensible public policies by WHO, the World Bank and its member states. There would be many, many examples of that.[2] =A0=A0273. Have you any examples in respect of where the British parliament= ary system and the British Government system has been thwarted by the kind of influence that you are talking about? (Dr Yach) No. =A0=A0274. That is what we are looking at here. (Dr Yach) No, I do not have any of that. I can assure you that probably many of the people who will give evidence here would have a better insight from an individual national perspective. Audrey Wise =A0=A0275. I just want to refer to the practicalities of these documents at Guildford because it has been made very clear to us, and you are reinforcing it, that the current arrangements are hopelessly inadequate with very limited time and very limited space for researchers to go in. There are a lot of documents. I think I understand that you are saying very clearly that it would be money well spent to have the whole lot put on the Internet. (Dr Yach) Yes. =A0=A0276. Now, I have taken serious note of that and I am sure the Committ= ee has. We have also heard informally and while we have been in the US this question has come up a great deal, as you can imagine, and we have wondered whether there is anything short of that that would be useful. Suppose we made an attempt to be more selective about what we asked for, would there be anybody who could guide us as to how we would select the most important documents? Or is it really very important to have the whole lot? (Dr Yach) I think, given the dramatic advances in information technology and the electronic searching capability, our advice would be to get the whole lot because you can never be entirely sure of setting the right questions and the right search parameters. I think we have found great difficulty even using the available searching ability to find things and often they crop up under different categories that you do not suspect. I do not think that there will be a cost saving, there may in fact be extra costs in being more selective, whereas at least getting the material on to the Internet and then applying our minds using the best of library science to search better, as well as to have access to the indexes used by the tobacco companies themselves, would save an enormous amount of time and effort. There are, of course, many experts we could put you in touch with who would be able to either verify this or give further detailed information on the problems they have faced in searching through documents for many years, those involved in the court cases in the US for example and in Canada. =A0=A0Audrey Wise: I think that would be very useful. Mr Austin =A0=A0277. In answer to the Chairman's question you actually used the phras= e that the research direction had been "undermined". Was this merely as a result of the non-disclosure of the information that was available to the tobacco companies or by some other means? (Dr Yach) I think we know in the case of environmental tobacco smoke, for example, that the research process has been affected in many ways: the setting up of many bogus or front groups involved in research paid by the tobacco company to try to ensure that no association was found. This has happened in the US, in Japan, in Germany, and I am sure in the UK. The funding of enormous amounts of symposia to try to continue to ensure that the passive effects of tobacco on human health were not actually brought to the public domain. The fact that when large scale European research studies were carried out by our own sister agency, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, there were fairly sustained efforts to try to find out who were the researchers, could they influence them, could they thwart the direction? There are many documents, not one or two but tens of documents, that have shown how they were particularly concerned with the European study showing that the impact of environmental tobacco smoke in Europeans was much the same as it is elsewhere, because of the consequences for smoking in public policies moving faster in Europe. In the other areas of research there were examples of animal research which was stopped in its tracks because they realised reading through the documents that these would not look very good if they were ever made public. =A0=A0278. You are actually saying that it is not just the withholding of t= he information but they set out deliberately to create false facts on the ground. (Dr Yach) Yes. =A0=A0279. To mislead. (Dr Yach) This is described particularly in the Minnesota court case and the documents coming out of the Minnesota court case and others. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2=A0=A0 Note by witness: I did not use the word "corrupted".=A0Back =A0 =20 =20 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ =A9 Parliamentary copyright 2000 Prepared 2 February 2000 Select Committee on Health Minutes of Evidence ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Examination of witness (Questions 280 - 299) THURSDAY 9 DECEMBER 1999 DR DEREK YACH Mr Burns =A0=A0280. When did the WHO reach the conclusion that cigarettes cause lung cancer? (Dr Yach) Over the last I do not know how many years, but since 1970, we have had resolutions on tobacco based upon concerns about lung cancer. In 1970 the wording was "being aware that there is a strong association, there are serious affects of smoking in promoting the development of lung cancer". By 1978 the wording was much clearer and it was in causal terms. Every time since a resolution has been introduced to the World Health Authority, and I thought I would leave the full list of the resolutions for the Committee, there have been 17 resolutions since 1970, those have reaffirmed and strengthened the evidence base. =A0=A0281. Would the same timescale apply for when you believed that it was addictive, that nicotine was addictive, or would that be different? (Dr Yach) The timescale would be different. Again, I think we should be aware that the knowledge and science of addiction through the tobacco industry documents was strengthening through the 1960s and 1970s. In the public domain the wording on habits was still being used in a very lay, general sense. The first time a deliberative committee of WHO actually made some decisive comment about nicotine being a dependence producing substance as the result of an expert committee, which is a very specific category in WHO, was as recent as 1998. This is the committee report for you as well. =A0=A0282. What sort of data do you have on patterns of smoking around the world? (Dr Yach) We have very detailed data. One of WHO's mandates in all fields of public health is to carry out surveillance. A lot of the countries have weak surveys themselves but just to give you a feeling for what we have available, and again it may be something the Committee may want to have, so this is a gift from WHO to the Committee=97 Dr Brand =A0=A0283. You are not trying to influence us, are you? (Dr Yach) This is available on the Internet. It provides you with information on smoking status in all the countries for which we have data. The basic picture we have got in very simple terms is that if we take the last two decades for which we have recent data, there are some countries which have shown sustained declines=97the UK is one of those countries showing a rate of decline over the last two decades of about 1.6 per cent of adult consumption per capita per year=97compared to increases, over the same period, of eight per cent per year for 20 years in China, 6.8 per cent in Indonesia, almost five per cent in Bangladesh, five per cent in Syria and so on. So we have very clear evidence of declining consumption in parts of the world and rising rates in others. The way you interpret that should not be to say that the problem has been solved in the UK. You are coming off an extraordinarily high base of smoking. The absolute number of deaths remains high and will remain high for many, many decades to come. In the developing countries the opposite is the picture, the smoking rates are extremely high now and the death rates have yet to follow. To give you a feeling of the numbers, we have four million deaths in the world a year, four million, that is in all countries. By the 2020s we estimate that there will be around ten million deaths and 70 per cent of those will occur in developing countries. Just think that the smokers of the 2020s are smoking today, they are alive and smoking today, which means that we are going to face one of the largest, if not the largest, public health challenges in the 2020s and 2030s. To give you the extent of it, this eclipses the sum total of deaths from malaria and tuberculosis and many other causes of death worldwide. Chairman =A0=A0284. One of the worries many of us have in the UK, and we have talked= to people in the States similarly, is that the more work we do in our countries on tobacco then indirectly the more we are pushing the tobacco companies into the developing countries in the way you have described. How do you see policy makers in a country such as Britain addressing that question? Obviously you have a global perspective rather than a narrow perspective of one country but do you appreciate that it is a concern from our point of view that that is indirectly a product of what we may achieve within the UK? (Dr Yach) I think the first point I must stress is that we believe, and Dr Brundtland put this on the record, that the UK Government White Paper was very important for us in WHO for many reasons. It highlighted the need for global action. It highlighted the need for global activities of companies to be equivalent to those which are expected in the domestic markets. That is something which could be pressed for even more strongly, that whatever is acceptable public policy at home should be acceptable public policy in the places in which your products are being sold. There have been steps taken to inform your own UK missions about the importance of this worldwide. We have other governments, like the US, who have formally informed their missions, their ambassadors, around the world that they should no longer provide support to tobacco companies on their missions, rather they should be providing support, when requested, to tobacco control. We believe there are many other areas which are also mentioned in the White Paper: support for developing countries, particularly those which may be the markets of multinationals based in the UK, to strengthen tobacco control through DFID, through your international development programmes. We know that certainly the international development programmes are starting to look at providing that support. One of the biggest areas of concern in many of the poorer developing countries is not only in those where tobacco use is a problem but some where tobacco use may be minimal but tobacco growing may be very important. I am referring particularly to Malawi and Zimbabwe where they have a disproportionate amount of their foreign exchange going into the selling of tobacco. There we believe that we need to work very closely with UK agriculturalists, as well as with your development agencies, to first of all ensure that farmers understand that there is no dichotomy behind strong demand reduction in all countries on public health grounds and looking at the long term consequences for farmers because we realise that there will not be an immediate effect of reducing demand. You have seen the rates, the fastest the UK has gone is 1.7 per cent decline per year. If worldwide we achieve rates of decline of two to three per cent there will still be a large market for tobacco farmers well into the 2020s, 2030s. We need to minimise their concern and particularly their influence on government stopping healthy public policy. There is an enormous amount that you can do. I must say there is a lot that you are already doing. One of the most powerful things to ensure is that the WHO Framework Convention on tobacco control which is being worked on at the moment is a convention that really stops trans-national actions to promote tobacco use. That will mean that as individual countries take strong action they will be doing it in concert with other countries around the world. Audrey Wise =A0=A0285. Tobacco growing is subsidised in the EU. This Committee took thi= s up with the appropriate Commissioner some years ago but without any effect. Do you think that when we go to Brussels, as we will be doing in the course of this inquiry, this is a point we should raise with the European Union Commissioner? (Dr Yach) We absolutely believe it is. In discussions with some Zimbabwean farmers we have indicated to them our belief is first of all we realise there will be a long-term future unfortunately for tobacco, smokers will be around for many, many decades, but we hope that when the last smoker smokes a cigarette the tobacco comes from a country like Malawi or Zimbabwe rather than a heavily subsidised country in Europe or the USA. I need to emphasise as well that the WHO has an additional new role in the UN system and that is to act as the chair of a task force on tobacco control of all UN agencies. That means that we chair a committee, including the Food and Agriculture Organisation, including the World Bank, including the IMF, and what we are trying to do through that committee is define a single, coherent policy where you do not have these contradictions, where on the one hand we are promoting demand reduction in one set of activities and agencies ,and on the other we are subsidising the very activities that undermine our own policies. We believe that policy coherence is something that you could play a vital role in ensuring in the European Union. =A0=A0286. The tobacco companies clearly are conscious of your influence an= d importance. The British American Tobacco's Annual General Meeting was on 29 April this year and the Chairman, Martin Broughton, made a speech in which he said that the World Health Organisation's priorities are different from those of health ministers in the developing world for whom issues like malnutrition, lack of sanitation, infant mortality and AIDS loom much larger. He says that, in fact, WHO is driven by a western agenda. What would your reply to that be? (Dr Yach) The WHO is an intergovernmental agency. We represent the will of all our member states, 192. There is virtually no other area of public health where there has been so much international consensus by ministers involved in the will as in the area of tobacco control. The proof of that is the 17 resolutions that have occurred over the last few years. To be more specific, one of the areas of the world the tobacco industry often cites as not being ready or ripe for tobacco control is the African continent. What are the facts? What are the ministers of Africa themselves saying? The truth of the matter is when they assembled on 18-21 October this year in Cairo, they had an agenda which focused on the need to address AIDS, malaria and polio as well as tobacco. In their discussions on tobacco they acknowledged the need for action on all the policies that are being discussed in western countries and around the world, including increased tax, bans on advertising and promotion, preventing people from involuntary smoking, assisting farmers to diversify was one, adopting the framework convention on tobacco control, all cabinet meetings in Africa should be smoke-free, all buildings at the ministry of health should be declared tobacco free, member states need to report to the Organisation of African Unity on Progress in implementing a long range of recommendations made by the ministers of health. This was a relatively short meeting with a massive public health agenda. They selected to highlight the importance of tobacco as a public health problem because they know that somewhere down the line they are going to face this problem and addressing it early and vigorously is going to save enormous public resources. The truth is that wherever we go there is not a single country where increasingly the ministries of health and the ministries of finance are not beginning to recognise that tobacco control makes sound public health sense and sound economic sense. Our colleagues in the World Bank released a report earlier this year on the economies of tobacco control, again I think a very important report because it compliments the public health perspective we have. Remember, the World Bank's key people it works with are developing countries as well as some of the transition economies. The prescriptions of the World Bank are virtually identical to the prescriptions of the World Health Organisation and we suspect that those of the rest of the UN family will also become more similar over time. =A0=A0287. Of course, in countries where there is malnutrition and terrible infant mortality, it would seem to me that they get poorer if people are distracted into purchasing cigarettes. In Britain certainly poorer people paradoxically are more likely to spend some of their income on cigarettes. Presumably you would agree that actually diverting national resources or individual resources into buying tobacco is likely to make malnutrition worse and infant mortality is not going to be helped by the low birth weight effect of tobacco smoking by women? (Dr Yach) I think there are a couple of points. There is no question that in the developed world and in the transition economies of Eastern and Central Europe, the Central Asian Republics, many of the developing countries are moving very fast, like China. Tobacco is now probably becoming one of the major causes of death among the poor. Not only that, in Europe it is probably the predominant avoidable reason of the social class gap in life expectancy between the rich and the poor. So one means of reducing the social class gap is good tobacco control. We would not want to oversell the impact of tobacco in some of the poorest developing countries amidst conditions of high levels of HIV AIDS, malaria and malnutrition but what you are saying is absolutely vital for many countries where tobacco is fast becoming one of the most important causes of low birth weight. There are parts of South Africa, for example, where calorie intake may be less important as a determinant of low birth weight than the fact that in those populations up to 50 per cent of women smoke during pregnancy. Increasingly we are finding that is the case in many parts of the world where we have documented evidence from Brazil, from India and from other developing countries showing how important tobacco use in pregnancy is as a cause not only of low birth weight but of a range of other ill health problems among children. At the request originally of the G8 Ministers of Environment, we convened a meeting to look at the impact of other people's smoke on low birth weight and on children's health in January this year. We concluded that in developing countries and developed countries this was a major neglected area and means of improving child health on a worldwide basis. =A0=A0288. Finally, you really have got the Chairman of British-American Tobacco very angry. In that same speech he said "The WHO seems to have been hijacked by zealots in its desire to set itself up as some sort of super-nanny". Are you zealots? (Dr Yach) Obviously we are public health professionals who look at the data, the data speaks for itself. Four million deaths now, ten million deaths in the 2020s. I come from a general policy background, the whole organisation has to balance the impact of AIDS, malaria, many other terrible causes of death and disease. Amidst that balancing Dr Brundtland believed the data itself spoke clearly about the need for action, and fast action now. We believe we are sticking to where the evidence guides us. Also we need to address an impression often gained that the entire resources of WHO are being turned to tobacco control and away from many of the other problems of development and poverty. The truth of the matter is that we are probably spending at the moment about 0.4 per cent of our budget on tobacco control which we think is a modest, maybe too modest, investment in the major cause of death in the 21st century. =A0=A0289. Do you think perhaps some of the anger expressed here derives fr= om the fact that the tobacco companies have failed to hijack WHO themselves? (Dr Yach) I think the Committee will give us an answer to that. Mr Austin =A0=A0290. No doubt you have observed the debate and discussion that has go= ne on here about tobacco sponsorship, particularly sport and the arts and the threat when the Government was considering Formula 1 Motor Racing, that Grand Prix motor racing may be taken out of the United Kingdom and go to Eastern Europe or somewhere where such controls did not exist. I would like your comments on that and, also, your view on the tobacco industry's shift in focus generally from West to East and on the movement of cigarette production facilities into the third world? (Dr Yach) I think, first, on the question of sponsorship and advertising, we are very convinced by the work of the World Bank in carrying out probably the most systematic review of the impact of advertising and promotional bans which are well documented in this document Curbing the Epidemic. The basic message that comes out of there is that a total ban makes the difference, a total ban on advertising and sponsorship. When you leave these windows of opportunity open, like sports sponsorship, one cannot epidemiologically detect what the independent effect of a ban on Formula 1 is relative to a complete ban. Our prescription again tries to keep it very simple. The moment you start introducing exceptions the doors open wide and you lead yourself into an endless debate. Rather, the principle should be you should not be allowing the sponsorship by companies of a product that kills half of its users when they use the product regularly. To us that is a simple fact, it is based as well on the evidence. The other curious thing is that we are unaware of sports bodies or sports activities that have ever suffered in the long run when sponsorship has been removed by law. With regard to the shifts, I think there are a number of ways in which the issue is portrayed. On the other hand, we have people saying that the only reason the tobacco companies are moving into the developing world is because of declining consumption at home. We would disagree with that. The reason they are doing that is to increase market sales, it is just sensible marketing and sales practice. The way they are doing it though is to take advantage of the weak regulatory and legislative environment in many countries and they are using many of the approaches and methods that have long since been legislated out in countries like the UK or in Canada or in other countries. They are able to seek the weakest parts of a market, to use marketing strategies that do not exist in the UK. For example, you will have Benson & Hedges being sold by women in flimsy golden dresses in discotheques in Sri Lanka, handed out free. You would have other examples of fairly blatant advertising using semi-clad women in Thailand to sell cigarettes. Worse, in the Philippines you would have Madonna icons used to sell cigarettes taking advantage of it being an inherently Catholic country. =A0=A0291. Which "Madonna" are you referring to? (Dr Yach) We are finding increasingly as well that many of the entertainment people are joining the Tobacco Control Group as well, so maybe that is something we should approach Madonna the icon about. I think the concern is that we are seeing rising levels of investment in marketing and distribution. As you said, production is moving to countries where sales are increasing and being encouraged to increase. A number of joint ventures have been established right across Europe as well as with China. We have been very concerned to see how Chinese trade delegations to the UK are often received by tobacco executives in this country and tobacco executives in this country lead general trade delegations to China. This sends a very confused signal about the desirability of British exports in tobacco leading the way in other fields of exports which would be highly desirable. I think we are generally concerned about the greater linkage occurring between multi-nationals and many state monopolies within countries, particularly in China as well as other parts of Asia. =A0=A0292. You have mentioned certain countries providing cigarettes free o= r at low cost. Is there any difference in the way tobacco companies are acting than any other drug pusher in that they are forcing a product on someone, getting them hooked and then having a permanent market? (Dr Yach) I do not think I would be qualified to answer that. =A0=A0293. On the price mechanism, the other question I want to ask is are = you aware of any international studies which compare the effectiveness of differing rates of tobacco duty and price mechanism on encouraging people not to smoke or reduce smoking consumption? (Dr Yach) Again we have had substantial work=97I am meant to be lending thi= s one to you this time=97and we have had a number of reviews of the economics of tobacco control and this is some of the source document that went into the final World Bank report. The bottom line is very clear, for us the most powerful means of reducing consumption is through the price mechanism and that has its best effect particularly in youth and in poor people. We find also that when there is earmarking of tax for tobacco control activities, you have greater levels of public acceptance and you have a sustained institutional capability in countries to continue tobacco control beyond the pricing mechanism into advertising, media communications campaigns and cessation. The UK again has played a very important leadership role in earmarking part of the exise tax. We know very simply as the price goes up, consumption drops, revenues continue to rise. As the price drops deaths increase and that is the very simple equation. It is the case worldwide. It is the single area where WHO, the World Bank and the IMF will be carrying one message to the Ministries of Health and the Ministries of Finance worldwide increasingly as this report starts being disseminated over the next 12 months. =A0=A0294. Can I just pursue that. One of the issues that has arisen here n= ow in this country, because of the price mechanism and duty, is the issue of illicit tobacco finding its way on to the market due to smuggling, not through the acts of small individuals but really clear evidence of a major criminal conspiracy to smuggle goods in where of course the penalties for so doing are much, much less and the risks much less than smuggling, say, cocaine or heroin. Are there any lessons or advice you would give to Government as far as the penalties for smuggling of tobacco? (Dr Yach) I think you partly decided this by allocating part of your excise tax to strengthen border controls and ensure that there is not smuggling. It seems to be a very important and sensible step which needs to be globalised. Smuggling is a criminal activity and should be dealt with as such, with penalties being appropriate to the fact that the product in the end is going to kill its regular consumers. We find it very interesting that when one looks at the relationship between countries where there are high levels of smuggling and what is called the transparency index, which is produced by Transparency International, which is a measure of the general level of corruption in a country, the higher the corruption index the higher the degree of smuggling, which suggests we are dealing with a problem of organised crime which needs to be dealt with as all forms of organised crime are dealt with. The inappropriate response to smuggling is always to drop prices which is, of course, the response the tobacco industry has requested and suggested over many years. The reason we do not recommend it is because, first of all, it translates into deaths and, second of all, because we know price differentials are only one of a range of reasons for smuggling across national borders. One needs to address them fully in a more comprehensive manner. This is an area which is fundamentally important for WHO as we start working on the Framework Convention which needs to strengthen particularly those aspects of tobacco control which slip through the cracks due to globalisation. Dr Brand =A0=A0295. Can I return to a question which John Austin asked. You clearly illustrated that the tobacco companies tailor their marketing techniques to the Third World, escaping the tighter regulation that might exist elsewhere. Are they doing the same with the products that they actually sell in the Third World? (Dr Yach) Do you mean are the tar and nicotine levels=97 =A0=A0296. Yes? (Dr Yach) First of all, the evidence is pretty scanty on systematically collecting information on that but the information we have shows that in general there have been pretty wide differentials suggesting that tar and nicotine levels are generally higher in the poorer and developing countries. This has not been available on a systematic basis. It is something now that WHO, with a number of agencies, is trying to gather. =A0=A0297. It would be very helpful to have that as evidence. The United States may well move towards a much tighter nicotine content control which makes a less addictive cigarette but it is in the interests of the companies presumably to sell as many highly addictive products in the Third World to open up their market. (Dr Yach) I think again we will learn a lot about this from the tobacco industry documents. We will probably see how in a particular country over time they have adopted the contents over time to meet what they want to, some concept of international standards. The Centre for Disease Control is starting to do these kinds of tests and they may very well have early information already, comparative international information. =A0=A0298. From your evidence, do you find that the tobacco companies tend = to work collectively in most of these instances? (Dr Yach) Well, as I mentioned earlier, certainly they have worked collectively in trying to develop policies around WHO and the UN agencies. In a general sense they have certainly worked collectively to deny the health evidence systematically and now for the first time we are starting to have companies go counter to that. They have probably worked together very carefully in the area of product design and will probably find that has been something which has been sustained over many decades. =A0=A0299. Which makes a bit of a mockery of their claim that advertising i= s just to encourage existing smokers towards their brand. (Dr Yach) Exactly. =A9 Parliamentary copyright 2000 Prepared 2 February 2000 Select Committee on Health Minutes of Evidence ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Examination of witness (Questions 300 - 307) THURSDAY 9 DECEMBER 1999 DR DEREK YACH Mr Gunnell =A0=A0300. I would just like to ask you what you think of the ISO standards= , the International Standards Organisation standards for measurement of cigarettes? Is that data of use to consumers? Have you made any representations to ISO and what would you like to see happen? Is WHO represented on the relevant technical committee or is it still purely dominated by the tobacco companies? (Dr Yach) When we started this initiative, which was only 18 months ago, we recognised pretty soon that the whole area of product design required us to understand the measurement methods used by ISO in detail. We tried to gain official status in the committees, in the particular committee in the Tobacco Control 126 Committee of ISO. Only very recently on 20 October in their last Committee they agreed to give WHO Category B liaison which allows us for the first time full access to all their documentation. Our concerns are exactly what you are saying that, first of all, it is interesting that the delegations coming from countries tend to be dominated by the tobacco industries. In the case of the UK it would include delegates from Imperial Tobacco, Philip Morris, BAT, Gallaher's and so on. In many cases the government regulatory person would not even be represented. Many of the governments are solely represented by tobacco companies, this is the group that finalises the measurement methods and I think there has been outstanding work done by colleagues in this room and elsewhere showing the shortcomings of the measurement methods which I am sure they would go into in greater detail. The bottom line is that as we move into the area of product modification we need to know what we are really measuring and at this stage we have very good reason, from the evidence coming out of the court cases, to believe we are not measuring what is biologically the real dose and impact of all the carcinogens and components of cigarettes. =A0=A0301. So the consequences of you at least having the status you have n= ow gained in that is that you can expose the measurements=97 (Dr Yach) We certainly think that there will be a useful purpose in entering into very serious dialogue through our new status and how we are going to pursue that is still to be finalised. If we are going to move to an international approach to product modification it is essential that this be done pretty quickly. ISO has official status with WHO. Obviously ISO has activities across a wide range of public health measurements. They are a non-governmental association in official relations and attended the Framework Convention meeting, so that dialogue has literally just begun. =A0=A0302. The documents from Minnesota showed that young people were being targeted in the west. To what extent is this happening in the west still and to what extent is it happening today in the east? That does not just apply to young people, it applies to women as well, which is an area where you still have many non-smokers. (Dr Yach) First of all with regard to children, we are concerned that smoking rates are rising among young people in many developed and most developing countries. The problem has not yet gone away. If the tobacco industry had the full will to stop sales to children we believe it could. There are a range of measures that it could truly introduce that would be highly effective in combination with Government=97and this cannot be done without strong government action. We reviewed the evidence on what works to reduce youth consumption in a meeting in Singapore earlier this year and came to the conclusion that the best means of stopping youth consumption continuing to rise is by applying strong tax measures, total advertising and marketing bans on advertising of products, providing youth with the means to quit. A higher proportion of youth worldwide want to quit than we have ever suspected and yet we are not providing the services for them to do so. Similarly, we should use counter-advertising measures that are driven, directed and worked on by youth themselves. Clearly one of the key issues we fail to do is to think of what really appeals and what is going to make a difference in youth groups and that is something which we believe some of the campaigns like the Florida "Truth" Campaign showed could make a difference. We would have to think worldwide how we can do this more effectively. We hosted a meeting two weeks ago in Kobe, Japan which included senior representatives from the Commission on the Status of Women, the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and the outcome of that meeting was grave concern about the fact that on a worldwide basis 12 per cent of women smoke as opposed to 47 per cent of men and that is seen as a massive marketing opportunity for the tobacco industry. From the women's organisations' perspective, they believe this represents one of the greatest preventive potentials for public health in the next century and if we could maintain and reduce the rates of smoking among women by women providing the leadership role in tobacco control, since clearly we men have failed, I think we may very well find that the long-term public health consequences of tobacco would be averted in the next century. I can leave with you the outcome of the Kobe Declaration which will be carried forward into the follow-up Beijing conference on women and development. =A0=A0303. I believe that it is a compliment to describe WHO as a "super-nanny". Do you feel that in order to get effective work in this area we have to abandon the idea of voluntarily moving forward our no smoking policies and we must introduce an element of compulsion into the activities which surround passive smoking? We cannot make progress without some compulsion from government and we should not be afraid of being described as a "nanny state". (Dr Yach) I think we would entirely agree. We have seen that governments who have moved from voluntary agreements to hard law have had greater success. At the international level we have had these resolutions over the years and we are now moving for the first time to a treaty. In 50 years history of WHO they have never used their outlaw option of a Convention, the equivalent approach we will be taking to the need in controlling biological weapons or major environmental risks to the environment. We believe that that is the level of seriousness that we need if we are really going to make a difference for all countries. Audrey Wise =A0=A0304. I would like to pursue the question of women. It is my observati= on that in this country in the past smoking was regarded by some women as a sort of expression of emancipation, i.e. you could be like men and do what men do. I was told by a woman doctor in America last week that there had been an advertising campaign there directed at women which says "Get a voice" and this is expressly to do with smoking. Are there any equivalent things happening, as far as you know, in the marketing ploys in other parts of the world? There will have to be improvements made to the status of women. Is the desire for women to advance being manipulated in marketing in other places? (Dr Yach) Yes. That is happening in virtually every country undergoing development in the world and the tobacco industry are very skilfully using the aspiration of women to seek greater political involvement, to play a greater role in all aspects of society as a means of increasing their sales and marketing. So in Japan you will find advertisements aimed particularly at women moving into the employment sector in greater numbers. You will find that across the world. What was presented in Kobe as well was the most extraordinary review in advertisements over the last 20, 30, 40 years of how the shift has been to focus more and more on the issues of emancipation in advertising and marketing. You just have to look at the women's magazines to start seeing how this is occurring. They are playing on the themes of emancipation, the themes of thinness and slimness and many of the other themes, the desirability of achieving an American lifestyle when at exactly the same time the rates in many parts of the US are declining among women and people are recognising the dangers. We would urge that the video tape of this material may be something you should have a look at. It was produced by the Robert Wood-Johnson Foundation, which was the primary founder of tobacco control at a foundation level in the US and within ten minutes you immediately have a pretty good insight into the way in which they are working. As I said, I will leave with you the Kobe Declaration produced mainly focusing upon women. Many of the people who came to the meeting represent major international women's organisations who had never ever been involved in tobacco and did not see this solely as an issue to do with women in development. They left feeling this is a major neglected area requiring global action. Again, many of the major thinkers are based in the UK and need to be exported to carry the message worldwide. =A0=A0305. So we have got to get across to women that there is no liberatio= n in dying like a man. (Dr Yach) Exactly. Chairman =A0=A0306. That is one way of putting it, Audrey. Dr Yach, I would like to = ask one final question before we finish. We are meeting officials from the EC next week. Do you have any specific thoughts on the role of the EC in respect of tobacco policy and the areas that our Committee should be addressing when we meet with officials in Brussels next week? (Dr Yach) The EC has a unique position now in the WHO Convention as a very special case of an inter-governmental agency itself representing the will of EU members and they can play a very strong leadership role in ensuring that the 15 Member States speak as one and speak at the highest possible level of tobacco control from a public health point of view. They are also thinking very deeply about the area of product modification. I think they need to be encouraged to continue their work in concert with WHO, which is something we know is happening. As they start thinking about the accession countries and the countries who are likely to become members over the next decade I think we should emphasise to them the fact that this is the time for them to bring their tobacco control policies in line with that which applies within the European Union. Many of those countries are focusing at this stage on the financial requirements for joining, but they need to recognise there will be many other Directives, the advertising one being an important starting point. We would see the EC as a vital partner alongside the Member States and at this stage we would regard our relationship as extremely good. The other issue is the issue that you raised, Ms Wise, and that is the need to ensure you have a coherent approach to tobacco control across all sectors and that does require decisive leadership and that is the kind of leadership Dr Brundtland seems to have been able to install in many national leaders. You cannot continue agricultural subsidies simultaneous with trying to profess the need for strong public health measures against tobacco. =A0=A0307. Can I thank you for your very helpful evidence and for your participation in this inquiry and for the documents that you have been good enough to give us. We are most grateful to you. Thank you very much. =A0=A0 (Dr Yach) Thank you. =A9 Parliamentary copyright 2000 Prepared 2 February 2000 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Feb 4 12:42:13 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4EF9221AFF for ; Fri, 4 Feb 2000 12:42:12 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA29859 for ; Fri, 4 Feb 2000 12:42:11 -0500 Date: Fri, 4 Feb 2000 12:42:11 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Minutes of Evidence: Examination of witnesses: PROFESSOR JOHN BRITTON, DR JENNY MINDELL, SIR ALEXANDER MACARA and DR BILL O'NEILL Minutes of Evidence: Examination of witnesses: PROFESSOR JOHN BRITTON, DR JENNY MINDELL, SIR ALEXANDER MACARA and DR BILL O'NEILL Source: House of Commons, Wednesday, 2/2/00 Select Committee on Health Minutes of Evidence=20 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Examination of witnesses (Questions 308 - 319) THURSDAY 9 DECEMBER 1999 PROFESSOR JOHN BRITTON, DR JENNY MINDELL, SIR ALEXANDER MACARA and DR BILL O'NEILL Chairman 308. Thank you for coming this morning. We are most grateful to you for the evidence that you have already submitted. I wonder if I could ask each of you to introduce yourselves briefly to the Committee, starting with you, Dr Mindell. (Dr Mindell) I am a medical doctor. I have spent much of the past 20 years looking after patients suffering from the effects of smoking and dealing with the problems that causes their families as well. I have spent around 15 years being involved with tobacco control, including being Director of a Cancer Prevention Campaign and I have published research on tobacco control. I am trained in epidemiology and public health and I am a member of the Faculty of Public Health Medicines and on their Policy Committee and on their Cardiovascular Working Group. (Dr O'Neill) My name is Bill O'Neill. I am a medical member of staff of the BMA. I was previously a consultant in palliative medicine and prior to that a general practitioner and I have, amongst other things, responsibility at the BMA for our policies on tobacco control, including an EC funded project called the Tobacco Control Resource Centre, working with medical associations across the European region, encouraging the involvement of other medical organisations in tobacco control issues. (Sir Alexander Macara) Sandy Macara, immediate past Chairman of the BMA. I have a particular continuing function in relation to tobacco control in that I chair a tobacco action group jointly between the European region of WHO and an organisation called the European Forum of Medical Associations which is representative of the whole of the WHO European Region and this activity is directly serviced by Dr O'Neill's Tobacco Control Resource Centre which was set up in the Association when I was the Chairman. I am also Chairman of the National Heart Forum. I am also anxious to remind people that it is heart disease as well as cancer which is very importantly involved in all of this. (Professor Britton) I am John Britton. I am a consultant physician in respiratory medicine and I work in Nottingham. I chair a group which advises the Royal College of Physicians on tobacco related issues and I am here today representing the College. 309. Could I begin by asking you, Sir Alexander, a point I have raised with a number of our previous witnesses in earlier sessions which is that we are now 50 years on from fairly significant evidence of the harmful effects of tobacco on health. I mentioned in the previous session that we had the Health Minister in 1954 speaking in the Chamber of the House of Commons about the knowledge at that stage. Since this time we have had six million deaths arising directly from tobacco use in this country. 120,000 people die every year. Why on earth has it taken so long, after all these years of detailed knowledge, to address this matter seriously? (Sir Alexander Macara) That is a very good question. There are a number of starting points. The group of people who responded most rapidly and most effectively to the evidence which our colleagues Richard Doll and others were producing all that time ago were the doctors and other groups who were able to understand and access the information followed suit. Unfortunately that message has not been taken and applied to the same extent by people as a whole. I think there are a number of reasons. One must be that as doctors and scientists we are concerned to base everything we do upon evidence and I think we have been excessively optimistic in our expectation that when we have produced the evidence people will act on it. By "people" I mean government, I mean consumers and I mean the tobacco manufacturing industry. The fact is that none of these groups acted at all in a sufficiently responsible manner to the evidence which we had produced. Perhaps we were insufficient zealots, dare I use that word. Perhaps we should have been stronger in our advocacy about the implications of the evidence which we were producing. 310. There might be another interpretation and that interpretation was implicit in Dr Yach's earlier evidence, which is that governments have been corrupted by the tobacco industry. Would you apply that interpretation to the UK? (Sir Alexander Macara) I have been concerned for some time that a number of Members of Parliament whom I have known, whom I have admired and respected greatly seem to be prepared to take the Queen's shilling from the tobacco manufacturing industry so that they receive retainers. They did not have to declare this interest. I know that some of them are at pains not to declare that interest. I would not claim that that was corruption, but it does seem to me to be unfortunate. 311. Were these people who had some influence in terms of government policy? (Sir Alexander Macara) I certainly had the impression that the exercised influenced beyond that which you would expect the average Member of Parliament to do because they were obviously so very well informed by the misinformation put out by the tobacco manufacturing industry who have always, at least until very recently, sought to rubbish the evidence by suggesting that it is a matter of controversy. There is no controversy about it because the facts are clearly demonstrated. 312. I think you have been unduly modest about the efforts made by your profession in respect of convincing politicians on the health dangers of smoking. Do you have any view on the advice given by successive Chief Medical Officers on the issue of smoking and health to successive secretaries of state and successive governments and how that advice has been acted upon or not acted upon and, if so, why it might not have been acted upon in view of your earlier comments about connections between tobacco companies and Members of Parliament? (Sir Alexander Macara) The four countries of this kingdom are uniquely well served by their Chief Medical Officers because there is no equivocation about their position, they are the Government's advisers. There are other countries, notably in Europe, where the Chief Medical Officer is a political appointment and so he does not have the same credibility. Our Chief Medical Officers have consistently sought to advise Ministers at the time of all the implications of the evidence which the professions have produced. I am bound to say that one gets the impression that Government has been only too happy to use Chief Medical Officers to distance themselves from the possible unpopularity of having to advise people against something that they want to continue doing and where they do not want to face the effect upon their health. Of course, the tobacco manufacturing industry is only too happy to use both the CMOs and their governments as a cordon sanitaire between themselves and the consumers. We should have required the manufacturers to admit they are producing a product which will kill half of all those who become addicted to it. 313. Looking back over the 50 years that we have talked about when all the information was emerging, at what point do you believe that had we had an open system of government and been aware of all these influences government could have acted to save lives? At what point do you feel we might have seen some much more significant action than has been taken over this period? (Sir Alexander Macara) I would put as the crucial date 1962 when Professor Britton and my Royal College of Physicians produced its first report on smoking and health. It could not have been more authoritative without being authoritarian. It projected all the evidence in a thoroughly convincing way and on which, as I have indicated, doctors at least acted. If your predecessors in all parties had taken this matter up at that time we could have saved millions of deaths and a great deal of preventable disease. 314. Can I just focus for a moment on one or two of the issues that we raised with the previous witness to do with the records of the various tobacco companies. I wonder whether any of the organisations represented here have accessed the documents of the depository in Guildford or are aware of relevant information in those documents that has a bearing on what we are looking at or a bearing on the concerns that we have just been expressing about the amount of time it has taken to address this issue politically? (Sir Alexander Macara) Dr O'Neill has looked at this particularly. (Dr O'Neill) At the BMA we have not made a direct attempt to get access to the information because of its inaccessibility. What does one do when faced with a warehouse of documents that are not adequately indexed? I think Dr Yach has made the case very well for the need for electronic access to that information and that point has been made by other witnesses to this Committee. (Dr Mindell) I represent a very small organisation and we do not have the resources to go there and try to look for needles in haystacks. 315. I think one of the impressions we have from having met a number of people in the States who were very interested in this point is that collectively there is a lot of interest and a willingness to look at what this archive contains and the implications of the archive on future policy. Do you have any thoughts from your knowledge of that archive and other archives that may have come to light on steps that we may be able to take through this inquiry or procedures that we may bring about to move forward on the knowledge of information that clearly was retained by the tobacco companies going back many many years? (Sir Alexander Macara) I do not know what my colleagues think, but I was impressed by Dr Yach's replies to your questions about this and, in particular, the way in which electronic access might assist us here. Clearly we do need some assistance to enable the basic work to be done. When we do have some information then we can proceed. (Professor Britton) Whilst the contents of archives, such as the Guildford archive, will be fascinating in the insight that they provide to what has gone on in the past, I would say that in many other ways we have perfectly adequate evidence to make sensible public health policy for the future without spending hours and years trawling through dusty archives. Mr Austin 316. I think Dr Yach was suggesting that $2-4 million may be the cost of accessing that information. Do you feel that that would be public money well worth spending? (Sir Alexander Macara) It depends on whether one is thinking in absolute or relative terms. It may not seem to be as useful as other measures that might be taken, but in absolute terms one would have thought it is a very small amount of money to find as against that which is involved in the whole tobacco manufacturing market. Mr Gunnell 317. You would think that most of the health consequences of smoking are known beyond reasonable doubt. Where would you say there is still genuine scientific controversy about them? Do you not agree, since there is no doubt about the issues and the consequences of passive smoking and that there ought to be action taken by Government on a very firm basis in connection with that, that they should be prepared to legislate and not to rely on the voluntary agreements of companies involved? (Professor Britton) In terms of active smoking, there is no doubt that smoking causes lung cancer and a long list of diseases which I think probably everyone here is familiar with. What is not known is how long that list is and which associations have not yet been detected. In terms of passive smoking, I think there can be no question that passive smoking is associated with an increased risk of lung cancer, respiratory symptoms in young children, and passive smoke exposure of the unborn child with an increased risk of death in the utero. This is imposed on children by smoking adults, which I think is unacceptable in public health terms. 318. Do you think that a much firmer line should be taken by Government to make it clear that they are not going to rely on the voluntary agreements of the companies involved or the restaurateurs or public opinion anymore? (Professor Britton) I want to come back to the question the Chairman asked earlier about who is at fault for the failure of public health measures in tobacco controls. In my view a great deal of fault lies in Government for not grasping the obvious facts and acting on them. The voluntary agreements are part of the reason that tobacco control is still so low. Although it is better than many countries, it is inadequate in this country. 50 years have gone by because of prevarications by Government. 319. So that would indicate that it should be made compulsory through legislation, would it not? (Professor Britton) Yes. (Sir Alexander Macara) Which could well apply to workplaces because just as we should be protecting children, we need to protect workers and not every employer is as responsible as they might be in that regard. (Dr O'Neill) I think that is unquestionably true. I think one should distinguish between voluntary agreements with the tobacco industry and voluntary agreements with other groups and one would not want to criticise the restaurant and pub industry for the initiatives they have taken, but I think one has to draw a clear distinction between groups such as this ,and the tobacco industry, based on the behaviour of the tobacco industry over the last three or four decades. =A9 Parliamentary copyright 2000 Prepared 2 February 2000 Select Committee on Health Minutes of Evidence ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Examination of witnesses (Questions 320 - 339) THURSDAY 9 DECEMBER 1999 PROFESSOR JOHN BRITTON, DR JENNY MINDELL, SIR ALEXANDER MACARA and DR BILL O'NEILL Mr Austin 320. I was at a meeting a few nights ago where one of the physicians was saying that the incidence of heart disease was significantly increased by environmental tobacco smoke and I see you left that off your list. (Professor Britton) There is a long list of diseases associated with that and I have mentioned some of them and heart disease is another. Audrey Wise 321. What do you think of the tobacco company's approach to medical science both over the last few decades and currently? (Sir Alexander Macara) They have been very flattering, have they not? All the evidence now is that they were at pains to repeat the work which had been done by independent scientist; in fact, they employed other independent scientists to research the effects of tobacco. The evidence now is that their own research has confirmed the evidence which had been produced and then they appear to have been at pains, as we now know, to conceal this confirmation. You may say that they were highly flattering in that they recognised the need to repeat the work no doubt hoping to be able to find loose threads that they can pull to unravel the whole fabric of the argument against them. I am afraid in historical terms they have shot themselves in the foot because they have now been revealed to have been responsible for deliberate suppression of the facts and misrepresentation about the facts which had been produced. 322. I am interested in some of your phases you have used, such as "as we now know" and "have now been revealed" and that would not have happened to the same extent by any means without people rooting about in dusty archives. I wonder if you would care to comment a little bit more on that because I have noticed in the BMA evidence you have a list of tobacco company's failures, that is failure to inform of the dangers of smoking and failure to reduce the harmfulness and failure to disclose the contents and so on. Failure is an interesting word in that context because failure suggests you have tried to do something and you have not quite managed it. I would rather say that they have tried to mislead rather than failed to inform and I wonder if you would care to comment on the thrust of your evidence there. Is your own evidence strong enough? We hear that governments are weak. (Sir Alexander Macara) We do not hesitate to use pretty strong language on occasions because we feel it is our public duty to promote public health and to protect our patients, but sometimes we want to assume that there might just be some intention of good faith on the part of the tobacco manufacturers. It may be that they felt their responsibility was to protect their markets and their shareholders and their employees, which is a very worthy matter if you are an employer or a shareholder out with the responsibilities to the public health. They might have thought that was your responsibility as Parliamentarians and ours as medical scientists. We were restrained in the use of that word(failure), but I certainly would not disagree with the view that it is hardly strong enough. 323. You have mentioned your disappointment at the failure of people to act on warnings about health damage. It does seem rather remarkable that there has been quite a lot of knowledge and suspicion about damage to health. I wonder if you would care to reflect and discuss the issue of the public mood in connection with this. We went to the USA last week and I picked up a very strong feeling of anger which is missing here. People are warned and there is a certain amount of anger on the issue of the rights of the non-smoker, but because of the disclosure of the tobacco companies misleading and manipulating people in the USA and ripping off and denial and lying there is a considerable mood of public anger. Do you not think that if people become angry about being manipulated they may be more open to public health messages? (Dr O'Neill) The reality is that in this country it is estimated that we have been spending about =A310 million per year getting across the health message as opposed to probably ten times that amount of money being spent by the industry. There is no doubt that in the United States the series of cases that have gone to the courts has done an enormous amount to highlight the dangers associated with smoking and, in particular, to highlight the behaviour of the industry. The British Medical Association publicly supported the group action that has been taken on behalf of the 52 patients with lung cancer in this country through the courts, not because of the probably relatively paltry sums of money that patients were going to get at the end of the day, but because of the information that would be disclosed in court, because for the first time the truth would see the light of day and we certainly regretted the collapse of that case. 324. I think some of us individually might agree with you on that. Does that not make it even more important to ensure that the truth sees the light of day? (Dr O'Neill) We believe that until the industry are put in the dock in this country, whether it be in front of a Committee such as this or some other forum, we will not have the full truth, and nor will the public, of what has actually gone on over the last 20 to 40 years. 325. The Chairman asked you whether you had attempted to access the Guildford depository. Are you aware that if you did try tomorrow you would almost certainly be told, "I am sorry, nobody can get in for at least the next four months because we are booked up"? (Dr O'Neill) We are absolutely aware of that. 326. Perhaps there is some merit in looking in dusty archives. If they are so keen on keeping it secret, should not all of us be rather keen on getting it revealed? (Professor Britton) I would not wish to be misinterpreted=97 Chairman 327. I think you might have been, Professor. (Professor Britton) On the one hand it is important to establish the truth of events that have gone by if that influences public mood in terms of engendering a sense which I, too, have detected in the United States of betrayal by an industry, but the facts of the health arguments have been with us for nearly 40 years and perhaps it is appropriate to look to the future rather than the past in terms of resolving this problem. Audrey Wise 328. But that implies, does it not, that they have all changed their spots? (Professor Britton) Who has? 329. The tobacco companies. (Professor Britton) Effective public health measures to do with smoking will come from legislation. 330. Are you conscious of the scientific and technological precision and power which we and health authorities in general are facing? We were told, for example, by the US Food and Drug Administration that the scientific knowledge and technological power of the tobacco companies enables them to ensure a nicotine dosage of such precision in every cigarette packet that outweighs the capacity of the pharmaceutical companies to ensure the dosage they want in nicotine replacement therapy. That is the level of scientific and technological power that we are facing. Does that suggest that this is all to do with past attitudes of the tobacco companies? (Professor Britton) Tobacco companies produce very sophisticated products, I do not think anybody here would argue against that. Cigarettes are nicotine delivery devices, that is what they are created to be. Salbutamol inhalers are broncho-dilatory devices used by people with asthma to treat their asthma. They are also very sophisticated devices. The asthma device is legislated to very tight standards of safety and disclosure and cigarettes are not. That is a failure of legislation, not of technological advance. (Sir Alexander Macara) It is even worse than that because we have evidence of the manufacturers deliberately putting additives about which we simply do not know enough into tobacco in order to increase the absorption of nicotine from the bronchi. They even use chocolate for this purpose. I have no doubt if they put on the packet that their product contained chocolate it might be a very clever marketing device. I think they ought to have me as a consultant. They put it there in order to increase the absorption of the nicotine in the cigarettes. That is absolutely right, they are using the results of their own research to potentiate the addictive part of their product. 331. That does suggest that when we talk about manipulation by the tobacco companies it is current as well as past. (Sir Alexander Macara) There is no question about that. I do not know whether my colleagues would like to add anything. (Dr Mindell) I think what Professor Britton was saying is that if governments want to act to introduce comprehensive legislation to control tobacco they can do that on the basis of what is already known without necessarily having additional information from the archives. However, the archive material is important partly because of increasing the public's awareness and acceptance and demand for such legislation but also to avoid the tobacco industry knowing things that Government does not when the legislation is worded and that is why I think that continuing exposure of current research and other internal memos would be important as well. 332. I am very anxious that Professor Britton should not be misinterpreted by anybody else. (Sir Alexander Macara) So are we. 333. We had an exchange with the Department of Health on this when they came to give evidence and some of us were surprised to find that there is no assessment of the real public health consequences made about additives, additives just get approved. We were told, "Well, we don't look at whether they are dangerous because they are used in such small quantities". I did point out that the purpose of some of them was to make the tobacco more palatable and more attractive. You could use an analogy with cocaine: you use spices and salt in very small quantities, but it has a very big effect on whether you want to eat it or not and the same thing could apply to cigarettes. It may be that this message goes into the Department of Health. Would you like to add your comments on this particular aspect? (Sir Alexander Macara) Dr O'Neill certainly will. I would just add that strychnine is very effective even in the very smallest possible doses. Dr Brand 334. Are you suggesting that we add that to tobacco and shorten the course of events? (Sir Alexander Macara) I can think of some people who might think of it as an advantage. (Dr O'Neill) The reality is that we regulate our food, we regulate our drugs and tobacco does not fall into either category. The majority of additives in food are regulated. There is absolutely no reason why additives in tobacco and other constituents in tobacco should not be regulated and until we have effective regulation we are unlikely to see any real change. 335. Can I pick up that point on regulation, Mr Chairman, because we put the same point to the Department of Health, which is that there does not seem to be any consumer protection for people that smoke. The feedback I think we had was, "Well, why should there be since it is such a nasty habit anyway which kills half its consumers", and I think there has been an absolutist attitude towards smokers which is beginning to shift a little. I recognise in the evidence we have received from ASH and in the written evidence from the Royal College of Physicians that people are now talking about safer cigarettes and the regulation of products. I do not want to be too historical, but have we not been at fault in saying that we really cannot cope with anyone that smokes at any time? (Dr Mindell) I will make two points in response to that. Firstly, as regards regulation, we have the bizarre situation at the moment that nicotine delivery devices that deliver only nicotine are highly regulated, but if they deliver thousands of other toxic chemicals as well then they are not regulated. You should remember that almost all smokers start smoking when they are children, when they are far too young to be concerned with dying when they are 40 or 50 rather than when they are 60 or 80. Most smokers want to give up but they are addicted. When you interview teenagers you find that most of them say, "Yes, I smoke now but I'm going to stop", and they find it very difficult to do so. Some find it extremely difficult. Some have managed to stop. We know that there are still a very large number of people who would like to stop smoking. There are a lot of inequalities in this country, not so much in who starts smoking and not so much in who wants to stop, but particularly in those who succeed in stopping smoking and that is where the biggest divide is. Chairman 336. So it is a social class divide, the implication being it is middle class people who can stop and working class people who cannot, is it? (Dr Mindell) Those in the poorest circumstances may not be able to afford the additional benefit of nicotine replacement or they may have so many other stresses in their life that the difficulties of stopping smoking are more than they feel they can cope with. The two most important things in stopping smoking are the desire to want to stop and to believe that you can stop and that you can exist without cigarettes and this is why all these other things that we have also been touching on, whether it is price rises or smoke free areas, are also important for smoking cessation because it can encourage people to exist as a non-smoker. Dr Brand 337. Is it not very important that we have access to the information that clearly the tobacco companies have to their knowledge that allows them to produce products that encourage people to continue? (Professor Britton) It is clearly important to know what is in cigarettes. The gains in public health that are to be realised have to do with legislating against what is there and what is likely to be produced in response to legislation. A point one of my colleagues made was that having a fuller awareness of what is known about tobacco technology is crucial to the phrasing of such legislation and the formulation of legislation, but the public health gains can be made without getting too obsessed with what is actually in the cigarette. Mr Austin 338. Can I deal with what is in the cigarette. In a previous session, we had evidence that suggested that a large number of smokers actually believe that smoking low-tar cigarettes or lights or milds or ultra-lights are less harmful, but we have had evidence that because they need to get their fix, they engage in compensatory smoking, so that more virulent forms of cancer and adenocarcinomas have been increasing as well, which brings me on to whether there is such a thing as a safer or a less deadly cigarette. Obviously the Government's health campaign is that obviously, we all agree, the best thing is not to start and if you do start, to stop, but even if the Government meets its targets of getting people to quit smoking, in ten years' time a quarter of all adults will still be smoking and overwhelmingly in the poorest groups in society. Is it possible to reduce that health impact on those who continue to smoke by requiring, by legislation, changes to the content of cigarettes, to remove selectively or reduce chemicals which we know contribute to cancer and lung and heart disease? (Sir Alexander Macara) It would be one contributory factor, but on its own it would be of limited value. (Professor Britton) I think there are at least two issues raised by that. One is genuine harm reduction in smokers who cannot give up and that is obviously as desirable as any other harm reduction intervention. One of the problems, as I see it, with the whole low tar strategy is that what it may well do is encourage people to continue smoking, believing that they are smoking a safer product, when in fact they are not. I think it is a very difficult judgment to make between something that genuinely reduces harm for those people addicted to the products and who cannot give up from that product which actually increases harm by extending the market for the product. (Sir Alexander Macara) There is no such thing as a safer cigarette; there are only less dangerous cigarettes. (Dr O'Neill) I think we need to be very careful with the terminology because there is no doubt about it, that the industry has scored an enormous goal with the concept of low-tar and light cigarettes. I think we need to make sure that that does not happen again. Having said that, I think we do need to acknowledge the fact that even if we meet the targets which are set, 24 per cent of the population will still be smoking in ten years' time, and whatever can be done to lessen the burden of disease in that group of people clearly is very important, but absolutely accepting the point that Professor Britton made, that we need to be careful that that then does not fudge the whole issue, that we do not find we are actually discouraging people from giving up cigarettes by implying that there actually is a safe product. It is quite clear that there cannot be a safe product in the way in which we understand this product. There are clearly opportunities for looking both at additives, for looking at other constituents in cigarettes, and you have already had evidence about the possibility of lowering nitrosamines in cigarettes and lowering carbon monoxide levels in cigarettes which would respectively have an effect on the burden of cancer and indeed heart disease. I think those avenues should be pursued, but I think we need to make sure that we are actually getting at the truth we have all of the information and that we do not allow the industry further opportunities to score points on this issue. (Sir Alexander Macara) And we do not allow the industry to try to paint those of us who are anxious to help the victims of their successful marketing, that we do not allow them to paint us as nannies or as health fascists because this is the obvious ploy now which I think in part answers Dr Brand's question as to why are we not doing enough to protect smokers. I sense, Chairman, and I am sad to say this, but I sense with your colleagues, within government generally, within the Department of Health a terror about being accused of being nannies or health fascists when all we are trying to do is the job you have been elected to do and we have a moral duty to do which is to stop these people from killing people to the extent that we possibly can. Chairman: I think I will bring Simon Burns in and he is not called "Burns" for nothing! Mr Burns 339. If there is no such thing as a safer cigarette, but there are only less dangerous cigarettes, then how much do you think that nitrosamine-free cigarettes are less dangerous than conventional cigarettes? (Professor Britton) In theory, nitrosamine-free or nitrosamine-reduced cigarettes should be safer than conventional cigarettes, but I think that there is a risk with initiatives such as that, as with the low tar initiative which dates back 30 years, to assume that because it seems logical that something will generate a health gain, it actually will. What we have seen with low-tar cigarettes is a change in the way that people smoke, the products that they smoke and a change in the disease profile that emerges from it, so the assumption that reducing tar will produce a health benefit may have actually backfired by just changing the profiles of cancers caused and by people compensating and finding a way around the measures that have been made to reduce the toxicity of the cigarette, so, in theory, yes, reducing nitrosamines, reducing tar in general should help, but, in practice, you do not know it does until you have introduced it and tried it, and if that perpetuates smoking in society for another 30 years while you decide whether it has worked or not, you have lost. =A9 Parliamentary copyright 2000 Prepared 2 February 2000 Select Committee on Health Minutes of Evidence ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Examination of witnesses (Questions 340 - 359) THURSDAY 9 DECEMBER 1999 PROFESSOR JOHN BRITTON, DR JENNY MINDELL, SIR ALEXANDER MACARA and DR BILL O'NEILL 340. We were in the United States last week and we met up with a company called Star Scientific who have got this patent to take it out of cigarettes. Do you think though that if it were to be shown that that is infinitely less dangerous, then it should be made compulsory on the basis that you are not going to get everyone to give up smoking, so you may as well have a product that is the least dangerous one as possible on the market? (Professor Britton) Well, I think that cigarettes need to be regulated, as I said earlier, like any other drug-delivery device, but you are starting from a situation where instead of a new drug being introduced into the market and having to demonstrate its safety, you have an established product in the market whose market share we want to reduce, whose coverage we want to reduce, and it is important that tobacco manufacturers are made to do as much as they reasonably can to ensure the minimum danger of their product in a background of regulation which has the target of a smoke-free society in a reasonable period of time. (Sir Alexander Macara) You probably know that the Council of Ministers in the EU, which was attended by Gisela Stuart of the UK, in its meeting on the 18th November supported the proposal from David Byrne, the Commissioner for Health, that there should be EU-wide limits on the tar, carbon monoxide and nicotine content of cigarettes, so there is at least a start there within the EU. 341. But picking up on that point, do you think that consumers have been misled in the recent past by the emphasis on lowering nominal tar use? (Sir Alexander Macara) I do not think there is any doubt that they have been misled by receiving part of the truth and not the whole truth. It is sometimes more damaging to have part of the truth because you do not realise what you do not know, and I think it would be fair to say that in recent times the industry has begun to admit not its complicity in concealing facts for so long, but to admit that there is a link between smoking and-ill-health. They are still trying to deny the nature of addiction, so at least perhaps they still deny that tobacco is addictive, but they seem, I think, to be more concerned to fend off the possibility of litigation than to be honest in freely informing their consumers about the risks. 342. Am I right in thinking, and I just have this in the back of my mind from some people we were talking to in America, that with regard to lower-tar cigarettes, the light cigarettes, the medical evidence is now showing that although people believe that by smoking lights, they are in fact enhancing their health prospects, but in fact the illnesses have shifted or different strands have developed, particularly with heart disease, because it is a different product, so in fact it is not safer and it is a myth that if you buy lights, you are actually going to be improving your health prospects? That is correct, is it not? (Sir Alexander Macara) That is absolutely correct and it reinforces the point made earlier about the importance of language; that to suggest that something is light means it is not heavy and, therefore, it is not dangerous, and we do have to be aware of this. (Dr O'Neill) There are two things here because not only has it not lowered the burden of disease, but it has also changed the distribution of disease, which is the point Professor Britton made a few moments ago. 343. So do you think that you can take a logical conclusion from that, that all the publicity about the safer cigarette, whether it be by taking out certain elements in cigarettes or by having lights or lower-tar ones, is in fact leading to encouraging some people to smoke or to continue to smoke who would not otherwise have started smoking or who would have tried to stop smoking with the painful withdrawal symptoms that that entails rather than going on to what they believe is a safer cigarette? (Sir Alexander Macara) Yes. 344. So if the answer is yes, do you think then that we should do anything to stop that sort of marketing of cigarettes that creates the impression that they are safer or better for you? (Sir Alexander Macara) Yes. In fact we believe that you should stop all advertising and sponsorship and, as part of that, misleading statements. Marketing equates with advertising and sponsorship and we think that it should all be stopped. After all, we do not allow heroin, for example, to be advertised and freely available to the public. There is nothing much we can do to stop cigarettes being available in a free society, and perhaps if we had known what we know about them now when Walter Raleigh brought tobacco across that "damn ditch", as Perry Worsthorne once described it, we would have prohibited its consumption a very long time ago, but we did not. Dr Brand 345. James I tried. (Sir Alexander Macara) Yes, James I did try, but then he was a Scot in England! Mr Austin 346. It was James VI, I think. (Sir Alexander Macara) It was James VI and I. Chairman: We are going slightly off beam now. Mr Burns 347. I just wanted to take us slightly off beam as well because something has just occurred to me, arising out of something you said earlier. Forgive me for asking, but when did you leave the BMA? (Sir Alexander Macara) I was Chairman for five years. 348. When did that finish? (Sir Alexander Macara) Seventeen months ago in July 1998. 349. Do you think, given your experience in that role and your liaison and dealings with the Department of Health, that it is surprising to you that the independent Chief Medical Officer would not have given the Government of the day his advice on, say, for example, making exceptions to Formula One sponsorship? (Sir Alexander Macara) One would be speculating of course=97 350. Indeed. (Sir Alexander Macara)=97but I would be surprised if Sir Kenneth Calman had ever withheld any good advice=97 351. I was thinking more of the current Chief Medical Officer. (Sir Alexander Macara) I would again not speculate, except that he was my student. 352. So you do not know how he operates, his modus operandi? (Sir Alexander Macara) Yes. He was a good student and I would expect him to have demonstrated that. The Chief Medical Officers, as I keep emphasising, there are of course four in our devolved kingdom, I would be very surprised if they have not given good advice whether solicited and welcome or not. 353. Even if they had only been in place for two weeks? (Sir Alexander Macara) Or perhaps particularly because they have to establish their position, and their credibility depends upon being seen to give the best advice without any political consideration. 354. Of course. That is fascinating. Would it then come as a surprise to you that he told me that because he had only been in post for two weeks, he had never given any advice to the Government on Formula One and sponsorship? (Sir Alexander Macara) No, it would not surprise me if he had not been given the opportunity or if he had judged perhaps that ministers at that particular time had a great deal more on their minds, and I assume that what I said at the proper opportunity would have been=97 355. I am sorry, but I thought you said a minute or two ago that knowing the man, regardless of whether he was asked or not, he might have given a view. (Sir Alexander Macara) Yes, but a CMO, no more than any other civil servant, they are civil servants, cannot very well bully ministers and force them to=97 356. No, but they can give advice surely in that capacity without bullying by carrying on if the advice is not taken. (Sir Alexander Macara) I was assuming there would be the appropriate opportunity for them to give advice=97 357. So would I. (Sir Alexander Macara)=97whether welcome or not. Dr Brand 358. Chairman, can I help SirAlexander. Would it not be true to say that the Minister that the Chief Medical Officer would have been talking to, the Public Health Minister, was not actually involved in making the decision on Formula One? (Sir Alexander Macara) I imagine that so far as Formula One is concerned we all have something of a problem because I think we could all have handled the matter better and the political sensitivities, I think we all understand the political sensitivities, and it is highly unfortunate, but I would take the view that we should go on from that experience to learn that we cannot make exceptions in terms of essential public policy. Chairman 359. I think you will be aware of the comments of this Committee on the Formula One issue, Sir Alexander. (Sir Alexander Macara) I can imagine, Chairman. =A9 Parliamentary copyright 2000 Prepared 2 February 2000 Select Committee on Health Minutes of Evidence ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Examination of witnesses (Questions 360 - 379) THURSDAY 9 DECEMBER 1999 PROFESSOR JOHN BRITTON, DR JENNY MINDELL, SIR ALEXANDER MACARA and DR BILL O'NEILL Mr Austin 360. To take the cigarette as a nicotine-delivery vehicle, it has certainly been suggested that the tobacco companies have tried to define the addictiveness of nicotine as a habit and I have to say I did make a comment in the earlier session that even the Tobacco Advisory Council seem to use the words "dependency", "habit" and "addiction" almost interchangeably. There is this sort of suggestion that it is a habit a bit like shopping on the Internet, that it is a little damaging. Would you like to tell us something about the medical view of the nature of the addictiveness of tobacco? (Professor Britton) Nicotine "addictiveness" and "dependency" are words that can be used interchangeably for practical purposes. The addictiveness of nicotine is determined partly by the drug itself and partly by how it is delivered.Cigarettes deliver nicotine in a very rapid dose into the arterial blood to the brain and it is that form of delivery, plus the drug itself which is important. In that circumstance, the evidence that the College has recently put together in a report which our submission to the Committee is based on is that nicotine is as addictive, on a par in terms of addictiveness to heroin and cocaine, so to the major drugs of abuse and harm in this society, illegal drugs of abuse. 361. When did you reach the conclusion or when did the medical profession generally reach the conclusion that nicotine was addictive? (Professor Britton) There is reference to the fact that nicotine may well be addictive in the 1962 first Royal College of Physicians Report. I think that the bulk of evidence that our current report relates to has come through over the last ten years or so, between the 1980s and 1990s. I think that is right. 362. You have indicated that there is a comparison with other drugs of dependence, what are often described as "hard drugs". (Professor Britton) Yes. 363. I think some of us might think given the nature of the evidence that nicotine should be classified as a hard drug. (Professor Britton) Yes, it should be. 364. What objective research has been shown to demonstrate that nicotine is this powerful addictive drug on a par with those other drugs? (Professor Britton) There is extensive work in animals showing similar levels of drug-seeking behaviour for nicotine as for cocaine and heroin. The ranking of relative addiction varies according to the experimental system used. Drug behaviour in humans, dependency is defined in relation to certain set criteria from the American Psychiatric Association and from the ICD, the International Classification of Diseases definitions. Nicotine meets those criteria just as clearly as do other hard drugs of addiction and I do not think there is much distinction to draw between them. The main difference is firstly that nicotine does not produce intoxication and perhaps has not been seen historically as such a problem in society, and secondly that it is legal. 365. So apart from the fact that it is addictive, the damage is the delivery vehicle in which it comes? (Professor Britton) In theory, there are some potential ways in which nicotine may be harmful in its own right. They are very, very small effects. In terms of the total damage done by cigarette-smoking, it is minimal, negligible in relation to the harm done by the vehicle. Dr Brand 366. Given the addictive nature of nicotine, do you think we have got the policy right in supporting people that want to withdraw from this drug? (Sir Alexander Macara) I think we have got the policy right in wanting to help people. 367. That was not the question. (Sir Alexander Macara) Thank you. I hoped the question was: are we doing enough? The answer is no, of course we are not. Smoking Kills, which was launched almost a year ago, was a very good start in a statement of government commitment to assist people to quit smoking. What we particularly regretted was the restricted nature of the specific support which could and should be given through nicotine replacement therapy and I know that Professor Britton in particular has strong feelings about that; we all do. It seems very regrettable that the ability for doctors to prescribe for their patients an effective drug which would really effectively help them is so restricted. 368. How long, this is to you or Professor Britton, would you normally think there was a need for nicotine replacement during the withdrawal phase? (Professor Britton) The evidence is that nicotine replacement has most of its effects within the first few weeks of treatment and after about six weeks or so there is little incremental extra benefit. 369. So if you were going to make a recommendation to the Government, you would say that rather than having a week's supply to a very limited number of people in health action zones, you would make six weeks' supply available presumably in weekly bits so that people need to keep in contact with their=97 (Professor Britton) There are two points there. The first is that there is limited supply to a limited number of people in health action zones. People in health action zones qualify for nicotine only if they qualify for free prescriptions, so in fact the coverage of the availability of nicotine replacement therapy at present is less wide than the White Paper perhaps implies. Chairman 370. So it is people on free prescriptions in health action zones for a week? (Professor Britton) Yes, for a week. It is not people just living in health action zones, so in terms of postcode prescribing, which was the bite on the radio last night, health action zones are a particular example of how it should not be. You need to be living in the right postcode and to have free prescriptions to get one week of nicotine. (Dr Mindell) I think even then you actually have to be referred to a specialist smoking clinic. (Professor Britton) Yes, so there are many barriers to getting it. The second thing is that most people who are going to fail have failed by about a week and, therefore, if you make supplies of nicotine conditional on success up to a certain point, there are enormous potential savings to make. To give every smoker who says "I would like to give up smoking" six weeks of nicotine over the counter now would be very wasteful. Dr Brand 371. You believe that there is a distinct role for nicotine replacement therapy as part of a Stop Smoke programme? (Sir Alexander Macara) The important point is as part of, is it not? (Professor Britton) Nicotine replacement therapy works if you buy it over the counter, it just may not work quite so well. Nicotine replacement therapy is one of the most cost-effective medical treatments available. It is the only one that is effective, that I am aware of, that is not prescribable. (Sir Alexander Macara) It will work particularly well within the context of the general practitioner or health adviser supporting and counselling the individual, which is why it is important that general practitioners are able to prescribe it. 372. The Glaxo Wellcome drug, Zyban, is that something that should be evaluated as a matter of urgency by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence? (Dr O'Neill) It is very difficult to measure the word "urgency" in the context of the National Institute at the present time when there are so many things on the agenda. There is no doubt about it, the drug needs to be evaluated and a decision needs to be taken on whether or not it is going to be available in this country. (Professor Britton) The drug clearly works, as nicotine replacement does. Smoking kills 50 per cent of smokers and here is an effective treatment which will reduce that risk, it seems stupid not to take it on. In terms of the economic arguments, medicine embraces many incredibly expensive treatments. Drugs that lower blood fat levels are a classic example. An estimate in the press last week was of about =A35,500 per life year saved and smoking comes out at between =A3200 and =A3800 depending on how you deliver the service. It is remarkably good value. It is quite low tech and a bit simple and I think that is perhaps why it does not get quite the kudos of other interventions. (Sir Alexander Macara) There is just one point I would like to clarify. I expect Dr Mindell has another point. I would not like it to be thought that we are being critical of the concept of Health Action Zones. It has to be a good thing that there are opportunities there to target those people most in need of help and support of all kinds. It is also a good thing that nicotine replacement therapy will be evaluated. The important point Professor Britton was making was that the timescale in which that is to be permitted is far too short to produce the results that we would wish to see. I am sorry, I cut across Dr Mindell. (Dr Mindell) I wanted to add that smoking cessation support is really in two parts, one of which is what we were talking about just now about measures to help those smokers who have decided that they would like to quit and to help them at an individual level, but the public health policy level that requires Government action, apart from support at this individual level, is equally important, measures like banning all forms of tobacco promotion, increasing the price consistently above inflation, preventing smoking in public places. All these types of approaches are just as important in encouraging smokers to try to stop, in enabling them to remain stopped and in reducing the number of adult smoking models that influence young people. (Dr O'Neill) The other thing we must add to all of this is the fact that clearly the case for nicotine replacement therapy is proven. Having said that, we still have a situation where many people have contact with health professionals and are not asked something as simple as their smoking status. I know you have had evidence submitted here of the work of Professor Fowler in the late 1970s and early 1980s who, as a general practitioner, advocated the fact that every general practitioner should ask a patient about their smoking status, should give them brief advice and possibly add nicotine replacement therapy to that. That has been demonstrated to be effective. I think there is a case to answer for every doctor, nurse and health professional in the country, whether they are asking patients about their smoking status, whether they are advising them about the benefits of stopping smoking and, indeed, what doctors, nurses and others are doing themselves about their smoking behaviour. I think that is a very important message that we must get across. Chairman 373. Could I come back to regulation. Dr Mindell, you described broadly your thoughts on what should be included in the regulation. I do not know whether your view collectively is that that regulation should be national or EU-wide. There is another point I want to make before I raise another issue about the "light" cigarettes, a question which Sir Alexander raised. What are your views on the actual regulation of nicotine and whether nicotine can be effectively regulated out of these products in some way? (Dr Mindell) Can I start by saying that in tandem with deciding you can regulate nicotine out, or whether you should regulate it out, you need to know what you are regulating. The measurement of nicotine and tar is crucial. At the moment we have a completely flawed system. Low tar, low nicotine cigarettes actually contain almost identical amounts of tar and nicotine to not low tar ones. The difference is that when you smoke it, as smoked by those machines that are designed for these regulatory purposes, the amount of tar and nicotine is much lower than in the earlier designs of cigarette. That is not the same as when a smoker smokes it. As we have already heard, people who change from medium or high to low tar and low nicotine cigarettes inhale more deeply and leave a shorter stub because they are trying to maintain the same nicotine fix that they were getting on the previous cigarette. The other thing that has become known more recently is the way that tar and nicotine is lowered is through microscopic holes which happen to be where a smoker's lips or fingers would be and when those holes are covered you do not have this lowering effect. One of the things that has to be done is to develop some form of measurement that actually measures what is important rather than measures what customers are currently being told. Personally I am not bothered whether these regulations are at the EU or at the national level. The advantage of the European level is that they will be of benefit to more people. Whichever is easier to implement. Having them at a national level does not preclude, and may even strengthen, European moves to have them across Europe. I do not think that this Government should necessarily wait for European Directives. On the other hand, if that is considered a better or faster or more comprehensive way then that is fine. 374. Coming back to the issue of low tar, so-called "light" cigarettes, Sir Alexander made a point about completely banning advertising and marketing. Presumably you would be against a packet having somehow a claim in the title that was low tar or implicitly less harmful, would you? (Sir Alexander Macara) I think we do have to look at the language, the words that are used. I think we are entitled to restrict the words that can be used in the marketing to make sure that they are not misleading, whatever these words are. Chairman: Do any of my colleagues have further questions to ask? Audrey Wise 375. I would just like to get absolutely crystal clear from all four of you the question of the cost effectiveness of, say, six weeks appropriate prescribing by GPs of nicotine replacement therapy. If we made such a recommendation, for example, and obviously I do not know whether the Committee would be minded to do that or not, could we be shot down in flames on cost grounds or would we be able to back up such a recommendation and show its cost effectiveness as well as its effectiveness? (Professor Britton) This is a document called Smoking Cessation Guidelines and Their Cost Effectiveness, which was published a year ago, and the second part of this section is written by health economists primarily who looked at the effectiveness of different models of providing smoking cessation services. We will leave this document for you. As I said earlier, those costs come out at somewhere between =A3200 and =A3800 per li= fe year saved depending on what model one adopts, some are broad reach, some are restricted access. In terms of health cost effectiveness, smoking cessation is one of the most cost effective interventions available to us. I think the median cost effectiveness of the top one hundred medical interventions shown to prolong life=97and it surprises me sometimes that there are one hundred medical interventions that prolong life=97is about =A317,000 per life year saved. Smoking is under =A31,000. That is with six weeks of nicotine. 376. I appreciate that this is not intended as being an alternative to public health measures but you all concur? (Dr O'Neill) Absolutely. Just to reiterate the point that Professor Britton made earlier on, if someone is using the nicotine replacement therapy and after a week they are still smoking then there is no benefit in them continuing. We would not want to give you the impression that we think everybody should immediately get a six weekly prescription. 377. No, I said "appropriate". (Professor Britton) I think these are worked out on six weeks so it might be slightly cheaper than that. (Sir Alexander Macara) It is not either/or. Helping individuals or promoting and protecting the public health, it has to be both together. 378. It has been suggested to us as well, and I do not know whether you agree with this, that nicotine replacement therapy increases the effectiveness of other forms of health or support or intervention. Is that so? (Professor Britton) It doubles the success. Roughly speaking, whatever else you do is doubled by nicotine, which is why I said earlier that nicotine=97 379. By nicotine replacement therapy? (Professor Britton) By nicotine. Which is why I said earlier that nicotine over the counter without any support at all is probably doubling the chance of success of somebody who goes into a chemist and thinks "I think I might try to stop smoking", or "I am going to get something to help me". In general, the more one puts into smoking cessation, the greater the return. Bupropion, in so far as it has been studied, seems also to have a similar incremental effect on top of whatever else you do. Audrey Wise: So it seems from that that the most cost effective intervention is, as Dr O'Neill suggested, GPs advising and helping and discussing plus nicotine replacement. =A9 Parliamentary copyright 2000 Prepared 2 February 2000 Select Committee on Health Minutes of Evidence ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Examination of witnesses (Questions 380 - 383) THURSDAY 9 DECEMBER 1999 PROFESSOR JOHN BRITTON, DR JENNY MINDELL, SIR ALEXANDER MACARA and DR BILL O'NEILL Dr Brand 380. Primary care team, I think. (Professor Britton) Not necessarily, no, because there is more to it than that, but we are talking of small numbers of pounds. In fact specialist smoking cessation clinics are very cost-effective, but they can only see a small number of people. Audrey Wise 381. So smoking cessation clinics plus NRT, GP support plus NRT=97both of those are definitely spectacularly cost-effective? (Dr Mindell) And smoking cessation training and support for midwives and practice nurses and really all healthcare professionals ideally. Chairman: The GPs are wincing at the moment to that. The PCGs we are talking about. Dr Brand: The primary care team, not a PCG, and certainly in my own experience, I found one of our practice nurses absolutely brilliant at it. We were funded for smoke stop clinics and then the funding was withdrawn and people's enthusiasm waned and it was not as good as it was. Mr Austin 382. Everybody has said not only in this session that smokers become addicted when they are very young and those who do give up tend to give up later in life. I would just be interested to know whether you know of any examples of good practice where young people have been persuaded or enabled to quit the addiction. (Dr O'Neill) We can certainly get that evidence for you and send it to you because there certainly is evidence there from various groups working with schools and youth groups. Chairman 383. Do any of my colleagues have any further questions? Do any of the witnesses wish to add anything to what they have said so far? If not, then I will thank you, Dr Mindell and gentlemen, for your most helpful evidence. (Sir Alexander Macara) And thank you, Chairman, and the Committee for a most enjoyable as well as, I trust, productive session. Chairman: Thank you, Sir Alexander. =A9 Parliamentary copyright 2000 Prepared 2 February 2000 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Feb 5 06:26:42 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 29A3C21AFF for ; Sat, 5 Feb 2000 06:26:42 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id GAA10665 for ; Sat, 5 Feb 2000 06:26:41 -0500 Date: Sat, 5 Feb 2000 06:26:41 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Sao Paulo State Government To Sue US Tobacco Companies (fwd) February 4, 2000 Dow Jones Newswires Sao Paulo State Government To Sue US Tobacco Companies SAO PAULO, Brazil (AP)--The Sao Paulo state government plans to sue U.S. tobacco companies in a bid to recover money spent over the past 35 years in treating smoking-related diseases, a local newspaper said Friday. State Attorney General Marcio Sotelo Felippe told the Folha de Sao Paulo newspaper that American lawyers have been hired to study the case and file the lawsuit in a U.S. court. Felippe did not say which companies would be sued nor for how much. His office said he was traveling and unavailable for comment. Sao Paulo would be the third Brazilian state to file a suit against American tobacco companies in a U.S. court. Last year, Rio de Janeiro hired four Texas lawyers to file a law suit against 15 companies, including Philip Morris, Nabisco and Batus Corp., seeking reimbursement of at least $5 billion. The state of Goias followed Rio's example and is also seeking reimbursement of $5 billion. The president of Brazil's Association of Tobacco Industries, Nestor Jost, told the newspaper that lawsuits pertaining to a local issue had to be filed in a Brazilian court. But attorney Reginaldo Oscar de Catstro of the Brazilian Bar Association, said there was nothing in the constitution that clearly impedes the states' lawsuits from being filed in the courts of another country. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Feb 5 06:27:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0436A21AFF for ; Sat, 5 Feb 2000 06:27:25 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id GAA10698 for ; Sat, 5 Feb 2000 06:27:24 -0500 Date: Sat, 5 Feb 2000 06:27:24 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] UK Tobacco companies to make their research Available (fwd) British Medical Journal 2000;320:336 ( 5 February ) News extra Tobacco companies to make their research available on internet Muhunthan Thillai BMJ Britain's major tobacco companies have agreed to make their medical researc= h freely available on the internet. Appearing as witnesses to a select committee on health at the House of Commons last week= , directors of some of the largest manufacturers, said that they had no problem with their archives being made more accessible. "We would be prepared to make these documents publicly available on the internet," said Peter Wilson, executive chairman of Gallaher Group. Company directors from British American Tobacco, Philip Morris, and R J Reynolds also agreed that they had no objections to the idea. Only Gareth Davis, chief executive of Imperial Tobacco Group, had reservations, citing "practical and legal issues which would first have to be taken into account." Information on tobacco research carried out by the industry is held at a depository outside Guilford, Surrey. Researchers have to apply to view the documents, and the waiting list is currently five months long. The chairman of the select committee, David Hinchliffe, Labour MP for Wakefield, said that it was "ridiculous to expect a researcher to wait until June" to view the documents. Dr Howard Stoate, Labour MP for Dartford and a practising GP, asked the companies: "Just how much is there actually available to internet researchers right now?" Directors from R J Reynolds and Imperial Tobacco Group admitted that there was nothing at all, but Martin Broughton, chairman of British American Tobacco, argued that much of his company's research was available at the moment on their US website. None of the five company representatives claimed to be familiar with the majority of their documents. Mr Broughton agreed that he knew little about the eight million documents held by British American Tobacco. The issue of advertising standards, particularly those overseas, was also picked up on by the committee. Guidelines for British advertising were not met when targeting British tourists overseas, they claimed. In particular, English language newspapers in some countries, such as Spain= , carried advertisements that seem to contravene rules by the Advertising Standards Agency that forbid the use of glamorous, attractive, and wealthy people in advertisements to promote tobacco. Mr Broughton said that British American Tobacco did "not take the view that the UK code has worldwide jurisdiction." He also said that he personally did not see any problem with the use of images of such people to market a tobacco product: "I don't think it is wrong=97not necessarily." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Feb 7 12:03:07 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6DE7E21AFF for ; Mon, 7 Feb 2000 12:03:07 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32524 for ; Mon, 7 Feb 2000 12:03:07 -0500 Date: Mon, 7 Feb 2000 12:03:01 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Anti-smoking plan comes under fire (fwd) Anti-smoking plan comes under fire Source: Asahi Shimbum, Friday, 2/4/00 The Liberal Democratic Party and the tobacco industry have denounced the health ministry's plan to create a healthier society in the 21st century. The ministry last year drafted measures to slice the nation's smoking rate in half by 2010. But the ministry backed off that goal after being bombarded by more than 2,000 complaints from the tobacco industry, ministry officials said. In addition, the LDP's Policy Research Council sent a resolution to the ministry, saying that government measures to restrict smoking would be unconstitutional. Before establishing the health target for the 21st century, the ministry suggested in an August interim report halving the current smoking rate-52.8 percent for men and 13.4 percent for women-as well as the current annual consumption of 3,152 cigarettes per smoker. The report came under heavy fire from Japan Tobacco Inc., a union of tobacco producers, a union of tobacco traders and others in the industry, the officials said. ``Smoking should not be controlled by the government,'' one complaint said. Another simply stated that ``cigarettes are legal products.'' The industry collected more than 53,000 signatures to oppose the ministry's proposed target. In November, special committees of the LDP's Policy Research Council sent their resolution to the ministry, saying that administrative guidance is a problem because individuals should decide if they want to use the product. The committees also said that the ministry's plan to set a specific target figure could be problematic, the officials said. Hiroshi Yanagawa, chief of the ministry panel that discussed the proposal, said it would be easy to reach the goal if the ministry offered assistance to people who want to kick the habit. Yanagawa, who is also vice principal at Saitama Prefectural University, said the ministry should indicate a specific figure for a reduced smoking rate because it is a crucial part of the proposal. ``I would like opponents of the plan to understand that the government cannot force the target figure on Japanese nationals,'' a ministry official said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Feb 8 14:09:37 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B2A7421AFF for ; Tue, 8 Feb 2000 14:09:37 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA27548 for ; Tue, 8 Feb 2000 14:09:37 -0500 Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 14:09:37 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ireland to Boost Anti-Smoking Efforts (fwd) Tuesday, February 8, 2000 Irish Times Agency to boost anti-smoking drive By Miriam Donohoe, Political Reporter An agency to step up the fight against smoking is to be established by the Government as part of a new national anti-smoking drive. The Office of Tobacco Control will co-ordinate and monitor Government smoking policy and will help enforce existing anti-smoking legislation. The Minister for Health, Mr Martin, told The Irish Times last night that the agency would be operating "in a matter of months". Staff for the new authority is currently being recruited and an office building is being sought. Mr Martin revealed that from next July all media advertising of tobacco products will be banned in the Republic, a year ahead of our obligations under a 1998 EU directive. The ban will be introduced by way of a statutory instrument. The Minister said the decision to establish the Office of Tobacco Control was prompted by the fact that enforcement of existing legislation and regulations was poor, especially in the area of the sale of cigarettes to minors and the enforcement of smoke-free zones. The Minister has also ordered a comprehensive review of all legislation in relation to smoking and the tobacco industry. "We are very unhappy at the moment with enforcement and compliance and I need to see why current legislation does not appear to be working. I am prepared to introduce tougher laws if necessary to improve matters," he warned. The Minister has also asked senior officials to review the antismoking health promotion campaigns. "While we have had many campaigns over the year, the fact is that there are more and more people smoking. We have to see how campaigns can be improved." Mr Martin confirmed that he would be supporting the Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children, which is seeking powers to summon witnesses and request documentation from the Irish tobacco industry in an effort to find out their knowledge of the harmful effects of tobacco. The chairman of the committee, the Fianna F=E1il TD, Mr Batt O'Keeffe, said last night the matter was to be brought before the Cabinet today or next week. "We need these powers to ensure that the full story of the tobacco industry role in covering up the dangers of smoking and their targeting of young people will be made known to the public." Mr Martin said he would be supporting the committee move. The Minister sent a strong signal to the tobacco industry that one of the main priorities of his ministry will be to cut down on the numbers of people smoking, especially young people. "I want to see us live in a tobacco-free society and will be doing all in my power to achieve this," he warned. The Minister will shortly be launching the 1999 report of the Department of Health Chief Medical Officer, Dr Jim Kiely, which shows that 7,000 deaths a year in Ireland can be attributed to smoking. The report will reveal that 30 per cent of all cancers are linked to smoking. According to the report, cigarettes are the single most common cause of avoidable ill-health. It states that 50 per cent of all smokers will eventually die of tobacco-related illness. Of these, 50 per cent will die in middle age. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 9 15:28:21 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8FFED21AFF for ; Wed, 9 Feb 2000 15:28:21 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA20836 for ; Wed, 9 Feb 2000 15:28:21 -0500 Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 15:28:20 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Bangladesh tobacco control regs ordered PRESS RELEASE On 7th February 2000, the Bangladesh Anti-Tobacco Alliance (BATA) won its second legal victory since its inception in August 1999. The Bangladesh High Court directed the government to enact strong tobacco control measures regarding the production and consumption of tobacco. The measures mentioned by the Court include banning smoking in public places in order to maintain public health, and banning tobacco advertisements. According to a Bangladesh English-language newspaper, The Daily Star, "After hearing both the sides, the bench said uncontrolled consumption of tobacco products not only harms the consumers but also seriously damages the health of people around them." The newspaper further states, "It is also anti-constitutional on the part of the government to remain silent on this issue, the Bench said. People's fundamental rights to lead a happy and healthy life and live in a pollution-free environment have been ensured" by the Constitution. The Court's judgment was based on two separate writ petitions, one filed by the prominent anti-smoking group ADHUNIK (which is also active in BATA) and the other by BATA members. BATA originated in response to a major promotional campaign, "Voyage of Discovery" by British-American Tobacco (BAT) for its John Players Gold Leaf brand cigarette. In addition to a number of activities in protest of Voyage, BATA also submitted a successful writ petition to stop promotional activities of the campaign. BATA will continue to press for strong tobacco control measures, including a comprehensive ban on advertising and promotion of tobacco, protection of non-smokers, and higher taxes on all tobacco products. ------------------- Debra Efroymson, Regional Advisor PATH Canada 67 Laboratory Road, Dhanmondi Dhaka-1205, Bangladesh e-mail: pathCan@citechco.net fax: (8802) 966-0372 phone: (8802) 966-9781 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 9 17:06:00 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5B60121AFF for ; Wed, 9 Feb 2000 17:06:00 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA23760 for ; Wed, 9 Feb 2000 17:06:00 -0500 Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 17:05:59 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] The tobacco papers: The insider The tobacco papers: The insider The Age (Asutralia) By DUNCAN CAMPBELL Sunday 6 February 2000 Ten days from now in London, Sir Kenneth Clarke, Chancellor of the Exchequer in the last Conservative Government, is to face an unexpected confrontation. The man who once presided over Britain's tax and customs departments will answer to the charge that he now oversees a multinational company which encourages and exploits tax evasion and smuggling on a global scale. Since leaving government, Clarke has been deputy chairman of British American Tobacco Plc, the world's second-largest tobacco company. Together with chairman Martin Broughton, Clarke has been summoned to appear before the parliamentary select committee on health to explain BAT's involvement in the cigarette-smuggling business. That BAT hugely enlarges its corporate profits by smuggling will not even be at issue. Clarke admitted as much to the Guardian three days ago, telling readers that "we act on the basis that our brands will be available alongside those of our competitors in the smuggled as well as the legitimate market". Blaming governments for following a policy of raising tobacco taxes to excessive levels, Clarke inserted the qualifications that BAT's support for smuggling occurred where governments were unwilling to act or its efforts were unsuccessful. He also claimed that the BAT's actions were completely within the law. The audacity of such remarks by a Queen's Counsel and former minister is breathtaking. It was scarcely necessary for Audrey Wise MP, a Labour member of the committee, to point out that "smuggled goods are illegal goods, so if you're deliberately making your goods available for smuggling, knowingly and deliberately, you are an accessory to the fact". No less stunned was the reaction of journalists, including myself, who had worked on this story for six months. Just four days had elapsed since a legally dangerous story had been launched; perhaps, like detectives, we were surprised when a feared quarry turned round, hands raised, and said: "It's a fair cop." THE story of the uncovering of BAT's use of the smuggling trade began two years ago as a result of actions for damage to public health brought in the United States. As a result of the case, BAT and its industry rivals had been compelled to place millions of pages from corporate files into records depositories. When the first action was settled in Minnesota in May 1998, the state's attorney-general added a provision that has directed a spotlight on corporate malpractice. He stipulated that the records should become open to the public for the next 10 years. The Minnesota consent judgment created, in effect, a global freedom of information law. Everything had to be disclosed that had already been seen by the courts. Unsurprisingly, BAT did not care for this. Until a year ago, it refused to open its files to the public. Then its London lawyers received a short letter from US attorneys for the state of Minnesota, who reminded BAT it had been allowed to keep its depository in England only on sufferance. If it didn't open up, it could be ordered to relocate the papers to Minnesota. BAT opened up. FIRST in to the depository, located in a bleak industrial estate in Guildford, a regional town near London, were researchers from the World Health Organisation and anti-tobacco campaigners such as ASH, the campaign for Action on Smoking and Health. They were on the lookout for hitherto concealed papers on the medical effects of smoking. Many such documents quickly found their way into the hands of lawyers around the world. But these early researchers soon saw that another story entirely was buried inside the 40,603 BAT files in Guildford. The story of corporate links to smuggling was not one these researchers had met before, despite more than four years of searching tobacco files. Could these documents really mean what they seemed to? They wondered if the story from inside the BAT files could ever safely be told. Soon after, word of the contents of BAT's files was passed to Maud Beelman, a press agency veteran who had recently taken up a new job as director of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in Washington (ICIJ). The consortium itself had taken shape a year or so before as a new project of a Washington-based public interest group, the Center for Public Integrity. Its members now include the present writer and Age investigative reporter Bill Birnbauer, among others scattered from Moscow to Melbourne. As the Guardian observed when the tobacco story launched last Monday, we are world journalism's awkward squad. In Washington, Maud Beelman recruited a small team of ICIJ members and claimed a small budget from the parent organisation. A key member of the team, Maria Teresa Ronderos, worked in one of the countries which early papers showed to have been most affected by cigarette smuggling. Since the late 1980s, Colombia's excise income has been decimated by organised inward-smuggling of cigarettes and luxury goods. As the illicit cocaine and crack flowed out ever more profusely to Canada and the US, in had come increasing quantities of contraband. Now at least part of the explanation was in our hands. In the files of BAT's then Latin American director, Keith Dunt, was a map showing how DNP (Duty Not Paid) cigarettes entered Colombia via the small Caribbean island of Aruba. Together with the map were dozens of papers describing plans to launch new smuggled brands in Colombian cities, often supported by a small umbrella of legally imported (and advertised) cigarettes. Other documents in his files referred to BAT products as contraband, or as smuggled. One BAT company was engaged in an overt illegal operation. In Vietnam, the company's top Asian regional brand, State Express 555, was determined to be the major smuggled brand. There is no suggestion that Dunt, BAT or those whose cigarette-smuggling services BAT utilised were involved in the smuggling of narcotics. But the company was clearly aware that Aruba was also a centre where narcotics-related funds would arrive alongside clean currency. I first visited the Guildford depository in September 1999 and started sifting through files under the gaze of an overhead TV camera. On the other end of the TV link, in a room we were never permitted to enter, was a crew of BAT watchkeepers. A solicitor from BAT's legal team was among them. Across the table from me was a representative from Melbourne law firm Slater and Gordon, who had been instructed to gather data for Australian health lawsuits. BAT's staff later confided that the company had been irritated by her Aussie approach. The researcher had simply looked up every BAT file that mentioned Australia and ordered one complete copy of everything to be promptly couriered southward. This wasn't playing fair, in BAT's view. It was supposed to be much more difficult to get information than just to come in and pay for copies of everything in sight. At 10 pence a sheet, copies of BAT's full Australian archive had cost Slater and Gordon just over $A10,000. Playing the way the company wished, I read through the daily personal correspondence of Keith Dunt, who is now BAT's No 2 executive and chief finance officer, and selected parts for copying. I had to pinch myself to believe this experience was real. Mr Dunt was clearly an efficient and hard-working manager, whose thoroughness would have been creditable in the British civil service. But Mr Dunt's files contained much of a character that would be alien to the files of any law-abiding civil servant. Within a month of taking up his new job as BAT's regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean in January 1992, he had popped off a friendly note to BAT's agent on Aruba, who served as a key link in the Colombian smuggling network. Six months later, as he recorded in his files, he flew to Aruba to meet the agent to learn about the DNP/transit business (company code for smuggling) on the ground. Less than three weeks later, the agent and his son were invited by Dunt on an expenses-paid luxury trip to London to be entertained by BAT at Wimbledon. Here in the BAT files, methodically and efficiently recorded, were tales of smuggling routes explored, black-market traders encouraged and a relentless quest for profits regardless of ethical and moral considerations - even though BAT and its staff did not break any British law, or themselves ever take contraband illegally across national boundaries. The next step in our investigation was to order copies of important documents from BAT. These had to be ordered through company lawyers Lovell White and Durrant, one of Europe's largest law firms. We soon received howls of protest. I had ordered copies of much of Mr Dunt's daily files, which included private matters. Neil Withington, BAT's deputy general counsel, wrote to ICIJ to complain. It was hard, he said, to imagine any legitimate reason for my requesting documents such as those concerning Dunt's telephone bill or home insurance. We chose not to fight. Just give us the documents that concern your finance director's complicity with smuggling operations in Latin America, we reasoned, and BAT can keep the letters about his share options, cars and swimming pool. After a couple of months of foot-dragging by BAT, the damning papers were copied and ready to collect. Early in November, I cycled to the offices of Lovell White Durrant to collect the files for the ICIJ. Staff at the law firm thought I was just another untidy bike messenger. REPORTING the significance of these BAT files brought new challenges for the Center for Public Integrity. Its founder, former CBS Sixty Minutes producer Charles Lewis, had set up the centre to carry out independent investigative reporting projects. From a standing start in 1991, Lewis had built the centre from a back- office venture to an authoritative and modestly well-funded US public-interest organisation, backed by cautiously accepted foundation money. It has produced many well-reported stories, among them the 1996 Lincoln Bedroom scandal, in which nights at the White House were auctioned off for political donations. In 1997, Lewis envisaged the ICIJ as an international arm for his centre that could take over the ground being vacated by news organisations as they closed their overseas bureaux and reduced foreign coverage. This has proven to be exactly the right idea and precisely the wrong model. In extending the boundaries of his national project to issues of planetary concern, Lewis's vision has certainly been fulfilled. With the World Health Organisation projecting billions of avoidable early deaths this century from tobacco-related disease, the insidious promotion of tobacco addiction clearly ranks among the world's larger problems. In exporting US concepts of public interest into global journalism (and not forgetting US finance, too), something very important to the global public interest has been demonstrated. Coming alongside this has been the endearing Washingtonian habit of thinking that there is just one view of the world. While an international press agency can work like this, a loosely bound group of grumpy investigative reporters with widely differing affiliations, reporting systems and cultural and legal frameworks was most unlikely to settle on a single view. And we didn't. Among the critical divergences that emerged were the impact of widely differing legal systems. In Britain journalists must be prepared to prove the truth of what they publish. In the United States, where strong protections for a free press are a bedrock of the Constitution, it is for complainers to prove that what was published is actually false. Thus, the same agreed facts may have to be tailored and presented quite differently in different countries, and conform also to local writing styles and cultural perspectives. Divergences also exist about how journalists interact with their wider society. In the US, it apparently is professional anathema to engage with government enquiries. Whereas in Britain, the House of Commons Select Committee has invited myself and ASH campaigner Clive Bates to appear before it at the same meeting as the top BAT executives. Legally, I don't have a choice - a summons from Parliament is compulsory. But I will go to the meeting with enthusiasm. Looking back at week one of the BAT story, one of the most memorable remarks still has to be British American Tobacco's first, limp response to our allegations. I and the other researchers had, they said, been cherry picking among their files. Fair enough. But what cherries. And such a cherry tree. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Feb 14 11:19:08 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9777B21AFF for ; Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:19:08 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA29165 for ; Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:19:08 -0500 Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:19:08 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Japan Tobacco to cut global tobacco brands (fwd) Japan Tobacco to cut global tobacco brands Source: Reuters, Monday, 2/14/00 Monday February 14, 2:59 am Eastern Time TOKYO, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Japan Tobacco Inc (JT), the world's third-largest tobacco group, plans to cut the number of its global tobacco brands to 139 from 197 under a five-year business restructuring, JT President Masaru Mizuno said on Monday. JT, which operates in some 70 countries across the globe, will also focus on 16 core target countries: 11 mature markets and five growing markets in Asia, Eastern Europe and Russia, Mizuno said in an interview. On the Russian market, which accounted for about one-fifth of JT's overseas tobacco sales in volume terms last year, Mizuno said there were signs the market was stabilising after an unexpectedly long slump resulting from the country's economic and currency crisis. With last year's eye-opening $7.38 billion takeover of RJR International, known for its Camel and Winston brands, JT became the world's third-largest cigarette producer behind Philip Morris (NYSE:MO - news) of the United States and U.K.-based British American Tobacco Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) (BAT). JT holds a 75 percent share of Japan's tobacco market -- the world's third-largest after China and the United States -- and has a powerful presence in Asia with its flagship Mild Seven cigarettes, but it was little known outside the region until the buyout, the most expensive ever by a Japanese company. On February 1, JT unveiled a long-awaited business plan for the next five years that aims to eliminate a total of 4,500 jobs, or 13 percent of its global tobacco-related work force, and streamline its global tobacco operations. Mizuno said JT would further consolidate its 25 domestic cigarette plants and introduce high-speed cigarette-rolling machines, but added that any plant closures may require lengthy talks with workers and labour unions. He gave no specific targets for domestic plant closures. He said the company does not want to follow an overly aggressive course in consolidating its production facilities, while the planned domestic job cuts would largely be achieved through voluntary early retirements. ``I'm aware of the fact that Philip Morris only relies on three or four factories for its entire domestic output...but we need to ensure a stable tobacco supply to any region in the country,'' he said. As for overseas operations, JT now operates 20 RJR factories in 17 countries, in addition to its previously existing factory in Manchester, England. Mizuno said he sees more room for consolidation in Eastern Europe, compared with other regions such as Asia, Western Europe and Central Europe. JT has said it will reduce its total overseas tobacco-related work force by 2,000 from the current 13,000 by the year 2002. To strengthen the value of its four flagship brands -- Camel, Winston, Salem and Mild Seven -- JT plans to boost spending on overseas sales promotion by $100 million this year. About 90 percent of that increased amount will be used for the four brands, Mizuno said. China was another priority area, Mizuno said. Any business strategy in China would be crafted by JT itself, rather than by its Geneva-based subsidiary, JT International S.A., which was set up last October to take control of JT's overseas operations, he added. The Chinese market has huge potential for foreign tobacco manufacturers, especially once the country wins membership of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), he said. ``We must pay special interest to China, especially as regards its international trade conditions,'' said Mizuno. Last year, JT and Shanghai Gaoyang International Tobacco Co Ltd agreed the Chinese company would manufacture two of JT's cigarette brands. JT said last May that the Chinese partner would manufacture 400 million cigarettes per year to be sold in Japan and Hong Kong as well as in China. The two partners would discuss further cooperation in technology and product development, it said at that time. On Monday, JT shares, viewed as a core defensive stock, ended up 0.11 percent or 1,000 yen at 901,000. JT was privatised in 1985 but is still owned 67 percent by the government. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Feb 14 11:19:39 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id AFEF721AFF for ; Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:19:39 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA29224 for ; Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:19:39 -0500 Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:19:38 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] INTERVIEW-JT sees high potential in Chinese market (fwd) INTERVIEW-JT sees high potential in Chinese market by Miki Shimogori JAPAN/CHINA; Source: Reuters, Monday, 2/14/00 TOKYO, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Japan Tobacco Inc (JT), the world's third-largest tobacco group, sees huge growth potential in China once it wins membership of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), president Masaru Mizuno said on Monday. Mizuno also appeared to take heart from what he saw as signs of a stabilisation in sales in Russia, where a lengthy slump in this major market had been seen as a key factor in a poor showing for the company's overseas business. The overseas downturn has fuelled doubts over Japan Tobacco's ability to manage huge international operations, an expansion that followed its takeover last year of the international tobacco business of RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp of the U.S. ``We must pay special attention to China, especially as regards its international trade conditions,'' Mizuno said in an interview. ``It will not be easy to get into China...But given the recent popularity of our products in South Korea and Taiwan, I think we can see some positive prospects for the Chinese market,'' he said, referring to its imminent WTO entry. Any business strategy in China -- the world's biggest tobacco market -- would be crafted by JT itself, rather than by its Geneva-based subsidiary, JT International S.A., which was set up last October to take control of overseas tobacco operations part of which were acquired from RJR Nabisco. JT holds a 75 percent share of Japan's tobacco market -- the world's largest after China and the United States -- and has a powerful presence in Asia with its flagship Mild Seven cigarettes. But it was little known outside the region until the RJR International takeover. The nearly $8 billion buyout of RJR International, known for its Camel and Winston brands, made JT the world's third-largest cigarette maker -- behind Philip Morris (NYSE:MO - news) of the United States and UK-based British American Tobacco (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) (BAT). China now accounts for about 30 percent of the world's cigarette demand and is five times the size of Japan's market. Analysts said the market, a virtual monopoly of China National Tobacco Corporation, would be pressed to open once China wins WTO membership. BAT has had a historically strong presence in China, but JT is not a stranger, they said. Last year, JT and Shanghai Gaoyang International Tobacco Co agreed the Chinese firm would produce two of JT's cigarette brands from this year. JT EYES JOB CUTS, PLANT CLOSURES Besides China, Japan Tobacco, which operates in some 70 countries, would focus on 16 core target countries -- 11 mature markets and five growing markets in Asia, eastern Europe and Russia, Mizuno said. As for Russia, which accounted for about one-fifth of JT's overseas tobacco sales in volume terms, Mizuno said there were signs the market was stabilising the slump that resulted from its economic crisis. Japan Tobacco, which was privatised in 1985 but is still owned 67 percent by the government, now operates 20 RJR International factories in 17 countries in addition to the factory it already had in Manchester, Britain. To wipe out worries about its international operations, the company this month unveiled a five-year business plan under which it aims to eliminate a total of 4,500 jobs, or 13 percent of its global tobacco-related work force, and streamline operations. While cutting the number of its brands to 139 from 197 in the next five years, Japan Tobacco would further consolidate its 25 domestic cigarette plants, Mizuno said. Plant closures, however may require lengthy talks with workers and labour unions. He gave no specific targets for plant closures. Mizuno said he also saw more room for consolidation in eastern Europe, but gave no details. To strengthen the value of its flagship brands -- Camel, Winston, Salem and Mild Seven -- the company would boost spending on overseas sales promotion by $100 million this year. About 90 percent of that will be used for the four flagship brands. Its share, viewed as a core defensive stock, ended on Monday up 0.11 percent or 1,000 yen ($9.24) at 901,000, recovering from a low of 750,000 on January 4. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Feb 14 11:36:20 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3765221AFF for ; Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:36:20 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA30086 for ; Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:36:19 -0500 Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:36:19 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Listed: the 600 poisons in every cigarette (fwd) Listed: the 600 poisons in every cigarette by Jo Dillon and Jonathon Carr-Brown Source: The Independent, Sunday, 2/13/00 Smokers are inhaling a lethal cocktail of 600 additives as well as nicotine every time they light up. In an attempt to disgust people into giving up, the Health Secretary Alan Milburn has released for the first time the exact make-up of a cigarette. Among additives used are acetone, used to make paint stripper; ammonia, contained in toilet cleaners; butane, a form of lighter fuel; and beta-naphthyl methylether, more commonly known as mothballs. Smokers are also opening themselves to the risk of inhaling hydrogen cyanide, the poison used in gas chambers, methanol, a rocket fuel, arsenic and carbon monoxide, the poisonous gas in car exhausts. Worryingly, given the fight against smoking among children, various scents and sweeteners can also be used in cigarette manufacture. Mr Milburn has put an end to a clandestine deal said to have been struck between the Tories when in power and the tobacco companies to suppress the information. He has posted on the Department of Health website the names of the 600 additives contained in popular brands of cigarettes and the damaging by-products which they can produce when lit. Mr Milburn said details of the additives were supplied to the health department by voluntary agreement in March 1997. But, to date, the tobacco firms have refused to detail which additives are used in which brand of cigarette, prompting the Government to push them for further revelations. The Government is also currently negotiating a European Union directive which would make full disclosure of all additives in cigarettes mandatory. The new policy comes in direct contrast to an agreement made under the Tories to keep the information "confidential". John Carlisle, spokesman for the Tobacco Manufacturers Association, denied there had ever been a secret deal not to release the list of additives but admitted companies are reluctant to publish details of additives in particular brands for commercial reasons. He said: "This information has been publicly available since 1995. The fact is no one has ever asked for it." Mr Carlisle claimed that 95 per cent of all British cigarettes were Virginia blend and contained no flavouring. He added: "Remember this is a government-approved list. If these things are harmful, why hasn't the Government removed them?" Amanda Sandford, of the anti-smoking group Ash, said that tobacco companies had been allowed to put additives in cigarettes for 30 years without any public scrutiny. She added: "There was a conspiracy of silence over this list and, unless we are now told what additives go into particular brands, we will never be able to calculate how these cocktails of chemicals affect people." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Feb 14 12:50:56 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1E7BD21B26 for ; Mon, 14 Feb 2000 12:50:56 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32670 for ; Mon, 14 Feb 2000 12:50:55 -0500 Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 12:50:55 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] European Advertising: Ad Bans Force Tobacco Firms To Think 'Outside of the Box' (fwd) European Advertising: Ad Bans Force Tobacco Firms To Think 'Outside of the Box' by SARAH ELLISON / Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Monday, 2/14/00 LONDON -- While governments and tobacco interests battle in court, advertisers are hitting the streets, using what tools they can to sweet-talk customers. "Tobacco companies are being forced, ahead of every marketeer, to think more creatively," says Richard Hammond, managing partner at Spirit, a London-based advertising and customer-relations agency. (Imperial Tobacco PLC is expected to announce soon that it hired Spirit to handle U.K. promotions for some of its brands.) "But they have to do it without the traditional marketing toolbox that other companies have," he adds. "Tobacco companies have found themselves at the forefront of finding ways to build brands." Sound Strategy Take the example of BAT Industries PLC's partnership with the Ministry of Sound nightclubs. At the hip Ministry of Sound in south London, crowds of young partygoers groove to mixes of trip-hop and jungle music. Andrew McNab, a 28-year old computer technician dressed in a tight black shirt and leather cargo pants, stands at the bar and orders three pints of beer for himself and his friends. "Do you have any Marlboro Lights?" he shouts to the bartender. "Just Lucky Strikes," she yells back. He nods and she tosses the pack onto the bar. The partnership between the world's second-largest cigarette manufacturer and the trendy nightclub was engineered by Colin Hearn's team at Bates, London, part of Bates Worldwide, owned by Cordiant Communications Group PLC. Mr. Hearn is the world-wide client director for BAT at Bates, which handles the Lucky Strike brand. "We think the two are a great fit," he says, "and it works well for both companies." Since BAT and the Ministry of Sound linked up in 1998, the club's disk jockeys have toured Asia and Europe and thrown hundreds of Ministry of Sound parties that hosted more than half a million people. Ministry of Sound provides the music and BAT manages the venues and promotional activity. Lucky Strikes are for sale at all events and the whole club is branded as a "free-thinking, dynamic, adventurous" place -- the same words that BAT uses to describe hipsters who smoke its Lucky Strike brand of cigarettes. Direct Approach Likewise, in gold-toned B & H cafes in Asia, shoppers can stop for a drink and buy cigarettes, namely Benson & Hedges, right at the counter. Golden Dreams, another B & H concept, gives away a free vacation to customers who write in with their ideal getaway. "The key is to be able to communicate with the customer," says Mr. Hearn, adding, "You need to get to your customer in a personal relationship." Personal relationships are soon to be about the only relationships tobacco companies can have with customers, given the European Union directive on tobacco advertising, which says it will ban all commercial communication and sponsorship of tobacco products. In the meantime, cigarette makers like BAT have time to plot strategies. Certain areas will be difficult to cover under the EU ban, like controlled-circulation trade magazines, the Internet, company partnerships and point of sale. It is these areas that advertising executives say are the future of tobacco promotions. Trade magazines, which sell themselves to established customers as a sort of lifestyle journal, have become popular in the U.S. For example, Brown & Williamson Co. in the U.S., owned by BAT, sends a fashion and beauty glossy to smokers of its Misty, Capri and Carlton brands and an outdoor-sports magazine to Kool and Lucky Strike smokers. The magazine concept hasn't caught on yet in Europe, but is being explored by BAT, Imperial Tobacco and Gallaher Group PLC, two other U.K. tobacco companies. Another way to cozy up to customers is to talk to them directly on the phone. Brown & Williamson recently sponsored a call-in line for customers that featured an exaggerated, over-the top recording of a company representative who professed love for all Brown & Williamson customers. Less wacky, but perhaps more crucial to sales are in-store promotions. Small retailers have a lot of power over who buys what; companies makes a big effort to keep those retailers happy, says Michael Prideau, head of corporate affairs at BAT. In annual satisfaction surveys of the small shop-owners that peddle cigarettes in gas stations and corner stores, tobacco companies "come out on top," he adds. Question of Effectiveness Despite the eternal optimism of tobacco companies, some ad men and women aren't so positive. "I'm not sure they'll be able to do much," says Andrew Brown, director general of the Advertising Association in London. "The intention in the U.K. is to suffocate all forms of communication between manufacturer and consumer." Some tobacco companies are tight-lipped about their marketing strategies, skittish that either the government or the competition will use their strategies against them. Officials from Gallaher Group, market leader for cigarettes in the U.K. and Ireland, declined to discuss the company's marketing plans. At Imperial Tobacco, a spokeswoman, Liz Buckingham said the company's strategy was "fairly boring" and that it "wasn't planning anything special," to prepare for the ban. For now, tobacco companies are free to advertise just about anywhere except television. When and how European countries implement the EU directive is, to an extent, up to each government, as long as individual deadlines fall within the EU timeline. That means no outdoor advertising after July 2001, no print advertising after July 2002 and no sponsorship after July 2003, except for Formula One car racing, which has until July 2006. In the U.K., the government had planned, albeit unsuccessfully, to implement portions of the ban at the beginning of this year. By contrast, Germany is challenging the ban, saying it violates free speech. Regardless of what happens in court, advertising agencies will keep up their efforts. "Every time they change the rules, you have to apply new thinking," says Spirit's Mr. Hammond, adding, "You have to think out of the box." Write to Sarah Ellison at sarah.ellison@wsj.com1 URL for this Article: http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=SB950472948726259540.djm From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Feb 15 14:04:00 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 83BC821AFF for ; Tue, 15 Feb 2000 14:04:00 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA29191 for ; Tue, 15 Feb 2000 14:04:00 -0500 Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 14:03:59 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] 3 companies interested in Bulgarian Bulgartabak sale (fwd) Three companies interested in Bulgarian Bulgartabak sale by Violeta Simeonova / Bridge News Source: NewsEdge, Friday, 2/11/00 Sofia--Feb 10--At least three multinational companies are interested in the sale of a 51% stake in Bulgaria's state-owned tobacco and cigarette maker, Bulgartabak Holding, the Deputy Minister of the Economy Christo Mihailovsky told local media in Plovdiv Thursday. Philip Morris, British-American Tobacco and Galaghers have already acquired information packages on Bulgartabak. The privatization procedure for the state major started January. * * * According to Michailovsky, it is expected that RJ Reynolds and Spain's SEITA will also buy information packages for Bulgartabak. Letters of intent must be submitted by Feb 29, bids will be accepted by Mar 20. Under the privatization scheme, a 51% stake in the tobacco major will be sold to a strategic investor. The deposit for participation is 1 million euros. The government expects that the deal to fetch up to $150 million. Under the privatization scheme, a 35% stake will be sold directly to a strategic investor, which has experience in the tobacco and cigarette-making industry. Another 16% of the company will be conditionally sold to the same strategic investor and blocked in a special account for 6 to 12 months till the buyer fulfills all the conditions required by the contract. The state will also keep a so-called "golden share" to have a veto on decisions about Bulgartabak's future. Bulgartabak has a 95% market share in Bulgaria. Consultant on the deal is a consortium of Creditanstalt Investment Bank and Dresdner Kleinwort Benson Limited. "Bulgartabak's 1999 preliminary profit was 60 million leva, the turnover was over 1 billion. " Bulgartabak has 3 cigarette factories in Russia, 1 in Ukraine and 1 in Romania. (1.95583 leva--1 euro) End Bridge News, Tel: +359-2-988-8157 Send comments to Internet address: emerg@bridge.com From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Feb 15 14:10:47 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A1DC221AFF for ; Tue, 15 Feb 2000 14:10:47 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA29466 for ; Tue, 15 Feb 2000 14:10:46 -0500 Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 14:10:46 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco giants 'discussed pricing' (fwd) Tobacco giants 'discussed pricing' by John Willman in London and Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson / in New York LATIN AMERICA; Source: Financial Times, Tuesday, 2/15/00 Two of the largest tobacco companies met to discuss prices and market-sharing arrangements in Latin America, according to a file note of one of the meetings obtained by the Financial Times. The note covers a meeting between Philip Morris, the world's largest cigarette manufacturer, and British American Tobacco, now number two, at a hotel outside London in August 1992. Those present at the meeting included Keith Dunt, then head of BAT's Latin American operation but now the group's finance director. Items on the agenda included prices in Guatemala, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Venezuela. The file note, drawn up by BAT, also refers to agreements between the two companies on pricing and market share and policies to avoid "destabilisation" of one market. The minutes referred to "good co-operation between both companies" and ended with a proposal for another meeting in November "possibly in a Caribbean venue". The six-page document, marked "secret", is one of more than 8m pages on public display in Guildford in the UK following a US tobacco litigation settlement in 1998. It has come to light a week after a class action was launched against five tobacco companies alleging price-fixing in the US for at least 17 years. On Monday the company said the file note first emerged during litigation in Washington state in the US. "The issues were looked at at the time and the review indicated we didn't have a problem." A subsequent investigation by Venezuela had exonerated the company, BAT added. Philip Morris said it could not comment. The file note says Philip Morris complained that BAT's Guatemalan subsidiary had lowered the price of Lucky Strike cigarettes in a supermarket chain to below that of Marlboro. BAT undertook to investigate this and subsequently noted it was a short-term promotion run for three weeks to clear stock. It added that this followed a precedent set by Philip Morris with Marlboro. The note says Philip Morris also complained about promotions in Costa Rica, leading BAT to say it needed to recover market share and "resolve price gaps that had been eroded (albeit with agreement) over the last few years". The note says BAT promised to consider a "share agreement". One industry executive said if any discussions had taken place, they thought they were within the law. "We find examples of governments encouraging us to come together to discuss issues such as pricing," he added. The file notes' appearance follows allegations that BAT, the UK's biggest tobacco company, was involved in cigarette smuggling in Latin America and Asia. These were based on other documents in the Guildford depositary which appeared to show the company supplied wholesalers and distributors with cigarettes that found their way into the hands of smugglers. At the time, BAT refused to comment on the allegations and said they were based on "highly selective and out-of-context extracts from old documents". From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Feb 15 14:44:55 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0F17C21AFF for ; Tue, 15 Feb 2000 14:44:55 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA30683 for ; Tue, 15 Feb 2000 14:44:54 -0500 Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 14:44:54 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] One Country, Two Markets (fwd) One Country, Two Markets Source: Tobacco Journal International, Tuesday, 2/15/00 Ten years after the fall of the Berlin wall, the German cigarette market is still divided. Although western trends are slowly picking up, the leading brands of eastern Germany cannot be found on the shelves of western German shops. Prices, advertising campaigns and the importance of the various trade channels remain different in East and West. Total German cigarette sales went up in 1999. The German cigarette market registered a positive trend in 1999: total cigarette sales increased by 2.2 billion to 173 billion units. Trade brands managed to cement their success in Germany in 1999, reflecting the growing price consciousness of consumers; yearly sales in this segment increased by 19.4 per cent to 10.6 billion units. They now account for 7.6 per cent of the total market. Sales of factory-made brands grew by 1.9 per cent to 141.1 billion pieces (1998: 138.4 billion), while cross border sales declined by 2 per cent to 13.9 billion cigarettes in 1999. Philip Morris, who held a market share of 40.4 per cent in 1999, was once more the market leader. However, the company registered its second sales drop after 1998 to 57 billion pieces, and its market share went down by 0.9 per cent. The German cigarette manufacturer Reemtsma managed to increase its sales to 32.2 billion units in 1999; its market share remained stable at 22.8 per cent. The clear winner in Germany during 1999 was British American Tobacco, whose sales rose by 5.5 per cent to 26.3 billion cigarettes. The German division of the UK-based company now holds a market share of 19 per cent and has taken over the second position in the ranking of manufacturers in 2000 after the merger with Rothmans international was fully implemented. However, Rothmans faced a further drop in sales with 7.6 billion cigarettes sold in 1999, accounting for 5.4 per cent of the market (1998: 5.9 per cent). Mr Georg C. Domizlaff, chairman of the board of BAT Germany, stated recently that =93the company will have to integrate the Rothmans brands into the company's portfolio and will have to find a common strategy for the German market=94 =96 which could mean that, at some point, the production of certain Rothmans' brands could be discontinued. With sales of 6.1 billion units, RJ Reynolds =96 now Japan Tobacco International =96 also had to face a drop of 7.8 per cent in volume sold. The latest results frustrated hopes that the company could be able to sustain the positive development of 1998, when it was able to increase its market share slightly from 4.7 to 4.8 per cent, selling 6.6 billion pieces. Marlboro King Size held its position as the top selling brand in the whole of Germany; however, the flagship of Philip Morris' German portfolio lost 1.3 percentage points accounting for 16.8 per cent of total sales of factory made cigarettes (1998: 18.1 per cent). The market share of Marlboro Lights King Size, which ranks second on the top ten list, was stable at 10.8 per cent, while Marlboro Medium continued to grow. Reemtsma's West brand gained market share and now holds 7 per cent of the market (1998: 6.8 per cent); it is followed by BAT's HB with 5.4 per cent, which has been facing a steady decline (1998: 5.9 per cent). Lucky Strike Filters, which ranked seven in 1998 has improved its market share significantly from a 2.8 per cent market share to 3.3 per cent and now ranks fifth. The brand has been helped by a clever advertising strategy. Lucky Strike was the clear front-runner among the fastest-growing brands in Germany in 1999 with a sales plus of 23 per cent or 899 million pieces against 1998. F6, a Philip Morris brand sold in the eastern part of Germany, ranked sixth (3.4 per cent market share), followed by West Lights, Peter Stuyvesant, Camel Filters and Marlboro Medium. The success of the F6 brand, which is sold exclusively in eastern Germany but is among the top ten German-wide, already shows how different the markets in eastern and western Germany are. Ten years after the fall of the Berlin wall and nine years after reunification, differences remain between the two parts of the country. The eastern German smoker is much more price sensitive =96 hardly a surpris= e with a jobless rate around 20 per cent. The average price of cigarettes in the East, currently at DM 4.80, is much lower than in the West (DM 5.80). The so-called =93eastern brands=94 dominate the cigarette market in the territory of the former socialist republic. Whether they are old, traditional brands =96 such as F6, Cabinet and Juno or brands introduced after reunification =96 such as Pall Mall, they are sold only in the east. East German smokers still generally prefer stronger cigarettes; the market share of light brands is still around 20 per cent, while it makes up for more than one third of the west German market. The trend, however, follows the developments in the west, and the growing rate for lighter brands is much higher in the east. Market studies show that the eastern German consumer has different needs than its western counterparts; he or she is much more concerned about the practicalities at life and is generally worried about the future. Thus, the cigarette advertising in east and west Germany reflects this. Pall Mall, for instance, is running an ad that offers a chance for young people to take up practical courses in the USA. Manufacturers had to learn that the eastern consumer can be sensitive to things that are considered to be common ground in the west. For instance, Philip Morris has recently launched an American blend version of its F6 brand. However, it was advised to call it an =93international blend=94 cigarette, since the word =93American=94 may have a negative connotation fo= r some consumers. The trend towards bigger packs of 24 or 25 originally started in the east, and has now established itself in the west. Vending machines are a very important distribution channel for cigarettes in western Germany, with a market share of 31 per cent, and their importance is also growing in the east. These machines are at the centre of a polemic, since they are considered unsafe for minors. Distributors, cigarette companies and manufacturers of vending machines are now developing a kind of =93ID card=94 for these machines that will be given on= ly to adults; this way, the polemic could be taken out of the line of fire of anti-tobacco activists. Besides cigarettes, tobacco rolls (pre-portioned tobacco wrapped in paper to be introduced in a filter tube) still play a role in the German tobacco market. They were originally defined as an unfinished tobacco product and thus taxed as fine-cut , but have gradually lost this status and since January 1, 1999 they are now being taxed as factory-made cigarettes. Most rolls manufacturers, including market leader BTM, Brinkmann-Niemeyer and Philip Morris decided to continue production, although prices had to be increased dramatically by DM 0.90 (US$ 0.55) for a pack of 30. They lost 17 per cent of their sales volume with a drop to 2.9 billion pieces (1998: 3.2 billion units), but the market seems to have reached a fragile stabilisation. =93Classic=94 fine-cut again enjoyed an increase of 2 per cent, with a volu= me equivalent to 15.2 million RYO cigarettes in 1999. Market leader was Brinkmann Niemeyer with 29.5 per cent in the first eight months of 1999, followed by Imperial Tobacco Agio (21.7 per cent), Heintz van Landewyck (11.2 per cent) and Alois P=F6schl with 10.4 per cent. BTM held 7.6 per cen= t while British American Tobacco accounted for 3.4 per cent of the market. The top-selling brand in this segment was Drum Halfzware, followed by Samson, Schwarzer Krauser No.1 and Van Nelle Halfzware. Private label brands are very important in this price-sensitive market. More than half of fine-cut sales come from cheaper brands, which are seen as an alternative to cigarettes. Germany's cigar market continued its upward trend despite opposite developments in other major markets such as the US, where cigar sales have reached their climax. German cigar sales reached 1.84 billion pieces in the first nine months of 1999, 14.5 per cent more than in the comparable period of 1998. Manufacturers forecast a total sales volume of 2.4 billion pieces for the year. This growth is mainly due to the continuing upsurge of so-called =93eco-cigarillos=94, which were first introduced in 1996. Their flavour resembles that of cigarettes but they are, technically speaking, cigarillos. Since the taxation of these products is lower, they offer a further cheap alternative to cigarettes. Their sales volume reached 866 million pieces in the first ten months of 1999 while total sales of eco-cigarillos in 1998 amounted to around 700 million pieces. Especially popular in this segment are the filter cigarillos, which climbed by 91.5 per cent to 542 million pieces in the period. Filterless eco-cigarillos, which can be introduced into a filter tube, stagnated at 324 million pieces. The leading brands are Westpoint Filter cigarillos (Brinkmann Niemeyer) followed by West Rollies (BTM Roth-H=E4ndle) which was only introduced in August 1999. The upsurge in sales of eco-cigarillos contributed significantly to the higher sales volume of the entire cigar segment, whose turnover reached DM 722.7 million in the first nine months of 1999 and is estimated to reach around DM 1 billion for the year. In 1998, the country's cigar sales volume only amounted to DM 860 million. Apart from eco-cigarillos Germany's classic cigar market also grew by 1.5 to 2 per cent to 1.2 billion units in 1999. The highest sales volumes are generated in the low-price segment, mainly due to the dominating role of cigarillos, which account for 84 per cent of the total market. The best-selling brand was Clubmaster (Arnold Andr=E9), followed by Dannemann Speciale (Dannemann) and Meharis (Imperial Tobacco Agio). The 100 per cent tobacco cigarillo Nobel Petit of Gebr. Berens ranked fourth, followed by Biddies (Agio), Fino (Willem II) and Backgammon (Villiger). Aromatic cigarillos continue to gain ground in the German market. An estimated 200 million pieces were sold in 1999. Mainly the young and female smokers have been attracted by the =93aromaticos=94. Meanwhile, almost all cigarillo manufacturers have introduced at least one flavoured brand. The leading brand within this sector is Moods of Dannemann, followed by Clubmaster Fellows of Arnold Andr=E9 and Meharis Mil= d respectively Biddies Aroma, both of Imperial Tobacco Agio. Around 1700 cigar and cigarillo brands are currently being sold in Germany by 40 manufacturers and importers. Four companies hold around 90 per cent of the market, which is led by Arnold Andre and Dannemann, followed by Villiger and Imperial Tobacco Agio. The sales of premium cigars, whose popularity certainly has helped the industry in the past few years is stagnating at 15 to 20 million pieces, accounting for a relatively small sales volume compared to total sales of cigar products in Germany. Pipe tobacco sales have gone down in Germany from 1236 tonnes in 1997 to 1161 tonnes in 1998. There is a wealth of brands available in the country. Stanwell led the market in the first half of 1999 with a share of 28 per cent, followed by Planta (18.5 per cent), Alois P=F6schl (16.3 per cent) an= d Von Eicken (15.9 per cent). Rum & Maple (Planta) was the market leader in the first six months of the year, followed by Mac Baren Mixture (Mac Baren) and Danske Club Black Luxury (Stanwell). Premium tobaccos are not the best-selling pipe tobacco category in Germany; still, their sales have been increasing fast. Flavoured tobacco brands, which have a high acceptance among surrounding non-smokers are also gaining popularity. This category includes, for example, Stanwell Vanilla (Stanwell) or Vanilla Cream (Mac Baren). The German pipe tobacco manufacturer Vauen has introduced Pipoo, a new product aimed at making pipe smoking easier and more popular. A special pipe is filled with pre-portioned tobacco, which does not need to be pressed and can be thrown away after smoking. It remains to be seen whether the new product will be accepted by the German smokers. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Feb 18 14:01:05 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 820EB21B06 for ; Fri, 18 Feb 2000 14:01:05 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA30231 for ; Fri, 18 Feb 2000 14:01:05 -0500 Date: Fri, 18 Feb 2000 14:01:05 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ministry drops numerical target for smoking-reduction (fwd) Ministry drops numerical target for smoking-reduction by Yomiuri Shimbun Source: Yomiuri Shimbun., Friday, 2/18/00 The Health and Welfare Ministry panel examining a proposed plan to improve people's health decided on Thursday to withdraw a numerical target that aimed at halving the number of smokers by 2010. The panel, chaired by Fumimaro Takaku, president of Jichi Medical School, instead decided to adopt a compromise plan due to opposition from tobacco-related industries and some Liberal Democratic Party members. The numerical target had been the most ambitious feature of the proposed health improvement plan because Japan's smoking rate is remarkably high among the industrialized countries. The decision to remove the numerical target is a blow to the ministry's new plan. At a meeting of the panel, all 31 members were required to present their opinions and it was decided to take the unusual step of deciding the issue by majority vote, instead of by unanimous decision. As a result, the panel decided to drop the numerical target for reducing smoking. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Feb 18 14:19:19 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id CBF1A21B06 for ; Fri, 18 Feb 2000 14:19:19 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA30790 for ; Fri, 18 Feb 2000 14:19:19 -0500 Date: Fri, 18 Feb 2000 14:19:19 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris to Raise Cigarette Production in Russia by 65% (fwd) Philip Morris to Raise Cigarette Production in Russia by 65% by John Varoli Source: Bloomberg News, Wednesday, 2/16/00 St. Petersburg, Russia, Feb. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Philip Morris Cos., the world's largest tobacco company, said it plans to boost production of cigarettes in Russia by 65 percent this year and stop importing them to the country by the end of 2001. The New York-based company, which produced 20 billion cigarettes in Russia last year and imported another 3 billion, will step up output at its new $330 million factory to meet growing demand. ``The size . . . of the Russian market makes it necessary to produce in the country,'' said Andre Calanzopoulos, Philip Morris's president for Eastern Europe. ``Our goal is that by the end of 2001, all our cigarettes for Russia will be produced locally.'' Cigarette makers, such as Philip Morris and RJ Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc., are moving more production of international brands into Russia to save import and labor costs in a country where about 250 billion cigarettes are consumed a year. Since 1992, foreign tobacco manufacturers have invested more than $1 billion in the country. Philip Morris is also completing a $170 million investment in a plant in Russia's Krasnodar region. Philip Morris, which makes popular brands such as Marlboro, Virginia Slims, and L&M, said its share of the Russian tobacco market is about 16 percent. Other major international companies investing in the region include Ford Motor Co., which is building a $150 million factory, road equipment maker Caterpillar Inc., which will soon open a $50 million plant, and International Paper Co., which has a $35 million plant in the region From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Feb 22 16:14:01 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B915321AFF for ; Tue, 22 Feb 2000 16:14:01 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA31281 for ; Tue, 22 Feb 2000 16:14:01 -0500 Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2000 16:14:01 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] B.C. tobacco suit ruled unconstitutional (fwd) B.C. tobacco suit ruled unconstitutional Source: Toronto Star, Tuesday, 2/22/00 VANCOUVER (CP) - The provincial government's lawsuit against tobacco companies can't go ahead because it's based on a provincial law that is unconstitutional, the B.C. Supreme Court has ruled. Several provinces have been watching the B.C. action with a view to launching similar suits of their own. But a lawyer for British Columbia said Monday he doesn't expect the ruling to put an end to the province's intentions to sue. ''This journey has taken a turn, which is undoubtedly disappointing for the government, but it doesn't change the direction or ultimate destination of what the government intends to achieve,'' said Dan Webster, who helped argue the province's case. The court decision, released by the parties involved Monday, said sections of the provincial law try to lump all the tobacco companies together while ignoring the fact they are federally incorporated and individual. ''I find the Tobacco Damages and Health Care Costs Recovery Act to be inconsistent with the provision of the Constitution of Canada'' and is beyond the jurisdiction of the province, wrote Justice Ronald Holmes. Holmes said he found the ''dominant characteristic'' of the legislation to be the pursuit nationally and internationally of the tobacco industry for the cost of health care benefits incurred by the government of B.C. ''The extra-territorial reach of the act places it beyond the constitutional competence of the province,'' he wrote. But Webster said there are remedies to the problems Holmes highlighted. He said the province has three options: It can appeal the ruling, change the legislation or go after the three Canadian tobacco companies separately. ''When the government decided that it was going to attempt to hold the tobacco industry accountable for the devastating effects of its harmful and addictive products, it appreciated that this would be a long and hard-fought journey,'' Webster said. A spokesman for the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers' Council said the ruling should send a message to the B.C. government. ''We urge co-operation rather than expensive lawsuits,'' said Dave Laundy. ''We hope governments will stand back and see how they manage their tobacco strategy.'' He urged the governments and the industry have a meeting to discuss ways to deal with the effects of tobacco, particularly smoking by young people. In Ottawa, a spokesman for the Canadian Cancer Society urged the B.C. government to pursue its initial action. ''We see from the U.S. experience that some big U.S. states have been successful,'' said Rob Cunningham, a lawyer and the society's policy analyst. ''B.C. should persist.'' Cunningham suggested the B.C. government consider filing its lawsuit in the U.S. ''If they can't bring it in B.C., they have to bring it somewhere (although) it may mean more of a role for the federal government.' The B.C. act was proclaimed in 1997 and amended last year. It makes it easier for the government to sue cigarette manufacturers to recover the costs of treating smoking-related diseases. The tobacco companies countersued, arguing the law is unconstitutional. Seven tobacco companies, including three Canadian manufacturers, took part in the countersuit. British Columbia's law is modelled on Florida legislation that helped net a $256-billion US settlement with American tobacco firms. The amended B.C. law allows the government to set the ground rules for a lawsuit it intends to file. The industry also complains the law requires the court to accept the government's data on the direct health-care costs the province claims stem from smoking. As of last fall, five other suits were being considered, three in Ontario and two in Quebec. Newfoundland was mulling a B.C.-style law and Manitoba planned court action. New Brunswick has said it is also considering such a move. Cunningham said the effect of the B.C. ruling on other possible suits is not yet clear because the judge's other comments in the long ruling has to be studied. The stakes are huge. Although the B.C. government has not spelled out how much money it hopes to recover from tobacco firms, another lawsuit being considered in Ontario is said to be worth $40 billion (U.S.). If Holmes's ruling is appealed, it could be years before British Columbia and other provinces actually get to court to sue the companies. Industry lawyers argued the law violates the unwritten rule against retroactively penalizing anyone for something that was previously legal. They also said the law violates the Constitution because it allows the government to collect costs for any past ''smoking-related wrong,'' including those incurred before the law was passed. Tom Berger, a former B.C. Supreme Court judge acting for the province, argued last fall it was up to the courts to decide if the lawsuit should go ahead. He said the law is perfectly within the authority of the provincial legislature and accused the tobacco companies of trying to bog down the court process. Berger said 6,000 people die in British Columbia and thousands more become ill with tobacco-related diseases each year. The province spends a half-billion dollars each year in health costs as a result. The industry's legal team had marshalled 18 volumes of legal precedents to buttress its technical and constitutional arguments against the B.C. law. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Feb 22 20:00:50 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E9D2C21B0A for ; Tue, 22 Feb 2000 20:00:49 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id UAA04723 for ; Tue, 22 Feb 2000 20:00:49 -0500 Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2000 20:00:49 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Israel: Haredi papers consider banning tobacco ads (fwd) Haredi papers consider banning tobacco ads by Judy Siegel-Itzkovich Source: Jerusalem Post, Monday, 2/21/00 15 Adar I 5760 (February 21) - The editors and managers of of Hamodia and Yated Ne'eman, the two Ashkenazi haredi dailies, will meet soon to discuss whether to refuse to accept tobacco advertising, which constitutes a major chunk of their income. Both papers said they will follow instructions from their rabbis. Full-page Dubek advertisements with religious themes, handled by a haredi woman advertising agent in Bnei Brak, have appeared for many years in these papers. One, for example, shows a havdala candle and spice box - signifying the end of Shabbat - alongside a pack of cigarettes, with the slogan shavua tov ("A good week"); another refers to cigarettes and "the lips of wise men." Tobacco companies have long claimed that their ads "merely try to persuade existing smokers to switch to their brand, instead of getting non-smokers to start smoking." The Jerusalem-based Hamodia, read primarily by a hassidic audience, and the Bnei Brak-based Yated Ne'eman, which has a Lithuanian (mitnagdim) following, are three years behind the anti-tobacco campaigns of Yom Le'Yom, the Shas-affiliated weekly inspired to take action by party spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef. The Sephardi-oriented Yom Le'Yom went so far as to bar all cigarette advertisements from its pages, even though Dubek and other companies supplied a major part of its advertising income. Hamodia editor Elazar Knopf said yesterday that "we'll certainly discuss it. We will do whatever our rabbis rule." He declined to say how much money the paper received each year for Dubek's ads. Haim Rieger, the advertising manager at Yated Ne'eman, said that a discussion on whether to adopt a new advertising policy regarding tobacco will be held this week. "There are all kinds of legal and other implications," he said. The question of tobacco advertising in the Ashkenazi haredi papers was raised by forceful rulings by leading rabbinical authorities against smoking given prominence on Friday by the two Ashkenazi haredi dailies. Unprecedented front-page news articles accompanied large advertisements placed by Rabbis Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, Aharon Yehuda Leib Steinman, Moshe Shmuel Shapira, Michl Yehuda Lifkovitz, Nissim Karelitz, and Shmuel Auerbach. The articles and the advertisements in the two papers called on young people not to start smoking, and for those who already smoke to "gradually try to quit." A few weeks ago, The Jerusalem Post was the first to publish an even more rigorous ruling by prominent Bnei Brak sage Rabbi Shmuel Halevy Wosner, which appeared in an boxed ad on the Friday front pages of both Hamodia and Yated Ne'eman. Wosner called on people not only to avoid starting to smoke altogether, but said that if they were already hooked, they should gradually kick the habit. He also declared that smokers should not light up in public places and thus harm others, and stated that "those that advertise [cigarettes] in the newspapers and those who assist in this dangerous thing" will have to take responsibility for the harm they cause." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Feb 22 20:07:18 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 01E8721B09 for ; Tue, 22 Feb 2000 20:07:17 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id UAA04928 for ; Tue, 22 Feb 2000 20:07:17 -0500 Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2000 20:07:17 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] European News Bulletin - EU000207 21 February 2000 (fwd) Globalink's European News Bulletin: EUROPEAN BULLETIN EU0007 =96 21 February 2000 Headlines AZERBAIJAN: Sorex buys stake in cigarette plant BALTIC STATES: Co-operation re: tobacco taxes CZECH REPUBLIC: Cigarette vending machines to be banned ISRAEL: Ministry of Health is finding new ways to lure smokers to quit. ISRAEL: Proposed legislation against subliminal advertising of cigarettes UK: Britons risk heart death more than most of EU UK: Byers to investigate cigarette-smuggling claims Full Text AZERBAIJAN: Sorex buys stake in cigarette plant A UK-based company, Sorex Management, has bought an 85 per cent stake in Azerbaijan=92s Baky-Tyutyun cigarette factory. Over the coming years, Sorex will invest US$49.8 million in the plant=92s upgrade. The 1999 instalment will have been $13.15 million. The company will start production at the factory by the end of 2000. Source: Tobacco Reporter, February 2000 BALTIC STATES: Co-operation re: tobacco taxes Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are planning to work together on excise harmonisation. The three Baltic states will have to raise tobacco duty rates if they are to qualify for membership of the European Union. Lithuania is planning an increase to LT30 (US$7.5) per 1000 cigarettes from 1 March 2000. The increase is projected to yield LT8 million to LT10 million in additional budget revenue. Source: Tobacco Europe February 2000, Tobacco Reporter Feb. 2000 CZECH REPUBLIC: Cigarette vending machines to be banned Among the measures being considered in a forthcoming tobacco control law is a ban on cigarette vending machines and a ban on the sale of tobacco from petrol stations and most shops. Only authorised tobacconists will be allowed to trade in tobacco products. The new law will also ban tobacco advertising. Source: Tobacco Europe, February 2000 ISRAEL: Ministry of Health is finding new ways to lure smokers to quit. The Health Ministry=92s campaign against tobacco smoking has failed to reduce the number of smokers in the adult population in the last six years. Since 1994, the percentage of adults who smoke has remained steady at around 28 percent. Among younger people (under the age of 18) the number of smokers is steadily increasing, and children are beginning to smoke at earlier ages. Faced with these troublesome figures, the Health Ministry has resolved to change its strategy. In a few weeks, the ministry will launch a telephone hotline to assist anyone who wishes to quit smoking. Callers will receive immediate information and counselling regarding various methods of kicking the habit. The ministry has already begun training the hotline=92s personnel, which include psychologists and social workers. The Health Ministry is determined to combat tobacco smoking, and is planning to use the same tools that the tobacco companies employ to sell their products. It has enlisted a number of adolescent celebrities and role models, including Sandy Bar, Liat Ahiron and Adi Azroni, who will star beginning this month in anti-smoking commercials. And for those who can only be lured out of their habit with material prizes, there is a new raffle in town, called "I Quit and Won". Every former smoker who can produce certified proof to the effect that he or she has been weaned off the ugly habit, along with two witnesses, will be allowed to take part in the raffle. Source: Ha=92aretz Daily Newspaper, Monday, 2/14/00 ISRAEL: Proposed legislation against subliminal advertising of cigarettes A new law to ban subliminal advertising of cigarettes and tobacco products in cinema and videos passed on a first reading in the Knesset last week. The bill, proposed by Israel MK Avi Yehezkel, would result in two years imprisonment and a fine for breach of the law. Source: IsraelWire, Friday, 18/2/00 UK: Britons risk heart death more than most of EU British men and women are at much higher risk of death from heart disease than people living in most other European countries, says the British Heart Foundation in a report. At the same time, the number of heart bypass operations carried out in Britain in relation to need is lower than in any other European Union country. The report reveals that British death rates for adults aged 35 to 74 are three times greater than France=92s and twice as high as Italy=92s. Among the EU countries, only adults in Finland and Ireland have a worse record for deaths than Britons. Britain scores better in the smoking statistics, coming seventh among 15 countries. Here, 28 per cent of the adult population smokes, compared with 37 per cent in Greece and 18 per cent in Portugal, which has the lowest rates. These are explained by the small percentage of Portuguese women who smoke, only eight per cent, compared with 28 per cent in Greece, a tobacco-producing country. Source: Electronic Telegraph, Monday, 2/14/00 UK: Byers to investigate cigarette-smuggling claims The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, Stephen Byers, is to examine claims that British American Tobacco has been involved in large-scale cigarette smuggling. The accusations come from documents unearthed by ASH and investigative journalist, Duncan Campbell, which claim that smuggling has helped to fund South American drug-running operations. ASH has written to Mr Byers asking him to investigate the allegations under legislation included in the Companies Act. A Department of Trade and Industry spokeswoman said the department was considering the points which ASH had raised but she said no conclusions had been reached, and no decision taken on whether there should be an inquiry. Former Conservative Chancellor Kenneth Clarke, who is now British American Tobacco=92s deputy chairman, sought to rebut the accusations that British American Tobacco has been involved in smuggling and indirectly encouraged money-laundering operations. Mr Clarke acknowledged that cigarettes were smuggled into markets including Colombia but insisted that the company was not involved. "We are the victims of smuggling, when our product goes into the smuggled market. There is no evidence I have ever seen that the company is a participant in this smuggling. We seek to minimise it and avoid it," said Mr Clarke. British American Tobacco chairman Martin Broughton also denied any wrong-doing on his company=92s part. Asked if he refuted the accusations that the company was involved in managing cigarette smuggling and money-laundering, he insisted: "I refute those accusations completely." Mr Clarke said that although he raised tobacco duties during his time as Chancellor, he had since come to the view that high duty rates encouraged smuggling into this country by offering criminals the prospect of big returns. "Britain is a burgeoning smuggling market because the tax differential is too high," he added. Source: ITN, Thursday, 17/2/00 Ed: Extracts from BAT=92s documents plus letters and further examples of press coverage can be seen at the ASH website at: www.ash.org.uk/smuggling Amanda Sandford Research Manager ASH 102 Clifton Street LONDON EC2A 4HW tel: 0171 739 5902 fax: 0171 613 0531 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 23 20:05:08 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 68EFE21B09 for ; Wed, 23 Feb 2000 20:05:08 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id UAA30880 for ; Wed, 23 Feb 2000 20:05:08 -0500 Date: Wed, 23 Feb 2000 20:05:07 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tough anti-smoking ads making an impact: Poll (fwd) Tough anti-smoking ads making an impact: Poll 63% of smokers aware of recent campaign by Jack Branswell CANADA; Source: Toronto Star, Wednesday, 2/23/00 Jack Branswell / Special to The Star MONTREAL - Harder-hitting anti-smoking advertising is starting to influence Canadians' impressions of the tobacco industry, a poll conducted for the federal government concludes. The government and the anti-tobacco lobby are thrilled by poll results that show seven out of 10 respondents, when asked directly, recalled seeing an ad last year showing a woman named Debi smoking through a hole in her throat. ``That is extremely good recall, especially seeing how that ad didn't play very much,'' said Cynthia Callard, executive director of Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada. Health Canada spokesperson Lynn LeSage said the more aggressive anti-smoking messages have proven effective in the United States so the department decided to run them here. ``When you look at the fact that they (the ads) only ran for 16 weeks during 1999, we think it (the recall) is - pretty impressive,'' LeSage said. `We're trying to show people that smoking kills 45,000 people a year and maybe that is the message we are trying to get out perhaps more than the effect on the industry.' - Lynn LeSage, Health Canada In the Environics poll, obtained through the access to information law, 81 per cent of respondents said they had a very or somewhat negative impression of the tobacco industry. It also found 88 per cent of those who saw the ad featuring Debi thought its anti-tobacco message was effective. The ad - and others such as one showing a teenager talking about how her mother, who died of cancer, will never see her graduate or get married - marked a turning point in Health Canada's willingness to be both more graphic and aggressive in its attack on the tobacco industry. Groups like the Non-Smokers' Rights Association have been calling for aggressive tobacco control ads for a decade. ``This is a major step forward,'' said executive director Garfield Mahood. ``The precedent has been established for harder-hitting ads and (Health Minister Allan) Rock deserves a lot of credit.'' The Environics survey was completed last fall, before Health Canada released its latest weapon in the battle on smoking - graphic ads on cigarette packages depicting rotting gums and other gruesome images. The survey and its accompanying report, prepared for the government, concluded the new strategy is paying off. ``The government-sponsored anti-tobacco ads had a significant impact on opinion about the industry in terms of recall'' among respondents, the final report said. Among Canadians who recall seeing at least one of these ads, 42 per cent said they ``made them more critical toward the tobacco industry and its practices.'' A larger share of respondents, 53 per cent, said the ads had no impact on impressions of the industry. But Health Canada officials said that is to be expected as the aggressive ad approach is new to Canadians. ``We're trying to show people that smoking kills 45,000 people a year and maybe that is the message we are trying to get out perhaps more than the effect on the industry,'' said LeSage, who noted the department has other programs aimed more directly at attacking tobacco companies. The poll found that, without being prompted, 52 per cent of respondents recalled seeing an anti-smoking ad in recent months. But the figure was higher among smokers - 63 per cent recalled seeing an ad. Environics polled 1,400 Canadians across the country. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Feb 23 23:32:31 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B987821B09 for ; Wed, 23 Feb 2000 23:32:31 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA01165 for ; Wed, 23 Feb 2000 23:32:31 -0500 Date: Wed, 23 Feb 2000 23:32:31 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Korea Foreign Cigarette Market Share Rose to 8.9%, KED Says (fwd) Korea Foreign Cigarette Market Share Rose to 8.9%, KED Says by Jaehyon Cho SOUTH KOREA; Source: Bloomberg News, Wednesday, 2/23/00 Seoul, Feb. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Foreign cigarette makers increased their combined market share in South Korea to 8.9 percent in January from 7.9 percent in December, Korea Economic Daily said, citing Finance and Economy Ministry data. Their market share is expected to return to the pre-crisis level of more than 10 percent soon amid rising consumer income, it reported. Some foreign cigarette makers, such as British American Tobacco Plc, and Philip Morris Cos., plan to introduce new cigarettes with low prices to attract more Korean smokers, it said. The foreign cigarette market share in Korean fell to as low as 4.9 percent in 1998 when the currency crisis was at its peak, compared with 11.2 percent in 1997; Korea Tobacco & Ginseng Corp, the state-run tobacco monopoly, dominates the local market. (Korea Economic Daily, 2/24/2000, p.4) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 24 11:28:27 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 883A221AFF for ; Thu, 24 Feb 2000 11:28:27 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA09446 for ; Thu, 24 Feb 2000 11:28:27 -0500 Date: Thu, 24 Feb 2000 11:28:27 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] South Africa Anti-smoking Group Praises Tobacco Tax In Budget (fwd) BUDGET-ANTISMOKING: Anti-smoking Group Praises Tobacco Tax In Budget Source: ANC News Briefing (Omar Jadwat), Thursday, 2/24/00 JOHANNESBURG 23 February 2000 Sapa Added taxes on cigarettes will save lives, reduce health care costs and raise government revenues, National Council Against Smoking executive director Yussuf (CORRECT) Saloojee said in praise of the budget speech on Wednesday. He said the falling demand for cigarettes over the past eight years had been a direct result of government policy and taxes had been a cornerstone of this approach. "By stimulating people to quit, those who already smoke to cut down and stop those who might start there will be 840,000 fewer deaths from cancer, heart attacks and lung disease," Saloojee said. Saloojee added that in spite of the increase in tobacco costs, cigarettes remained less expensive in South Africa than in many other countries where 60 to 80 percent of retail prices were committed to taxes. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Feb 24 14:32:44 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D396121AFF for ; Thu, 24 Feb 2000 14:32:44 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA15602 for ; Thu, 24 Feb 2000 14:32:44 -0500 Date: Thu, 24 Feb 2000 14:32:44 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Austria Tabak Warns of Takeover If Govt Sells Stake (Update1) (fwd) Austria Tabak Warns of Takeover If Govt Sells Stake (Update1) by Gabrielle Monaghan Source: Bloomberg News, Thursday, 2/24/00 Vienna, Feb. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Austria Tabakwerke AG, owner of the nation's only tobacco store chain, said it will become a takeover target unless the government keeps a blocking minority instead of selling its remaining stake in the company as planned. Chief Executive Heinz Schiendl said that an alliance with a rival might be the only way to preserve independence in the face of the government's planned sale of its 41.1 percent stake and as proposed cigarette tax increases threaten its ability to compete. ``I don't know of any big tobacco concern that isn't interested in buying Austria Tabak,'' Schiendl said. ``If the government decides it wants Austria Tabak to be fully privatized, a takeover is a possibility.'' U.S. tobacco companies such as Philip Morris Cos. would be interested in gaining access to a European market where they wouldn't face billions of dollars in compensation to smokers, analysts said. Rival European cigarette makers also have been looking for acquisitions, including British American Tobacco Plc, Gallaher Group Plc, Imperial Tobacco Group Plc and Altadis SA. ``Europe has a whole different culture to the U.S. as regards tobacco industry lawsuits,'' said Jan Berger, who helps manage about 20 billion schillings ($1.44 billion) at Constantia Privatbank AG. Austria Tabak shares closed down 0.53 euro, or 1.2 percent, to 45.40 on the Vienna Stock Exchange. Preparing to Sell Austrian state-asset holding company, Oesterreichische Industrieholding AG, said Feb. 8 it's preparing to sell the government's remaining 41.1 percent of the former monopoly. The Austrian government, which was sworn in Feb. 4 and includes the far-right Freedom Party, could reduce its holding to just more than 25 percent as early as the end of 2000, Schiendl said. Austria Tabak would like the government to hold onto that amount, which would be a blocking minority, he said. Schiendl also warned that higher cigarette taxes to be outlined in Finance Minister Karl-Heinz Grasser's budget speech on March 21 would shave sales at Austria Tabak in 2000 and 2001. Grasser, a Freedom Party member, wants to reap an additional 87 million euros for government spending with the higher taxes, which Schiendl said would discourage smokers at home and make its products less competitive in neighboring European Union countries such as Germany and Italy. ``Austrian cigarettes already cost between 5 and 10 percent more than in Germany and Italy,'' Schiendl said. ``Given that one can import 800 duty-free cigarettes per person within the EU, our sales in Germany and Italy would suffer.'' The company's leading own brand, Memphis, currently costs 34 schillings a pack in Austria, compared to 31 schillings in Italy. ``I've heard there could be 5 more schillings a pack in taxes, and that's going to have a negative effect (on sales),'' Berger said. ``Some Austrians will also use it as an excuse to stop smoking.'' Schiendl said higher taxes can be compensated this year by the inclusion of 12 months of sales from Swedish Match's cigarette unit, which it bought last July for $580 million, compared to six months in 1999. For 1999, the acquisition helped push up full-year sales by 26 percent to 3.4 billion euros ($3.37 billion), from 2.7 billion euros a year earlier. Net income, though, declined by one quarter in 1999 to 106.8 million euros, after Austria Tabak didn't repeat the one-time gains that boosted profit the previous year. Operating profit climbed 27 percent to 166.9 million euros. Austria Tabak disposed of property worth 17.7 million euros in 1998, when it also paid about 36.7 million euros less tax. The retailer was able to take advantage of tax breaks in 1998 for provisions from its 1995 sale of Head Tyrolia Mares, a maker of sports equipment such as tennis rackets for Andre Agassi From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Feb 25 16:53:35 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 45D8F21B09 for ; Fri, 25 Feb 2000 16:53:35 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA10731 for ; Fri, 25 Feb 2000 16:53:34 -0500 Date: Fri, 25 Feb 2000 16:53:34 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Antismokers submit petition protesting govt's backtrack (fwd) Antismokers submit petition protesting govt's backtrack Source: Yomiuri Shimbun., Saturday, 2/26/00 An antismoking group has handed over a petition with 120,000 signatures protesting a Health and Welfare Ministry panel's withdrawal of a policy to halve the number of smokers by 2010. The Japan Nonsmoking Friendship Association, based in Ina, Nagano Prefecture, started its signature drive early this month as tobacco-related industries and some Liberal Democratic Party members heated up their opposition to the ministry's numerical target. The association said it took only 10 days to collect the 120,000 signatures in Nagano and other prefectures, more than twice the number collected by the tobacco-related industry to oppose the target. The association has 47,000 members nationwide. At a press conference Thursday, Bungaku Watanabe, chief editor of monthly Nonsmoking Journal, said, "I desperately wanted the ministry not to give in to the tobacco industry's pressure and to achieve its original target." A high-ranking ministry official said, "Although we can not change our decision (to withdraw the target), we would like to tackle the issue since we and the association have a common goal to reduce the country's smoking rate." The ministry panel's initial numerical target had been the most ambitious feature of its proposed health improvement plan because Japan's smoking rate is remarkably high among industrialized nations. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Feb 27 17:08:22 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A4E6921B02 for ; Sun, 27 Feb 2000 17:08:22 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA31930 for ; Sun, 27 Feb 2000 17:08:22 -0500 Date: Sun, 27 Feb 2000 17:08:22 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Aust Govt under fire over tobacco company tax breaks (fwd) Govt under fire over tobacco company tax breaks Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Sunday, 2/27/00 The Federal Government is under pressure to scrap research and development concessions for the tobacco industry. The calls follow revelations that the industry is receiving close to $500,000 in concessions a year. ABC Radio National's Background Briefing this morning revealed that the Federal Government has been giving tobacco companies $400,000 a year in tax concessions under the research and development scheme. Philip Morris Australia has used the money to develop faster cigarette-making machines and high tar cigarettes for export to Africa. Philip Morris spokeswoman Nerida White says the company is entitled to the concessions. "Everybody is required to comply with the same guidelines and meet the same eligibility criteria, we don't think we should be discriminated against under tax law," she said. But the Australian Medical Association says the concessions must be scrapped. Anne Jones from Action on Smoking and Health agrees, saying smoking kills 18,000 Australians every year. "I think it's extremely hypocritical of the government to be giving handouts to the tobacco industry, whose products, when used as intended, cause cancer and heart disease," Ms Jones said. Govt defence The government has defended its decision to give tobacco companies $400,000 a year in tax concessions for research and development programs. Industry Minister Nick Minchin told Background Briefing the tobacco industry should not be singled out. "I don't mind if people want to have a debate about whether cigarettes should be prohibited altogether. In my view, that is a separate debate," he said. "If they're not prohibited [and] companies are paying tax producing legal products, they're entitled to seek tax concessions." Opposition The Federal Opposition has promised to end research tax breaks for the tobacco industry. Mr Beazley says previous Labor Governments have also provided similar tax breaks, but that policy has now changed. "Our view would be you should target the new industries, that we need the new industries that are the clever industries that advance our knowledge as a people and advance our productivity as a people," he said. "I strongly suspect that cigarettes don't come into that capacity." ABC VIDEO Health experts are horrified at the concessions given to the tobacco industry. Joe O'Brien reports. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Feb 27 17:21:53 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5A40221B02 for ; Sun, 27 Feb 2000 17:21:52 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA32097 for ; Sun, 27 Feb 2000 17:21:52 -0500 Date: Sun, 27 Feb 2000 17:21:51 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT and TOBACCO SMUGGLING: Submission to the House of Commons Health Select Committee (fwd) More great information from ASH UK on smuggling. Note that this document is a couple weeks old. Robert Weissman Essential Information=09=09=09| Internet:=09rob@essential.org BAT and TOBACCO SMUGGLING: Submission to the House of Commons Health Select Committee Source: ASH London, Monday, 2/14/00 CONTENTS Summary Setting the Scene Smuggling and the tobacco business How cigarette smuggling happens Health implications =96 why smuggling is not a victimless crime BAT's response Terminology How BAT influenced smuggling 1=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Summary 1.=A0=A0 Over the last six months ASH has been undertaking research in parallel with others, including the International Consortium of investigative Journalists, on the documents in BAT's litigation archive in Guildford England.=A0 Our work has been independent, but we have co-ordinated publication. 2.=A0=A0 Correspondence between BAT executives shows the company was heavil= y involved in orchestrating, managing and controlling cigarette smuggling in Asia and Latin America in the early 1990s. 3.=A0=A0 BAT exercised control on illegal distribution channels through intermediaries, notably Romar in Aruba and SUTL [Singapura United Tobacco Ltd] in Singapore. The form of control was: Adopting an approach to business planning and sales target setting which treats the various routes for smuggling as near-normal distribution channels which are under the same sort of control as legitimate channels; Deliberately establishing business relations with intermediaries that directly or indirectly supply smugglers and directing these companies so as to gain share in the illegal markets; Controlling the price and availability of products through these channels and so influencing end-market conditions; Building warehouses and stationing marketing personnel close to borders with poor customs controls; Using a small legal or duty-free market to justify advertising campaigns which have the real purpose of stimulating demand for cigarettes on sale in the illegal market (these are known as 'umbrella operations'); Organising complicated movements of cigarettes through several jurisdictions or multiple levels within an elaborate distribution chain =96 leading to difficulties in tracing the products; Identifying and/or developing transit routes where official controls are weak or corrupt. Colluding with other international tobacco companies over pricing and smuggling strategy; BAT executives knew the nature of their business and sought to conceal it. BAT was not the only international tobacco company involved. Quotes from documents illustrating each of the points above form the bulk of the body of this submission. 4.=A0=A0 The personnel involved are very senior =96 the memos feature curre= nt BAT board members including the Managing Director (Ulrich Herter), Finance Director (Keith Dunt) and Marketing Director (Paul Adams).=A0 No documents have been found to date, which refer to the current Chairman or Deputy Chairman. 5.=A0=A0 The assertion by BAT that it only acts legally is false.=A0 While = there is little evidence of BAT smuggling tobacco itself, there is compelling evidence to suggest that BAT is a significant part of a conspiracy which causes smuggling to happen. At least one BAT executive has been convicted for smuggling-related offences in Hong Kong and other legal actions are possible. While conspiracy action in the UK is unlikely for technical reasons, conspiracy-equivalent actions in the jurisdictions where the smuggling has taken place are plausible.=A0 US-based racketeering actions (RICO) have been launched against the tobacco industry for its involvement in Canadian smuggling and RICO actions against BAT and Philip Morris are reportedly under consideration by the Colombian Governors. 6.=A0=A0 The prevalence of tobacco smuggling in Colombia and the Golden triangle points to a wider picture which almost certainly involves the laundering of illegal 'narco-dollars' =96 proceeds of cocaine and heroin trafficking. There is no suggestion in the documents that BAT staff are directly involved in this process, but it is very likely that contraband distribution in these areas is carried out by established organised crime networks, and for these organisations tobacco smuggling would provide effective money laundering with advantages to all parties. By failing to take responsibility for the markets that its product enters, BAT is facilitating the spread of illegal drugs as well as that of tobacco. 7.=A0=A0 Recently smuggling has reached serious proportions in the UK and Europe, and from what we know, it appears that similar patterns of distribution management are being used to those documented from Latin America and Asia. This is particularly true of tobacco company relationships with intermediary groups in specific distribution nodes who supply smugglers. For a time, Andorra was used by British manufacturers, Gallaher and Imperial Tobacco in a manner similar to BAT's operations in Aruba detailed below. As a result of this distribution network, UK tobacco exports to Andorra rose from 13 million cigarettes in 1993 to 1,520 million in 1997 =96 vastly more than the Andorran population of 63,000 coul= d conceivably consume. 8.=A0=A0 ASH believes the issues raised by these revelations are a matter f= or a DTI investigation.=A0=A0 The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry ha= s powers to mount an investigation into corporate conduct in these circumstances under s.432 of the 1985 Companies Act.=A0 An HM Customs & Excise investigation is unlikely because we have already established that the relevant conspiracy offence did not come into force until 1999 and all the evidence we have pre-dates this. 9.=A0=A0 It is also important that BAT's own business practices are subject= to internal checks and balances and that the company is properly supervised by its non-executive directors, led by the Deputy Chairman, Rt. Hon Kenneth Clarke QC MP.=A0 Mr. Clarke should now launch an internal inquiry t= o report to the AGM on 27th April 2000.=A0 BAT should also make a clear statement to shareholders regarding its exposure to smuggling related-legal action. 10.=A0 Smuggling is not a victimless crime.=A0 Current projections suggest = one billion people will die of tobacco-related disease in the 21st Century =96 10 times as many as the 20th Century and overwhelmingly in developing countries.=A0 Taxation is one measure to counter this dreadful toll,=A0 and smuggling undermines it by lowering prices and reducing the political feasibility of a high tobacco tax policy.=A0 To this extent, tobacco companies benefit from the impact of smuggling in their markets =96 and health suffers. 11.=A0 The responsibility for tackling smuggling ultimately lies with governments.=A0 A new WHO convention, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control has a proposed protocol on smuggling.=A0 This could form the basis of a global response to tobacco smuggling by creating a secure distribution system, introducing anti-fraud markings, tracking and tracing the movement of tobacco products and holding each person responsible for ensuring that they sell only to legitimate businesses. 2 Setting the scene British-American Tobacco (BAT) is in a pitched battle with U.S.-based Philip Morris for the growing global tobacco market.=A0 Both are enormously wealthy companies with global operations.=A0 In virtually every market in the world, these companies are fighting for market share and market growth.=A0 Smuggled cigarettes are the key weapon in a ferocious price war in crucially contested markets. Analysis of trade figures[1] suggests around one third of all internationally traded cigarettes are smuggled=96 about 355 billion cigarettes in 1996 =96 overwhelmingly the international brands of the multinational tobacco companies, such as 555 State Express (BAT), Marlboro (Philip Morris) and Camel (RJ Reynolds).=A0 This fraction and the absolute amount of smuggled cigarettes have been steadily rising through the 1990s.=A0 Although our evidence mostly relates to the period 1988 to 1994, the problem continues. 3 Smuggling and the tobacco business Most countries apply taxes to tobacco products to raise government revenue and, increasingly, to create a disincentive to smoking =96 an approach now advocated by the World Bank[2].=A0=A0 When cigarettes are smuggled the taxe= s are evaded and the black market price is lower.=A0=A0 The manufacturers and wholesalers are still paid for these sales, but the finance ministries and legitimate retailers lose out.=A0=A0 The lower prices increase demand and improve the competitive position of the brand and stimulate overall market demand =96 with knock-on health impacts due to increased smoking.=A0 In countries where many brands are sold illegally without duty not paid, brands that are sold legally (duty-paid) face stiff price disadvantages.=A0 This creates a powerful market pressure on manufacturers to ensure their products are well represented in illegal sales channels, or to go even further and ensure that illegal distribution channels are available for their product. 4 How cigarette smuggling happens Cigarettes legitimately move through the 'in-transit' regime without bearing tax until they reach the final end market =96 at which point tax is payable.=A0=A0 Most smuggling involves the cigarettes moving out of the untaxed distribution chain and entering the final end-market illegally =96 often through a third country.=A0 This can happen by legal export followed by illegal re-import or cigarettes in transit may be diverted from the legal to the illegal distribution chain.=A0 Smuggling is not generally driven by differences in tobacco taxes between countries, but by the avoidance of taxation by diversion from the wholesale distribution chain = =96 where duty has not been paid. 5 Health implications =96 why smuggling is not a victimless crime If current smoking trends persist, there will be about one billion deaths from tobacco during the 21st century compared with 100 million during the whole of the 20th century.=A0 Around three quarters in developing countries= =2E China alone (with 20% of the world's population) already suffers almost a million deaths a year from tobacco, a figure that is likely to at least double by 2025.[3] Tobacco-related illness is the single largest avoidable public health problem and still on the increase. As the international tobacco companies direct their marketing firepower towards developing countries, a range of public health measures including increased taxation, can attenuate the burden of disease and death. The health case for increasing tobacco taxes is clear and well expressed in a 1999 report by the World Bank[4]: "Evidence from countries of all income levels shows that price increases on cigarettes are highly effective in reducing demand.=A0 Higher taxes induce some smokers to quit and prevent other individuals from starting.=A0 They also reduce the number of ex-smokers who return to cigarettes and reduce consumption among continuing smokers.=A0 On average, a price rise of 10 percent on a pack would be expected to reduce demand for cigarettes by about 4 percent in high income countries and by about 8 percent in low- and middle-income countries, where lower incomes tend to make people more responsive to price changes.=A0 Children and adolescents are more responsiv= e to price rises than older adults, so this intervention would have a significant impact on them." Smuggling undermines this tax policy in two ways: by supplying cigarettes at a lower price and by creating political pressure (promoted by the tobacco companies) for reductions of tax policy.=A0 These market-wide effects are another reason why the companies benefit from smuggling =96 in addition to their competitive edge.=A0 The result is increased smoking, and hence increased illness, especially in developing countries, among the poor,=A0 and among children and adolescents. 6 BAT's response BAT responded on 31st January 2000[5] by dismissing the allegations as selective and refusing further comment: We do not intend to answer questions or address allegations apparently based on highly selective and out-of-context documents... The documents are certainly a selection from the total of 8 million pages held in Guildford, and these are a sub-set of the whole of BAT's documents which includes documents post-1994, documents not released to the State of Minnesota, documents for which legal privilege is claimed, and lost and shredded documents.=A0=A0 Even a single document which indicates control ov= er smuggling requires explanation and justification. The decision not to comment was reversed on 4th February when BAT's Deputy Chairman, the Rt. Hon Kenneth Clarke QC MP, made a statement to The Guardian[6] and acknowledged: Where any government is unwilling to act or their efforts are unsuccessful, we act,completely within the law, on the basis that our brands will be available alongside those of our competitors in the smuggled as well as the legitimate market. The thrust of this submission is that the 'acts' that Mr. Clarke refers to amount to control of smuggling through intermediaries, and go well beyond acceptable corporate behaviour, at times have broken the law, and, at best, operate in a legal 'twilight'.=A0 The following two sections outline the different ways in which BAT exercised control by quoting from memos discovered in the Guildford depository. 7 Terminology BAT does not generally refer to "smuggling" or to the product as "contraband" in its internal correspondence.=A0 The company tends to use it= s own marketing terminology to refer to smuggled products.=A0 Though the meaning of such terms is not immediately apparent, the context in which the terms are used in the documents clarifies the meaning.=A0 The crucial terms which are used to describe smuggled product are: DNP ('duty not paid' in contrast to 'duty paid' and 'duty free') Transit (a reference to the usual source of smuggled cigarettes) GT (General Trade) There are also various other descriptions which often refer to illegal tobacco markets: 'border trade', 'parallel exports', 'free markets' and occasionally VFM [value for money]. In each case the context of the text in the document has led us to conclude that the activities described refer to smuggling despite the anodyne language. Documents demonstrating the meaning of the terms of DNP[7] =96 Transit[8] = =96 GT[9] are stored on the ASH web site, but for the sake of brevity these have not been reproduced here. 8 How BAT influenced smuggling One reading of the relationship between tobacco companies is that smuggling goes on entirely outside the control and intent of the tobacco companies =96 they simply acknowledge smuggling as a reality and act accordingly. This has been the basis of BAT's defence. However, the documents suggest BAT's conduct goes way beyond this and that it exerts control over smuggling channels through intermediaries.=A0 The following te= n sections give examples from the documents that illustrate the true nature of BAT's involvement.=A0 There are further documents that support each poin= t available on the ASH web site. 8.1 Documents showing that BAT adopted an approach to business planning which treated various smuggling routes as near-normal distribution channels - subject to the same encouragement, exploitation and control as legitimate channels: One of the most powerful memos shows BAT simply deciding to increase its Argentinean market share through smuggling. Memo: 18/5/93[10] Keith Dunt to Ulrich Herter, Barry Bramley [Chairman BAT Co], Pilbeam, Castro "SUBJECT: DNP BRAZIL =96 ARGENTINA I am advised by Souza Cruz that the BAT Industries Chairman has endorsed the approach that the Brazilian Operating Group increase its share of the Argentinean market via DNP." [The Chairman of BAT Industries at the time was Sir Patrick Sheehy] ********************************** This fax shows that BAT actively encouraged specific players into illegal markets, it also shows that Keith Dunt appeared to be aware of the sensitive nature of the markets described. FAX: Keith Dunt [BAT Latin American Director] to A.M.Castro [Souza Cruz] 25/01/93[11] "As you know I spent last week in Argentina =96 with Nobleza Piccardo. In view of the close liaison needed between us in the Southern Cone I am forwarding you, (by hard copy only) a copy of the trip notes. I would ask that these are not shared nor copied. It is absolutely important that we leverage your Company's muscle into the Argentinian (sic) situation, (plus in fact that of B&W) in terms of the DNP [Duty Not Paid] business." (original emphasis) ********************************** This letter shows that Keith Dunt of BAT actively encouraged those in other organisations to disregard the 'ethical' judgements surrounding breaking the law: 24/6/92[12] "Thanks for your notes of 15th June on the DNP market... 1=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 DNP Market/Ot= her Matters We will be consulting here on the ethical side of whether we should encourage or ignore the DNP segment. You know my view is that it is part of your market and to have it exploited by others is just not acceptable..." (original emphasis) ********************************** This marketing plan shows that BAT actively sought to expand their share of illegal markets as an intrinsic part of their company strategy: 1995 BAT Interim Marketing Plan for State Express 555 in Vietnam[13] "Trade Marketing and Distribution: We must vigorously pursue strategies designed to achieve and sustain measurable competitive advantage. Accordingly, total in market volume, irrespective of source, channel presence, marketing, market intelligence and share of the international segment should be the primary measures of achievement."(original emphasis) ********************************** Similarly this Five Year Plan shows BAT's intention to actively manage illegal business: BATCo Global Five-year Plan 1994-1998[14] "1.1.1 Market trends: 1.1.1.4 (iii) Continued pressures on domestic market performance and profitability rising from border business and in some markets, from excise/ tax evasion. In 1993, it is estimated that nearly 6% of the total world cigarette sales of 5.4 trillion were DNP sales. Eastern Europe and the Asia-Pacific region (c85blln each) accounted for the majority of this volume. Though Western Europe (c50blln) was also significant. In relation to total market sales, DNP volumes are largest in Eastern Europe (c13%) and Africa/ M. East (c12%), but are also significant in Latin America (c9%) and Western Europe (c7%). A key issue for BAT is to ensure that the Group's system-wide objectives and performance are given the necessary priority through the active and effective management of such business." (emphasis added) 8.2 Documents showing BAT controlling the price and availability of products through illegal channels; The printed document illustrates the extent to which BAT controlled this illegal market =96 they had the power to stop exporting into specific channels. The marginalia shows that they were aware of the risks of continuing their illegal trade, but continued regardless: "RESPONSE TO J REMBISZEWSKI VISIT [02/09/92][15] 1.1=A0=A0=A0=A0 STOP DNP EXPORTS Agreed to continue. [K Dunt Marginalia: Agreed with Ulrich/Barry (despite risk) in July]" ********************************** This strategy paper shows BAT actively looking for 'alternative' routes to penetrate Chinese markets, as official exports to China are limited by a quota. It also shows the extent to which it can control pricing in end markets and through specific smuggling routes: Media Strategy Paper: China (555)[16] =2E. 4=A0=A0=A0=A0 To establish regular contact with other major industry member= s to consult on the duty paid business in China (CNTC), in areas of pricing, smoking and health issues, credit/consignment stocks. 5=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 To investigat= e alternative export routes/customers that will improve penetration of UK brands in northern and central provinces. 6=A0=A0=A0=A0 To continually monitor the Sino-Russian Border Trade business= during Q3/Q4 1991, to further test effectiveness of this route, and dependant on results to reappraise the route and pricing in Jan 1992. ********************************** This briefing paper shows that BAT takes pains to understand and to some extent control the pricing of illegal products in these markets, and that they are aware of the possibility that the GT [General Trade =96 illegal market] may be stopped by an enforced Government clampdown. Information sent on 21.10.93 by Paul McPhail, BAT Singapore, to Patrick O'Keeffe, BAT Millbank, re. McPhail's recent Vietnam visit:[17] "B: Key Issues Pricing Ex factory price should be such that retail price falls at parity with GT (not fully controllable). GT price structure is: (In US$ per case) BATUKE to SUTL: $245 SUTL to Importer (Cambodia): $290 Importer to Wholesaler (Cambodia): $348 Wholesaler to Trader (Cambodia border): $350 Therefore GT exiting Cambodia at US $350 (Laos route also appears to exit at US $350)" "We must accept the continued presence of GT (unless a complete Government clampdown takes place). Both versions will have a role to play in the further building of the brand and the 'system' profitability...We have the high ground [in negotiations with Vinataba] given the excellent quality of distribution, presence, and value of the GT product." ********************************** These briefing notes further demonstrate the degree of control exerted over pricing in illegal markets. Visit Notes =96 China 2/3/92-6/3/92: A.A.Chown[18] "Lucky Strike is far too low in its price positioning in the free market and is considered by the Group manager for B&W brands as not having the critical mass in the market yet to be able to take a significant price repositioning upwards. However, the conundrum is that should Lucky Strike grow at its low price positioning it will provide fertile feeding ground for Marlboro as smokers aspire to the "face" value of premium priced US international brands once they are affluent enough to uptrade. A price strategy for Lucky Strike needs to be developed. Some work has to be done to quantify the risks of a relative increase in price to Marlboro (over time) on forecast sales and, therefore, contributions." ********************************** This whole document describes plans for the Belmont Brand, demonstrating BAT's control over both the DP [Duty Paid] and GT [General Trade/illegal] markets: determining when and how Brands are launched in illegal markets, as well as the ability to remove specific brands from particular markets at will. Document dated February 1995, entitled Belmont Name Change: Project Maiden[19] "2. Options =B7 Maintain current Belmont in GT channel only =B7 Maintain current Belmont in GT channel and launch new brand in DP =B7 Launch new brand in GT and DP channel 1.=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Key Issues =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Risk of name chan= ge vs. maintaining current Belmont in GT channel... 2.=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Risk analysis 2.1=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Name Change (DP/ GT) Pros: =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 clean brand ow= nership for BATCo =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 avoids relianc= e on GT channel... Cons: =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 ...profit impa= ct vs. maintaining Belmont in GT channel only 2.2=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Launch new brand in DP and= maintain Belmont in GT Pros: =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Maintains bran= d heritage via GT channel =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Logical that G= T product continues to be Belmont =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Minimises risk= given importance of GT business Cons: =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 ...cannot supp= ort Belmont in GT via advertising 2.3=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Maintain Belmont in GT onl= y Pros: =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Avoids risk of= consumer rejection =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Protects curre= nt position (to an extent) at lower risk than 4.1 above Cons: =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 ...GT channel = closes... 10. Implementation plan Assumptions: =2E.Belmont only sold in GT until cancellation action outcome known 10.1 Plan summary =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 ...Risk of goi= ng sooner greater than risk of GT only sales for 4 months =B7=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 new brand laun= ched in DP/ GT simultaneously 10.2 Key Actions C. Pre cancellation announcement: -=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 manage sto= ck levels in GT channel -=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 initiate p= roject Scorpio (Bogota distribution)... D. Cancellation announcement: -=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 ...Launch = new brand in DP/ GT channels..." - 8.3 Documents showing BAT exploiting relatively weak border controls; specifically the encouragement of storage warehouses and strong marketing close to strategic borders to stimulate illegal cross-border sales: A brief quote illustrating the BAT attitude to illegal sales over the Paraguay/Argentine border. Paraguay Trip Notes 12-14 July 1994[20] "2.21: Excellent work has been done in the border town, which is the main supply point of DNP product for the Argentinean market." ********************************** These notes were circulated to some of the most senior BAT executives, showing high levels of BAT support for and awareness of groups supplying product to various strategic borders and comprehensive knowledge of an illegal market. Paraguay Market Visit 24-25 January 1994[21] Notes dated 8.2.94, distributed to: KS Dunt J Rembiszewski C Figueiredo IG Hacking C Rodriguez "12. Border Trade 12.1 Sabah recruiting ex BAT personnel to dedicate himself to developing and managing the Derby border trade. =2E.15. Systems 15.3 Thought should be given to provide accounting and system backup from either Chiletabacos/ Nobleza for the Peruvian Paraguayan/ Bolivian operations with Bigott supporting the Colombian and Ecuadorian office. 16. Border Trade =96 Market Visit 16.1 Derby 84mm. Out of stock =96 heavy demand for the product, 100mm Derby in stock. Need to get the split 100mm/ 84mm right. 16.2=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Need to get buffer stock availa= ble a.s.a.p. 16.3=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Le Bouqueron's version of Ritz = selling through well. Trade know it as the counterfeit version. 16.4=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Souza Cruz's Ritz has been out = of stock for two weeks, trade view for this was that it was more profitable to sell product into Brazil and not Argentina. Is this true or has product been shorted by Souza Cruz?" ********************************** These meeting minutes show BAT's main South East Asia distributors SUTL=A0 [Singapura United Tobacco Ltd] arranging for border warehousing to be established near a 'free trade zone' in Myanmar. Minutes of meeting with SUTL on Friday 1 March 1991[22] 1)=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Burma transhipment =2E.In conjunction with the Yunnan Regional Government... Moosa (a town on the Burma China border) was to become a 'trading city'... Final ratification is due on 9th March... the indication is that Moosa is to become a 'free trade zone'. JH [Janet Ho of SUTL] intends to visit Moosa... and if positive, arrange for warehouse facilities... It is anticipated that the assessment value of cigarettes will fall on 9th March, returning Burma to a duty paid market." 8.4 Documents showing BAT's use of 'Umbrella Operations' a term denoting the use of limited legal or duty free sales to justify advertising campaigns which have the real purpose of stimulating demand for illegal cigarettes. These trip notes show that BAT are capable of tracking the movement of their tobacco products, despite their claims to the contrary to Customs and Excise. The notes also explain in detail the concept of Umbrella Operations and the possible risks associated with this sort of covert action. Internal document from Andrew O'Regan to ADG Pereira dated 7.12.93[23] Trip Notes =96 India 29 Nov to 2 Dec 93 "There was no evidence yet of any of the three separate shipments made to the Gulf and destined for this market. =2E.Issues, Recommendations and Action Official Imports: Achieving official importation of the brands should be a high priority because it will help legitimise our ATL activities and also enable some promotional work to be done directly with our target consumers. Our SEFK target group tend to socialise at 4 & 5 star hotels. The "Available in Duty Free" cover for extensive media coverage needs to be very carefully used, as it can easily become antagonistic and will draw attention to the source of market supply, which we would rather did not come under scrutiny. Legitimate imports through various hotel groups is defensible and provides another source of "cover" for our brand building plans, and a promotional platform." ********************************** A further document explaining 'Umbrella Operations', and BAT's long term aim to use cheap illegal channels to build demand for its brands in new markets. NOTE: Dunt (BAT) to Bramley (BAT) 6/9/92[24] "RECOMMENDATIONS 6.1.3=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 It is recommended that BAT operate under "umbrel= la" operations. A small volume of Duty Paid exports would permit advertising and merchandising support in order to establish the brands for the medium/long term with the market being supplied initially primarily through the DNP channel." 8.5 Documents showing the complicated movements of cigarettes through several jurisdictions or multiple levels within an elaborate distribution chain =96 making illegal product tracing virtually impossible; This marketing plan discusses the complexity of BAT's Vietnamese market distribution, as well as the problems associated with marketing an illegal product. 1995 Interim Marketing Plan for State Express 555 in Vietnam[25] "The 'Vinataba Saigon' Wholesale Channel: =2E.Product is then sold on through a series of sub-distributors and it is at this level that 'imported product' enters the wholesale chain...It is not unusual for stock to pass through three or more 'wholesale layers' before ending up in retail." "Retail Channels: =2E.Product visibility however, outside the central commercial district where it is displayed openly is not good due to the requirement in those areas to conceal illegal product. =2E.Immediate challenges are therefore distribution of legal product, universe identification and classification, and presence marketing domination of target outlets =2E.1995 Trade Marketing Objectives and Strategies: =2E.Presence marketing within convenience and key sub distributors (the assumption being that distribution within these channels is not a problem)." ********************************** A report detailing various efforts by tobacco companies to make distribution within a market more complicated and thereby to facilitate the evasion of taxes. Report:=A0 Philippines =96 A Draft Overview and Recommendation, 1994[26] "2.3 Taxes: =2E.As cigarette taxes are levied at the first level of sale (i.e. to distributor), Fortune has established a number of dummy marketing companies, selling at below manufacturing cost, to avoid considerable taxes. "...2.5 Distribution: The Philippines distribution structure is a multilayered system, which passes through up to 7 levels prior to the consumer purchasing the product. The chain starts with the manufacturer who sells to the marketing/ distribution companies often lower than cost to minimise excise taxes..." 8.6 Documents showing BAT encouraging or developing new smuggling routes, particularly in areas where official controls were weak or corrupt. These meeting notes show that official exports to China were routed through BAT China, BATCo subsidiary in the state, while illegal sales are handled by SUTL. The document specifically notes BAT's encouragement for the development of new overland smuggling routes. MEETING NOTES: SUTL and BATCo 24/2/93[27] "CHINA; SUTL are encouraged to expand overland routes through Indochina. Enquiries for duty paid should be referred to BAT China. =2E.P.N. Adams agreed that SUTL should be able to pursue any enquiries from the USSR provided that goods were shipped through Eastern Siberia and not through Europe or the Baltic ports." ********************************** This Company Plan explains in detail the various methods of tobacco reaching a national market, and the financial and legal implications of each method. FAR EAST SOUTH COMPANY PLAN. 1992 =96 MYANMAR[28] "Product reaches the market by one of three methods:- i)=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Duty Paid = =96 duty rates vary according to point of entry Yangon is the most expensive legitimate import for all stocks. Rates are constantly under review with a uniform rate being sought in order to eliminate transit. ii)=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Partial Duty Paid= =96 Product arrives at ports less rigidly "policed" Duty is, therefore, paid on some of the amount imported. This will vary according to the compliance of the customs personnel =96 the usual point of entry being Moulmein. iii)=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Transit=A0 - Produc= t arrives at various points on a creek to the north of Moulmein and at Kawthaung near Thailand. Shipment is met and transported to Yangon. The retail trade is supplied through the major wholesale markets in each of the cities =96 Mengala in Yangon; Xeygyo in Mandalay, etc. Product moves up-country with an appropriate cost for the transport, etc, being reflected in retail pricing. This varies from between 2.5% - 5% of case price from point of entry to destination, i.e. US$8.00 to US$15.00. =2E. Border trade fluctuates, dependent on such factors such as the weather (ie monsoon) and insurgent rebel activities. Established buyers positioned at each of the main border trade points in Bangladesh, China and Thailand maintain regular orders with Myanmar importers. =2E. PRICING MODEL =2E. 2)=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Negotiations betwe= en the government and traders over the last year have failed to resolve the issue of duty levels. However, as at July 1991, the port of Moulmein has been closed to importers and traders have been ordered to route all shipments through Kawthaung where duty will be enforced in full. This is the firmest indication yet that the authorities 'blind eye' with regard to transited goods is beginning to open. In return, they promise a review to the duty levels by the end of July that should go some way in eliminating the necessity to transit." ********************************** A further quote from the same document gives details of illegal tobacco distribution in the Vietnamese market, and of BAT's intimate knowledge of the trade. FAR EAST SOUTH COMPANY PLAN. 1992 =96 VIETNAM[29] "DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS Following the ban in October 1990, imported cigarettes like JET, 555, HERO and RUBY QUEEN are sold into Vietnam through Cambodia wholesale market. The main route into Vietnam is by the river. Due to continued activity by the authorities, wholesalers in Vietnam do not hold large buffer stocks. On the retail level, 555 and JET are readily available in HCM city. However, the routes north are still hazardous. =2E. SWOT [Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats] analysis STRENGTH 1=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 555 with its = high level of awareness and demand has prompted wholesalers and retailers to stock the brand despite the ban and the risk. 2=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 SUTL with its= strong network of customers in Cambodia have been able to capitalise on the demand of the Vietnamese customer despite the ban. 3 Increased market knowledge through market visit." 8.7 Documents showing collusion with other companies over pricing and distribution This document refers briefly to an arrangement between Philip Morris, RJ Reynolds and BAT to introduce their brands into the Thai market at a set price. This constitutes cartel behaviour and is, as such, illegal under Thai law. General Comments/ Action Points Arising out of Market Visits 13-30 November, 1990[30] "4. Thailand =2E.PM/ RJR/ RPE are advocating market entry at 40 Baht in order to demonstrate that the legal business will be minimal, GT will continue and therefore revenue lost. The belief is that the Thais will then reduce the Duty." ********************************** This document demonstrates an extraordinary example of cartel behaviour, referring to 'share agreements' under which companies would divide market share to an agreed formula and so reduce the marketing cost of competing.=A0=A0 The document also refers to an 'industry agreement' which needed ratification from the BATCo Board =96indicating most senior awareness. The document mentions negotiations between Philip Morris and BAT over pricing levels in both legal and illegal channels =96 once again showing the level of control the companies exert over their illegal distribution networks. FILE NOTE: marked "Secret" 05/08/92[31] "MEETING WITH PHILIP MORRIS REPRESENTATIVES At Pennyhill Park, Bagshot In attendance: Peter Scheer&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp President Latin America Region [PMI] Rafael Arguelles&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp Vice President Latin America Region [PMI] Fred Hauser&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp Vice President Central America, Peurto Rico, and Dominican Republic [PMI] K S Dunt&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp ) D J Etchells)&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp BATCo T M Wilson&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp&nsbp ) =2E. REGIONAL FOR C.A. [Central America] 1)=A0=A0=A0 PMI obviously anxious for increased profitability from C.A. and would like some agreement containing expensive market support practices such as bonusing, exclusivity and level of advertising support in certain territories should be considered so as to improve industry profitability of both companies. 2)=A0=A0=A0 They wanted an indication from BATCo of the possibility of a sh= are agreement in all four Countries where we compete and suggested we exchange concepts by the end of September 1992, for discussion at a meeting in October... =2E. ANDEAN PACK VENEZUELA 2)=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Price Increases BATCo stated concern over the significant growth of the market segment emerging in DNP and cautioned that this would, if allowed to spread, destabilise the industry throughout the region. PMI agreed with this stance. BATCo suggested an aggressive price increase to be negotiated at a local level for DNP to be implemented if possible by the end of August. =2E. Following action on DNP PMI suggested we should pursue a DP price increase. PMI wanted linkage between the DNP increase. This was not supported by us. =2E. MERCOSUR ARGENTINA PMI rejected any joint move for domestic price increases or widening the market gaps. They also rejected any share agreement in Argentina unless this was linked with the Brazilian market. KSD [Keith Dunt] confirmed that this was outside his remit but he would refer back to Souza Cruz and the BATCo board." 8.8 Evidence which suggests that BAT knew the nature of this business and sought to hide their involvement in it: This document shows that BAT employees were aware of the legal implications of their activities, but took steps to avoid detection. Secret BATCo Singapore document entitled "Proposed re-definition of Market Responsibilities." December 1988[32] "Transit: the nature of this business brings paradoxical requirements of an arm's length approach and close supervision. Where BAT has legitimate interests in the end markets it must be able to disassociate itself from direct involvement in parallel imports. Nevertheless, indiscriminate sourcing can and does lead to potentially embarrassing problems. This conflict can be resolved by maintaining close control over the accredited export agent in the home market, backed up market intelligence garnered from end market visits...Market observation in Vietnam has been useful in responding to SUTL's requests for revised branding and pricing for that market." ********************************** Similarly this document shows the complex contractual arrangements surrounding BAT's distribution deals with intermediaries through which it was operating its illegal distribution channels. MEETING MINUTES: SUTL and BATCo 24/3/93[33] "c) For Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia, BAT wants to formalise its duty paid contractual arrangements with the end-market distribution companies, ie, UIL, SUTL (Laos) and ANCO International. Alex Stuart stated that SUTL would prefer, if these contracts were formalised with SUTL and not the end-market companies. Fred Combe replied that BAT would only be prepared to formalise agreements with bona-fide duty paid distribution companies such as the end-market companies, due to General Trade sensitivities. SUTL believes this will only complicate matters." 8.9 Documents showing clearly that BAT was not the only company involved in smuggled markets This document shows the role of Japan Tobacco International in establishing illegal tobacco supply networks in a specific market. Review of Asia-Pacific Cigarette Market by BATCo Marketing Intelligence Department=A0 January 1995[34] "Taiwan: =2E.The imported segment has increased each year and penetration reached 32.6% in 1993. This figure includes legal imports which accounted for 6.7 bns in 1993... plus GT imports estimated at 7.6 bns (17.4%SOM). The gap between legal and GT imports narrowed in 1993 as JTI (which has used the GT route to circumvent an embargo on imports ex-Japan) began importing legally from UK and Switzerland. =2E.the fastest growth in the Imported segment has come from JTI which is now the leading company and increased its share to 40.2% in 1993. It is estimated that 86% of JTI volume in 1993 was GT." (JTI =3D Japan Tobacco International) ********************************** A table demonstrating the various market shares for both Philip Morris and BAT in the legal and illegal Taiwanese markets. BATCo Asia-Pacific Review May 1993[35] Table entitled Coverage of Outlets Achieved Includes entry for Taiwan as follows: BAT=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0PM Taiwan=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Legal=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0= =A0 86%=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 83 % (est.) Total=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 60% (PM =3D Philip Morris) ********************************** This document gives further evidence of Philip Morris's involvement in specific smuggling routes. FAX: WATERFIELD to COOPER (BAT LEGAL TEAM) 10/4/92[36] " I enclose a sample of Bigott's version of Belmont which is sold in Venezuela, Aruba and Colombia. In Colombia the product is transitted in from the Aruba free trade zone. Also attached is PMI's version of Belmont made in Ecuador. This product is not available in the Arubian Market but is transitted into Colombia from the Arubian free trade zone. Once the product has been transitted into Colombia, a proportion of it flows across the border into Venezuela." ********************************** This document refers to apparently illegal 'transhipments' made by Brown and Williamson, Philip Morris, RJ Reynolds and Souza Cruz into the Argentinean market in 1991. INTERNAL BAT FILE NOTE:[37] "PROJECT PARAGUAY The estimate on imports last year was around 3.9 billion cigarettes which 46.4% of this volume was consumed domestically. The remaining volume is then transhipped to Argentina due to the price advantage provided by Paraguayan market. This is demonstrated by the large number of transhipments made by BWIT, PMI, RJR and Souza Cruz brands to Argentina in 1991. =2E. Souza Cruz exploit the medium/low price segment under GT operation. Souza Cruz brands (Hilton, Minister and Carlton) are sold only along the border of Brazil and Argentina. =2E. BRAND STRATEGIES =2E. (i.i.i.) To introduce all brands on a duty paid basis. ********************************** This document once again refers to the uneasy relationship between BATCo and Philip Morris in Brazil. Secret paper from Keith Dunt to Barry Bramley, dated 15.10.93, entitled "RBU Latin America and Caribbean =96 A Better Approach"[38] "Souza-Cruz has greatest synergy with Paraguay/ Uruguay. Key to this now is the DNP flows (8-10% of Brazil and 12% of Argentina markets) which are growing and represent a major threat to our Brazilian share and profits and also give exploitation/ de-stabilisation opportunities to PMI which they are using unashamedly..." "Recommendation: 2) Andean Pact should be managed as domestic markets...Venezuelan-sourced products have a real consumer perceived preference in this market. The GM would access his VFM brand ex-Souza Cruz via UK invoicing base on the agreed brand portfolio range." 9 Further evidence The documentary evidence shown above is not the result of "cherry picking" =96 these are only a few of hundreds of quotes unearthed through ASH's research, with potentially thousands more still in the Guildford depository. For a fuller set of quotes and printable (PDF) copies of the original documents please see the ASH website at www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/ to find the following lists: =B7 Documents discussing 'DNP' =B7Documents discussing 'Transit' =B7Documents discussing 'general trade' =B7Documents which taken together suggest BAT exercise control over smuggling =B7Documents describing how smuggling works =B7The full ASH document set including those listed above 10=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 The legality of BAT's actions Deputy Chairman of BAT, Rt. Hon Kenneth Clarke QC MP, has argued in The Guardian: Where any government is unwilling to act or their efforts are unsuccessful, we act,completely within the law, on the basis that our brands will be available alongside those of our competitors in the smuggled as well as the legitimate market. The claim that these 'acts' are always within the law is both audacious and false.=A0 It depends on the nature of the actions taken and the extent to which they may be construed as aiding or controlling the smuggling itself.=A0=A0 Mr. Clarke's assertion is certainly false if only because at least one senior BAT employee has been convicted of smuggling-related bribery.=A0 In the light of this evidence, potential smuggling-related lega= l actions include individual actions against employees where they have broken the law as well as conspiracy and racketeering offences.=A0 These ar= e organised-crime offences in which those exercising control are held responsible for actions of others that commit the substantive illegal acts.=A0 These are offences aimed at the convicting the 'Mr. Bigs' =96 the organisers who do not actually smuggle contraband by driving the trucks or offering bribes, but act so as to ensure that others do.=A0=A0=A0 Even if B= AT employees did not generally do the smuggle tobacco themselves, it does not mean that they cannot have been party to a conspiracy to cause smuggling to happen. 10.1=A0=A0=A0 Legal action against BAT employees BAT's Export Director for Hong Kong, Jerry Lui, was convicted in June 1998 for accepting HK$33 million (=A32.6 million) in bribes between June 1988 an= d December 1993 in connection with a cigarette smuggling syndicate. He received a jail sentence of three years and eight months. Despite prolonged technical wrangling over his case, Hong Kong's highest court reaffirmed the conviction on 14th December 1999. 10.2=A0=A0=A0 Conspiracy action in England Because BAT is based in Britain, and much of the control and strategy for smuggling in Asia and Latin America was co-ordinated from Britain, we wished to examine the prospects for a conspiracy action under English law.=A0 Legal advice for ASH shows that the relevant offence in English law did not come into force until 4th September 1999. It was only the Criminal Justice (Terrorism and Conspiracy) Act (1998) that created the offence of conspiring to break the law in jurisdictions outside the European Union.=A0 The common law prior to the 1998 Act would not support a conspiracy action in the English courts.=A0=A0 There is thus no possibility of action in the English courts. 10.3=A0=A0=A0 Conspiracy action where the smuggling took place Proving a criminal conspiracy in one jurisdiction when the substantive illegal act happened in another will always be difficult.=A0 However, there is no reason why conspiracy actions should not be taken against BAT or its executives in the jurisdictions in which the substantive smuggling acts have occurred.=A0 This is why we believe Mr. Clarke's claim is 'bold'.=A0 T= o make it with confidence Mr. Clarke would require an implausible familiarity with the documents and with conspiracy legislation in the jurisdictions in which the smuggling occurs.=A0 If he is merely acting on the advice of others within BAT,=A0 then he is not taking the independent view that should be expected of a senior non-executive director.=A0 Health experts in Hong Kong have called on the Government: "to consider whether indictable offences had been committed for which BAT executives should be extradited to answer in Hong Kong." 10.4=A0=A0=A0 Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations (RICO) actions= in the United States United States RICO laws enable losses through fraud and other organised crime to be recovered from the perpetrators.=A0 The damages awarded can be up to three times the losses.=A0 Damages could be very substantial and not easily recovered by co-ordinated price increases and passing the cost on to the consumer without loss of competitive edge.=A0 In other words the shareholders rather than consumers are likely to pay. This US legislation is already being used against one tobacco company for its smuggling actions in other jurisdictions.=A0 In December 1999, the Canadian government has commenced RICO action against RJ Reynolds in Northern District of New York.=A0 A Grand Jury investigation in the North East District of South Carolina is currently investigating tobacco smuggling and this may also lead to smuggling-related legal action. ASH has forwarded a dossier to the Grand Jury. The proceedings of the Grand Jury are confidential. There are also reports that the Colombian Governors and Mayor of Bogota are about to bring action in the US courts.=A0 According to the report of the Washington DC-based Center for Public Integrity:[39] A majority of Colombia's state governors and the mayor of Bogota have retained U.S. lawyers to prepare lawsuits in the United States against British American Tobacco and Philip Morris, said Jose Manuel Arias Carrizosa, executive director of the Federation of Colombian Governors. He added that the 21 governors and the mayor of Bogota were seeking "an indemnification for damages caused through contraband of cigarettes into the country." He would not say exactly how much would be demanded of the two companies. "We think there are two markets, one legitimate that pays its duties and taxes, and the other much bigger, illegal," Arias said in an interview.=A0 "That cannot be happening without the knowledge of the producing companies." A lawyer hired by the Colombians, who spoke only on condition that neither he nor his firm be identified, said the governors had "a viable cause of action" under civil provisions of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO. 10.5=A0=A0=A0 Response of BAT ASH wrote to the Chairman of BAT on 31st January requesting that he make a statement to all shareholders regarding the company's exposure to smuggling-related legal actions.=A0=A0In his reply of 4th February, Mr Broughton refused, arguing the (specious) point that he was unable to answer our request individually.=A0 We believe that BAT should present a candid assessment of its exposure to smuggling-related legal action, and we have written again requesting the Company makes a statement.=A0=A0 We believe that the documents revealed show the level of control and involvement to be sufficient to warrant a clear statement from BAT. 11=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 What should be done? We believe there should be three major actions taken in response to the revelation of these documents: 11.1=A0=A0=A0 DTI investigation The Department of Trade and Industry should undertake a fact-finding investigation.=A0 Under the Companies Act 1985 s.432, the Secretary of Stat= e for Trade and Industry may "appoint inspectors to investigate the affairs of a company. He can do this if he suspects fraud or misconduct or if the company's shareholders have not been given the information which they might reasonably expect".[40]=A0ASH has written to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, Mr. Byers [41], requesting a fact-finding investigation which should assess: the conduct of members of BAT's main board, notably the Finance Director, Keith Dunt, Managing Director, Ulrich Herter, and marketing Director Paul Adams, and whether these individuals are fit to be at the helm of a major British company. whether BAT's business practices were and are acceptable =96 a question of corporate conduct. whether there is adequate supervision of the executive management =96 a question of corporate governance. As The Guardian leader of 4th February[42] put it: The Commons Health Select Committee, examining tobacco-related diseases, was right this week to demand Mr Clarke's presence for cross-examination. =2E He has a lot of explaining to do. But it should not stop there. Trade and industry officials, who laboured so long over whether Mohamed Al-Fayed was a fit person to run Harrods,=A0 should be given a new and bigger task: the review of the BAT documents to determine if its senior officials are fit people to preside over a company which runs its company so dangerously. We know of no other route by which the conduct of BAT could be independently investigated in the UK. 11.2=A0=A0=A0 BAT internal inquiry ASH has written to Mr. Clarke (31st January) pointing out that in his capacity as the most senior non-executive director the Deputy Chairman of BAT, he has a responsibility to supervise the executive board of BAT, and to ensure that the company operates with acceptable conduct and adequate governance. Mr. Clarke cannot possibly have made an adequate assessment of this matter in the four days between the revelations on 31st January and his response giving BAT the 'all-clear' which was published on 3rd February.=A0 For this reason we believe Mr. Clarke should undertake a full inquiry and present at least an interim report to the BAT Annual General Meeting on 27th April 2000. As part of this we believe that BAT should make a statement to shareholders regarding its exposure to smuggling related legal action =96 even if it is to assert that, in BAT's view, there is no exposure. 11.3=A0=A0=A0 Co-ordinated international action on tobacco smuggling While it is important that rogue corporations are investigated, held accountable, punished as appropriate and as far as possible reformed, the ultimate responsibility for tackling smuggling lies with governments.=A0 Th= e World Health Organisation is currently advancing an intergovernmental treaty, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control which would create a=A0 global response to many of the problems caused by tobacco.=A0 Within this Convention is a proposal to develop a Protocol on smuggling[43].=A0=A0 Co-ordinated measures agreed under such a protocol could include: Deterrence through increased probability of conviction and increased punishment Overt tax stamps which would indicate the tax status of tobacco products. Covert anti-fraud markings to allow tracking and tracing of tobacco products through the distribution chain. Record-keeping and monitoring of the movements of tobacco products. Creation of a 'custody-chain' for the distribution of duty-suspended products prior to reaching final retail market.=A0 A licensing system could be used to implement this. Creation of a 'duty of care' in which a seller within the distribution chain is held accountable for the actions of subsequent buyers. In its statement of 31st January, BAT stated that: British American Tobacco group companies work with governments and customs and excise authorities around the world proposing solutions to the issue [cigarette smuggling], and supporting initiatives to help eradicate the problem.[44] We hope this means that BAT will lend its weight, expertise, and its ability to co-ordinate smuggling strategy with other international tobacco companies to support the development of an effective smuggling protocol within the WHO Framework Convention. 12=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Is the smuggling problem really due to inappropriate taxa= tion? In its 31st January statement[45], BAT asserts that: Smuggling arises from tax differentials in different countries, and national trade barriers.=A0 A policy of raising tobacco taxes to excessive levels, often driven by anti-tobacco activists, can only exacerbate this situation. Smuggling is caused by smugglers.=A0 Of course, there would be no smuggling if there were no taxes and no cross border price differences.=A0 Likewise there would be no income tax evasion or VAT fraud if these taxes did not exist.=A0 The problem is criminal, not fiscal. It is important to recognise that smuggling is not, as claimed by BAT, driven primarily by cross-border differences between duty-paid prices, but by the difference between duty-paid (DP) and duty-not-paid (DNP) prices.=A0 Most smuggled cigarettes have never had duty paid in any jurisdiction =96 they are diverted in transit in the wholesale market.=A0 Given that even modest levels of duty generate an adequate incentive to smuggle, the level of smuggling depends more on the ease with which smuggling can occur.=A0 This explains why European countries like Spain and Italy have high levels of smuggling, despite having some of the lowest cigarette prices in Europe. Cross-border 'bootlegging' is an unwelcome problem, but wholesale transit fraud dominates the market for smuggled cigarettes.=A0 ASH believes that it would be wrong to reverse the well-founded fiscal and health policy of tobacco tax increases and concurs with the World Bank which states in the summary of its 1999 report[46] that: Smuggling is a serious problem, but the report concludes that, even where it occurs at high rates, tax increases bring greater revenues and reduce consumption. Therefore, rather than foregoing tax increases, the appropriate response to smuggling is to crack down on criminal activity. 13=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 References Documentary references are in the form [BAT file number / BAT box number / Bates number / ASH web address for a prinatable (Adobe PDF) version of the document]. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [1] Joossens L an Raw M. Tobacco Control 1998;7:66-71. http://tc.bmjjournals.com/cgi/reprint/7/1/66.pdf [2] World Bank, Curbing the Epidemic: governments and the economics of tobacco control World Bank Publications, Washington DC, 1999.=A0 Available at:=A0 www.globalink.org/tobacco/wb/. [3] Peto R. and Lopez A. The future worldwide health effects of current smoking patterns.=A0 To appear in: Global Health in the 21st Century.=A0In press. [4]World Bank, Curbing the Epidemic: governments and the economics of tobacco control=A0 May 1999. www.globalink.org/tobacco/wb [5] British American Tobacco, Allegations of smuggling / Center for Public Integrity report, 31st January 2000 www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/bat.pdf [6] Rt. Hon. Kenneth Clarke QC MP, Dilemma of a cigarette exporter, The Guardian 3rd Feb 2000. www.newsunlimited.co.uk/bat/article/0,2763,131913,00.html [7] Definitions of DNP =96 www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/dnp.html [8] Definitions of Transit =96 www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/transit.html [9] Definitions of GT (General Trade) =96 www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/gt.html [10] BB0331/DEP0228/500028732/ www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/500028732.pdf [11] File and Box numbers not available. Bates number 301673768/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/225.pdf [12] FJ0601/ XMA0199/301674939 / www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/178.pdf [13] FJ2550/ XMA0120/301651236 / www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/008-009.pdf [14] BB0153/ DEP0274/500018206/ www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/048.pdf [15] BB0264/ GU2764/500025629/ www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/144.pdf [16] FJ1820/ XMA0018/301591496/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/226.pdf [17] HJ0393/ XMA0341Q/203472753/ www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/072.pdf [18] FJ2833/ US078/301735997/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/227.pdf [19] BJ0324/ XMA0038/503895317/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/032.pdf [20] BF2202/ GU1538/500270447/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/029.pdf [21] BF2202/ GU1538/500270460/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/030-031.pdf [22] FD0035/ XMA0124Q/300028667/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/222.pdf [23] BB0176/ DEP0267/500045756/ www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/050-052-053-054-055-056.pdf [24] BJ0015/ XMA0314/503918121/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/169.pdf [25] FJ2550/ XMA0120/301651237/ www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/008-009.pdf [26] BB0176/ GU1471/500045820/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/221.pdf [27] BB0174/DEP0274/500045568/ www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/129.pdf [28] FD0305/ GU0217/300013920/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/201.pdf [29] FD0305/ GU0217/300013890/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/200.pdf [30] FD0032/ XMA0326/300028568/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/022.pdf [31] FJ0022/GU3261/301653380/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/220.pdf [32] BB0148/ DEP0274/500014652/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/039-040-041.pdf [33] BB0174/ DEP0274/500045574/www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/131.pdf [34] BA0766/XMA0202/502628801/ www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/025.pdf [35] BB0177/ DEP0274/500046008 /www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/223.pdf [36] BB0264/ GU2764/500025876 /www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/162.pdf [37] FJ2155/ XMA0015/301567548 /www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/188.pdf [38] BB0331/ DEP0228/500028626 /www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/224.pdf [39] Center for Public Integrity, Major Tobacco Multinational Implicated In Cigarette Smuggling, Tax Evasion, Documents Show, 31st January 2000. www.publicintegrity.org Washington DC. [40] Department of Trade and Industry, DTI Investigation powers in detail, DTI web site: www.dti.gov.uk/cld/inv_powers_detail.htm February 2000 [41] Letter from ASH to Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, 8th February 2000.=A0 www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/byers2.pdf [42] Anon. The Guardian, A dirty business, 4th February www.newsunlimited.co.uk/bat/article/0,2763,132534,00.html [43] WHO Framework Convention Working Group Paper, Subjects of possible protocols and their relation to the FCTC. www.who.int/wha-1998/Tobacco/PDF/e1t3.pdf [44] British American Tobacco, Allegations of smuggling / Center for Public Integrity report, 31st January 2000 www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/bat.pdf [45] British American Tobacco, Allegations of smuggling / Center for Public Integrity report, 31st January 2000 www.ash.org.uk/smuggling/bat.pdf [46] World Bank, Curbing the Epidemic: Governments and the economics of tobacco control. World Bank Publications, Washington DC, 1999.=A0Available at:=A0 www.globalink.org/tobacco/wb/ From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Feb 27 17:32:49 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 89DFA21B02 for ; Sun, 27 Feb 2000 17:32:49 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA32295 for ; Sun, 27 Feb 2000 17:32:49 -0500 Date: Sun, 27 Feb 2000 17:32:48 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Zimbabwe OKs Rothmans/BAT Merger Nod for Rothmans, BAT merger Financial Gazette February 17, 2000 By Staff Reporters Harare - Zimbabwe's Industry and Trade Competition Commission this week gave approval to the proposed merger between Rothmans of Pall Mall (Zimbabwe) Limited and British American Tobacco (BAT) Zimbabwe Limited after it satisfied itself on the conditions of the union. This paves the way for the two companies to follow in the footsteps of their parent groups Rothmans International and British American Tobacco Plc which finalised their merger deal last year. The commission's director, Alexander Kububa, this week said the two firms agreed with the conditions imposed by the commission and the body would keep the companies under a close watch. "The merging companies must make genuine efforts which will be closely monitored by the Competition Commission to dispose of certain identified cigarette-making equipment owned by BAT Zimbabwe to any third party other than Rothmans who may want to enter the local cigarette-making industry by May 31 2000," Kububa said. The other condition is that upon consummation of the planned merger, the factory prices of all the cigarette brands produced by the two must not suddenly go up. Any future increases shall be subject to close surveillance of the commission as long as the monopoly situation created by the merger exists. "In considering the merger application, the Competition Commission found out that while the merger creates a monopoly situation in the manufactured cigarettes sector of the tobacco products industry, it has considerable efficiency gains and public interest benefits that satisfy the requirements of the Competition Act of 1996," he said. The commission has to approve all company mergers in Zimbabwe. The commission was established two years ago to encourage and promote competition in all sectors of Zimbabwe's economy, to reduce barriers to entry into any sector of the economy, as well as investigating restrictive business practices. Copyright (c) 2000 Financial Gazette. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Feb 28 00:21:51 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8EC4E21B02 for ; Mon, 28 Feb 2000 00:21:51 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA03164 for ; Mon, 28 Feb 2000 00:21:51 -0500 Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 00:21:51 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco companies under siege (fwd) Tobacco companies under siege by Amira Segev Source: Ha'aretz Daily Newspaper, Friday, 2/25/00 Four different legal actions are currently underway in Israel against the Israeli cigarette manufacturer Dubek, other cigarette manufacturers and American tobacco companies. At the same time, a commission has been appointed by the health minister to reduce damage to health from smoking.The commission is headed by Judge Alon Gillon, the director of the courts, and himself a victim of smoking. After years in which he smoked heavily, he was diagnosed with cancer of the throat and jaw. His father, who was also a smoker, died at age 52 of lung cancer. The Gillon commission was established following a recommendation by the State Prosecutor's Office in connection with a petition submitted to the High Court of Justice by the Israel Medical Association against the minister of health, Dubek and the manufacturers and marketers of tobacco and tobacco products. The IMA asked the court to order the health minister to declare nicotine a dangerous drug and to set a policy involving oversight and restrictions on the growth, manufacture, sale, import and use of tobacco and related products. Dubek announced that it did not recognize the committee and would not send representatives to appear before it. "The composition of the commission, together with its true character and the reasons for its establishment, attest to its being a panel on which the opinions of its members and its recommendations are uniform and preconceived," Dubek stated in a letter to Health Minister Shlomo Benizri three weeks ago. Last week Benizri informed Dubek's lawyer, Dr. Yoav Ben Dror, that he will be ready to consider imposing a secrecy order on incriminating documents from Dubek, as he put it, if the company makes them available to the commission. At the end of 1997, 15 smokers who suffer from lung and throat cancer and from heart, blood and lung diseases and their relatives filed suit in the Tel Aviv District Court against Dubek and the Ascot tobacco company. Their contention was that their illnesses were caused by smoking. Later, the judge in the case, Dr. Gavriel Kelling, permitted another 65 individuals to join the suit. He rejected Dubek's request to hold a separate hearing on each case. Dubek's appeal to the Supreme Court against that ruling was also rejected. The suit was recognized as the first class action in Israel. Last week the judge gave the cigarette companies 60 days to disclose all the documents related to the case. He also ruled that 12 consecutive days of hearings will be held this December. The Kupat Holim Clalit HMO has been engaged in a legal battle against Dubek and four cigarette manufacturers from Britain and the United States since September 1998. The HMO wants compensation of NIS 7.6 billion in damages it claims to have sustained in treating smokers. This organization takes pride in the fact that Israel is the first country outside the United States in which American tobacco firms have been sued. Those firms include Philip Morris, R.G. Reynolds, Brown and Wlliamson and Ligget and Meyers. The cigarette companies are accused of enlarging their profits by duping the public as well as health authorities, legislators, the media and others. The gist of the suit is that the cigarette companies knew that the products they manufactured and sold would cause serious illness and terrible suffering, and in some cases death, in large numbers of people. Currently pending in the Supreme Court is an appeal submitted by Kupat Holim Maccabi against a decision by Tel Aviv District Court Judge Adi Azar in a preliminary hearing. Azar rejected a request by the HMO to force Dubek and other cigarette manufacturers to pay compensation for medical treatment, hospitalization and drugs administered to Maccabi members who suffer from the pernicious effects of smoking. Azar ruled last September that the suit must be filed by the patients themselves and not by the HMO. Maccabi claims that the total cost of the damage it sustains in one year as a result of smoking is in excess of NIS 3 billion. One of the experts Maccabi enlisted in its cause, Prof. Eliezer Kaplinski, the director of the Cardiac Institute at the Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer, wrote in his opinion to the court: "I can state with certainty that Kupat Holim Maccabi has medical expenditures of a very considerable sum for its treatment of illness caused by smoking among its insurees, and this as the result of the manufacture, sale and distribution of cigarettes." Kaplinski added that smoking is the major cause of morbidity in Israel. (Haim Shadmi From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Feb 28 13:09:05 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A95E121B02 for ; Mon, 28 Feb 2000 13:09:04 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA13581 for ; Mon, 28 Feb 2000 13:09:04 -0500 Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 13:09:04 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Key anti-tobacco targets in health project go up in smoke (fwd) EDITORIAL: Key anti-tobacco targets in health project go up in smoke In the end, however, the `realists' prevailed, holding that it was inadvisable to set targets that were certain to provoke oppos Source: Asahi Shimbum, Sunday, 2/27/00 Bowing to pressure, the Health and Welfare Ministry has practically given up plans to protect the public's health. The ministry aimed to halve the number of adult smokers and the per-capita volume of tobacco consumption by 2010 under the ``Healthy Japan 21'' project. But it was forced to drop these targets amid strong objections raised by the tobacco industry and the farm lobby of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. The target of protecting the health of the people has been scuttled as a result of the move. With the specific goals dropped, the project calls for such alternative anti-smoking efforts as ``dissemination of knowledge,'' ``making a thorough distinction between where people can and cannot smoke,'' and ``promoting programs to help people stop smoking to the point where they can receive assistance anywhere.'' These are all important tasks, but they are just the means to accomplish goals. They do not fit in with the project's numerical targets. The ``Healthy Japan 21'' project is supposed to guide the nation's health movement in the 21st century. Creators of the project have spent a year and a half working out numerical targets to be attained, with a strict reassessment scheduled 10 years from now. The project's specific targets include: reducing the rate of those who do not eat breakfast to 15 percent or less among men in their 20s and 30s; increasing the average number of steps taken by adults by 1,000 a day to 9,200 for men and 8,300 for women; reducing the number of heavy drinkers-those who consume more than the equivalent of three go of sake a day (one go equals 0.381 U.S. pint)-by more than 20 percent; ensuring that more than 60 percent of the population will eat fruit every day; and increasing the average daily intake of vegetables to more than 350 grams. Lifestyles are basically a matter for each individual to decide. The targets have been worked out to provide reference material to help individuals make their choices, presupposing assistance from public agencies to translate them into reality. The implication is that if there are fewer sick people, it would not only help them as individuals but also spare the government a hefty increase in health insurance expenditures. Starting about 20 years ago, the world has seen a shift in the thrust of public health policy from ``disease prevention'' to ``health enhancement.'' It is a common perception among industrially advanced countries that to realize this target, efforts by individuals to reform their lives must be combined with governmental initiatives to improve the social environment. Based on this view, the United States, Britain and Canada have drafted health enhancement strategies. The tide induced the Health and Welfare Ministry to work out the ``Healthy Japan 21'' project, the first target-oriented program of its kind in this country. The project's numerical targets to curb obesity, high blood pressure and other health risks are designed to keep people under 65 alive and reduce the ranks of the elderly who become disabled by the aftereffects of sickness. Halving the smoking population and the consumption of tobacco was to be the centerpiece of these targets. Reducing the number of smokers is known to hold the key to curbing cases of cancer, heart disease, cerebral stroke, stomach ulcer, and duodenal ulcer. Common wisdom around the world holds that banning smoking is the most effective way for an industrially advanced country to trim its medical expenses. During deliberations by a government panel that wrote the project, members who had been helping people kick the smoking habit argued that it was absolutely necessary to set easy-to-understand and impressive numerical targets. In the end, however, the ``realists'' prevailed, holding that it was inadvisable to set targets that were certain to provoke opposition. They said it was more important to make sure that the anti-smoking campaign would bear fruit. There is no question that these realists were spurred on by tobacco growing farmers, the government agencies attaching importance to the revenue from cigarette sales-the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry and the Finance Ministry-and the tobacco lobby in the Diet. Obviously, the vested interests put their short-term gains ahead of the health of the people in forcing the Health and Welfare Ministry to drop the key anti-smoking goals from the ``Healthy Japan 21'' project. Japan has yet to make substantial progress toward the fundamental anti-smoking measures that are already in place in many other countries. Such measures include sharply raising the tobacco tax, imposing a wholesale ban on tobacco advertising and limiting the installation of cigarette vending machines. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Feb 28 13:24:20 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 087EA21B02 for ; Mon, 28 Feb 2000 13:24:20 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA14076 for ; Mon, 28 Feb 2000 13:24:19 -0500 Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 13:24:19 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Beazley promises to close tax loophol.... (fwd) Beazley promises to close tax loophol.... Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Sunday, 2/27/00 The Federal Opposition has promised to end research tax breaks for the tobacco industry. The Federal Government each year gives tobacco companies $400,000 in tax concessions for research and development programs. Philip Morris Australia has received government assistance to develop more efficient cigarette making machines and high tar cigarettes for export. Mr Beazley says previous Labor Governments have also provided similar tax breaks, but that policy has now changed. "Our view would be you should target the new industries, that we need the new industries that are the clever industries that advance our knowledge as a people and advance our productivity as a people," he said. "I strongly suspect that cigarettes don't come into that capacity." =20 =20 =A9 1999 Australian Broadcasting Corporation From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 1 20:41:52 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D191121B18 for ; Wed, 1 Mar 2000 20:41:52 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id UAA15376 for ; Wed, 1 Mar 2000 20:41:52 -0500 Date: Wed, 1 Mar 2000 20:41:52 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT to export more cigs. from Uzbekistan (fwd) Uzbek-British JV to export about 2,000 mln cigarettes. March 1, 2000 TASHKENT, February 29 (Itar-Tass) via NewsEdge Corporation - An official on the Board of an Uzbek-British joint venture of the British American Tobacco Co. told Itar-Tass on Tuesday that about 2,000 million "Made in Uzbekistan" cigarettes are to be exported this year. Last year the JV exported more than 1,000 million cigarettes worth 5,000 USD to ten countries. The British company is one of major investors to the Uzbek economy. Its equity share in the JV charter capital is 97 percent. The overall cost of the project is 292 million USD, with 247 million USD being already used. Out of the sum, 100 million USD were used to build a tobacco factory in Samarkand. The full rated capacity of the factory is 12,000 million cigarettes a year. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 1 21:28:09 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A24F821B18 for ; Wed, 1 Mar 2000 21:28:09 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id VAA16081 for ; Wed, 1 Mar 2000 21:28:09 -0500 Date: Wed, 1 Mar 2000 21:28:09 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Gallaher, Imperial Look Overseas to Boost Sales (fwd) FOCUS-Gallaher profits rise, aims abroad By David Jones LONDON, March 1 (Reuters) - British tobacco company Gallaher Group Plc reported a near seven percent rise in annual profits on Wednesday as it set out plans to expand abroad to counter the declining UK duty-paid cigarette market. The group with a leading 40 percent share of the UK cigarette market said it was targetting new avenues for overseas expansion like organic growth in Continental Europe, Africa and China and through alliances or acquisitions to boost sales. Gallaher, which produces cigarette brands such as Benson & Hedges and Silk Cut in Britain, reported 1999 pre-tax profits of 341 million pounds ($539.1 million), on sales up two percent at 4.3 billion. The year dividend rose 8.5 percent to 22.25 pence. New Chief Executive Nigel Northridge said the group is aiming to drive its overseas sales higher this year and also conduct a more aggressive share buy-back programme afer the company bought back 19.7 million of its own shares in 1999. ``We will look at opportunities overseas when they arise, but there is no desperation in doing deals,'' he said. Gallaher shares were fired up to show a near eight percent rise, or up 18-3/4 pence to 270p by 1000 GMT as the pre-tax number beat forecasts of 333-337 million and analysts applauded the new chief executive's more aggressive stance on overseas sales. Northridge, who moved up from sales and marketing director at the start of the year, said initial overseas growth would focus on Benson & Hedges and Silk Cut expansion in Spain and Italy, Dorchester in Africa and increased sales in China. But he was cautious on naming acquisition targets or favoured regions after two failed moves last year for the French maker of Gauloises and Gitane cigarettes, Seita , and a bid for the European business of RJR International. Gallaher has lagged its UK arch rival Imperial Tobacco Group Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: IMT.L) in expanding abroad to counter the steep annual ten percent fall in the duty paid UK cigarette market which has resulted in Imperial shares been given a higher rating. Gallaher earns 82.6 percent of its cigarette profits from the decling duty-paid UK market, while Imperial, maker of Embassy and John Player, says 39 percent of its profits are earned abroad and aims for a 50 percent share very soon. Northridge said its overseas cigarette volumes slipped 14.8 percent in the year, but stripping out the troubled market in the Commonwealth of Independent States of the former Soviet Union and its contracts with tobacco group British American Tobacco (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L), then volumes were ahead 12.7 percent and profits up 10.6 percent. Gallaher's overseas expansion stumbled last November when it approached larger French rival Seita about a possible acquisition offer to prevent its merger with Spain's Tabacalera. The move failed and the French-Spanish producer Altadis was created in late 1999. In the same year, Gallaher teamed up with Marlboro-maker Philip Morris to pursue RJR International, but the two were outbid by Japan Tobacco . In the UK, Gallaher's profits rose 7.2 percent helped by the acquisition of RJR UK's business and increased its market share one point to 40 percent to lead Imperial's 38 percent. But the total duty paid cigarette market continued to decline due to smuggling, and downtrading to cheaper brands continued. Northridge estimates smuggling acounts for 20-25 percent of UK consumption, with hefty UK duty meaning a 20-pack of its Benson & Hedges sells at 3.92 pounds compared to 1.75 in France. Gallaher continues to lobby the UK government ahead of the this month's financial budget against pursuing its policy to raise cigarette taxes by the inflation rate plus five percent which is aimed at discouraging smoking on health grounds. Gallaher was demerged from U.S. group Fortune Brands Inc in May 1997 and listed on the London Stock Exchange, but slipped out of the blue chip FTSE 100 index in March 1999. ($1 equals .6327 Pound) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 2 18:09:55 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 99F8F21B8D for ; Thu, 2 Mar 2000 18:09:55 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA06921 for ; Thu, 2 Mar 2000 18:09:55 -0500 Date: Thu, 2 Mar 2000 18:09:55 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ontario Sues Group Of Tobacco Companies (fwd) Ontario Sues Group Of Tobacco Companies Source: Reuters, Thursday, 3/2/00 NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Government of Ontario filed a racketeering suit against an international group of major tobacco companies to recoup tobacco-related health care costs, according to court papers made public Thursday. The civil suit, filed late Wednesday in Manhattan federal court, alleged the companies were members of an international tobacco industry conspiracy and constitute a substantial portion of the international tobacco industry. The suit alleged the goal of the conspiracy was to, ``ensure a market for their hazardous products -- cigarettes.'' It alleged the conspiracy was led by U.S. tobacco companies working in large part through their lawyers and the scheme operated in the United States, Canada, Germany, Britain and Switzerland. The suit was brought on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Ontario through the Minister of Health and Long Term Care. Among the long list of defendants in the case are: Imperial Tobacco Plc, British American Tobacco, Philip Morris Cos Inc. , R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. (NYSE:RJR - news), Japan Tobacco Inc. , Brooke Group Ltd Lorillard Tobacco Co., Loews Corp. (NYSE:LTR - news), the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers Council and the Council for Tobacco Research. The suit alleged the defendants hid and manipulated information about the hazards of smoking and the addictive nature of nicotine. It alleges a conspiracy, ``of such scope and duration that it is truly unique in the annals of American jurisprudence. It constituted a scheme to defraud and cheat that lasted almost half a century and spread its shadow over North America and Europe. ``The conduct of the defendants was inconsistent with moral uprightness, fundamental honesty, fair play and right dealing to the general and business life of members of society.'' From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 2 18:16:08 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 112AE21B8D for ; Thu, 2 Mar 2000 18:16:08 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA07177 for ; Thu, 2 Mar 2000 18:16:07 -0500 Date: Thu, 2 Mar 2000 18:16:07 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Big Tobacco Gives Generousy in Australia (fwd) March 1, 2000 Sydney Morning Herald Parties push tobacco firms for funds By MARK METHERELL in Canberra Australia's political parties yesterday confirmed they actively sought donations from the tobacco industry, which is under renewed scrutiny over the tax breaks it receives for research and development. Latest available Australian Electoral Commission figures show the two big cigarette corporations gave a total of $245,000 in the 1998-99 financial year to the Coalition and Labor parties. Senior Liberal and Labor officials yesterday admitted they sought donations from the industry. The Opposition Leader, Mr Beazley, has signalled a Labor government would scrap tax concessions for tobacco industry research and development. This came after the Australian Medical Association revealed that tax breaks of nearly $500,000 a year helped support tobacco industry research and development into areas including the production of high-tar cigarettes for the African market. The Minister for Industry, Senator Minchin, has fiercely supported the concessions; the Minister for Health, Dr Wooldridge, has refused to comment. But Dr Wooldridge has previously distanced himself from a Liberal Party decision to accept the Philip Morris company's sponsorship of a business dinner at the party's 1998 Federal convention. "I think tobacco is the single biggest cause of illness in the community and tobacco sponsorship is not something I like personally," Dr Wooldridge said. A spokesman for British American Tobacco Australasia, Mr Brendan Brady, told the Herald yesterday his company often received requests from Liberal and Labor officials for financial support, particularly for election campaigns. A spokesman for Philip Morris, Mr Eric Windholz, said there was "ongoing dialogue" with the political parties at which the issue of party funding arose. He said this did not mean party officials made a "crude ... give-us-money" approach. Both spokesmen denied the companies contributed generously so as to extract favourable treatment. As organisations that generated $4 billion in tax revenues a year, they wanted to play the role expected of any big industry in relations with the Government and politics, they said. The executive director of the Liberal Party, Mr Lynton Crosby, said his party contacted many big Australian companies and individuals, including the cigarette manufacturers: "These are legal companies which employ thousands of Australians. If they want to make a contribution ... they are entitled to do so." The outgoing national secretary of the ALP, Mr Gary Gray, said "of course" the party approached the industry. "We ask for donations from 700 organisations." According to electoral commission figures for the last financial year, British America Tobacco gave $61,000 to State and Federal ALP branchesand slightly less to the Coalition parties - $55,000. Philip Morris's donations were weighted towards the Coalition: $62,800 went to the Liberal Party and $25,000 to the Nationals. The ALP received $41,510. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Mar 6 14:16:16 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 7889021B02 for ; Mon, 6 Mar 2000 14:16:16 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA32096 for ; Mon, 6 Mar 2000 14:16:16 -0500 Date: Mon, 6 Mar 2000 14:16:15 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Globalink's European News bulletin 6 March 2000 (fwd) !# --------------------------------- !# GLOBALink Tobacco - Weekly European News Bulletin !# --------------------------------- EUROPEAN BULLETIN EU0009 =96 6 March 2000 Headlines DENMARK: BAT sells subsidiary FINLAND: Update on Tobacco Act FINLAND: Smoking ban in Joensuu? GERMANY: Revenues from tobacco tax in 1999 ISRAEL: Benizri to ban smoking in hospitals SWEDEN: No ban on tobacco related ads UZBEKISTAN: Rise in exports of Uzbeck cigarettes INTERNATIONAL HONG KONG: Tobacco control office may be set up JAPAN: JAL and ANA tighten smoking rule in airplanes JAPAN: Government revises tobacco policy after industry pressure DENMARK: BAT sells subsidiary British American Tobacco (BAT) is to sell off its businesses in Denmark to the Danish group Skandinavisk Tobakskompagni. The sell-off includes the tobacco manufacturing plant Alfred & Christian Petersen and the pipe producer Stanwell. These companies will in future be part of Skandinavisk Tobak's subsidiaries Orlik Tobacco Company and Nordisk Tobaks Kompagni respectively. Source: Borsen (BSN) via the Gale Group, 11 Feb 2000 FINLAND: Update on Tobacco Act Matti Rautalahti of the Cancer Society of Finland sent the following news: "As many of you already know, Finland has recently renewed the national Tobacco Act, originally enacted in 1976. The latest amendments will be implemented gradually. The main changes are: 1. Restaurants have to reserve 30% of the seats to non-smokers and that proportion has to increase to 50% by July 2001. Small restaurants (less tha= n 50 sq.m) are excluded. Smoking at bar counters is prohibited if the bar tender can not be protected from smoke exposure. 2. Ambient tobacco smoke is classified as a carcinogen. This means, among other things, that all employees exposed to tobacco smoke (mostly restauran= t workers) have to be registered and their health monitored. 3. The retailers of tobacco products have to draw up and implement a plan t= o prevent sales of tobacco products and smoking accessories to persons under the age of eighteen. (The sale of tobacco products to persons under 18 was already prohibited.)" Correspondence from :Matti Rautalahti, Ylil=E4=E4k=E4ri - Chief Medical Off= icer Suomen Sy=F6p=E4yhdistys - Cancer Society of Finland Liisankatu 21 B, PL 169, 00171 Helsinki, Finland Tel. +358-9-135 33 237; Fax. +358-9-135 1093 e-mail: matti.rautalahti@cancer.fi FINLAND: Smoking ban in Joensuu? The Finnish town of Joensuu is considering banning smoking at events, such as rock festivals. Town board member Pertti Ahtiainen has initiated a "Smoke-free Joensuu" project which includes an idea of banning smoking at indoor events supported or arranged by the town. Ahtiainen suspects that rumours of banning smoking at festivals has been circulated in order to mak= e the idea sound ridiculous. According to professor Pekka Puska of the National Public Health Institute, bans will become more common. The most important thing is to ban smoking indoors where it disturbs non-smoking people. Source: Ilta-Sanomat (XFH) via the Gale Group, 14 Feb 2000 p.A8-A9 GERMANY: Revenues from tobacco tax in 1999 In Germany, revenues from the tobacco tax amounted to around DM 22.8bn in 1999, up DM 1.159bn from 1998. The increase was due to the end of the duty free trade, a moderate price increase for factory cigarettes and stocking u= p purchases on the occasion of the millennium. The latter factor accounted fo= r an estimated increase in revenues from the tobacco tax of DM 650mn. The number of taxed cigars and cigarillos climbed by 14.9% to around 2.29bn while that of taxed cigarettes rose by 5% to around 145.3bn in 1999. The amount of taxed fine cut tobacco increased by 4.4% to 12,682.2 t while that of taxed pipe tobacco decreased by 2% to 983.2 t. The amount of fine cut rolls for which tax was paid plummeted by 49.5% to 1,313.9 t. Germany's market for tobacco products had a volume of DM 41.2bn in 1999, of which the tobacco tax accounted for DM 22.8bn and the value added tax for DM 5.68bn. Source: Die Tabak Zeitung (TZ) via The Gale Group, 21 Jan 2000 p.1 ISRAEL: Benizri to ban smoking in hospitals The Health Minister, Mr. Shlomo Benizri, has decided to issue regulations banning smoking throughout all hospitals. These will effectively eliminate hospital "smoking corners" - which have not been effective in protecting non-smokers and have set a bad example to patients. In order to become smoke free, all the hospitals will soon be instructed by the minister to use hospital guards for handing out fines to violators - NI= S 250 for the first offence and more for subsequent offences. The minister=92s chief aide in charge of anti-smoking activities, Amos Danieli, said the activity will not make profits for the hospitals, but it will improve the atmosphere, both literally and figuratively. According to the law dealing with smoking in the workplace, any employer ma= y either bar smoking entirely in the workplace or allow it in closed, well-aired smoking corners. But in many cases, these corners have been open and poorly ventilated, disturbing and endangering non-smokers. Benizri=92s decision is apparently justified by a new survey of 428 employe= es of Meir Hospital in Kfar Sava, which found that hospital workers are "ripe" for the establishment of smoke-free medical institutions. Over a third of the Meir staff said a smoke-free hospital policy could be adopted, and only 19% said it would be impossible. Eighty-six percent of al= l employees and 41% of the smokers among them advocated strict enforcement of laws restricting smoking in workplaces, while two-thirds of all staffers said they would be ready to wear a "Smoke-Free Supporter" button on their uniform and point out to smokers that they were violating regulations. Source: Jerusalem Post, 29/2/00 SWEDEN: No ban on tobacco related ads The proposed law against all explicit and indirect advertisements for tobacco has been stopped by the Supreme Court=92s judicial council (LagrVde= t). The council says if such ads are to be banned, the constitution must be changed first, as the law is not compatible with the freedom of press and speech. The proposed law would have stopped the marketing of goods carrying the same brand names as cigarettes, for example Marlboro Country and Camel Boots. Source: Dagens Industri (DI) The Gale Group, 15 Feb 2000 UZBEKISTAN: Rise in exports of Uzbeck cigarettes An official on the Board of an Uzbek-British joint venture of the British American Tobacco Co. told Itar-Tass that about 2,000 million Uzbekistan-produced cigarettes are to be exported this year. Last year the company exported more than 1,000 million cigarettes worth 5,000 USD to ten countries. The British company is one of major investors to the Uzbek economy. Its equity share in the joint venture charter capital is 97 percent. The overall cost of the project is US$ 292 million, with US$ 247 million being already used. Of this sum, US$ 100 million was spent on building a tobacco factory in Samarkand. The full rated capacity of the factory is 12,000 million cigarettes a year. Source: 29/2/00 Itar-Tass via NewsEdge Corporation INTERNATIONAL HONG KONG: Tobacco control office may be set up The Health and Welfare Department is considering setting up a Tobacco Control Office. The office would consist of an inspection team which could help prosecute smokers who smoke in restricted areas such as restaurants an= d shopping malls. A legislator from the medical sector has supported the setting up of such an office. The office should have some education purpose= s and prosecution powers. According to the Smoking (Public) (Amendment) Ordinance effective from 1 July in 1998, people are banned from smoking in shopping malls, department stores, supermarkets and convenience stores. Restaurants with over 200 seats should reserve not less than one third of their places for non-smokers. People who smoke in restricted areas would face a fine of HK$ 5,000. Source: Sing Tao Daily (XKL) via The Gale Group, 13 Feb 2000 p.a3 JAPAN: AL and ANA tighten smoking rule in airplanes According to a Japanese report, ANA and JAL airlines will blacklist some passengers who continue to smoke in cabins after being warned by flight attendants. Source: Oriental Daily (ATX) 10 Feb 2000 JAPAN: Government revises tobacco policy after industry pressure After announcing various targets for reducing tobacco consumption, the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare has decided to weaken these targets= =2E This resulted from strong opposition from the tobacco industry including Japan Tobacco Inc. Under the new targets, the Government is still aiming for zero prevalence o= f smoking among minors by 2010 but the target to halve per capita cigarette consumption has now been reduced. To keep face and still heed the target of cutting cigarette consumption, the ministry has decided to set up support groups for those who want to quit or cut down their consumption. Source: Nikkei Net Interactive (ATM) via The Gale Group, 11 Feb 2000 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 8 12:15:41 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 60CE521B05 for ; Wed, 8 Mar 2000 12:15:41 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA15094 for ; Wed, 8 Mar 2000 12:15:40 -0500 Date: Wed, 8 Mar 2000 12:15:40 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT 1999 results (fwd) British American Tobacco Preliminary Announcement -- Year Ended 31 December 1999 LONDON, March 7 /PRNewswire/ -- The following was issued today by British American Tobacco: SUMMARY 1999 1998 Change Operating profit pre-exceptionals 2,022m pounds 1,550m pounds +30% Pre-tax profit 1,371m pounds 738m pounds +86% Adjusted earnings per share 52.33p 46.12p +13% Dividends per share 26.20p 24.00p + 9% * Adjusted earnings per share (on a fully diluted basis), probably the best indicator of true improvement, were 13 per cent higher at 52.33p. * Operating profit was 30 per cent higher at 2,022 million pounds, excluding goodwill amortisation and exceptional items, and benefited from the inclusion of seven months results for Rothmans combined with a good underlying performance. * Group volumes increased by 5 per cent to 753 billion. Excluding the impact of the merger, volumes declined by 9 per cent, a similar position to our major international competitors. * Progress on the integration of the Rothmans operations has been excellent. The merger has improved the geographical balance of the Group and resulted in the Group having a 15.4 per cent share of the world market. * The Board is recommending a final dividend of 17.9p, up 12 per cent, which will be paid on 3 May 2000. This will take the growth in dividends for the year to 9 per cent, which is in line with our policy of paying out at least 50 per cent of sustainable earnings. * The Chairman, Martin Broughton, commented that "As a result of the Rothmans merger, we made a major advance in 1999. We also succeeded in managing the business on strategy in a difficult environment, a task made more complex by the merger. We are disappointed that the real progress we have made has not been reflected in our share price." SOURCE British American Tobacco Tue, 07 Mar 2000, 5:57pm EST British American Tobacco Posts 4th-Quarter Profit After Rothmans Purchase By Anne Brockhoff BAT Posts 4th-Quarter Profit After Rothmans Purchase (Update4) (Closes shares in fifth paragraph.) London, March 7 (Bloomberg) -- British American Tobacco Plc, the world's No. 2 tobacco company, indicated a return to profit in the fourth quarter on a 37 percent jump in sales after adding Rothmans International SA's Dunhill and other cigarette brands. Net income came to 77 million pounds ($121 million), or 2.3 pence a share, in the fourth quarter, after U.S. tobacco settlement costs brought a loss of 177 million pounds, or 11.4p, a year earlier. The figures are based on subtraction of full-year from nine-month profit. The maker of Lucky Strike cigarettes bought Rothmans last year to boost its global market share to about 15.4 percent, just shy of the 17 percent held by Philip Morris Cos., maker of the Marlboro brand. BAT also benefited from the absence of major costs for litigation in the last quarter of 1999, though several remaining lawsuits threaten future earnings, analysts said. ``The results are slightly better than expected,'' said Jonathan Fell, an analyst at Merrill Lynch & Co. who has a ``buy'' rating on the stock. ``Until we get more clarity on (lawsuits), there's not much the company can do.'' BAT shares fell 13.25 pence, or 4.8 percent, to 261p. The stock is down 54 percent from a year ago, cutting its market value to about 5.8 billion pounds. Philip Morris, which also owns food companies, is worth about $46 billion. Another Rothmans? To lift BAT's share price, which trades at 11 times its earnings, a share buy-back program ``remains on the agenda,'' Chairman Martin Broughton said. Acquisitions may be another way of increasing the industry's profitability. ``I don't think we'll need another Rothmans in two years, but further concentration is likely to happen,'' Broughton said. Mergers between European companies may take a long time as they would face obstacles from European Union officials, he said. Future earnings are threatened by 537 outstanding tobacco litigation cases, though that's down from 678 cases last year. BAT's U.S. subsidiary Brown & Williamson, Philip Morris and other cigarette makers lost a court appeal aimed at letting the companies inform investors about the progress of a Florida class- action suit over smoking-related illnesses. The trial over the smokers' allegations is now in the damages phases, with plaintiffs asking a Miami jury to award potentially hundreds of billions of dollars. Brown & Williamson does not plan to settle and a verdict is expected in three weeks, BAT said. Over-Concerned Analysts ``Litigation is a cost built into the margins,'' Broughton said. Analysts ``are over concerned about litigation. We have seen a decline in the number of cases against us.'' The number of dismissed cases against BAT rose to 254 in 1999, compared with 170 in 1998, the company said. BAT said 1999 net income rose to 556 million pounds, or 27.02 pence a share, from 346 million pounds, or 21.98p. The company said it will pay a full-year dividend of 26.2 pence a share, compared with 24.0p a year earlier. Excluding one-time gains and charges and goodwill, earnings per share rose to 52.33p from 46.12p, more than the 47.5 pence forecast by a Bloomberg survey of six analysts. Rothmans lifted the volume of cigarettes sold in 1999 by 5 percent to 753 billion. Excluding Rothmans, BAT's volume declined by 9 percent. The company expects the number of cigarettes sold this year to be flat against last year's. Sales rose 24 percent to 21.6 billion pounds, compared with 17.3 billion pounds in 1998. Growth was particularly strong in Europe, where operating profit almost doubled to 316 million pounds after the Rothmans merger. Operating profit in the U.S., which accounts for more than a quarter of BAT's total operating profit, rose 1.6 percent to 544 million pounds. BAT expects to have reached 75 percent of the costs savings of 250 million pounds from the Rothmans purchase this year, Broughton said. Tuesday March 7, 3:20 am Eastern Time BAT shares light up as profits please LONDON, March 7 (Reuters) - British American Tobacco Plc shares lit up at the start of trade on Tuesday, rebounding from recent lows as profits topped analyst forecasts and synergies from its acquisition of Rothmans came in ahead of schedule. The stock -- which tumbled to eight year lows at one stage last month -- traded 15-3/4 pence or 5.7 percent higher at 290p by 0810 GMT, though volume was a thin 117,740 shares by that time. The stock has underperformed the UK stock market as a whole by 20 percent s= o far this year. BAT posted a rise in operating profits before exceptionals to 2.002 billion pounds compared with expectations mostly between 1.94 billion pounds and 1.96 billion, adding that progress on the integration of Rothmans had been excellent. ``It's a good set of numbers at the top end of the range of forecasts,'' said one market maker. Tuesday March 7, 2:16 pm Eastern Time FOCUS-BAT profits sparked up by Rothmans (Updates with share price close in paragraph three) By David Jones LONDON, March 7 (Reuters) - British American Tobacco Plc reported an 86 percent leap in annual pre-tax profits on Tuesday, fired up its takeover of Rothmans, and then painted a more optimistic global industry outlook for this year. BAT added its one-off charge for integrating the Rothmans business would be higher than first expected, but this meant the synergy cost savings from last year's deal would come earlier and possibly be greater than initially forecast. Its shares puffed higher to 292 pence as profits and the dividend payout came in above expectations and investors were encouraged by the added merger benefits. But the stock was later undermined by a weak overall London stock market and ended off 13-1/4p at 261p. The world's second largest cigarette company, which markets brands such as Lucky Strike, State Express 555 and now Rothmans, reported pre-tax 1999 profits of 1.371 billion pounds ($2.16 billion) after 738 million pounds a year earlier on turnover up 25 percent at 21.7 billion pounds. Underlying operating profits before exceptionals rose 30 percent to 2.002 billion pounds, above forecasts of 1.90-1.96 billion, while the final dividend was raised 12 percent to 17.9 pence a share to mak= e a year payout of 26.2p from 24p. ``The results were positive, but the risk of litigation overhangs the shares,'' said analyst Jonathan Fell at Merrill Lynch, who was looking to push his 2000 pre-tax profit forecast up four percent. BAT's results were boosted by a seven-month contribution from Rothmans, after a takeover deal last year to create a 13 billion pound global tobacco group last year, second only in size to Marlboro-maker Philip Morris Cos Inc (NYSE:MO - news). Chairman Martin Broughton said underlying 1999 profits, stripping out Rothmans, were up four percent, beating earlier flat predictions, and came despite a nine percent market volume fall in the U.S. due to sharp 60 percent price rises. Profits were boosted by a strong second half, after an eight percent first half decline, and it expects a better year in 2000 after the 1999 world cigarette market declined 2-3 percent due to economic difficulties and increases in excise taxes. ``Our best assumptions are that 2000 will come out of recession and the market will be flat against 1999, and this is being reflected in our trading in the first months of 2000,'' said BAT's managing director Ulrich Herter in a news conference. The group said its volumes rose five percent to 753 billion cigarette ``sticks.'' But excluding the merger, volumes were down nine percent, in line with major competitors such as Philip Morris, RJR Tobacco (NYSE:RJR - news) and Japan Tobacco . GREATER SYNERGIES FROM ROTHMANS He said Rothmans synergies would now likely be higher and come earlier than the 250 million pounds per year promised by end-2002. This had been achieved by a 1999 357 million pound restructuring charge over the deal, which means the planned 400 million charge over three years is set to be exceeded. Broughton complained despite a double digit 13 percent rise in earnings, th= e shares languished on a low rating after topping 670p when the company announced the Rothmans deal in January 1999. But he appeared to rule any share buy-backs in the short term, after BAT shares have underperformed the FTSE All Share index by 20.3 percent and UK tobacco stocks by 8.6 percent over the last 12 months. On U.S. litigation, Broughton said BAT remains confident that in the event of a loss in the so-called Engle class action, the companies involved will be able to appeal successfully and BAT U.S. unit Brown and Williamson had no intention of settling. ``Yes, litigation is a scare for investors, but we will win the Engle case. Litigation is an on-going cost and built into our margins,'' said Broughton, adding that BAT spent $140 million in U.S. litigation in 1999. This action is being heard in a Miami courtroom on behalf of 500,000 or mor= e sick smokers in Florida who are claiming punitive damages from U.S. cigarette makers as high as $200 billion. A six-person jury is looking to fix potentially massive damages in around three weeks time. ($1 equals .6358 Pound) BBC News Tuesday, 7 March, 2000, 08:24 GMT BAT profits nearly double Profits at British American Tobacco jumped 86% last year. The growth in profits at the world's second largest cigarette company was driven by its takeover of Rothmans last year. BAT markets brands such as Lucky Strike, State Express 555 and now Rothmans. Pre-tax profits hit =A31.37bn in 1999 compared with =A3738m in the previous year. The figure includes seven months trading at Rothmans cigarettes. Operating profits before exceptionals were =A32bn, compared with =A31.55bn in 1998, while the full-year dividend was 26.2p, compared with 24p earlier. Boosted by Rothmans takeover Last year's takeover of Rothmans created a global tobacco group, second in size only to Philip Morris, which makes Marlboro. "As a result of the Rothmans merger, we made a major advance in 1999," BAT chairman Martin Broughton said. But he expressed "disappointment" that its success has yet to be reflected in its share price. Its shares have underperformed the benchmark UK share index, the FTSE, by 20.3% in the past 12 months. On Monday, they closed at 274p after a setting a high of 675p in January 1999. Legal worries BAT chairman Martin Broughton admitted concern about the World Health Organisations's proposed Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. This convention aims to reduce the spread of smoking in new markets around the world and is a "potential threat" to its business. Many cigarette companies are pinning their hopes for future profits on developing countries, as the potential for growth in the Western world diminishes. Mr Broughton described the WHO move as a "developed world obsession being foisted on the developing world". He said there were encouraging signs that some countries were in favour of a broader convention rather than a binding treaty controlling the international tobacco business. BAT Posts 4th-Quarter Profit After Rothmans Purchase (Update4) By Anne Brockhoff BAT Posts 4th-Quarter Profit After Rothmans Purchase (Update4) (Closes shares in fifth paragraph.) London, March 7 (Bloomberg) -- British American Tobacco Plc, the world's No. 2 tobacco company, indicated a return to profit in the fourth quarter on a 37 percent jump in sales after adding Rothmans International SA's Dunhill and other cigarette brands. Net income came to 77 million pounds ($121 million), or 2.3 pence a share, in the fourth quarter, after U.S. tobacco settlement costs brought a loss of 177 million pounds, or 11.4p, a year earlier. The figures are based on subtraction of full-year from nine-month profit. The maker of Lucky Strike cigarettes bought Rothmans last year to boost its global market share to about 15.4 percent, just shy of the 17 percent held by Philip Morris Cos., maker of the Marlboro brand. BAT also benefited from the absence of major costs for litigation in the last quarter of 1999, though several remaining lawsuits threaten future earnings, analysts said. ``The results are slightly better than expected,'' said Jonathan Fell, an analyst at Merrill Lynch & Co. who has a ``buy'' rating on the stock. ``Until we get more clarity on (lawsuits), there's not much the company can do.'' BAT shares fell 13.25 pence, or 4.8 percent, to 261p. The stock is down 54 percent from a year ago, cutting its market value to about 5.8 billion pounds. Philip Morris, which also owns food companies, is worth about $46 billion. Another Rothmans? To lift BAT's share price, which trades at 11 times its earnings, a share buy-back program ``remains on the agenda,'' Chairman Martin Broughton said. Acquisitions may be another way of increasing the industry's profitability. ``I don't think we'll need another Rothmans in two years, but further concentration is likely to happen,'' Broughton said. Mergers between European companies may take a long time as they would face obstacles from European Union officials, he said. Future earnings are threatened by 537 outstanding tobacco litigation cases, though that's down from 678 cases last year. BAT's U.S. subsidiary Brown & Williamson, Philip Morris and other cigarette makers lost a court appeal aimed at letting the companies inform investors about the progress of a Florida class- action suit over smoking-related illnesses. The trial over the smokers' allegations is now in the damages phases, with plaintiffs asking a Miami jury to award potentially hundreds of billions of dollars. Brown & Williamson does not plan to settle and a verdict is expected in three weeks, BAT said. Over-Concerned Analysts ``Litigation is a cost built into the margins,'' Broughton said. Analysts ``are over concerned about litigation. We have seen a decline in the number of cases against us.'' The number of dismissed cases against BAT rose to 254 in 1999, compared with 170 in 1998, the company said. BAT said 1999 net income rose to 556 million pounds, or 27.02 pence a share, from 346 million pounds, or 21.98p. The company said it will pay a full-year dividend of 26.2 pence a share, compared with 24.0p a year earlier. Excluding one-time gains and charges and goodwill, earnings per share rose to 52.33p from 46.12p, more than the 47.5 pence forecast by a Bloomberg survey of six analysts. Rothmans lifted the volume of cigarettes sold in 1999 by 5 percent to 753 billion. Excluding Rothmans, BAT's volume declined by 9 percent. The company expects the number of cigarettes sold this year to be flat against last year's. Sales rose 24 percent to 21.6 billion pounds, compared with 17.3 billion pounds in 1998. Growth was particularly strong in Europe, where operating profit almost doubled to 316 million pounds after the Rothmans merger. Operating profit in the U.S., which accounts for more than a quarter of BAT's total operating profit, rose 1.6 percent to 544 million pounds. BAT expects to have reached 75 percent of the costs savings of 250 million pounds from the Rothmans purchase this year, Broughton said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 8 12:16:11 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id CA21E21B2F for ; Wed, 8 Mar 2000 12:16:11 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA15137 for ; Wed, 8 Mar 2000 12:16:11 -0500 Date: Wed, 8 Mar 2000 12:16:11 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Brand Stretching (fwd) Financial Times - Tuesday, March 7, 2000 Brands set to light up tobacco company sales Cigarette brands end up on the strangest things: there is Camel clothing, Dunhill eau de toilette and a Benson & Hedges caf=E9. But would anyone want to stay in a Marlboro hotel, even if it did offer non-smoking rooms? Ever since the health risks of smoking became known and cigarette sales started to slow, tobacco companies have had to face the inevitability of long-term decline for their brands. An early response was diversification into other business areas. In the US, Philip Morris bought Miller Brewing in 1970, then added General Foods in 1985 and Kraft in 1988. RJ Reynolds bought Nabisco Foods in 1984, forming RJR Nabisco. But would it make sense for tobacco companies to try another form of diversification: prolonging the life of their brands by extending them into other business areas, such as hotels, mobile telephones or publishing? Yesterday, Philip Morris said there was no substance to the suggestion it was considering the possibility of extending its Marlboro brand to hotel chains, mobile telephone companies or other enterprises. The company said its only contact with the UK branding consultancy C Eye, reported to have been discussing the idea with staff of Philip Morris's European headquarters, had been limited to one presentation "relating to the sale and distribution of our products". In other sectors, however, brand stretching is quite the fashion as companies turn from sweating their physical assets to sweating the value locked up in the famous names they own. Companies as diverse as Coca-Cola, Harley Davidson and Caterpillar have gone into the clothing business; Richard Branson has stretched his Virgin brand across an airline, a rail franchise, cosmetics, cinemas, financial services and mobile telephones; and Walt Disney has spread from cartoon films to publishing, theme parks, hotels and cruises. But branding experts caution that there are dangers in stretching a brand if it muddies the image of what the name stands for. Mr Branson can extend his brand because Virgin stands for his renegade, "we're-on-your-side" approach rather than a specific product or service. And Disney's operations are united by the idea of family entertainment. Clothing is a fairly common brand extension because it allows the product's fans to wear the brand, in much the same way as people buy souvenir T-shirts. So Philip Morris's Marlboro and RJR's Camel brands both appear on clothing - although no longer in the US, where such merchandise is banned. Whether cigarette brands would stretch beyond clothing is less clear. As Martin Feldman, an analyst at Salomon Smith Barney, points out, extending cigarette brands to any products would be difficult in the current regulatory environment. Nor are the precedents very inspiring. The Dunhill brand was extended from luxury goods to cigarettes, not the other way around. And the B&H Bistros in Malaysia were more a way of circumventing an advertising ban than a genuine business enterprise. Interbrand, the branding consultancy that last year valued the Marlboro name at $21bn, said Marlboro stood for the frontier spirit of the American west, and there would be dangers in extending the brand to anything unrelated to the idea of adventure. "The moment a brand starts confusing its audience with what it stands for, people lose interest and move on to another brand," said John Grace, executive director. "In other words, if they used it to sell riding equipment, saddles and lassoes, then fine. But if they used it to sell diapers, you'd say that doesn't have anything to do with the Marlboro name." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 8 12:30:14 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1F55521B05 for ; Wed, 8 Mar 2000 12:30:13 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA15747 for ; Wed, 8 Mar 2000 12:30:13 -0500 Date: Wed, 8 Mar 2000 12:30:13 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Irish govt gets tough on smoking to help children (fwd) Irish govt gets tough on smoking to help children Source: Fox News, Tuesday, 3/7/00 4:58 p.m. ET (2158 GMT) March 7, 2000 =09 DUBLIN, March 7 =97 The Irish government said on Tuesday it planned to get tough on smoking, outlawing the sale of cigarettes to under-18s and controlling the sale and advertising of tobacco products. =09 Among a raft of measures aimed primarily at stopping children smoking, Health Minister Michael Martin said he planned to ban packet sizes of less than 20 cigarettes, which many believe are attractive to under-age smokers. =09 "We're developing strong proposals in terms of raising the age limit and raising fines for those caught selling cigarettes to those under that age,'' Martin said. =09 Currently, cigarettes can be sold to anyone above the age of 16 in Ireland, the minister said. =09 Martin said the government planned to keep cigarette prices high and would outlaw tobacco advertising and sports sponsorship from July in line with European Union directives. =09 The announcement came amid mounting concern in Ireland about the cost of smoking to the national health service and the number of children addicted to tobacco. =09 "We need to rescue the children. We need to prevent them from starting and help them if they have already started,'' Martin said before presenting the proposals to parliament. =09 In his last budget, Finance Minister Charlie McCreevy slapped a 50 pence ($0.61) tax rise on each pack of cigarettes. =09 Martin rejected suggestions the government was prepared to collude with the tobacco industry because of the contribution cigarette taxes made to state coffers. =09 The proposals were welcomed by anti-smoking pressure group ASH, which called them a new departure for Ireland. =09 "If it's resourced properly and he puts the resources behind the legislation, we are seeing the beginning of the end of tobacco addiction in children,'' an ASH spokesman said. =09 Wednesday is Ash Wednesday in Ireland and also the country's National No Smoking Day. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 9 11:37:14 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E87E621B05 for ; Thu, 9 Mar 2000 11:37:13 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA06157 for ; Thu, 9 Mar 2000 11:37:13 -0500 Date: Thu, 9 Mar 2000 11:37:13 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT year end statement Below follows the first part of BAT's year end statement. The second section is sent in a subsequent message. There will be some problem with formatting of charts in this, for which I apologize. Robert Weissman Essential Information=09=09=09| Internet:=09rob@essential.org PRELIMINARY ANNOUNCEMENT - YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 1999 SUMMARY =09=09=09=09=091999 =091998 =09Change =20 Operating profit pre-exceptionals =09=A32,022m =A31,550m =09+30% =20 Pre-tax profit =09=09=09=09=A31,371m =09=A3738m =09+86% =20 Adjusted earnings per=20 share =09=09=09=09=0952.33p =0946.12p =09+13% =20 Dividends per share =09=09=0926.20p =0924.00p =09+9% =09Adjusted earnings per share (on a fully diluted basis), probably the best indicator of true improvement, were 13 per cent higher at 52.33p. =09Operating profit was 30 per cent higher at =A32,022 million, excluding goodwill amortisation and exceptional items, and benefited from the inclusion of seven months results for Rothmans combined with a good underlying performance. =09Group volumes increased by 5 per cent to 753 billion. Excluding the impact of the merger, volumes declined by 9 per cent, a similar position to our major international competitors. =09Progress on the integration of the Rothmans operations has been excellent. The merger has improved the geographical balance of the Group and resulted in the Group having a 15.4 per cent share of the world market. =09The Board is recommending a final dividend of 17.9p, up 12 per cent, which will be paid on 3=86May 2000. This will take the growth in dividends for the year to 9 per cent, which is in line with our policy of paying out at least 50 per cent of sustainable earnings. =09The Chairman, Martin Broughton, commented that =ECAs a result of the Rothmans merger, we made a major advance in 1999. We also succeeded in managing the business on strategy in a difficult environment, a task made more complex by the merger. We are disappointed that the real progress we have made has not been reflected in our share price.=EE ENQUIRIES: INVESTOR RELATIONS: PRESS OFFICE: Ralph Edmondson 020 7845 1180 Fran Morrison/David Betteridge/ Denise Hart 020 7845 1191 Jody Humble 020 7845 2888 BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO plc PRELIMINARY ANNOUNCEMENT - YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 1999 INDEX PAGE Chairman's statement 2-4 Business review 5-7 Dividends 8 Group profit and loss account 9 Statement of total recognised gains and losses 10 Interest of British American Tobacco=EDs shareholders 10 Segmental analyses 11 Quarterly analyses of profit 12-13 Group balance sheet 14 Group cash flow statement 15 Accounting policies and basis of preparation 16 Rothmans International 16 Exchange rate effects 17 Exceptional items 17 Sale of brands 17 Demerger and restructuring costs 18 Interest and interest cover 18 Taxation 18 Earnings per share 19 Group reserves 19 Cash flow 20 Contingent Liabilities 20 Post balance sheet event - Imasco 22 Annual report and accounts 22 CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT 2. As a result of the Rothmans merger, we made a major advance in 1999. We also succeeded in managing the business on strategy in a difficult environment, a task made more complex by the merger. We are disappointed that the real progress we have made has not been reflected in our share price. The Group's operating profit before exceptional items grew by 30=86per cent to =A32,022 million, reflecting seven months' benefit from the merger with Rothmans, combined with a good underlying performance. Pre-tax profit rose 86 per cent to =A31,371 million, while adjusted fully diluted earnings per share, probably the best indication of the true improvement, advanced by 13 per cent to 52.3p. Your Board is recommending a final dividend of 17.9p per share, payable on 3 May. This will take the total dividend growth for the year to 9 per cent, in line with our policy of paying out at least 50 per cent of sustainable earnings. The major strategic achievements were plainly the Rothmans merger and the highly complex acquisition of our Canadian associate company, Imasco, including the subsequent sale of its non tobacco businesses on a tax efficient basis. The transaction, which will enable us to integrate Imperial Tobacco of Canada into our operations, was completed in February 2000 and it will materially improve our cash flow this year. Complexity was also a feature of the Rothmans merger, especially when it=20 came to securing regulatory approval with limited disposals and undertaking= =20 corporate restructurings in a number of key markets. The outcome was bette= r=20 than we expected when we announced the merger, except in Canada where the= =20 forced sale of the Rothmans business reflected the exceedingly depressed=20 level of tobacco assets. The anticipated =A3250 million of synergies per= =20 annum will be achieved ahead of schedule. I should like to take this opportunity to welcome Bill Ryan, as Deputy=20 Managing Director, and Johann Rupert and Jan du Plessis, as non executives,= =20 to the Main Board, where their experience is proving invaluable. We also= =20 welcome Tony Jones and Chris Bischoff to the Management Board. For the tobacco industry, a difficult environment does not, of course,=20 confine itself to the trading conditions covered in the Business Review. = =20 Our two principal legal and regulatory concerns at the moment are the three= =20 phase Engle class action in Florida and the World Health Organization's=20 Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). Chairman's statement....=093. The latter is a potential threat, despite the fact that it represents a=20 developed world obsession being foisted on to the developing world. There= =20 are, however, encouraging signs that some significant countries are in=20 favour of a broad convention, allowing governments to take account of their= =20 own circumstances, rather than a binding treaty. We have been analysing the potential impact of the FCTC and believe that it= =20 has fundamental flaws. In particular, the proposals conflict with the=20 established principles of good public policy formation and risk undermining= =20 governments=ED sovereignty over tobacco regulations and excise. Because of the way the Engle class action is being run by the Judge, who is= =20 himself a member of the class, investors expect a headline-grabbing punitiv= e=20 damages award in the next month or so and this has affected the share price= =2E=20 We are confident that, in the event of a loss, the companies involved wil= l=20 be able to appeal successfully, without having to post a bond. Despite the= =20 blatant pressure applied by the Judge, Brown & Williamson has no intention= =20 of settling. It is also worth stressing that Engle is really something of an exception= =20 as, elsewhere on the litigation front, class actions and medical=20 reimbursement cases are consistently being dismissed, despite increasingly= =20 novel claims being filed, not least by the US Federal Government. In terms of creativity, pride of place in a crowded field probably goes to= =20 the US plaintiffs=ED lawyers who have been able to persuade various Latin= =20 American countries and states, as well as Thailand, to sue the tobacco=20 industry in the US, rather than in their own courts. The Guatemala and=20 Thailand cases have already been dismissed and we expect the others to=20 follow suit. The pressure from regulators and governments who, it must be remembered,=20 make over 10 times as much from the sale of cigarettes as we do, seems set= =20 to continue. As this new century begins, we are determined to find a=20 constructive way forward, instead of remaining trapped with them in the=20 sterile arguments of the past. We have, for example, recently presented the UK Government with a coherent= =20 set of proposals called "partnership for change". Chairman's statement....=094. In a further initiative to improve our ability to communicate directly with= =20 all our stakeholders, our Annual Review's publication will coincide with th= e=20 launch of our website. On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank our management teams and=20 employees, around the world and at our headquarters here in the UK, for=20 their unstinting efforts during a momentous year in the Company's=20 development. The way that so many people have risen to additional=20 challenges is an impressive tribute to their commitment. While we recognise that traditional businesses are currently out of favour= =20 with the stock market, our task for 2000 is to work on ensuring that the=20 value we are building for shareholders is actually reflected in the value o= f=20 our shares. Apart from market share and financial growth targets, our=20 broader objectives include continuing to build on the success of the=20 Rothmans merger, starting to capitalise on the benefits that e-commerce can= =20 offer and making progress in becoming recognised as a responsible company i= n=20 an industry seen as controversial. MARTIN BROUGHTON BUSINESS REVIEW=095. The improved geographical balance of our businesses is reflected by the fac= t=20 that the Group has the leadership position in over 50 countries around the= =20 world. Throughout the integration of Rothmans into the business, we have= =20 remained focused on achieving global leadership of the tobacco business by= =20 developing brands and growing strong positions in the premium and lights=20 segments. Operating profit, before goodwill amortisation and exceptional items, was 3= 1=20 per cent higher in local currency as a result of the inclusion of Rothmans= =20 since June 1999. On a pre-merger basis, profit is estimated to be around 4= =20 per cent higher than last year. Profit in the fourth quarter, before exceptional items, was 101=86per cent= =20 higher than the comparable period last year. This increase reflects the=20 contribution from Rothmans, cost reduction initiatives and last year being= =20 affected by the one-off cost of factory closures. Group volumes increased by 5 per cent. Excluding Rothmans, Group volumes= =20 declined by 9 per cent, in line with our major international competitors. Operating Profit from the America-Pacific Region was =A3544=86million, an= =20 increase of =A39 million from 1998. These figures exclude the initial=20 payments and liquidated legal fees on the US tobacco settlements. Total=20 volume for 1999 was 11 per cent lower than 1998, due to conditions in the U= S=20 market. US domestic market contribution, before reduced common overheads of=20 =A3259=86million, was =A3601 million, a fall of 7 per cent compared to 1998= =2E This=20 decrease is attributable to lower volumes, partially offset by higher=20 pricing net of settlement costs. Total industry shipments for the year declined 9 per cent due to trade=20 inventory adjustment, the emergence of grey market product and list price= =20 increases in excess of 60 per cent. Brown & Williamson=EDs volume fell 13= =20 billion units to 56 billion and overall market share slipped to 13.4 per=20 cent. This was principally due to GPC, which was affected by the rise in= =20 grey market brands, preferential treatment allowed to certain small=20 manufacturers under the MSA agreement and aggressive competitive=20 discounting. Although Kool's market share was slightly down, image buildin= g=20 programmes did register sizeable share gains in specific segments, while=20 Lucky Strike Filters and Lights distribution was expanded. In the premium= =20 sector, Capri slightly increased its share of the market and Carlton's=20 repositioning has helped slow its share decline. The Group's operations in Japan show higher sales volumes in a reduced tota= l=20 market. The Group=EDs market share rose to 7.4 per cent, with further grow= th=20 from Kent and Kool. Despite the 23 per cent increased contribution in loca= l=20 currency, the contribution in US dollars decreased slightly due to the=20 unfavourable US$/Yen exchange rates. Business review.....=09=096. In Asia-Pacific, profits rose to =A3257 million, reflecting the merger with= =20 Rothmans as a result of which the Group now has a much stronger balance of= =20 businesses. The merger has also created significant opportunities for=20 synergy benefits in the region. Actions to secure these savings, through=20 factory rationalisation and distribution changes, are now well underway=20 following corporate restructurings in Malaysia, Singapore, Australasia, and= =20 Indonesia. The Australasian markets showed strong profit growth (excluding the diveste= d=20 brands as described on page 17), driven by cost control and improved=20 margins. Following the excise change in November, market share in Australi= a=20 increased as a result of the strength of Benson & Hedges, Winfield, and=20 Dunhill. In Malaysia, improvements in financial performance were constrained by lowe= r=20 total market volume, market penetration by kreteks and excise increases in= =20 1998. Indonesia continued the good performance in difficult market=20 conditions, despite excise tax changes that reduced margins, with volumes= =20 and profits well up. Profits in Singapore increased following the closure= =20 of the factory in 1998. Vietnam has seen strong growth in Craven =EBA=ED vo= lume. On a comparable basis, regional volumes were 9 per cent lower at 85 billion= ,=20 principally due to weak export volumes impacted by macro-economic condition= s=20 and a significant increase in counterfeit products. In Latin America, profit was slightly higher at =A3333 million, if the bene= fit=20 from the recovery of sales tax of =A374 million in Brazil is excluded from = the=20 comparative figures. Despite the difficult economic situation in Latin=20 America, there were good performances in Mexico, Venezuela, Central America= =20 and the Caribbean. The regional volumes decreased by 15 per cent to 167=20 billion, due mainly to the lower exports from Brazil following the=20 introduction of a cigarette export tax. Souza Cruz maintained their share of the duty paid market in Brazil, with= =20 Free increasing its share, although smuggling and tax evasion posed a=20 growing threat. However, despite good performances from the leaf business= =20 and cost reduction initiatives, profit for the year was lower as export=20 volumes fell significantly. In Venezuela and Central America, profits rose as a result of price=20 increases and cost savings, with volume growth in Venezuela. Despite the= =20 slight decrease in our market share in Mexico due to aggressive competitor= =20 activities, profits were helped by price rises, cost savings and firmer=20 exchange rates. In Chile, profits were severely impacted by swingeing=20 excise increases that resulted in downtrading, as well as lower leaf export= =20 volumes, while profits in Argentina were affected by the strong recession. Business review.....=09=097. In Europe, the regional profit for the enlarged group almost doubled from= =20 =A3164 million to =A3316 million. The growth in profit is due to the merge= r=20 (including the smoking tobacco and cigars operations) and higher=20 contributions from Russia, Germany and Romania. These were partly offset b= y=20 the discontinuation of intra-EU Duty Free and the adverse affects of the=20 change in the local excise structure in Hungary and difficult trading=20 conditions in Ukraine and Poland. A step change was achieved in our competitive position in Europe where the= =20 reported volume grew 30 per cent to 171 billion. We increased volumes in=20 both the largest market in Eastern Europe, Russia, and the largest market i= n=20 Western Europe, Germany. In Russia, this was driven by significantly highe= r=20 sales of Yava Gold and Pall Mall and in Germany, Lucky Strike and Pall Mall= =2E=20 There were also improved volumes in Romania. However, these successes wer= e=20 offset by small declines in a number of other markets. In Amesca, total regional profit was =A3268 million, up =A3158=86million,= =20 benefiting from the merger and improved profits in India and South Africa.= =20 Group volumes grew to 214 billion cigarettes. On a comparable basis,=20 volumes were 6 per cent lower than last year largely due to civil war in th= e=20 Congo and some depressed economies in Africa and South Asia. In South Africa, profit grew despite a declining market, benefiting from=20 price increases and a reduction in costs. Benson & Hedges, Rothmans Special= =20 Mild and Peter Stuyvesant grew market share. In Uzbekistan, volumes were= =20 well ahead resulting in higher market share and profitability. In India,= =20 good profit growth was achieved from tobacco principally through a=20 combination of improved mix and price increases, although there was a loss= =20 on disposal of certain non-tobacco interests. The Middle East achieved profit growth with rising sales in the premium=20 sector of the market. In particular, results in Arabia were strong, as the= =20 sales mix improved with John Player Gold Leaf showing steady growth in=20 share. In Sri Lanka, excellent results were generated through a combinatio= n=20 of cost reductions, improved margins and the sale of the CTC Eagle insuranc= e=20 operations. Imasco in Canada, which was equity accounted in 1999, contributed =A3304=20 million to the Group profits, up 18 per cent in local currency. In the=20 tobacco business, profits rose 8 per cent to =A3149 million as a result of= =20 higher prices and cost efficiencies. In a slightly reduced total market, a= =20 higher market share was again achieved. The total profits from financial= =20 services increased by 25 per cent to =A3103 million. This is the result of= =20 the growth in revenues together with strong cost control and higher=20 productivity. Profit from other trading activities was substantially higher= =20 at =A352 million. Non-trading items These comprise goodwill amortisation and exceptional items which are=20 described on pages 16 and 17. DIVIDENDS=09=098. The Directors will be recommending to the shareholders at the Annual Genera= l=20 Meeting to be held on 27 April 2000 the payment on 3 May 2000 of a final=20 dividend for the year of 17.9p per ordinary share of 25p. Valid transfers received by the Registrar of the Company up to 17 March 200= 0=20 will be in time to rank for payment of this dividend. Ordinary shares go= =20 ex-dividend on 13=86March 2000. The following is a summary of the dividends declared for the years ended 31= =20 December 1999 and 1998, which also illustrates the acceleration in the=20 dividend payment dates. 1999 1998 Pence per pence per share =A3m share =A3m (a) On=20 ordinary shares: Interim - special 1999 paid 1 July 1999 4.0 = =20 62 - ordinary - 1999 paid 27 September 1999 4.3 94 - FID - 1998 paid 5 January 1999 8.0 125 Final 1999 payabl= e=20 3 May 2000 17.9 390 1998 paid 1 July 1999 16.0 252 =20 ----- --- ----- --- 26.2 546 24.0 377 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D = =3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =20 =3D=3D=3D (b) On convertible redeemable preference shares: Interim 1999 paid 27 September 1999 4.3 10 Final 1999 payable 3 May 2000 17.9 44 Amortisation of=20 discount 20 ----- --- 22.2 74 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D = =3D=3D=3D The amortisation of discount on preference shares reflects the difference= =20 between the share price at the date of the Rothmans transaction and the=20 redemption price in 2004, which is being amortised over the period to the= =20 redemption date. GROUP PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT=09=099. For the year ended 31 December 1999 1998 =A3m =A3m REVENUE Subsidiary undertakings 18= ,798=20 14,584 Share of associates 2,873 2,792 ------ ------ 21,671 17,376 = =20 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D PROFIT Subsidiary underta= kings 1,099 676 =20 after charging: US tobacco settlements* integration costs* goodwill amortisation* after crediting:sales tax recovery* (24) (357) (162) (613) 74 Share of associates and joint venture 380 335 ------ ------= =20 Total operating profit 1,479 1,011 Sale of brands 88 Demerger and= =20 restructuring costs (46) ------ ------ Profit on ordinary activities= =20 before interest 1,567 965 Net interest (170) (204) Share of=20 associates net interest (26) (23) ------ ------ Profit before=20 taxation 1,371 738 Taxation (673) (277) ------ ------ Profit=20 after taxation 698 461 Minority interests (142) (115) ------= =20 ------ Profit for the year 556 346 Dividends from demerged=20 businesses 123 Dividends and other appropriations (620) (377) =20 ------ ------ Retained profit (64) 92 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D Earnings per=20 share: Basic 25.25p 22.17p =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D = Adjusted=20 fully diluted 52.33p 46.12p =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D = * see notes on pages 16=20 and 17. STATEMENT OF TOTAL RECOGNISED GAINS AND LOSSES=0910. for the year ended 31 December 1999 1998 =A3m =A3m Profit for the year 556 346 =20 Differences on exchange (268) (69) ----- ----- Total recognised gains= =20 related to the year (below) 288 277 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D = =20 INTEREST OF BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO=EDS SHAREHOLDERS for the year en= ded=20 31 December 1999 1998 =A3m =A3m Balance 1 January 64 = (97) =20 Total recognised gains related to the year (above) 288 277 =20 Issue of shares: Share options Rothmans merger 3 5,089 42 Dividends from demerged businesses 123 Dividends= =20 and other appropriations: Ordinary shares (546) (377) Convertible= =20 redeemable preference shares (54) Amortisation of discount on=20 preference shares (20) Utilisation of ACT 96 Other (3) = =20 ----- ----- Balance 31 December 4,821 64 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D SEGMENTAL ANALYSES=09=0911. The analyses below include the Group=EDs share of associates for the year ended 31 December Cigarette volumes Net revenue 1999 1998 1999 1998 bns = =20 bns =A3m =A3m America-Pacific 84 93 3,204 2,491 =20 Asia-Pacific 85 71 1,208 959 Latin America 167 196 1,46= 1=20 1,671 Europe 171 132 2,359 1,552 Amesca 214 190 1,350 = =20 913 Imasco 32 32 1,600 1,662 ------ ------ ------ ------ = =20 753 714 11,182 9,248 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D OPERATING PROFIT =20 America-Pacific 544 535 Asia-Pacific 257 179 Latin=20 America 333 309 Europe 316 164 Amesca 268 110 =20 Imasco 304 253 ------ ------ 2,022 1,550 US tobacco=20 settlements (24) (613) Integration costs (357) Goodwill=20 amortisation (162) Sales tax recovery 74 ------ ------ = =20 1,479 1,011 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D The net reven= ue analysis is based on=20 the external sales in each region less duty, excise and other taxes. The operations of subsidiaries are almost entirely related to tobacco. The operations of associates comprise the following businesses: NET= =20 REVENUE Tobacco 824 721 Financial services 761 693 = =20 Other trading activities 525 714 ------ ------ 2,110 2,12= 8=20 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D OPERATING PROFIT Tobacco = 224 217 Financial=20 services 103 81 Other trading activities 53 37 =20 ------ ------ 380 335 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D QUARTERLY ANALYSES OF PROFIT=09=09=0912. The figures shown below have been produced using average rates of exchange= =20 for the years ended 31 December 1999 and 1998 respectively, with the=20 previously reported quarterly figures for 1999 restated using average rates= =20 for the full year. =09=093 months to 31.3.99 30.6.99 30.9.99 31.12.99 =A3m =A3m =A3m =A3m =20 America-Pacific 106 132 154 152 Asia-Pacific 48 = =20 57 88 64 Latin America 71 68 104 90 =20 Europe 39 45 133 99 Amesca 26 31 118 9= 3=20 Imasco 63 71 83 87 ---- ---- ---- = =20 ---- 353 404 680 585 US tobacco settlements (13) = =20 (9) 5 (7) Integration costs (81) (276) =20 Goodwill amortisation (91) (71) ---- ---- ---- ---- =20 Operating profit 340 395 513 231 Sale of brands 88= =20 ---- ---- ---- ---- Profit on ordinary activities before=20 interest 340 395 601 231 Net interest - subsidiary undertakings (27) (37) (45) (61) Share of associates=ED net interest (5) (7) (4) = =20 (10) ---- ---- ---- ---- Profit before taxation 308 351 = =20 552 160 =3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D As explained in the interim report for the six months to 30 June 1999, the= =20 results of Rothmans International were excluded from that period=EDs result= s. =20 Consequently, the above table includes the results of Rothmans and the=20 goodwill for the period from 7 June 1999 to 30=86September 1999 as part of = the=20 three months to 30 September. Quarterly analyses of profit continued=09=09=0913. =09=093 months to 31.3.98 30.6.98 30.9.98 31.12.98 =A3m =A3m =A3m =A3m =20 America-Pacific 114 126 164 131 Asia-Pacific 56 = =20 77 66 (20) Latin America 78 77 81 73 = =20 Europe 51 43 64 6 Amesca 26 35 17 3= 2=20 Imasco 53 63 68 69 ---- ---- ---- ---- = =20 378 421 460 291 US tobacco settlements (150) (463) = =20 Sales tax recovery 74 ---- ---- ---- ---- Operating= =20 profit 378 345 460 (172) Demerger and restructuring costs= =20 (7) (19) (17) (3) ---- ---- ---- ---- Profit on=20 ordinary activities before interest 371 326 443 (175) Net interest - subsidiary undertakings (56) (49) (54) (45) Share of associates=ED net interest (4) (6) (5) = =20 (8) ---- ---- ---- ---- Profit before taxation 311 271 = =20 384 (228) =3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D GROUP BALANCE SHEET=09=09=0914. 31 December 1999 1998 =A3m =A3m Fixed assets Intangible assets 5,338 = =20 Tangible assets 2,456 2,048 Investments in associates and joint venture = =20 636 472 Other investments and long term loans 210 119 ------= =20 ------ 8,640 2,639 ------ ------ Current assets Stocks 2,850 =20 2,165 Debtors 2,000 1,493 Acquired business awaiting disposal 123 = =20 Current investments 768 185 Short term deposits and cash 1,853 = =20 970 ------ ------ 7,594 4,813 ------ ------ TOTAL ASSETS 16,234 = =20 7,452 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Capital and reserves = Share capital 605 =20 393 Share premium account 4 1 Merger reserves 4,726 Other=20 reserves 503 483 Profit and loss account (1,017) (813) ------=20 ------ Shareholders=ED equity (including non-equity interests) 4,821 64 Minority shareholders=ED interest 455 323 ------ ------ = =20 5,276 387 ------ ------ Other liabilities Provisions for=20 liabilities and charges 1,251 741 Borrowings 5,676 3,730 Creditors = =20 4,031 2,594 ------ ------ 10,958 7,065 ------ ------ TOTAL FUNDS= =20 EMPLOYED 16,234 7,452 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D GROUP CASH FLOW STATEMENT=09=09=09=0915. For the year ended 31 December 1999 1998 =A3m =A3m Net operating cash flow from subsidiary undertakings 1,995 1,096 Dividends from associates 90 86 ------ ------ Net cash=20 inflow from operating activities 2,085 1,182 Returns on investments and= =20 servicing of finance (206) (282) Taxation paid (334) (281) Capita= l=20 expenditure and financial investment (281) (351) ------ ------ Net= =20 cash generation 1,264 268 Acquisitions less disposals (216) (16) = =20 Dividends paid (530) (696) Dividends from demerged businesses 242 = =20 Cash flow with demerged businesses 668 ------ ------ Cash flow 51= 8=20 466 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 9 11:37:43 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6E99B21B2C for ; Thu, 9 Mar 2000 11:37:43 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA06180 for ; Thu, 9 Mar 2000 11:37:43 -0500 Date: Thu, 9 Mar 2000 11:37:43 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT year end statement II NOTES=09=09=09=0916. ACCOUNTING POLICIES AND BASIS OF PREPARATION During 1998 the principal financial services businesses of B.A.T=86Industri= es=20 p.l.c. were demerged and British American Tobacco p.l.c. became the listed= =20 parent company for the retained businesses. To comply with company law and= =20 accounting standards the Group accounts for 1998 included the results of th= e=20 financial services businesses up to the date of demerger. However, to=20 provide information which is helpful to shareholders of British American=20 Tobacco p.l.c., the Directors also presented financial information prepared= =20 as if the demerger had taken effect prior to 1998. As this financial=20 information is the basis which more clearly reflects the ongoing operations= =20 of British American Tobacco p.l.c., it is used for the comparatives in this= =20 preliminary announcement. In the segmental analyses published for 1998 the costs of the headquarters= =20 for B.A.T Industries were shown separately. To provide 1998 comparatives o= n=20 a more consistent basis with the segmental results for 1999, the=20 comparatives have been restated to allocate these costs within the regional= =20 results. During the year two new accounting standards were implemented, being FRS12= =20 on provisions and FRS13 on financial instruments. While these standards=20 have resulted in some additional disclosures they have not affected profit= =20 or shareholders=ED equity. ROTHMANS INTERNATIONAL On 7 June 1999 British American Tobacco p.l.c. issued 604,336,627 ordinary= =20 shares and 241,734,651 convertible redeemable preference shares in=20 consideration for the acquisition of Rothmans International. As a result,= =20 Compagnie Financi=CBre Richemont AG and Rembrandt Group Limited together=20 indirectly own 35 per cent of the fully diluted ordinary share capital of= =20 British American Tobacco p.l.c., comprising 27.8 per cent of the issued=20 ordinary share capital and 100 per cent of the convertible redeemable=20 preference shares. As the intention to dispose of the Canadian interests of Rothmans was=20 announced at the outset of the merger, the results of that business are not= =20 consolidated but their dividend payments are included in the Group=EDs=20 investment income. On 3 February 2000 the Group sold these operations for= =20 Can$314=86million. The goodwill on the Rothmans transaction reflects this= =20 disposal value in respect of Rothmans=ED Canadian assets. Therefore the=20 transaction will not result in any profit or loss in 2000. Goodwill has arisen on the initial acquisition of Rothmans and subsequent= =20 local restructurings of the enlarged Group=EDs subsidiaries in Singapore,= =20 Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. These subsequent=20 restructurings resulted in a net cash outflow of =A3434=86million. A provis= ional=20 figure for the goodwill arising on these transactions of =A35,574=86million= is=20 being amortised over a period of 20=86 years. The charge for 1999 was =A31= 62=20 million and, in the future, the annual charge in respect of this transactio= n=20 will be around =A3275=86million. Rothmans International cont.=09=09=0917. Integration of the businesses is now well advanced, with most of them being= =20 managed on a unified basis. The net revenue and operating profit=20 attributable to the Rothmans businesses since acquisition are estimated at= =20 =A31,626=86million and =A3427=86million respectively. Notice has been given to the Group by the preference shareholder, under the= =20 terms of the Merger agreement with Rothmans, of their intention to redeem= =20 the half of the convertible preference shares redeemable in June 2000. The= =20 cost of the redemption would be =A3695 million. The preference shares whic= h=20 remain after June 2000 are redeemable in June 2004. EXCHANGE RATE EFFECTS The results of overseas subsidiaries and associates have been translated to= =20 sterling for the purpose of this report at average rates of exchange. =20 Results were affected by generally weaker average rates against sterling=20 but, with a stronger US dollar, operating profit before exceptional items= =20 was only marginally affected. EXCEPTIONAL ITEMS The integration costs of =A3357 million are the costs incurred in integrati= ng=20 Rothmans into the British American Tobacco Group. While this indicates tha= t=20 the final total for such costs will be somewhat higher than the =A3400=86mi= llion=20 estimate referred to in the Circular to Shareholders issued for the merger,= =20 the Group is ahead of schedule in achieving the =A3250=86million of annual= =20 synergy benefits. The principal exceptional item in the year to 31 December 1998 was a charge= =20 of =A3613=86million, comprising =A3463=86million for the US cigarette compa= nies=ED=20 agreement with the Attorneys General in 46 US States to settle outstanding= =20 Medicaid recovery suits and =A3150=86million resulting from the earlier=20 agreement with the State of Minnesota and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of=20 Minnesota. One-off settlement compliance costs and liquidated legal fees= =20 totalled =A324=86million in 1999. Other settlement costs are charged as ongoing costs. Operating profit=20 before exceptional items for the year to 31 December 1999 was after chargin= g=20 settlement costs of =A3746=86million compared to =A3106=86million in the pr= ior year. In the second quarter of 1998 the Group included a sales tax recovery=20 arising from a favourable decision taken by a Regional Federal Court in=20 Brazil, resulting in amounts being recoverable which had previously been=20 paid to the Government as social contributions assessed on the basis of=20 sales. SALE OF BRANDS This comprised the profit on the sale of certain of British American=20 Tobacco=EDs brands in Australasia. The sale was required by regulatory=20 authorities as a consequence of the restructuring of the local businesses= =20 and was implemented on a tax efficient basis. DEMERGER AND RESTRUCUTURING COSTS=09=09=0918. This comprised advisory and legal fees for restructuring the=20 B.A.T=86Industries group in 1998, involving the demerger of its principal= =20 financial services businesses and the formation of British American Tobacco= =20 p.l.c. as the parent company for the retained businesses. INTEREST AND INTEREST COVER The Group is now able to recover interest on the amounts which form the=20 basis for the sales tax recovery in Brazil (see above). The reduction in= =20 net interest in the year includes =A325=86million in respect of this item, = as=20 well as gains on cancellation of swap contracts and the benefits of=20 restructuring the Group=EDs debt. The Group=EDs interest cover was distorted in 1998 and 1999 by goodwill=20 amortisation and exceptional items in operating profit, as well as profit o= n=20 sale of brands and demerger and restructuring costs. On an adjusted basis,= =20 interest cover, based on profit before interest paid over interest paid, wa= s=20 strong at 5.9 (1998: 4.8). On a similar adjusted basis, interest cover=20 based on profit before net interest over net interest, was 10.2 (1998: 7.5)= =2E TAXATION =09=09Year to =09=0931.12.99=0931.12.98 =09=09 =A3m=09 =A3m =09UK=09 (15)=09 138 =09Overseas=09 434=09 132 =09=09 ----=09 ---- =09Current taxation=09 419=09 270 =09Deferred taxation=09 114=09 (110) =09=09 ----=09 ---- =09British American Tobacco p.l.c. =09 and subsidiary undertakings=09 533=09 160 =09Share of associates=09 140=09 117 =09=09 ----=09 ---- =09=09 673=09 277 =09=09 =3D=3D=3D=3D=09 =3D=3D=3D=3D =09Effective tax rate=09 49.1%=09 37.5% =09=09 =3D=3D=3D=3D=09 =3D=3D=3D=3D The effective tax rate increases in 1999 as a result of goodwill=20 amortisation and charges accrued in 1999 for certain of the US tobacco=20 settlements not being relieved for tax until the following year. As future= =20 years are expected to show the same pattern for such payments and tax=20 relief, under UK accounting standards there is a distortion to the tax rate= =20 shown in the accounts for 1999. While the settlement payments should not= =20 materially distort the tax rate after 1999, there will be a continuing=20 distortion from goodwill amortisation. EARNINGS PER SHARE=09=09=0919. Basic earnings per share are based on the profit for the period attributabl= e=20 to ordinary shareholders and the average number of ordinary shares in issue= =20 during the period (excluding shares held by the Group=EDs two Employee Shar= e=20 Ownership Trusts). For periods prior to the demerger of the financial=20 services businesses in 1998, the average number of shares in issue is based= =20 on 50 per cent of the average number of B.A.T Industries ordinary 25p share= s=20 in issue, reflecting the issue of one ordinary share in British American=20 Tobacco p.l.c. for every two ordinary shares of B.A.T Industries p.l.c. For the calculation of diluted earnings per share the average number of=20 shares reflects the potential dilution effect of the exercise of employee= =20 share options and in 1999, the convertible redeemable preference shares. The earnings have been affected by a number of exceptional items. To=20 illustrate the impact of the principal distortions, as well as the effect o= f=20 goodwill amortisation and ACT, adjusted diluted earnings per share are show= n=20 below: Diluted earnings per share Year to 31.12.99 31.12.98 = =20 (pence) (pence) Unadjusted earnings per share 27.02 21.98 =20 Adjustment from net to nil basis (0.32) Effect of goodwill amortisation= =20 7.82 Effect of US tobacco settlements 0.73 23.89 Effect of= =20 integration costs 11.27 Effect of sales tax recovery (0.63) =20 (2.35) Effect of sale of brands (2.53) Effect of demerger and restructuring costs 2.92 Effect of US tobacco settlements on effective tax rate 8.65 ------ ------ Adjusted earnings per share 52.33 46.12 = =20 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Similar types of adjustments would apply to basic earnings per share which,= =20 on an adjusted basis, would be 52.54p (1998 46.51p) compared to unadjusted= =20 amounts of 25.25p (1998 22.17p). GROUP RESERVES The Group reserve movements are summarised on page 10. As regards the impact of exchange, the weakening of a number of currencies= =20 against sterling during 1999 led to an adverse movement of =A3268=86million= =2E =20 However, the main impact in 1999 was the share issue in respect of the=20 Rothmans merger as described above. The ACT written back of =A396 million = in=20 1998 arose because of the utilisation of ACT which had been written off to= =20 reserves in prior years. CASH FLOW=09=09=09=0920. The Group cash flow is summarised on page 15 and the comparison of 1999 wit= h=20 1998 is distorted by the acquisition of Rothmans in 1999 and the demerger= =20 and change in Group structure in 1998, as well as the exceptional items=20 described above. Operating cash flows were significantly higher at =A32,085=86million, compa= red=20 to =A31,182=86million in 1998. This increase principally reflected the=20 inclusion of Rothmans for seven months, a one-off timing benefit as certain= =20 ongoing US tobacco settlement payments are not made until 2000 and the=20 impact on 1998 of the higher initial payments in respect of US tobacco=20 settlements. With lower net interest and capital expenditure, despite the inclusion of= =20 Rothmans operations for the first time, the net cash generation of=20 =A31,264=86million is significantly up on 1998. The material reduction in= =20 interest cash flow is partly due to one-off timing benefits from the=20 restructuring of Group debt. In 1999 investing activities showed a net outflow of =A3216=86million mainl= y as=20 a result of the Rothmans related transactions in Singapore, Malaysia,=20 Australasia and South Africa, less the proceeds on sale of BAT brands noted= =20 above. Even though the 1999 cash flow reflects the acceleration of Group= =20 dividend payments, total dividend payments were down as 1998 included=20 payments which were in respect of B.A.T Industries. However, 1998 did=20 benefit from =A3910=86million of cash inflows in respect of the settlement = of=20 inter company balances and other transactions with the demerged financial= =20 services businesses. As a result of the above the net cash inflow was =A3518=86million compared = to=20 =A3466=86million in 1998, but the Group=EDs net debt position rose =A3480= =86million to=20 =A33,055=86million reflecting the inclusion of Rothmans debt as well as exc= hange=20 movements. Group debt rose =A31,946 million to =A35,676=86million, while c= ash,=20 deposits and current investments increased by =A31,466 million to =A32,621= =20 million as the Group built up its liquidity. This liquidity served the=20 Group in closing the Imasco transaction and would also be available for the= =20 potential redemption of the preference shares in 2000. CONTINGENT LIABILITIES There are contingent liabilities in respect of litigation, overseas taxes= =20 and guarantees in various countries. Group companies, notably Brown &=20 Williamson Tobacco Corporation ("B&W") as well as other leading cigarette= =20 manufacturers, are defendants, principally in the United States, in a numbe= r=20 of product liability cases, including a substantial number of new cases=20 filed in 1999, although a number of cases were discontinued by claimants=20 (without payment by any defendants) in the year. Legal Matters outside the United States At year end, there were no active claims against the Group companies=20 (including those of the former Rothmans Group) in respect of health-related= =20 claims outside Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Eire, Finland,= =20 France, Germany, Israel, the Netherlands, Pakistan, the Philippines and Sri= =20 Lanka. Contingent Liabilities cont.=0921. US litigation The total number of US product liability cases pending at year end involvin= g=20 Group companies was 537 (31 December, 1998, 678 cases). Group companies=20 were named as co-defendants in 161 of those cases (1998, 238 cases). Since= =20 many of these pending cases seek unspecified damages, it is not possible to= =20 determine the total amount of claims pending. The cases fall into three=20 principal categories: (1) Medical reimbursement cases. These civil actions seek to recover=20 amounts spent by government entities and other third party providers on=20 health care and welfare costs claimed to result from illnesses associated= =20 with smoking. Despite the almost uniform success of the industry=EDs defen= ce=20 to these to date, the US Federal Government has filed a suit, which will=20 probably not come to trial until 2003. (2) Class actions. As at 31 December 1999, B&W was named as a defendant in= =20 some 38 (31 December 1998, 55) separate actions attempting to assert claims= =20 on behalf of classes of persons allegedly injured by smoking. Despite the= =20 almost uniform success of the industry=EDs defence to these to date, there = is=20 one case (Engle, Florida) currently in trial. (3) Individual cases. Approximately 421 cases were pending against B&W at= =20 31 December 1999 (31 December 1998, 497), filed by or on behalf of=20 individuals in which it is contended that diseases or deaths have been=20 caused by cigarette smoking or by exposure to environmental tobacco smoke= =20 (ETS). While the industry continues not to have paid any damages to date,= =20 two decisions adverse to Philip Morris are currently under appeal. In addition, conduct-based claims, including antitrust and RICO claims, hav= e=20 been filed and also threatened in the US but none of these recent cases is= =20 considered to be meritorious. Conclusion While it is impossible to be certain of the outcome of any particular case= =20 or of the amount of any possible adverse verdict, the Company believes that= =20 the defences of the Group companies to all these various claims are=20 meritorious both on the law and the facts, and a vigorous defence is being= =20 made everywhere. If an adverse judgement were entered against any of the= =20 Group companies in any case, an appeal would be made. Such appeals could= =20 require the posting of appeal bonds or substitute security by the appellant= s=20 for the amounts of such adverse judgements. At least in the aggregate and= =20 despite the quality of defences available to the Group, it is not impossibl= e=20 that the results of operations or cash flows of the Group in particular=20 quarterly or annual periods could be materially affected by this and by the= =20 final outcome of any particular litigation. Having regard to all these matters, the Directors (i) do not consider it=20 appropriate to make any provision in respect of any pending litigation and= =20 (ii) do not believe that the ultimate outcome of all this litigation will= =20 significantly impair the financial condition of the Group. POST BALANCE SHEET EVENT - IMASCO=0922. On 3 August 1999, the Group announced that it had entered into an agreement= =20 with Imasco Limited in Canada to acquire the 58 per cent shareholding in=20 Imasco it did not already own. The deal was conditional on the sale of=20 Canada Trust to TD Bank and also envisaged the sale of other non-tobacco=20 interests of Imasco. Thus the Group interests in Canada will be focused on= =20 Imperial Tobacco rather than through a 42 per cent stake in a diversified= =20 holding company. On 15 October the deal was approved by the British American Tobacco=20 shareholders. On 1 February 2000 Imasco announced that the necessary=20 capital reorganisation of that company had been completed following approva= l=20 by their shareholders. As at 1 February 2000, Imperial Tobacco Canada Limited became a wholly owne= d=20 subsidiary of British American Tobacco and Canada Trust was sold, while the= =20 sale of Shoppers Drug Mart was completed on 4 February. The transaction=20 will be reflected in British American Tobacco=EDs first quarter results for= =20 2000. The transaction is expected to result in goodwill of around=20 =A32.1=86billion and a significant increase in shareholders=ED funds. The= =20 increase in net debt, including Imasco=EDs own debt, is approximately=20 =A3900=86million, which will be reduced from the proceeds of the Genstar sa= le=20 which is well underway. The Group=EDs share of Imasco=EDs results for January 2000 will include an= =20 exceptional charge of around Can$147 million for severence and similar=20 payments consequent upon change of control. The restructuring of the=20 investment in Canada will however materially improve the Group=EDs cash flo= w=20 in 2000. ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS The above figures have been extracted from the Group's full financial=20 statements which, for the year ended 31 December 1998 have been delivered= =20 and for the year ended 31 December 1999, will be delivered to the Registrar= =20 of Companies. Both carry an unqualified audit report. The Annual General= =20 Meeting will be held on 27 April 2000 at 11.30 a.m. *** The report and accounts will be posted to shareholders in late March 2000. Philip Cook Secretary 7 March 2000 British American Tobacco p.l.c. Registered in England and Wales no. 3407696 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 9 12:05:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 38DD621B05 for ; Thu, 9 Mar 2000 12:05:17 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA07291 for ; Thu, 9 Mar 2000 12:05:16 -0500 Date: Thu, 9 Mar 2000 12:05:16 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Two-pronged attack in $56m allocation (fwd) Two-pronged attack in $56m allocation by Sanna So Source: Hong Kong Standard, Thursday, 3/9/00 STORY: WITHOUT raising the rate of tobacco duty in the coming fiscal year, the government has earmarked $20 million for anti-smoking education and $36 million for efforts against contraband cigarettes over the next three years. Sir Donald said the measures aimed to achieve the ``dual purpose of protecting the health of the public and increasing government revenue''. He said in his Budget speech yesterday that $20 million had been reserved for the Hong Kong Council on Smoking and Health (Cosh) for a three-year anti-smoking education program. An annual provision of $12 million would go to the Customs and Excise Department for three years from 2000-01. A special task force would step up action against contraband cigarette sales, Sir Donald said. ``Our review showed that smuggling and the sale of contraband cigarettes remain rampant,'' he said. ``Increasing the rate of tobacco duty would only make such cigarettes even more attractive. Bringing down the rate is not a viable option either as this would run counter to our objective of protecting health.'' This is the second year the tobacco tax was frozen. During the period of 1993 to 1998, tobacco duty was raised annually between 6 and 9.5 per cent, except in 1994 when there was no increase. Albert Chan Yu-chung, executive director of the Tobacco Institute of Hong Kong, said it was advisable to maintain tobacco tax and avoid widening the price difference between smuggled and duty-paid cigarettes. The Customs and Excise Department last year seized 239 million sticks of dutiable cigarettes with a duty potential of $183 million. It was more than double the 104.6 million sticks seized in 1998 which had a duty potential of $79.7 million. Duties received from tobacco last year amounted to about $2.49 billion. Mr Chan applauded the government's determination to step up law enforcement against tobacco smuggling. He said the institute would increase the ceiling of its informants' reward scheme, currently set at $750,000 a year, to encourage reporting on the sale and purchase of contraband cigarettes. Cosh also welcomed the government's view to maintain the tobacco levy at its present level. Cosh executive director Marcus Yu Yin-sum said, ``Without cutting the rate, youth smoking is not encouraged.'' Independent legislator Leong Che-hung, who represents the medical sector, welcomed the government's move to educate the public against smoking and to fight contraband cigarettes. ``I do hope that these actions are going to show their effect and if they do not, I hope the secretary will quickly increase cigarette tax so as to improve the health of society,'' Dr Leong said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 9 15:22:09 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 29FE621B05 for ; Thu, 9 Mar 2000 15:22:09 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA13983 for ; Thu, 9 Mar 2000 15:22:08 -0500 Date: Thu, 9 Mar 2000 15:22:08 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Public Hearing on WHO Framework Convention: Please Contribute! (fwd) From=20the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids: March 8, 2000 Dear Colleagues: We are writing to urge you to attend and speak at a government-sponsored public hearing on the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. The meeting will take place on Wednesday, March 15th, from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM at the Ronald Reagan International Trade Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW in Washington, DC. If you cannot attend in person, we ask that you send in a written statement (see below). It is our understanding that tobacco industry representatives and others committed to undermining a strong Framework Convention will have a large presence at this hearing and will testify against the Framework Convention. They are well prepared for this hearing =96and the public healt= h community must be prepared to respond in force. It is critical that public health and other interested communities speak out at this hearing. The U.S. Administration needs to hear from more than the tobacco industry and its allies. Each of our organizations needs to tell the Administration that that we expect the United States to play a positive leadership role in negotiating the Framework Convention. They need to know that we will be watching their negotiating positions closely and will hold them accountable . A fact sheet on the Convention process is attached to this letter. We can also send you a set of suggested talking points separately. We encourage you to use them or produce your own. Let us know if we can be of any further help. See you on the 15th! WHAT YOU CAN DO: Speak at the Hearing: Please register to make a 3 minute presentation on behalf of your organization at the March 15 hearing. There are 130 speaking slots, many of which are still available. To sign up, please contact: Ms. Monica Swann, Office on Smoking and Health, Centers for Disease Control; tel. (202) 205-8500, or e-mail FCTC@cdc.gov. Attend the Hearing and Encourage Staff & Others to do the Same: The hearing room holds 500 and we encourage you to send interested staff and others-- again to let the Administration know that there is strong interest and support for the Framework Convention in our communities. We encouraged you to register early by providing your name, title, firm name, address, and telephone number to Monica Swann (contact information above). Submit Written Comments: The Administration will be accepting written comments until March 31st. To submit electronic comments, send via e-mail to FCTC@cdc.gov. For written comments, write to: FCTC Comments (Attn: Ms. Monica Swann), Office on Smoking and Health, 200 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 317-B, Washington, DC 20201. For more information: Please contact: Judy Glanz or Judy Wilkenfeld at the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, tel. 202-296-5469. Background Information: The full text of the Federal Register Notice announcing the March 15th hearing can be found at: http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=3D2000_register&d= oci d=3D00-4388-filed Action on Smoking & Health (UK) http://www.ash.org.uk/international.html Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids http://tobaccofreekids.org/campaign/global/ WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control http://www.who.int/toh/fctc/fctcintro.htm WHO FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON TOBACCO CONTROL The World Health Organization (WHO) has initiated negotiations on a Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in an effort to promote a coordinated international response to one of the most deadly epidemics of our time. A Framework Convention is a type of multilateral treaty, which allows states to proceed incrementally by establishing first a general framework followed by specific protocols. Tobacco is truly a global problem. WHO estimates that each year about 4 million people die from tobacco-related illness. If current trends continue, this figure will rise to about 10 million per year by the year 2030, with 70% of those deaths occurring in developing countries. In fact, more people are expected to die from tobacco-related illness over the next 30 years than from AIDS, tuberculosis, automobile accidents, maternal mortality, homicide and suicide combined. Just as infectious diseases know no political boundaries, leaving individual countries incapable of effectively containing them, the tobacco epidemic also requires international cooperation if it is to be controlled. The challenges that transcend the borders of sovereign states include: * Advances in communications technology which facilitate aggressive global marketing and promotion of tobacco products, such as over the Internet and or on satellite television. * Cigarette smuggling across national borders. * The increased liberalization of trade and investment, which has provided tobacco, companies the opportunity to expand their operations. In May 1999, the 191 member states of WHO unanimously endorsed the start of negotiations for the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) to deal with these and other issues. A record 50 nations took the floor to pledge financial and political support for the Convention, including the five permanent members of the United Nations=92 Security Council, as well a= s major tobacco growing and exporting countries. The FCTC will be the world=92s first tobacco control treaty and has the potential to have an historic impact on global public health. Structure & Timeline Under the convention/protocol approach, states negotiate a framework convention that calls for cooperation in achieving broadly stated goals and contain agreements regarding issues on which there is consensus. At the same time, states may negotiate separate protocol agreements on more technical or contentious issues. This approach has been used to address other global problems, such as climate change. The Tobacco Free Initiative (TFI), a cabinet-level project of WHO created by Director-General Gro Harlem Brundtland, will act as Secretariat for the FCTC during the negotiations. Meanwhile, a Working Group, open to all WHO Member States, has been created to prepare proposed draft elements of the FCTC. The Working Group will have its second meeting from 27-29 March 2000 in Geneva. A draft report, which will be considered by the Working Group, will be posted on the FCTC web page one month prior to this meeting. The Group will then prepare a final report that will serve as the starting point for formal negotiations, which are scheduled to commence in October 2000. Though the negotiation of each treaty is unique and depends upon the political will of states, WHO foresees adoption of the Convention and related protocols no later than May 2003, after which it will open for ratification. Possible Issues to Be Negotiated The actual content of the Convention and related protocols will depend upon the priorities of the member states. Possible issues that could be addressed include: tobacco price and tax policies; passive smoking; protecting women, children and adolescents; smuggling of tobacco products; sale of duty-free tobacco products; advertising, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco products; tobacco product regulation, including testing and reporting of tobacco product ingredients and constituents, and the ability to require tobacco product modification; tobacco industry regulation; information exchange; health education and research; agricultural policies; and tobacco use prevention and cessation. Discussions with government delegations and Secretariat staff indicate that, aside from the text of the Framework Convention itself, the first three protocols to be negotiated may be on smuggling, advertising and cessation/treatment. The Framework Convention Deserves Strong U.S. Support As the home to the world=92s largest multinational tobacco company, the United States has a particular responsibility to display constructive leadership and support for the Framework Convention process. This will involve, among other things, ensuring high-level representation from the United States at the negotiations and committing political and financial support to the Framework process. The negotiation and implementation of the FCTC could make an enormous contribution to stemming the growth of the tobacco epidemic by raising national and international awareness, implementing effective national tobacco control measures and providing technical and financial resources. The Convention will also serve as a platform for multilateral cooperation on aspects of tobacco control that transcends national boundaries, including global marketing/promotion of tobacco products and smuggling. In addition to the specific benefits of the Convention and related protocols, the process leading to the passage of the FCTC is likely to: * Give new impetus to efforts to strengthen national legislation and action to control the harm caused by tobacco. * Help mobilize national and global technical and financial support for tobacco control. * Bring new ministries, including those dealing with foreign affairs and finance, more deeply into the tobacco control effort. * Mobilize NGOs and other members of civil society in support of stronger tobacco control. * Raise public awareness of marketing tactics used by transnational tobacco companies abroad. Useful Web-Sites: Action on Smoking & Health (UK) http://www.ash.org.uk/international.html Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids http://tobaccofreekids.org/campaign/global/ Framework Convention on Tobacco Control http://www.who.int/toh/fctc/fctcintro.htm From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 9 17:04:05 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1932E21B05 for ; Thu, 9 Mar 2000 17:04:05 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA17520 for ; Thu, 9 Mar 2000 17:04:04 -0500 Date: Thu, 9 Mar 2000 17:04:04 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Another Framework Convention (US only) update Action Alert From: San Francisco Tobacco Free Project The Department of Health and Human Services is soliciting comments on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) until March 31,2000.=20 Worldwide mortality from tobacco is likely to rise from about 4 million deaths a year in 1998 to about 10 million a year in 2030 with over 70% of those deaths occurring in the developing world. This global epidemic needs a global response. The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) will be the first legally binding convention/agreement to be negotiated by the Member States of the World Health Organization. When adopted the FCTC will represent the world's first legally binding agreement focusing on global tobacco control. The FCTC will be developed by the 191 member states of the World Health Organization, of which the United States is a permanent member. Once adopted, the FCTC will address issues such as: =B7 Environmental tobacco smoke =B7 Protection of children and adolescents, including prevention programmes =B7 Smuggling of tobacco products =B7 Sale of duty-free tobacco products =B7 Advertising, promotion, and sponsorship (with or without counter-advertising) =B7 Packaging and labeling of tobacco product ingredients =B7 Tobacco industry regulation =B7 Information exchange =B7 Health education and research =B7 Agricultural policies =B7 Product regulation =B7 Evidence based treatment and cessation programmes The FCTC process as begun. It is anticipated that an Intergovernmental Negotiating Body will be established in May 2000 to negotiate the text of the FCTC and related protocols. It is crucial that we participate in the process and let the U.S. Representatives to the FCTC know of our concerns and priorities. The United States is home to the Philip Morris, the largest tobacco company in the world. Philip Morris, RJ Reynolds, and the rest of the American tobacco companies will use all of their political might to mold the FCTC to their advantage. It is vital that the public health community counters this strategy: Comments can be submitted by mail or electronically (electronic submissions are encouraged). =B7 To submit electronic comments, send via e-mail to FCTC@cdc.gov. =B7 To submit comments by mail, send to: FCTC Comments (Attn: Ms. Monica Swann), Office on Smoking and Health, 200 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 317-B, Washington, DC 20201. It is anticipated that additional comment periods and public meetings will be convened before the completion of the FCTC. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Monica Swann, Office on Smoking and Health, Centers for Disease Control, 200 Independence Avenue, SW., Rm 317-B, Washington, DC 20201, (202) 205-8500 or e-mail| FCTC@cdc.gov. FCTC Comments=20 (Attn: Ms. Monica Swann) Office on Smoking and Health 200 Independence Avenue, SW.,=20 Room 317-B Washington, DC 20201 Dear Ms. Swann: Worldwide mortality from tobacco is likely to rise from about 4 million deaths a year in 1998 to about 10 million a year in 2030 with over 70% of those deaths occurring in the developing world. This global epidemic cannot be addressed through national action alone, but requires a global response. The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) will be the first legally binding convention/agreement to be negotiated by the Member States of the World Health Organization. When adopted the FCTC will represent the world's first legally binding agreement focusing on global tobacco control. The FCTC will be developed by the 191 member states of the World Health Organization, of which the United States is a permanent member. The FCTC represents a global solution to a global health epidemic.=20 The World Bank report, "Curbing the Tobacco Epidemic" examines the economics of tobacco control and clearly shows that tobacco control is not only good for health, but is also good for a country's economy. U.S. tobacco companies have aggressively expanded their markets abroad by employing manipulative and deceptive advertising and marketing techniques to expand their sales resulting in two-thirds of their sales and nearly half of their profits coming from overseas. The United States therefore has an obligation to negotiate the FCTC from a global perspective rather than a domestic perspective. The following are key elements to include in the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control: 1. That the FCTC and related protocols include specific provisions that establishes the FCTC as the minimum standard for global tobacco policies and allows countries to adopt stronger national policies. 2. That the FCTC and related protocols include a specific provision that State Parties have the right to adopt domestic measures additional to those referred to in the FCTC. 3. That the FCTC and related protocols include provisions that parties may enter into bilateral or multilateral agreements, including regional or sub-regional agreements, and that these agreements could include more stringent measures than the FCTC and/or protocols. 4. That member states should not be allowed to make reservations when signing onto the FCTC (A "reservation" means that a country signs onto the FCTC but states that it is not signing on to certain parts of the FCTC). 5. That a financial mechanism be put in place whereby high-income countries are obligated to provide financial assistance to low and middle-income countries to implement the FCTC.=20 6. That member states be obligated to aid and assist non-governmental organizations in their tobacco control work to ensure community-sensitive strategies and vigorous implementation of the FCTC and related protocols. 7. That the FCTC include a binding method of dispute resolutions. In addition to the above key elements, the process by which the FCTC is negotiated is vital to the integrity of the FCTC. The process by which the FCTC is developed should include: 1. That protocols be negotiated at the same time the FCTC is being developed rather than after the FCTC is developed. 2. That the United States delegation includes members of the public health community including community based organizations, communities of color, faith community, women, and youth.. 3. That the United States delegation makes public the comments made by the delegates during working group meetings and request additional public comments on an on-going basis during the course of development of the FCTC. 4. That the United States government sign on to the FCTC in a timely manner once it has been adopted by the World Health Assembly. Thank you for the opportunity to provide comments on the development of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. Sincerely, From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Mar 10 11:25:10 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6CC9521B55 for ; Fri, 10 Mar 2000 11:25:10 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA31645 for ; Fri, 10 Mar 2000 11:25:10 -0500 Date: Fri, 10 Mar 2000 11:25:10 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] =?X-UNKNOWN?Q?Testimony_Gets_Underway_In=A0=A0Nation's_First_To?= =?X-UNKNOWN?Q?bacco_Lawsuit_=28fwd=29?= Testimony Gets Underway In=A0=A0Nation's First Tobacco Lawsuit Source: Korea Herald, Saturday, 3/11/00 The Seoul District Court yesterday began hearing testimony in the nation's first tobacco lawsuit, filed by 31 sick smokers and their families against the state and the state-run Korea Tobacco and Ginseng Corp. A 57-year-old man suffering from terminal lung cancer, identified only as Kim, and five other smokers and their families filed the lawsuit last December, seeking 307 million won ($260,000) in state compensation for smoking-related illnesses. In his testimony, Kim claimed that smoking for 37 years had resulted in his diagnosis last year with terminal lung cancer. He accused the state-run tobacco company of failing to remove cancer-causing ingredients such as nicotine and tar from its cigarettes, and of not adequately warning consumers of the health hazards of smoking. Bae Keum-ja, one of a group of lawyers representing the plaintiffs, presented medical reports from the United States, Britain and Japan as evidence of the links between smoking and lung cancer. She also made an application to inspect the Korea Ginseng & Tobacco Research Institute in Taejon. "An investigation of the facility would allow us to gather compelling evidence of the dangers of smoking, such as data on harmful ingredients like tar and nicotine, inspection data on new tobacco products and statistics on nicotine content," Bae said. The lawyers' group also requested the right to collect medical records from hospitals where lung cancer patients are diagnosed, and to take court testimony from plaintiffs in advance. The group said many of the plaintiffs are terminally ill and might not live to see the end of the trial. Meanwhile, Park Kyo-son, a lawyer defending the state tobacco firm, said there is no evidence linking smoking to lung cancer. Even in the United States, no single lawsuit has ever been won by an individual seeking damages for a tobacco-related illness, Park said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Mar 11 07:58:01 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9918821B05 for ; Sat, 11 Mar 2000 07:58:01 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id HAA15580 for ; Sat, 11 Mar 2000 07:58:01 -0500 Date: Sat, 11 Mar 2000 07:58:01 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] N.C. wants China to accept U.S. leaf (fwd) N.C. wants China to accept U.S. leaf Government urged to pressure Beijing into opening its markets by David Rice / JOURNAL RALEIGH BUREAU NC/CHINA; Source: Winston-Salem Journal, Thursday, 3/9/00 RALEIGH As Americans smoke less and North Carolina farmers look for ways to sell their tobacco overseas, political pressure is mounting for the United States to demand that China accept American-grown leaf. China bans U.S.-grown tobacco, saying that blue-mold spores in American tobacco could contaminate Chinese tobacco crops. But American tobacco interests say that the disease cannot survive in cured leaf. A rural-development task force headed by Erskine Bowles, a former White House chief of staff, recommended last month that state officials pressure Washington to make acceptance of U.S. tobacco a condition of China's admission to the World Trade Organization. U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge, D-2nd, told an international tobacco-marketing group yesterday that he took up the issue with Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman when Glickman visited Raleigh last week, asking him to insist that China accept American leaf. ''We've got to get beyond the phony issue of blue mold,'' Etheridge told members of Tobacco Associates Inc. ''I think they're just using that . . . to protect their farmers. When and if they get admission to the WTO, that has to go.'' ''If only 1 percent of the cigarettes smoked in China used American flue-cured tobacco, the stocks of Stabilization would be cleaned out and quotas would rise,'' he said. ''The exports of flue-cured tobacco would increase by 10 percent almost immediately. That is some welcome news after what we've been through the last three years.'' Tobacco farmers have seen the amount of leaf they are allowed to grow cut by 54 percent over the past three years. Peter Daniel, an assistant to the president of N.C. Farm Bureau, said that the Farm Bureau plans to ask the state's congressional delegation to withhold votes for China to receive most-favored-nation trading status if China won't accept U.S. tobacco. Etheridge said that such a vote could come as soon as this summer. Pete Burr, a senior tobacco analyst with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service, said, that the United States and China reached some agreement on market access last April, but the bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade brought those talks to a standstill for at least six months. ''It is obvious China has been using this issue to control imports,'' Burr said. ''They're basing their claim . . . on unsound science. And that's exactly what the WTO doesn't want.'' But the Chinese are looking for a way to resolve the dispute, Burr said, and it might be a mistake for U.S. officials to exert too much political pressure. ''If this were to happen, it could wind up delaying a solution,'' he said. ''The Chinese want to get it resolved soon. They're looking for a face-saving way out of this.'' Dan Stevens, the chief of the Tobacco & Peanuts analysis staff with USDA's Farm Service Agency, also warned that opening Chinese markets might not be as big a boon as U.S. tobacco interests think. China produces 48 percent of the world's flue-cured tobacco but accounts for only 10 percent of world tobacco exports, Stevens said. If China opens its markets, ''That's not going to solve all of our problems. We're not going to see a lot of flue-cured tobacco moving to China overnight,'' he said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Mar 12 12:50:49 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DE65121B0D for ; Sun, 12 Mar 2000 12:50:48 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA25881 for ; Sun, 12 Mar 2000 12:50:48 -0500 Date: Sun, 12 Mar 2000 12:50:48 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Framework Convention sign on Below follows a request for organizational endorsements of principles for WHO's Framework Convention for Tobacco Control. Please send responses to this request to Judith Glanz, Manager, International Issues, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, jglanz@tobaccofreekids.org, NOT to the list. Robert Weissman Essential Information | Internet: rob@essential.org Sign-on Form Statement of Core Principles on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (Current signatories include: American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, American Public Health Association, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids) We join with public health and other non-governmental organizations in the U.S. in endorsing the attached Core Principles on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. These principles will be be provided to the Clinton Administration and will guide our negotiating positions during the Framework Convention negotiations. Thank you for your support. Name of Organization (as it will appear on list of signatories): _________________________________________________ Name or organizational contact person: _________________________________________________ Address: _________________________________________ Phone: _________________________________________ Fax: _________________________________________ Email: _________________________________________ Please return completed forms to: Judith Glanz, Manager, International Issues, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Email: HYPERLINK mailto:jglanz@tobaccofreekids.org jglanz@tobaccofreekids.org Fax: 202 296-5427. CORE PRINCIPLES For the WHO Framework Convention On Tobacco Control The problems caused by tobacco cut across national boundaries and, therefore, the solutions must be international in scope. We believe strongly that the following core principles should guide the development of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). These principles represent sound public health policy and establish a basis upon which Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) should evaluate the decisions made by the parties negotiating the Convention. The Convention should recognize that there is no single policy that will solve the problems caused by tobacco. To be effective, tobacco control efforts must be comprehensive and include, at a minimum, agreements relating to: Tobacco price and tax policies; Passive smoking; Protecting women and children; Smuggling of tobacco products; Sale of duty-free tobacco products; Advertising, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco products; Tobacco product regulation, including testing and reporting of tobacco product ingredients and constituents, and the ability to require tobacco product modification; Tobacco industry regulation; Information exchange and technology transfer; Health education and research; Agricultural policies; and Tobacco use prevention and cessation programs. Health concerns should be the first priority of the parties negotiating the Convention and related protocols and should govern all decisions made by them. All negotiating parties should have a public health rationale for each of their positions. Provisions of the Convention and any related protocols thereto must be legally binding on the tobacco companies and, therefore, must (1) be implemented by legislation or regulation by each signatory and, (2) where appropriate, provide for strict enforcement mechanisms by each signatory. Provisions in the Framework Convention itself, independent of protocols, should have a positive impact on tobacco control efforts. All issues should be dealt with, as specifically and thoroughly as possible, within the actual Framework Convention rather than being reserved solely to the protocols. Nothing in the Framework Convention or related protocols should reduce, relax or in any other way diminish existing tobacco control initiatives, regulations, laws, or practices in any signatory. Nothing in the Convention or its protocols should prevent or discourage a party from taking stronger action than required by the Convention or its protocols. The Convention should include provisions for binding resolution of disputes between states and penalties for non-compliance. Given their history, tobacco companies and their subsidiaries should not be an official party to the negotiations and should not be allowed to serve on any advisory, scientific advisory, enforcement or implementation bodies of the FCTC. NGOs should be fully integrated into the Framework Convention process. Rules for NGO participation should rely on the precedents set at other recent UN Conferences. The World Health Organization should work with governments and private organizations to seek funds for ensuring strong representation from developing country NGOs. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Mar 13 00:28:16 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8055F21AFF for ; Mon, 13 Mar 2000 00:28:16 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA30921 for ; Mon, 13 Mar 2000 00:28:16 -0500 Date: Mon, 13 Mar 2000 00:28:16 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] State to sue Irish tobacco companies (fwd) State to sue Irish tobacco companies by RALPH RIEGEL =20 Source: Irish Independent, Sunday, 3/12/00 THE STATE is to launch a multi-million-pound law suit against Irish tobacco giants, including Gallahers, over smoking-related cancers. The D=E1il's Health & Children's Committee will next week seek permission from the Minister for Health, Miche=E1l Martin, to appoint a leading Dublin law firm and senior counsel to prepare for the action. Initially, the committee wants legal advice on how to proceed with a dramatically expanded probe into the 40-year operation of the Irish tobacco industry. However, committee members are confident that, following legal advice, a major law suit can be lodged, similar to those under way in the US and Europe. The world's largest tobacco firm, Philip Morris, faces potentially the world's most expensive personal injury law suit. The D=E1il committee, led by Cork TD Batt O'Keeffe (FF), has already been given the powers of compellability following a major investigation into the tobacco industry ordered by Minister Martin. However, the committee is now demanding the appointment of a leading legal firm because of fears that the compellability power could cause them to be ``swamped with enough documentation to keep us in hearings for five years''. Deputy O'Keeffe argued that the law suit could be avoided if Irish tobacco firms voluntarily accept the health implications of their product sales, and offer the state substantial payments. The Irish health system now spends over =A3700m per annum on tobacco-linke= d illnesses, and the D=E1il committee is determined that tobacco firms must now underwrite these costs. These payments, Deputy O'Keeffe argued, could then be used to pay for expanded health promotion campaigns and to subsidise hospital services required by those suffering from smoking-related illnesses such as lung cancer. ``It's very interesting because we already have a lot of the documentation relating to the US cases. The same is now happening in the UK,'' Deputy O'Keeffe declared. ``Gallahers have already indicated they will be making material available via the Internet, and what we want to determine is if all their archival data has now been scanned into a so-called electronic warehouse,'' he added. ``The US litigation has shown that as far back as 1957, the tobacco industry was aware that smoking could be harmful. There was also evidence that various tobacco companies tried to hide that information,'' the Cork TD warned. Tobacco firms including Gallahers have vehemently denied claims that they used flavour-enhancers or sweeteners to lure young smokers into addictive habits. It is understood that, like Philip Morris in the US, Irish tobacco firms will vigorously contest any legal action. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Mar 13 10:20:03 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C75FE21B0B for ; Mon, 13 Mar 2000 10:20:02 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA03312 for ; Mon, 13 Mar 2000 10:20:01 -0500 Date: Mon, 13 Mar 2000 10:20:00 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris to Open $340 Mln Kazakh Tobacco Factory in May Philip Morris to Open $340 Mln Kazakh Tobacco Factory in May by John Varoli Source: Bloomberg News, Monday, 3/13/00 St. Petersburg, Russia, March 13 (Bloomberg) -- Philip Morris Cos., the world's largest tobacco company by sales, will open a $340 million plant in the Central Asian republic of Kazakhstan in May, the company said. The factory will make tobacco products to be sold in Kazakhstan and other Central Asian republics and could also export tobacco to Russia, the company said. International tobacco companies have invested more than $1 billion in the former Soviet Union since 1992, with most of that going to the Russian Federation. In that time, Philip Morris has become the largest foreign investor in the tobacco industry in Central Asia. ``The new plant takes care of the Kazakh market and gives us the potential to export to neighboring markets,'' said Bob May, director of corporate affairs for Philip Morris Central Asia. Philip Morris entered the Kazakh market in 1993, buying up a number of local tobacco producers. Today it claims 80 percent of the local market, making and selling Madeo and international brands such as L&M and Chesterfield. Philip Morris has also invested about $500 million in Russia in the past five years, including the recent opening of a $330 million plant outside of St. Petersburg. It is also completing the $170 million expansion of its plant in the Krasnodar region in southern Russia. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Mar 13 10:22:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 985DC21B35 for ; Mon, 13 Mar 2000 10:22:17 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA03438 for ; Mon, 13 Mar 2000 10:22:17 -0500 Date: Mon, 13 Mar 2000 10:22:16 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Anti-smokers' Suit Quashed By Court (fwd) Anti-smokers' Suit Quashed By Court Tobacco companies win a break from the courts. Source: The Age, Tuesday, 3/14/00 A multi-million-dollar lawsuit against three tobacco giants was thrown out of court yesterday - but anti-smoking crusaders have vowed to continue their battle. The full bench of the Federal Court threw out the claim against Philip Morris, WD and HO Wills and Rothmans on a technicality, agreeing with the companies' appeal that the class action did not comply with court rules. The companies welcomed the decision and said attempts to further control the Australian tobacco industry was an abuse of process. But anti-smoking campaigners described the ruling as a temporary setback, and called on the Government to set up a fighting fund for litigants using income from cigarette taxes. "We want to see the Government set up a foundation using some of the tax revenue they're getting from cigarettes and provide a fighting fund so individuals can go and get legal funding to fight their individual cases," the president of the Non-Smokers Movement of Australia, Mr Brian McBride, said. He said it was sad the case was thrown out on a technicality. "The underlying message here is the need to push governments to take necessary action to end misleading and deceptive practices of tobacco companies," he said. The class action was filed by six claimants last year on behalf of hundreds of Australians who had suffered ill health from smoking. The litigants had claimed the companies breached the Trade Practices Act with misleading and deceptive conduct and negligence and that they had contracted lung cancer as a result of the companies' actions. Mr Andrew Grech, of solicitors Slater and Gordon, representing those bringing the case, said the companies had only managed to "inflict flesh wounds". "This is not going to stop the case going on," Mr Grech said outside the court. Meanwhile, British American Tobacco Australasia - owner of Rothmans and WD and HO Wills - and Philip Morris welcomed the decision. A British American Tobacco Australasia spokesman, Mr Brendan Brady, said the class action consumed considerable court time and was expensive for the applicants. "Australia has one of the most regulated tobacco markets in the world. Seeking to further regulate and control the industry through the courts is an abuse of process and unnecessary," he said. A Philip Morris spokeswoman, Ms Nerida White, said the court's decision confirmed the company's belief that class actions were inappropriate. Ms White said every smoker was unique, smoking different products at different times in different quantities and for different lengths of time. Slater and Gordon will study the Federal Court ruling before deciding whether to appeal to the High Court. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Mar 13 22:33:11 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0D7FB21AFF for ; Mon, 13 Mar 2000 22:33:10 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id WAA21610 for ; Mon, 13 Mar 2000 22:33:10 -0500 Date: Mon, 13 Mar 2000 22:33:10 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris CEO Gets Huge Raise (fwd) Philip Morris More Than Doubles CEO's Pay to $21.2 Mln in 1999 March 10, 2000 By Will Edwards New York, March 10 (Bloomberg) -- Philip Morris Cos. more than doubled the pay of Chairman and Chief Executive Geoffrey Bible to $21.2 million in 1999, as shares in the world's largest tobacco company fell to near five-year lows. Bible received $1.63 million in salary, a $4.4 million bonus, restricted shares worth $6.48 million, and retirement and other payments worth $537,690, according to a proxy statement filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The 62-year-old executive also got options worth $8.11 million on the days they were granted. The options to buy 1.03 million shares won't be worth anything unless the company's stock price almost doubles in value. Bible in 1998 was paid salary, bonus, options and other compensation worth an estimated $8.69 million. Shares of the maker of Marlboro cigarettes, Kraft cheese and Miller beer fell 57 percent last year -- the biggest annual drop since at least 1981 -- because of legal challenges against the company. The stock lagged the 20 percent gain in the Standard & Poor's 500 stock index. Philip Morris and other U.S. cigarette makers face the possibility of lump-sum damage award that could exceed $100 billion in a class-action suit filed in Florida. They have been sued by U.S. tobacco farmers alleging violation of antitrust laws, wholesalers charging price-fixing and hundreds of individual smokers seeking damages for smoking-related illnesses. A jury in San Francisco is deliberating a lawsuit brought against Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. by a California woman with lung cancer who alleges the companies' cigarettes made her sick. Philip Morris shares rose 3/16 to 19 5/16. Incentives Bible's 1999 option grants had exercise prices as follows: 750,000 at $40 a share and 278,685 at about $35.81 apiece. Philip Morris said in its proxy that Bible and some 3,600 other employees were granted regular and special cash bonus awards for meeting incentive targets tied to cash flow, net income, and earnings per share as measured against 1998's results. They were also rewarded for their performance in responding to the ``business, regulatory and litigation environment,'' the company said. The special bonus was created to retain employees. Half of the award will be payable on June 30, and the other half is payable on Jan. 31, 2001. Bible's special bonus was about worth about $1.7 million. Of Bible's restricted stock award, 100,000 shares vest on his 65th birthday and 115,960 shares vest in 2002. Bible also realized 1999 gains of $6.78 million by exercising previously granted options, the company's proxy statement said. In 1998, he earned another $18.85 million by exercising such options. Bible owned about 5 million shares as of Feb. 28, an increase of 13 percent from a year earlier, according to the proxy. He had options to buy about 4.85 million shares as of Dec. 31, about 3.82 million of which could be exercised. The underlying value of Bible's options held at the end of 1998 fell more than $87 million last year because of the decline in Philip Morris stock. 1998 In 1998, Bible, who has been chief executive since 1994, got $1.5 million in salary, a $3.5 million bonus, and other compensation totaling $518,940. Bible in 1998 also got options to buy 400,000 shares that were then valued at $3.11 million. The 1998 option grant had an exercise price of $39.72 a share. Philip Morris's filing listed executive options using a formula that estimates their value the day the board awarded them. Some other companies use a different method, calculating an executive's potential profit if company shares rise a certain percentage during the term of the option grant. Because the SEC lets companies use either method in proxy statements, it is difficult to compare executive pay from one company to another, even if they're in the same industry. Meeting Among the shareholder proposals included in the proxy are a request to remove genetically engineered crops or ingredients in any food products made by Philip Morris, a plan to link executive pay to smoking levels among teenagers, and a proposal whereby the company would separate its tobacco business from its other units. Philip Morris's board recommends shareholders vote against each proposal. At the company's April 27 annual meeting, shareholders will vote on a slate of 13 board members, as opposed to last year's 15. Tennis legend Billie Jean King was elected to serve on the board in August. She fills a spot vacated by Murray Bring, who retired Feb. 1 as general counsel. Two other members are stepping down as their duties increase at other companies. Richard Parsons, president of Time Warner Inc., was named co-chief operating officer of AOL Time Warner. William Donaldson last month was picked to serve as Aetna Inc.'s chairman and chief executive. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Mar 13 22:36:45 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A77F921AFF for ; Mon, 13 Mar 2000 22:36:45 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id WAA21709 for ; Mon, 13 Mar 2000 22:36:45 -0500 Date: Mon, 13 Mar 2000 22:36:45 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] U.K. Cigarette smugglers to lose assets (fwd) The Guardian - Monday March 13, 2000 Cigarette smugglers to lose assets David Hencke, Westminster Correspondent Gordon Brown will announce a huge clampdown on cigarette and tobacco smuggling in his budget next week, including the use of the same penalties to seize the assets of the criminal gangs behind the trade as of those handling heroin. The tough new stance follows growing panic in the treasury that it is losing large amounts of revenue from tobacco smuggling as people turn to illegal suppliers for cigarettes and hand-rolled tobacco. Last month the Guardian revealed how the UK-based British American Tobacco is implicated in the smuggling of billions of cigarettes world-wide. Latest figures show that =A32.4bn a year is lost to the exchequer from tobacco smuggling - enough cash to fund entire government departments or pay for almost a fifth of the NHS hospital budget. The sale of hand-rolled tobacco is almost entirely transacted on the black market, costing the treasury =A3800m a year. This is up by 30% since the 1997 election. Some 80% of all sales take place illegally in pubs, clubs, hotdog stalls and through illegally supplied tobacconists. Punters are saving =A34 a time on supermarket prices for a standard pouch and regular "trade routes" have been set up between Belgium and Britain. In Belgium the tax on hand-rolled tobacco is a quarter of the level in the UK. Whitehall is alarmed that the trade in smuggled cigarettes has more than doubled since 1997, from 10% to nearly 25% this year. This means that one in four packets of cigarettes are now bought illegally. If this trade reached the levels of that in hand-rolled tobacco the treasury stands to lose =A38bn a year. Customs intelligence operations have revealed that crim inal gangs used to dealing in heroin and cocaine are switching to tobacco because they can expect lighter jail terms and do not suffer the same penalties, such as the seizure of all assets. The result is that ministers have been steadily ratcheting up the penalties over the past year - including taking away lottery licences from tobacconists caught receiving smuggled cigarettes and destroying vehicles caught with smuggled goods. This is because gangs were found to be attending customs auctions of seized goods and buying back their vehicles at knockdown prices. The latest pre-budget move will be announced tomorrow when Dawn Primarolo, the paymaster general, visits Dover to announce high-profile measures to deter tobacco smugglers, including new warning signs at ports of entry. Seized vehicles will be put on view. Mr Brown wants to go further and is said to be determined not to give in to criminals by lowering taxes - even though a report commissioned by the treasury has recommended that this should be done. He also has pledged that any increase in tobacco duties will go directly to the NHS. Customs regards revenue on hand-rolled tobacco as a lost cause unless the Belgians put up taxes, which they are not keen to do. This leaves Mr Brown with no alternative but to get Jack Straw, the home secretary, to toughen penalties. Under misuse of drugs legislation, smugglers and dealers face life imprisonment and those smuggling cannabis face 14 years in prison. Smuggling tobacco carries seven years in jail. The treasury wants to force convicted smugglers to prove that all their assets are not from smuggling or face confiscation of everything. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Mar 14 12:19:36 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1CB5621AFF for ; Tue, 14 Mar 2000 12:19:36 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA30994 for ; Tue, 14 Mar 2000 12:19:33 -0500 Date: Tue, 14 Mar 2000 12:19:30 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Malawi To Fight For Tobacco (fwd) Malawi To Fight For Tobacco by Raphael Tenthani Source: Panafrican News Agency, Monday, 3/13/00 Blantyre, Malawi (PANA) - Malawi has vowed to fight tooth and nail to protect its economic lifeline - tobacco - which is currently threatened by a mounting global anti- smoking lobby seeking to force cessation of production by 2003. Tobacco Association of Malawi, which heads a state-appointed inter- departmental task force whose aim is to reinforce defences to counter the World Health Organisation-backed anti-smoking lobby locally, said it will not sit idle but will wedge a vigorous fight against the lobby. The association Friday held an emergency meeting with stakeholders in the industry, who included cabinet ministers, parliamentarians, traditional leaders and the private sector, to find a strategy on how to protect the industry. Its media officer, George Mituka, told PANA Monday that Malawi will join the rest of the tobacco-growing world in the fight. He said that global tobacco growers will counter WHO's campaign at a forum in Geneva in July. "The idea is for us to fight with one voice," he added. Tobacco, which rakes in over 70 percent in foreign exchange and contributes 34 percent of Malawi's Gross Domestic Product, is crucial for the country. Mituka said 71 percent of the entire Malawi population of 11 million directly or indirectly rely on tobacco on their daily livelihoods. "We want to sensitise policy-makers on this cause," he said. On the WHO campaign, which is being boosted by a recent World Bank report that classified tobacco as the next killer to HIV/AIDS, Mituka said smoking is a right which people indulge in by choice. "WHO should realise that smoking is a right; one is free to puff or not," he observed. Analysts say it will be disastrous if Malawi moves away from tobacco. Malawi is among the world's biggest exporters of tobacco, especially burley. It exports an average of 120 million kg annually to the US and Brazil. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 15 10:15:11 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4749B21B0A for ; Wed, 15 Mar 2000 10:15:11 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA18892 for ; Wed, 15 Mar 2000 10:15:09 -0500 Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 10:15:00 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Kenya asks WHO, World Bank not to rush anti-tobacco convention (fwd) Kenya asks WHO, World Bank not to rush anti-tobacco convention by Horace Awori / Bridge News Source: NewsEdge, Wednesday, 3/15/00 Nairobi--Mar 14--Kenyan Agriculture Minister Chris Obure has asked the World Bank and World Health Organization (WHO) not to rush through the proposed tobacco convention until the views of all the stakeholders are taken into account. Obure was addressing a meeting of the International Tobacco Growers Association (ITGA) here late Monday. ITGA chief executive, Antonio Abrunhosa, described the convention as the biggest ever threat to tobacco growing in the world and accused the WHO of switching from science to politics. The two were reacting to the campaign by the WHO and the World Bank to control tobacco use in the world. The convention mooted by the two organizations seeks a comprehensive ban on advertising and marketing and to stop tobacco production by year 2003. The World Bank has said it will not provide support for agriculture schemes that include tobacco leaf production. But Obure warned that the social and economic importance of the crop to farmers in Africa should not be ignored. He also questioned the rationale of allowing health policy to unfairly dictate matters of economics, trade, labor and agriculture, without consultations with all stakeholders. He said the convention which seeks to ban tobacco advertising and promotion in global communication media, eliminate smoking at work and public places and also wants excise taxes on the crop f rom 67% to 80% is likely to generate a lot of debate. "Before finalizing any action at international level, I hope the views of all stakeholders in the tobacco industry in Kenya including the farmers and the tobacco companies will be accommodated," the minister declared. Kenya has about 300,000 farmers engaged in tobacco production from which they earn over 630 million shillings a year. Tobacco exports earn the country 420 million shillings. (Kenya shillings 74.20--US $1) End Send comments to Internet address: emerg@bridge.com From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 15 16:24:52 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E514621AFF for ; Wed, 15 Mar 2000 16:24:51 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA31523 for ; Wed, 15 Mar 2000 16:24:51 -0500 Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 16:24:51 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] ENEWS: Expect Further Tobacco Consolidation In Europe In 2000. (fwd) Expect Further Tobacco Consolidation In Europe In 2000. Source: Salomon Smith Barney (Reg. Required), Thursday, 1/27/00 Philip Morris Cos Inc(MO)# Rating: 1S 19990406 Salomon Smith Barney ~ January 27, 2000 --SUMMARY:----Tobacco *** The recent speculation of a sale or partnering agreement of the German cigarette manufacturer Reemtsma is, in our view, both appropriate, and realistic given the recent fall in European tobacco equity valuations. ***Two factors lead us to conclude that Reemtsma may be an integral part of one large tobacco M&A transaction in Europe in 2000. **1)While Reemtsma's premium West brand is one of the most successful in Europe, the company faces increasingly intense competition from Philip Morris; the recently enlarged BAT; & a number of national producers. **2)We think that Reemtsma's owners may take their cue from Rothmans' owners who recognized that the success of Rothmans was more assured within BAT, than outside. ***We anticipate intense competition to merge with Reemtsma, & would place in pole position, Altadis & JT; followed by Imperial, & lastly, Gallaher. --OPINION:------------------------------------------------------------------ EUROPEAN TOBACCO INDUSTRY CONSOLIDATION - REEMTSMA IN THE SPOTLIGHT. Following the recent market comment concerning a sale or merger of the German cigarette manufacturer Reemtsma, we have provided below a number of observations of the European tobacco industry. 1) THE EUROPEAN TOBACCO MARKET HAS BECOMING INCREASINGLY COMPETITIVE AND ORGANIC REVENUE GROWTH FOR THE NATIONAL MANUFACTURERS IS TOUGH TO ACHIEVE. Given that the overall E.U. cigarette is essentially flat, volume growth for virtually all manufacturers has to be generated by winning or acquiring new market share. Furthermore, given the proposed E.U. regulations on tobacco advertising the entire region is becoming darker in terms of marketing, thereby likely to make it more difficult for the smaller manufacturers to win new share through aggressive advertising or brand imagery. Of course price based competition remains possible, but tobacco discounting, unless carefully controlled, can imperil the equity of premium or sub premium brands. By way of example, RJR's "Winston" brand was discounted to varying degrees and at different rates in different markets. As a result, over the long term, prior to Japan Tobacco acquiring RJR International, the discounting may have harmed more than helped that brand. 2) PHILIP MORRIS, WITH ABOUT 37% OF THE OVERALL EU MARKET HAS TREMENDOUS MOMENTUM, AND IS ENJOYING ANNUAL MARKET SHARE GROWTH OF AN ESTIMATED 1.5%. By way of example, within the E.U., between 1995 and 1998, the volumes of PHILIP MORRIS grew by 25.6 billion cigarettes, or 4.3% of the overall market. During that same period, only the enlarged BAT (with Rothmans International) and the German manufacturer REEMTSMA experienced net volume growth. BAT's volumes grew by 1.1 billion cigarettes, while REEMTSMA'S grew by an estimated 100 million units. In short, virtually the total volume gains of Philip Morris equated to the volume losses of most of the other European tobacco manufacturers. By way of example, SEITA's volumes fell by 6.5 billion cigarettes; RJR's volumes fell by 6.1 billion cigarettes; The ITALIAN MONOPOLY'S brands fell by 5.8 billion cigarettes; TABACALERA's volumes fell by 2.9 billion cigarettes; GALLAHER's volumes fell by 2.2 billion cigarettes; and, IMPERIAL'S volumes declined by 1.9 billion units. These numbers do not however tell the whole story. Tabacalera's trends were improving, (largely as smuggled volumes into Spain subsided) and Imperial and Gallaher, both enjoyed growth in the RYO (Roll-Your-Own) segment. 3) BOTH PHILIP MORRIS AND BAT MAY ENCOUNTER E.U. COMPETITION LAW PREVENTING A PURCHASE OF REEMTSMA. The market share of PMI (Philip Morris International) within the EU is already 37% and rapidly growing. In Germany, its market share is 40.4%. As a result, it is essentially barred from acquiring new volume in Europe in any manner except by organic growth. Remember, that E.U. competition authorities watch both national and EU market shares when considering M&A activity. BAT's market share in Germany, at almost 20% may also bar its potential purchase of Reemtsma -- BAT's overall EU share is about 13%. 4) ALTADIS & JAPAN TOBACCO MAY BE THE MOST LIKELY PURCHASERS OF REEMTSMA, FOLLOWED BY IMPERIAL -- AND THEN GALLAHER. >From a competition or regulatory point of view therefore, neither BAT nor Philip Morris are likely purchasers of Reemtsma. By contrast however, ALTADIS (the merged business of SEITA & TABACALERA) has an overall EU market share of about 13%, and just 3% of the German market. JAPAN TOBACCO, through its purchase of RJR International has just 6% of the overall EU market, and has no more than 10% market share in any individual market apart from Greece (about 11%) and the Netherlands (about 15%.) Both companies are eager to grow their European operations; Altadis would essentially benefit from acquiring Reemtsma for cost cutting purposes, as well as Reemtsma's toe hold in Eastern Europe. For Japan Tobacco/RJRI, we think that Reemtsma would bring growth skills that did not appear to exist under the former RJRI as well as a supplementary management team with a strong reputation. Japan Tobacco has not yet announced its formal restructuring plan for RJRI, but given that it has surplus capacity, we would expect the announcement of sought after factory closures and headcount reductions. Such goals are however difficult to achieve when it enjoys few economies of scale, and smallish volumes in virtually every European market. We estimate RJR's volumes in Germany in 1998 at 6.6 billion cigarettes representing net sales in that country of approximately $295 million. 5) A DEAL WITH REEMTSMA WOULD LIKELY BE ON A FRIENDLY AGREED BASIS. Reemtsma is a privately held company owned by Tchibo Holding AG. Its 1999 accounts are not publicly available but in 1998 we understand that it enjoyed net sales of $4.3 billion and net income of $190 million, implying a net margin of 4.5%. We estimate that in Germany in 1998 it enjoyed a 22% market share and a 6% share of the overall EU market. Its key brands are "WEST;" "DAVIDOFF" and "CABINET." Within the German market, its share fell by 120 basis points between 1995 and 1998. During 1999, both BAT and Philip Morris became more aggressive within the German market, although PMI's share fell approximately 0.9% to 40.4%. The key brands of PMI in Germany are "Marlboro" and "F6" while BAT's key brands in the German market are "HB;" "Lord;" "Lucky Strike;" and, "Golden American." Japan Tobacco's are "Camel" and "Club" while Seita's brand in Germany is "Gauloises Blondes" with a 3%+ market share. It is also worth noting that within the EU between 1995 and 1998, Reemtsma's "West" brand was the only premium brand with volumes over 10 billion to record a market share gain. (In 1998, West's volumes were 15 billion cigarettes.) CONCLUSION -- A LIKELY DEAL DESPITE RECENT PRICE FALLS. We reiterate our view that European tobacco consolidation will likely gather momentum during 2000 with Reemtsma forming the core of that activity. Reemtsma's management is strong and its brands largely successful. The decision of Rothmans owners to sell Rothmans International to BAT was in our opinion, a recognition of the importance of scale within the international tobacco environment. It is quite possible that the owners and management of Reemtsma, while under no particular pressure to sell, have reached a similar conclusion. All the potential acquirers (or partners) we have named above have the financial strength to acquire Reemtsma if the tobacco valuations of the last two years were still intact. But they have fallen. (From their 52 week highs, the Altadis stock price is down 39%; Austria Tabak is down 34%; Gallaher is down 47%; Imperial Tobacco is down 38%; and Swedish Match is down 24%.) As a result, the enthusiasm for all four manufacturers will have grown. The rather larger question is whether or not Reemtsma's owners will feel comfortable entering into an equity transaction at a time of depressed tobacco valuations. Watch this space. ---ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST--- Salomon Smith Barney ("SSB"), including its parent, subsidiaries and/or affiliates ("the Firm"), usually makes a market in the U.S.-traded over the counter securities recommended in this report and may sell to or buy from customers, as principal, securities recommended in this report. The Firm or employees preparing this report may have a position in securities or options of any company recommended in this report. An employee of the Firm may be a director of a company recommended in this report. The Firm may perform or solicit investment banking or other services from any company recommended in this report. Securities recommended, offered, or sold by SSB: (i) are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; (ii) are not deposits or other obligations of any insured depository institution (including Citibank); and (iii) are subject to investment risks, including the possible loss of the principal amount invested. Although information has been obtained from and is based upon sources SSB believes to be reliable, we do not guarantee its accuracy and it may be incomplete or condensed. All opinions and estimates constitute SSB's judgment as of the date of the report and are subject to change without notice. This report is for informational purposes only and is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of a security. This report has been approved for distribution in the United Kingdom by Salomon Brothers International Limited, which is regulated by the Securities and Futures Authority. The investments and services contained herein are not available to private customers in the UK. This report was prepared by SSB and, if distributed in Japan by Nikko Salomon Smith Barney Limited, is being so distributed under license. This report is made available in Australia through Salomon Smith Barney Australia Securities Pty Ltd. (ACN 003 114 832), a Licensed Securities Dealer, and in New Zealand through Salomon Smith Barney New Zealand Limited, a member firm of the New Zealand Stock Exchange. This report does not take into account the investment objectives or financial situation of any particular person. Investors should obtain advice based on their own individual circumstances before making an investment decision. The research opinions herein may differ from those of The Robinson-Humphrey Company, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of SSB. Salomon Smith Barney is a service mark of Salomon Smith Barney Inc. ) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 15 16:47:56 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2FDF521AFF for ; Wed, 15 Mar 2000 16:47:56 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA32167 for ; Wed, 15 Mar 2000 16:47:55 -0500 Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 16:47:55 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] RJR chief's compensation rose 133 percent in '99 (fwd) RJR chief's compensation rose 133 percent in '99 WASHINGTON, March 14 (Reuters) - Andrew Schindler, chairman and chief executive of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. (NYSE:RJR - news), saw his salary more than double last year to $5.47 million as the company split from Nabisco Group Holdings (NYSE:NGH - news). Schindler, who also serves as RJR president, received pay which included a $1.14 million bonus on top of a salary of $775,000 and $2.75 million in restricted stock in 1999, according to RJR's proxy filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday. In 1998, when the nation's No. 2 cigarette maker was still part of the food giant Nabisco, he received about $2.3 million -- including a $616,667 salary, $438,000 bonus and $1.2 million in restricted stock awards -- in compensation as CEO and president of the RJR operation. The company's compensation committee said it approved the 1999 bonus ``on the basis of the performance ratings for the financial performance of RJR and in recognition of the significant change in Schindler's responsibilities at the time of the spinoff.'' Last June, Nabisco spun off all the shares it held of Winston Salem, N.C.-based RJR to its stockholders and the holding company was created for the cigarette maker which now trades on the New York Stock Exchange. At the time of the spinoff, Schindler was granted a special retention bonus of $3.6 million, of which 50 percent will vest at the end of three years, 25 percent after four years and the remaining 25 percent after five years, the proxy said. Schindler, 55, also received $684,733 in long-term incentive payouts and another $111,087 in other compensation in 1999, the proxy said. However, the RJR holding company posted a 38 percent decline in net income last year, $369 million down from $591 million. Net sales grew to $7.56 billion from $5.69 billion, up 33 percent for the year, although that was because of higher prices as volume was down. RJR's stock price has been hovering near its 52-week low of $16 per share, less than half of its 52-week high of $34. The shares were up 3/16 on Tuesday at 16-7/8 on the NYSE. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 15 19:11:09 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6ED1121AFF for ; Wed, 15 Mar 2000 19:11:09 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA03275 for ; Wed, 15 Mar 2000 19:11:09 -0500 Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 19:11:09 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Govt looks at tobacco law change (fwd) Govt looks at tobacco law change by Nicholas Maling / in Wellington Source: The Press, Thursday, 3/16/00 The Government will consider changing the law so that it could sue tobacco firms, Prime Minister Helen Clark says. Tobacco companies may also be forced to label their products with the additives they put in cigarettes as the Government steps up its attack on smoking. Ms Clark, Attorney-General Margaret Wilson, and Health Minister Annette King met with anti-smoking group ASH yesterday to discuss the possibility of suing tobacco companies for the health costs of smoking-related illnesses. Ms Clark said Crown Law Office advice was that the Government's chances of successfully suing cigarette companies were slim unless it legislated for the move. "On the present legal framework, it's tough. You might have to legislate to enhance your chances. That has been done in other jurisdictions, so we'd want to look at that," Ms Clark said. She was seeking further legal advice on the issue. More information would need to be gathered before a decision was reached, but litigation remained under active consideration. "Litigation is one of a range of tools you have when you're trying to promote a smoke-free society," Ms Clark said. "We're basically wanting to do quite a lot more work and see what's happening in other jurisdictions." Ms Wilson would attend a conference of attorneys-general in Australia next week, where the issue of tobacco litigation was on the agenda. The Government would also take an interest in a seminar on the subject of tobacco litigation being run by ASH next week. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 16 11:51:46 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9B0D121B07 for ; Thu, 16 Mar 2000 11:51:46 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14314 for ; Thu, 16 Mar 2000 11:51:46 -0500 Date: Thu, 16 Mar 2000 11:51:46 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] WHO trying to control industry: Tobacco giant (fwd) WHO trying to control industry: Tobacco giant Source: The National, Thursday, 3/16/00 TOBACCO companies in PNG and around the world are fighting a rear-guard war against what they claim are attempts by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to control the industry. The British American Tobacco (BAT) companies yesterday started a media awareness campaign to alert governments worldwide of the moves by the WHO that risk undermining the governments' self-determination. The BAT called on the WHO to embark on constructive engagement with all stakeholders, and not only with an international coalition of anti-tobacco advocates. The BAT said the WHO may be exceeding the legal powers established on its constitution, and that its proposals risk removing the governments' right to determine their priorities and to develop policies suited to their countries' social and economic needs. One proposal likely to cause particular concern is that governments should fund phamarcological "treatments" such as nicotine patches. BAT (PNG) Ltd general manager John Alsbury said letters are been written to the Ministers of Health, Treasury and Finance and Justice about the WHO's proposal for a "supra-national", legally-binding international convention on tobacco control - the first time such convention on any matter it has attempted to put in place. "Our companies are ready to engage constructively on any tobacco policy issues, including health. "We acknowledge the health concerns associated with smoking and we endorse sensible regulation. As we recently said in offering the British government a 'third way' on tobacco issues, we seek to resolve stalemate and conflict, and to work on constructive solutions to the many policy issues surrounding tobacco production and consumption." Mr Alsbury said the WHO has a major role in promoting health policy, "but we believe its proposals are fundamentally flawed". He said if the WHO sees tobacco control as a high priority, it should embark on full and open dialogue and consultation to create a policy environment capable of responding to the needs of consumers, producers and other key stakeholders. "It is regrettable that our own repeated overtures to the WHO have been consistently rejected. "Should the WHO proposals go ahead, the outcome would be a unique example of a consumer product and an industry being regulated to an unprecedented degree, without key stakeholders being consulted," Mr Alsbury said. He says the WHO has specifically rejected tobacco growers, manufacturers and consumers and related industries from formal consultation on its proposed "Framework Convention on Tobacco Control" despite repeated requests and attempts to contribute on issues of shared concern. The BAT believes that the WHO proposals could duplicate, undermine or conflict with established international agreements on many issues, including free trade. Some key areas that the WHO proposal appears to conflict with include established international agreements and standards by bodies such as the World Trade Organisation and the World Customs Organisation. Areas likely to be affected include: n Free trade; n Taxation and excise duty; n Testing of tobacco products; n Packaging, labelling and manufacturing standards; n Proposed agricultural studies; and n A ban on all advertising and Internet sales. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 16 16:38:16 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BF24421B0B for ; Thu, 16 Mar 2000 16:38:16 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA22338 for ; Thu, 16 Mar 2000 16:38:16 -0500 Date: Thu, 16 Mar 2000 16:38:16 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT Urged to Demerge (fwd) March 16, 2000 BAT Should Demerge To Add Value, Reduce Court Risk -DKB Dow Jones Newswires LONDON -- British American Tobacco PLC (BTI) should consider splitting into two, with the parent company retaining only those assets with the highest exposure to litigation risk, Dresdner Kleinwort Benson said Thursday. DKB tobacco analyst Gerry Gallagher said the market has long frowned on BAT's prospects, given its mounting U.S. litigation headaches. He said a demerger of assets not directly exposed to U.S. litigation would give investors tangible evidence of a ring-fence around the U.K. tobacco company's embattled divisions, especially U.S.-based Brown & Williamson. "The key is to demerge all assets except Brown & Williamson and the BAT Co businesses," he said. In other words, BAT would act as a shell company retaining 30% of the group profits before tax: embattled B&W and BAT Co's African, Middle East and Asian-Pacific businesses. "If what's happening in the U.S. is sufficient to bankrupt B&W, then the plaintiffs will come to the parent company, but find that it's only a shell company," Gallagher said. "We believe such a (demerger) could be undertaken in the U.K., with no recourse in the U.S. courts." The remaining 70% of the business - its Rothmans International assets and BAT's European and South American businesses - would therefore be able to generate maximum shareholder value. Gallagher said the parent company, saddled with embattled, litigation-prone assets, would have a low rating and be worth about 82 pence. The demerged assets - along with BAT's outstanding notes - would soon find a much higher rating, given the absence of litigation risk. He estimates the new entity would be worth 478 pence. "Remember that I'm not proposing a fire sale; the shareholders would still receive all the cash flow of the two companies," he said. The combined value of the two entities, at 560 pence a share, would be much higher than BAT's current trading price of 316 pence. A BAT spokeswoman said there are no demerger plans; that the company believes litigation uncertainties will eventually ebb, and the share price will one day reflect the company's true valuation. In many ways, DKB's demerger proposal would mimic what BAT did in 1998 with its financial services arm, which was demerged and then merged with the Zurich Group (Z.ZFS). Investors appear to agree with DKB's argument, which went out to clients earlier this week. Although the week has seen some of the shine go off new economy stocks and back into the old, there was no other good reason for the jump in BAT's share price. At 1030 GMT, BAT's shares were up 9.25% to 316 pence, up 35% from Monday's 235 pence. Ongoing litigation and regulatory risks have pummeled the stock over the past 12 months. In early 1999 BAT shares were trading above 650 pence. London's second-tier tobacco stocks - Imperial Tobacco PLC (ITY) and Gallaher PLC (GLH) - have remained relatively subdued. Imperial is up 9% this week to 480 pence; Gallaher had been drifting downward this week, but at 1030 GMT was trading at 280 pence, 34 pence higher than Wednesday's close. -By Brian Truscott; 44 171 842 9289; brian.truscott@dowjones.com From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Mar 19 23:59:00 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 995F621AFF for ; Sun, 19 Mar 2000 23:59:00 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA05729 for ; Sun, 19 Mar 2000 23:59:00 -0500 Date: Sun, 19 Mar 2000 23:59:00 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] China caves in to US tobacco demands (fwd) Trade deal helps leaf firms China has agreed to cut tariffs on U.S. cigarettes as well as leaf tobacco by JOHN HALL / Media General News Service Richmond Times-Dispatch, Sunday, 3/19/00 WASHINGTON -- In a move with huge potential for the reeling U.S. tobacco industry, the new trade agreement with China now awaiting a congressional vote would drastically slash China's steep tariffs on American cigarettes and leaf tobacco, according to White House documents. Anti-smoking organizations say the deal, if approved, could bring hundreds of millions of dollars in new revenue to U.S. tobacco companies that have been trying for years to crack the Chinese market. "China is a gold mine," said Ross Hammond, a trade specialists and consultant to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. "There are more smokers in China than there are people in the United States." The tariff reductions were buried in a sheaf of new industry-by-industry documents released on Capitol Hill last week by the White House as it began a campaign to win approval of legislation bestowing permanent trade status on China. The bill, which would replace year-by- year renewal of trade concessions, is the key to approval of the huge deal in which China agreed to remove barriers to American products as a condition for entry into the World Trade Organization. Big concessions The tariff reductions for tobacco were among the largest concessions Charlene Barshefsky, the U.S. trade representative, was able to wring out of the Chinese negotiators. For cigarettes, the current tariff of 65 percent would fall in equal installments to 25 percent by 2004. And for leaf tobacco, the tariff would fall from 40 percent to 10 percent in the same period. What's more, once it joins the WTO, China will have to abandon its current position banning America tobacco as unsanitary because of "blue mold," U.S. official said. What exactly that will mean for American tobacco companies' bottom line isn't known. The Chinese state- owned tobacco company is the largest in the world and has resisted competition from abroad. Barshefsky was not able to win the same marketing and distribution rights for American tobacco companies she negotiated for other industries. But even a little share of China's market could mean big dollars. A U.S. trade official noted that China's cigarette consumption is the highest in the world despite official government attempts to discourage smoking. The Clinton administration has proposed a 25-cents- per-pack increase on each pack of cigarettes sold in the United States after failing to win an even higher levy as part of a huge settlement of tobacco lawsuits. Inconsistent, Hammond says The fact that it has now negotiated a reduction in Chinese taxes on American cigarettes and tobacco struck Hammond as somewhat inconsistent. In effect, Hammond said, the administration now wants to raise taxes on Americans to discourage consumption of American tobacco products, and lower taxes on Chinese to encourage consumption of U.S. cigarettes. "It's outrageous," said Hammond. "It's something they need to reconsider. Congress should take a close look at this." A U.S. trade official said lowering the tobacco tariff was proposed when negotiations began with China 13 years ago, long before the tobacco settlement was in the works. The trade representative's office said its mission was to level the playing field, not promote health and social policy. Hammond said Philip Morris has been pushing the trade agreement with China for several years and one of its biggest priorities was to gain access to the Chinese market. It has placed heavy emphasis on opening up the market to investment so it can build manufacturing plants using mainly Asian tobacco. China's bloated, inefficient state bureaucracy, which knows little about marketing, would be no match for a company such as Philip Morris, with its cigarette giveaways, bags and T-shirts, Hammond said. According to the British-based Action against Smoking and Health, American and British cigarette companies beginning in 1915 were instrumental in encouraging the Chinese people to smoke. Numbers rise Within 30 years, China's annual consumption of cigarettes rose from a negligible number to 100 billion cigarettes; by 1994 it stood at more than 1.6 trillion cigarettes. After World War II, the United States began exporting tobacco under the "Food for Peace" program -- $1 billion worth in the first 25 years. During the 1980s, international sales rose dramatically and in 1994, 220 billion U.S. manufactured cigarettes were shipped abroad, a 55 percent increase since 1989. One reason for this upsurge was that the U.S. threatened trade sanctions against Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and Thailand unless they opened up their markets to American cigarettes. All four countries gave in, but Thailand later won the right to ban cigarette advertising under a ruling by the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade that said countries could give "priority to human health over trade liberalization." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Mar 19 23:59:41 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3928521B0D for ; Sun, 19 Mar 2000 23:59:41 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA05758 for ; Sun, 19 Mar 2000 23:59:41 -0500 Date: Sun, 19 Mar 2000 23:59:40 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] NZ Government Considers Suing Tobacco TNCs (fwd) New Zealand News from The Press - Thursday, March 16, 2000 THURSDAY, MAR 16, 2000: Govt looks at tobacco law change by Nicholas Maling in Wellington The Government will consider changing the law so that it could sue tobacco firms, Prime Minister Helen Clark says. Tobacco companies may also be forced to label their products with the additives they put in cigarettes as the Government steps up its attack on smoking. Ms Clark, Attorney-General Margaret Wilson, and Health Minister Annette King met with anti-smoking group ASH yesterday to discuss the possibility of suing tobacco companies for the health costs of smoking-related illnesses. Ms Clark said Crown Law Office advice was that the Government's chances of successfully suing cigarette companies were slim unless it legislated for the move. "On the present legal framework, it's tough. You might have to legislate to enhance your chances. That has been done in other jurisdictions, so we'd want to look at that," Ms Clark said. She was seeking further legal advice on the issue. More information would need to be gathered before a decision was reached, but litigation remained under active consideration. "Litigation is one of a range of tools you have when you're trying to promote a smoke-free society," Ms Clark said. "We're basically wanting to do quite a lot more work and see what's happening in other jurisdictions." Ms Wilson would attend a conference of attorneys-general in Australia next week, where the issue of tobacco litigation was on the agenda. The Government would also take an interest in a seminar on the subject of tobacco litigation being run by ASH next week. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Mar 20 00:34:01 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0F02721AFF for ; Mon, 20 Mar 2000 00:34:01 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA06437 for ; Mon, 20 Mar 2000 00:34:00 -0500 Date: Mon, 20 Mar 2000 00:34:00 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Israel: Complaint Filed Against Importers for Ad Violations (fwd) Tuesday, March 14 2000 Jerusalem Post Clalit files complaint against cigarette importers By Judy Siegel (March 14) - Clalit Health Services has filed a complaint with the Israel Police against the importers of Marlboro, Pall Mall, Kent, and Magnum cigarettes for advertising gimmicks it says are a serious violation of the 1983 law restricting tobacco advertising. The importers are likely to be questioned and could be arrested. In an effort to promote cigarette sales, the importers are holding sweepstakes with such prizes as a recreational vehicle and a flight to Las Vegas. The Marlboro ads invite people to send in two empty cigarette packs or to call a Telemesser number to join the lottery, which Clalit lawyers say is a violation of the 1983 law making marketing tobacco products by offering a chance to participate in a lottery illegal. Smokers can participate in Philip Morris's lottery by sending in empty Magnum cigarette packs, while the importers of Pall Mall and Kent commissioned four pages of advertising in newspapers and provided readers with a cardboard cutout of a cigarette packet to be folded to look like a real one. In the latter, the Health Ministry warning about the health risks of smoking that must by law cover 5 percent of each page was printed on the last page only, thus violating the law. The penalty is a fine totalling four times the monetary benefit of the advertising - a very substantial sum, since many thousands of smokers are participating in the lotteries and other gimmicks. The Clalit Health Fund has taken an activist approach against smoking, and is already involved in a NIS 7.6 billion lawsuit against cigarette manufacturers here and abroad as compensation for the medical services it provides to smokers who contracted cancer, heart disease, respiratory diseases, and other disorders. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Mar 20 00:39:39 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8036721AFF for ; Mon, 20 Mar 2000 00:39:39 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA06564 for ; Mon, 20 Mar 2000 00:39:39 -0500 Date: Mon, 20 Mar 2000 00:39:39 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT fuming over WHO Convention Tobacco men fuming over World Health proposals By Rosie Murray-West Electronic Telegraph 16 March 2000 TOBACCO giant British American Tobacco said yesterday attacked the World Health Organisation's proposals for a legally binding international convention on tobacco control. BAT say that this would remove governments' rights to determine their own priorities. It is writing to trade secretary Stephen Byers and trade ministers across the globe saying the WHO is undermining the sovereignty of national governments. Michael Prideaux, BAT spokesman, said: "The WHO has been taken over by a coalition of anti-tobacco activists whose stated purpose is to hound tobacco companies out of business. "Tobacco is not an environmental issue which needs a supra-national convention. It is a consumer product and best regulated by the people that consumers vote for." He said, while BAT and the other tobacco company's could not take part in negotiations with the WHO, anti-tobacco groups such as Ash were involved in the talks. He added that drug companies such as Glaxo SmithKline, which makes nicotine patches, were supporting the WHO initiative. He said: "National governments earn ten times as much money from the tobacco industry as we do. They have no desire to put us out of business. However, this does seem to be the WHO's policy." The WHO declined to comment. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Mar 20 00:45:39 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id EADFA21AFF for ; Mon, 20 Mar 2000 00:45:38 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA06674 for ; Mon, 20 Mar 2000 00:45:38 -0500 Date: Mon, 20 Mar 2000 00:45:38 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Museveni (Ugandan Pres.) Supports Tobacco Company (fwd) Museveni Supports Tobacco Company by EDWARD OJULU / THE EASTAFRICAN Source: The East African, Monday, 3/13/00 UGANDAN PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has joined the tobacco debate, sparked three weeks ago by a sports columnist in The EastAfrican, who criticised British American Tobacco's sponsorship of a sports gala night. The President has expressed doubt about the tobacco-cancer link, saying: "The Banyankore [the President's tribe] used to smoke but I don't think there was an incident of cancer." He said a majority of peasants live up to 90 yet they smoke tobacco. The tobacco debate started last month when Kevin O'Connor, a sports columnist, criticised the sponsorship of sports journalists and events by tobacco companies. Sports journalists later dismissed O'Connor's argument as baseless. A senior BAT (Uganda) manager said the company had invited health officials and other stakeholders to discuss ways of making tobacco consumption safer. Health officials supported O'Connor's remarks. "I think the problem is in the way people smoke. Why swallow the smoke? To get rid of the urge you do not have to swallow the smoke," President Museveni said. The President was speaking when he commissioned BAT's refurbished green leaf threshing plant in Kampala last week. The $4.7 million investment in the plant was necessitated by an upsurge in tobacco production by the company, which has jumped from 6,345 tonnes in 1996 to more than 21,500 tonnes in 1999. President Museveni quoted a Kinyankore proverb: "When a man is in trouble he smokes. These people might have found wisdom in smoking." The Minister of Trade and Industry, Brigadier Moses Ali, who accompanied the President, described BAT (Uganda) as "the best milk producing cow in Uganda. "The tobacco giant last year paid Ush48.7 million ($32,000) to the Treasury in the form of taxes =96 the largest sum from a single tax-pay= er." The BAT management said the figure could rise further if the government step up efforts to curb cigarette smuggling from neighbouring countries. Uganda liberalised the tobacco trade in March, 1999. The company sponsors 56,000 farmers to grow tobacco in Bunyoro, Mubende and West Nile region. It is estimated that its total tobacco output this year will be 21,500 tonnes. About 94 per cent of it is exported after proce= ssing. The remaining six per cent is used at the company's factory in Jinja. British American Tobacco (Uganda) employs 563 permanent staff and a further 2,500 on casual and contract jobs during peak tobacco processing and marketing seasons. President Museveni defended the tobacco industry and described smugglers as "enemies of our revenue and employment." He recently set up a special anti-smuggling unit which reports to him, saying the Uganda Revenue Authority had been "compromised" by smugglers. The EastAfrican has also learnt that importers who have been complaining of harassment have been ordered to fully comply with tax obliga= tions. A minister said last week that an independent investigation had unearthed smuggling rackets involving "big fish." Mr Museveni said all importers must pay taxes because their activities do not generate employment for locals. "We don't tax exporters. We tax importers and they must pay," said the President. The tobacco company, which has operated in Uganda since 1928, also plans to inject $1.16 million to refurbish its offices. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Mar 21 00:59:47 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2B96F21B48 for ; Tue, 21 Mar 2000 00:59:47 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA01889 for ; Tue, 21 Mar 2000 00:59:46 -0500 Date: Tue, 21 Mar 2000 00:59:46 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada: FCTC Scorecard (fwd) FCTC Scorecard Source: Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, Monday, 3/20/00 Framing the Framework Convention The FCTC Scorecard ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Step One:=20 Analyse through questioning how proposals for the FCTC achieve public health goals Step Two: Score the Proposed Measures. Step Three: Use a scorecard to evaluate results Download: The Scorecard in 'word' or 'pdf' format for your own use Compare: Your results with PSC's. (in 'word' or 'pdf' format) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The first drafts of the proposed =A0 Framework Convention on Tobacco Contro= l (FCTC) and related protocols will provoke much discussion - and many differing opinions -- among traditional allies in public health. With the potential for so many comments and different opinions, it becomes important not only to make comments on the documents, but to have a way of considering comments, one=92s own and other peoples=92 comments as well, so that all views can be taken into account in working towards a more polished international instrument that is both representative of a global consensus and an effective public health measure. This proposal seeks to provide a way to help participants evaluate and keep track of the various concerns and options are raised. Suggested Goals for the Framework Convention Two important goals for the FCTC likely to be shared among public health advocates are: * Implementing important, effective tobacco control measures through international law * Winning the support of most WHO Member States as convention and protocol signatories Potentially, the two objectives listed above could pull in opposite directions. The very best public health measures might only find a handful of countries ready to ratify and commit themselves to implementing the convention.=A0 Most Member States may be willing to ratify something that placed very few obligations on them. But such a treaty would probably not contain the effective international public health measures that are needed. Effective measures that are needed include strong support for comprehensive national tobacco control, international measures that extend national measures, and supranational measures that ensures that international law is a positive force for tobacco control, not a negative force against it. The challenge, then, is one of optimization =96 to achieve the best possibl= e result for both objectives. Step One: Analyse through questioning how proposed measures help achieve these goals Is the proposed measure national or international? * Some international measures are "supranational" in their effect.=A0 They have an impact on other international laws or practices. An example of a supranational measure would be the inclusion in the framework convention of a clause that says explicitly that trademark provisions in other treaties (like TRIPS, NAFTA, etc) cannot be used to prohibit the sound public health measures of advertising bans, warnings on packages and generic packaging. * Another kind of international measure belongs to the class of international extensions of national measures, like a ban on export of tobacco advertising. * A third kind of International measures establishes ways to cooperate internationally, and to encourage nations to work together to strengthen tobacco control. One example would be a provision for assistance to developing countries and newly independent states to implement this treaty as well as recommended national tobacco control measures.=A0 Another could be a well-resourced multilateral international task force to help strengthen national tobacco control programmes would be in this category. * National measures in an international convention might include some that, by virtue of being included in international law, stand a better chance of being implemented at the national level. By way of example, for many countries, clear international recommendations for strong uncompromising warnings on cigarette packages may be the spur needed to prompt effective national action on this issue. * Other national measures could properly belong in national law only. Detailed descriptions of what such health warnings should look like are an example of measures in this category. National law will be easier to change and more responsive to local cultural conditions in many cases, including this one. Does the measure enhance international cooperation to strengthen tobacco control? * Does the measure foster cooperation among all countries? Specific requirements to share information on the nature and effectiveness of national tobacco control measures would be in this category. * Does the measure help countries to strengthen their tobacco control measures? Developing countries and newly independent states are in particular need of financial and technical assistance to implement national and international tobacco control measures. The framework convention could and should set up international institutions that would provide the needed assistance. Global tobacco control would be enhanced as a result. * Could the measure be accomplished as well or better by other means? * Could it be implemented as well or better at the national level? * Could it be implemented as well or better through another existing treaty, or through existing international programmes or practices? What consultation is advisable? * If measures are proposed that impact other treaties or other programmes and practices, consultation is strongly advised. Has it been done, or are plans in place to do it? It may be that many control measures could be implemented through means other than the framework convention as a result of such consultation. Is this measure best suited to being in the body of the convention, in a related protocol -- or in neither? It is important to recognize that there are many laudable public health measures that have no place in an international legal instrument. Large health warnings in two languages with colour pictures, printed on the front and back of cigarette packages is a fine measure in Canada, and perhaps in other countries too. However, these sorts of measures may best be done at the national level and are most inappropriate at the international level, where they would be very inflexible, once adopted, and would be very unresponsive to varying cultural factors around the world. The evaluation conducted under this title should be restricted to the proposed measure=92s worth as an element of international law. Positive measures. * Positive measures can be evaluated as being of high, medium or low importance as international public health measures. It is also important to realize, however, that inappropriate measures that may actually do more harm than good (such as national law misplaced as international treaty obligations) can easily find their way into early drafts. The example cited above is in this category. Negative measures: * Too much specificity in international law introduces inflexibility that may be hard to undo by national law later on. These negative measures can also be evaluated as mostly harmless, somewhat harmful or very harmful. How many signatories will this measure attract? This question can be considered along two dimensions. One is the straightforward issue of the relative popularity of the item, and the other is the more subtle issue of its strategic worth as a measure that has value not only in and of itself, but further value as a measure that can provide incentive for Member States to overcome misgivings they may have and prompt them to sign the convention and protocols. Popularity * Relative popularity has to be evaluated not in terms of whether it will receive support from Health Ministers and Ministries, but rather will the measure receive multisectoral support in this or that country? Will it receive support from the entire government? Will it be supported or opposed by other citizens' groups? Will the level of support outweigh the opposition that will inevitably come from the tobacco industry and its sympathizers? Strategic importance * Another subtler dimension of the question of popularity of a measure is the strategic nature of its construction. It is possible to construct measures that are particularly attractive. To reap the benefits of these attractive measures, some Member States will agree to measures that may be less attractive to them (but perhaps no less important to global public health). The inclusion of guaranteed technical and financial assistance to developing countries and newly independent states for implementing the convention, related protocols and related comprehensive tobacco control measures would be an example of a good strategic provision. All strategic provisions will not necessarily be good. Critical evaluation of strategic provisions may reveal them to be, even if well intentioned, so poorly constructed that they may in fact work against the achievement of objectives instead of in their favour. Negotiators will need to be alert to this possibility and work to ensure that everything in the convention and protocols contributes towards the achievement of objectives. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Step Two: =A0 Score the Proposed Measures. We offer an analytic tool for judging various measures or sets of measures. While the tool itself is objective, the evaluations carried out using the scorecards could be very subjective, reflecting the very different concerns of different negotiators and the different Member States they represent. Two different negotiators may score the same measure very differently. These negotiators would then have something to negotiate. They could compare their scorecards, discuss the similarities and differences in the scores assigned to the same measure, and then work towards agreement on how best to modify the measure to optimize objectives for global tobacco control. The system of categorization and scoring proposed here is but one of the many different tools and tricks that will be needed by negotiators. Nevertheless, it could prove to be a very useful complement to the wider collection of people and analytical skills that negotiators will bring to discussions around the framework convention for tobacco control and related protocols. Scorecard Part 1: Characterizing the measure Negotiators may first wish to determine the nature of the measure under consideration. This could be done by seeking answers to the five questions posed in Step One . Their answers should reflect how the measure would be viewed by the government or organization they represent would see the measure contributing to improved global and national tobacco control. Such an evaluation will not necessarily coincide with how the measure is presented in draft documents or how other delegations or individuals characterize it. The characterization could be done in the form of summary table that could look something like this: Scorecard Part 1: The nature of the measure Example measure number Description of the measure Is the measure supranational or could it be entirely accomplished by national means? Does the measure enhance international cooperation to strengthen tobacco control? Could the measure be accomplished as well or better by other means? What consultation with other international bodies is advisable? Framework, protocol, or neither? 1 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 2 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 3 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 Etc. =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0=A0 Scorecard Part 2: Numerical scoring of importance and popularity Once the measure has been characterized it can be given a numerical score. These scores will help illuminate the public health importance of the measure as a component of international law and provide a judgement of the measure=92s effectiveness at attracting signatories through its popularity and strategic worth. The potential effectiveness of the measure as a contribution towards achievement of objectives, its appropriateness as an international measure as opposed to a national measure, the possibility of its achievement through means other than a new treaty or protocol are all factors that could be considered in scoring the importance, popularity and strategic worth of an item. It should also be recognized that some measures could be counterproductive and could thereby earn negative scores in this scoring scheme. Measurement scales: * The public health importance (or harmfulness) of the measure as a component of international law * How important is the measure to attracting (or repelling) member states to become signatories * How strategic is the measure in attracting (or repelling) signatories -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 +5 +6 Very harmful Somewhat harmful mostly harmless Unimportant or not applicable Somewhat important Very important.=A0 Scorecard #2 for decision-making: Importance and popularity =09Measure The public health importance of the measure as a component of international law How many signatories will this measure attract? The strategic worth of the measure TOTAL Sum of columns 1-3 1 Measure #1 -6 to +6 -6 to +6 -6 to +6 -18 to +18 2 Measure #2 -6 to +6 -6 to +6 -6 to +6 -18 to +18 3 Measure #3 -6 to +6 -6 to +6 -6 to +6 -18 to +18 =09Etc. Etc. Etc. Etc. Etc=A0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Step Three: Use a scorecard to evaluate results Download the attached scorecard to evaluate of the measures under debate.= =A0 * Scorecard in word format * Scorecard in pdf format Once the measure has been characterized it can be given a total score. These scores will help illuminate the public health importance of the measure as a component of international law and provide a judgement of the measure=92s effectiveness at attracting signatories through its popularity and strategic worth. Compare with PSC's results using the scorecard to evaluate seven potential measures under the FCTC * PSC Scorecard in word format * PSC Scorecard in pdf format From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Mar 21 01:05:36 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8B54A21B14 for ; Tue, 21 Mar 2000 01:05:36 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id BAA02291 for ; Tue, 21 Mar 2000 01:05:36 -0500 Date: Tue, 21 Mar 2000 01:05:36 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris To Help Colombia Halt Cigarette Smuggling (fwd) Philip Morris To Help Colombia Halt Cigarette Smuggling Source: Dow Jones News Service, Monday, 3/20/00 Updated 9:26 AM ET March 20, 2000 NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Philip Morris Cos.' (MO) Colombia unit agreed to help the Colombian government stop the smuggling of Marlboro cigarettes into the country. The tobacco company will inspect contraband collected by the National Tax and Customers Administration of Colombia, and will give the administration information that could be useful in law enforcement efforts. Philip Morris had stopped importing cigarettes into Colombia after the country's governors threatened to bring charges in a U.S. court against the company and against British American Tobacco PLC (BTI). The governors alleged that the companies, the two leading exporters of cigarettes to Colombia, had intentionally fostered smuggling in order to skirt the 48% sales tax levied on imported cigarettes. The Associated Press reported in May that smuggled cigarettes cost the Colombian government $305 million a year. Philip Morris resumed imports to the country in September, and currently imports Marlboro cigarettes manufactured in Venezuela. These cigarettes are distributed in Colombia by John Restrepo and Co. -Elizabeth Souder; Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5400 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Mar 21 15:26:08 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4807F21B07 for ; Tue, 21 Mar 2000 15:26:08 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA00962 for ; Tue, 21 Mar 2000 15:23:12 -0500 Date: Tue, 21 Mar 2000 15:23:12 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] European News Bulletin - EU0011 - 20 March 2000 (fwd) EUROPEAN BULLETIN EU0011 =96 20 March 2000 Headlines BULGARIA: Extension granted for Bulgartabac sell-off DENMARK: Government to launch cancer plan FINLAND: Smoking restrictions to be recommended IRELAND: Cancer and heart death toll still too high ISRAEL: Clalit files complaint against cigarette importers RUSSIA: Bulgartabac opens factory in Russia SPAIN: Government outlines plans to implement tobacco ad ban INTERNATIONAL SOUTH KOREA: Testimony gets underway in nation=92s first tobacco lawsuit Full Text BULGARIA: Extension granted for Bulgartabac sell-off Bulgaria=92s Privatisation Agency has extended the deadline for bids for a 51% stake in Bulgaria=92s state-owned tobacco and cigarette maker, Bulgartabac Holding, until 28 April. Three companies have already sent letters expressing interest in the sale of Bulgartabac. They are the US cigarette maker Phillip Morris, British Gallaher and Reemtsma of Germany. Under the privatisation scheme, a 51% stake in the tobacco major will be sold to a strategic investor. The deposit for participation is 1 million euros. The government expects that the deal will fetch up to $150 million. A 34% stake will be sold directly to a strategic investor with experience in the tobacco and cigarette-making business. Another 17% will be sold to the same strategic investor under certain conditions and frozen in a special account for 6 to 12 months until the buyer fulfils all the conditions required by the contract. The state will also keep a so-called "golden share" to have a veto on decisions about Bulgartabac=92s future. Bulgartabac has a 96% market share in Bulgaria. Its 1999 preliminary profit was 60 million leva, compared with 36 million in 1998. (1 euro =3D 1.95583 leva) Source: Bridge News 15 March 2000 DENMARK: Government to launch cancer plan The Danish Minister of Health, Sonja Mikkelsen, is to launch a plan with the aim of reducing the number of cancer cases and cancer mortality in Denmark. The number of cancer cases is expected to increase to nearly 30,000 a year by 2010 from the present 27,000, and mortality rates among cancer patients is higher in Denmark than in other Nordic countries. The plan includes measures to reduce smoking. The Government states that if a 30% reduction is achieved, the number of lung cancer deaths will be reduced by 1,000 a year. To achieve this, the Government has asked regional councils to produce a three-year plan, including measures to help people stop smoking. Source: Jyllands-Posten (JYP) via the Gale Group, 03 Mar 2000 FINLAND: Smoking restrictions to be recommended The Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has drafted a programme recommending that areas which are meant for children should be non-smoking areas. The restriction would include places such as schools, day-care centres, sports fields and other similar outdoors areas. A pilot scheme in some Finnish municipalities will be conducted during the coming months. The recommendations will be posted to all municipalities in autumn 2000. = =20 The programme recommends that people who work with children and youngsters should not smoke at all, or at least not during the working day. Source: Helsingin Sanomat (XFB) via The Gale Group, 09 Mar 2000 IRELAND: Cancer and heart death toll still too high Premature deaths from cancer and heart disease remain higher in Ireland than other European countries, according to the Chief Medical Officer=92s annual report. Dr James Kiely=92s report says that Ireland has the second highest rate in the EU for deaths from cancer among women. Denmark ranks the highest and Greece the lowest. For men, Ireland scores sixth highest in the EU for deaths from cancer. The report also revealed that there tends to be greater illness rates among the less well-off. The economically disadvantaged have poorer access to health services and there are substantial variations in the provision of diagnostic, therapeutic and rehabilitation services for heart disease, according to the report. Although death rates from cardiovascular disease in Ireland have declined, it is clear more can be done, Dr Kiely said. "Other countries such as the US, Australia and Finland which had higher death rates than Ireland in the 1960s now have lower levels," he said. Dr Kiely=92s report also expressed concern about the levels of smoking, alcohol intake, fat consumption and sedentary lifestyles in young people. Source: Irish Independent, Friday, 17/3/00 ISRAEL: Clalit files complaint against cigarette importers Clalit Health Services has filed a complaint with the Israel Police against the importers of Marlboro, Pall Mall, Kent, and Magnum cigarettes for advertising gimmicks it says are a serious violation of the 1983 law restricting tobacco advertising. The importers are likely to be questioned and could be arrested. In an effort to promote cigarette sales, the importers are holding sweepstakes with such prizes as a recreational vehicle and a flight to Las Vegas. The Marlboro ads invite people to send in two empty cigarette packs or to call a Telemesser number to join the lottery, which Clalit lawyers say is a violation of the 1983 law making marketing tobacco products by offering a chance to participate in a lottery illegal. The penalty is a fine totalling four times the monetary benefit of the advertising - a very substantial sum, since many thousands of smokers are participating in the lotteries and other gimmicks. The Clalit Health Fund has taken an activist approach against smoking, and is already involved in a NIS 7.6 billion lawsuit against cigarette manufacturers here and abroad as compensation for the medical services it provides to smokers who contracted cancer, heart disease, respiratory diseases, and other disorders. Source: Jerusalem Post, Tuesday, 3/14/00 RUSSIA: Bulgartabac opens factory in Russia Bulgaria=92s Bulgartabac has announced the opening of its biggest factory i= n Russia. The new factory in Sochi is the biggest investment by the Bulgarian tobacco major in Russia. Bulgartabac already has three cigarette factories in Russia, plus one in Ukraine and one in Romania. The new factory is a Russian-Bulgarian joint venture, 77% of which will be controlled by Bulgartabac=92s Plovdiv BT factory and 23% by the Russian International Tobacco Corporation. The capacity of the new venture is 10,000 tonnes cigarettes annually which makes up 3-4% of the local market. Source: Bridge News 15 March 2000 SPAIN: Government outlines plans to implement tobacco ad ban The Spanish government has announced the programme for the implementation of a ban on tobacco advertising in accordance with the EU Directive. Advertising through mass media such as TV, radio and press will be banned in year 2002. This will be followed by a ban on indirect tobacco advertising, eg via clothing products, in the year 2003 and a total ban all tobacco sponsorship and promotion by year 2006. Losses in the advertising sector caused by these measures from 2000 to 2002 have been valued at Pta 37,393mn, of which Pta 7,959mn will be incurred by the State, and Pta 3,000mn by the sport sponsorship sector. Job losses in advertising agencies are expected to amount to 420 employees. Source, La Gaceta de los Negocios (ZDA) via The Gale Group, 07 Mar 2000 INTERNATIONAL SOUTH KOREA: Testimony gets underway in nation=92s first tobacco lawsuit The Seoul District Court has begun hearing testimonies in the nation=92s first tobacco lawsuit, filed by 31 sick smokers and their families against the state and the state-run Korea Tobacco and Ginseng Corp. A 57-year-old man suffering from terminal lung cancer, identified only as Kim, and five other smokers and their families filed the lawsuit last December, seeking 307 million won ($260,000) in state compensation for smoking-related illnesses. In his testimony, Kim claimed that smoking for 37 years had resulted in his diagnosis last year with terminal lung cancer. He accused the state-run tobacco company of failing to remove cancer-causing ingredients such as nicotine and tar from its cigarettes, and of not adequately warning consumers of the health hazards of smoking. Bae Keum-ja, one of a group of lawyers representing the plaintiffs, presented medical reports from the United States, Britain and Japan as evidence of the links between smoking and lung cancer. She also made an application to inspect the Korea Ginseng & Tobacco Research Institute in Taejon. "An investigation of the facility would allow us to gather compelling evidence of the dangers of smoking, such as data on harmful ingredients like tar and nicotine, inspection data on new tobacco products and statistics on nicotine content," Bae said. The lawyers=92 group also requested the right to collect medical records from hospitals where lung cancer patients are diagnosed, and to take court testimony from plaintiffs in advance. The group said many of the plaintiffs are terminally ill and might not live to see the end of the trial. Source: Korea Herald, Saturday, March 11, 2000 Amanda Sandford Research Manager ASH 102 Clifton Street LONDON EC2A 4HW tel: 020 7739 5902 fax: 020 7613 0531 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Mar 24 10:26:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 76B3721B05 for ; Fri, 24 Mar 2000 10:26:24 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA07751 for ; Fri, 24 Mar 2000 10:26:24 -0500 Date: Fri, 24 Mar 2000 10:26:24 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ceylon Tobacco stops advertising (fwd) Ceylon Tobacco stops advertising Source: Associated Newspapers of Ceylon, Friday, 3/24/00 Ceylon Tobacco Co. Ltd on Wednesday announced that it was discontinuing all advertising of tobacco products in the print and eletronic media with immediate effect under a wide ranging industry code of conduct it is introducing. In addition to television, radio, cinema, newspaper and magazine advertising, the Company said that advertising on billboards will be discontinued immediately. It will also cease sports sponsorships under its brand trademarks with immediate effect. The Company will continue to advertise its products at store level, where cigarettes are sold. The Company has introduced this code of conduct to address public perceptions on tobacco advertising and to declare product information in line with international practice. It was doing so as a responsible company in an industry seen as controversial. Ceylon Tobacco said that it is firmly on the view that cigarettes should not be sold to anybody under 18 years of age and restricts its marketing to those above this age although the Sri Lankan law currently stands at 16 years. In keeping with international standards, the Company will also publish tar and nicotine levels on cigarette packs within a maximum time frame of 12 months, in consultation with the authorities. Ceylon Tobacco pledged that it will continue through meetings and other means, the practice of educating its relailers on the Company's marketing policies as enumerated in the code of conduct. "By regulating the conduct of its Marketing activities, the Company will demonstrate to the public at large its sincerity of purpose in acting as a responsible company in an industry seen as controversial," Ceylon Tobacco said in a statement. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Mar 24 10:34:36 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C6C5021B05 for ; Fri, 24 Mar 2000 10:34:36 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA08039 for ; Fri, 24 Mar 2000 10:34:36 -0500 Date: Fri, 24 Mar 2000 10:34:36 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] EDITORIAL: Suddenly stubbed out (Canada) EDITORIAL: Suddenly stubbed out Source: Ottawa Citizen, Friday, 3/24/00 The governmental war on tobacco received two unexpected setbacks from a rather unexpected source this week, one in Canada and one in the United States. Here, the British Columbia Supreme Court ruled that the Workers' Compensation Board ban on smoking in all workplaces, including bars (and also seniors' homes and prisons), was invalid because it did not engage in proper consultation. In the United States, the Supreme Court ruled that the Federal Drug Administration's decision to start regulating tobacco in 1996 (which President Clinton with characteristic hyperbole called the most important public health initiative in 50 years) was not based on a valid grant of authority from Congress. Predictably, authorities in both jurisdictions will look for some other way of implementing the same rules. That rather misses the point. The procedural safeguards that protect our liberty are there not to force governments to find other ways of infringing it, but to stop them from doing so. Tobacco is a legal product, and we enjoy the right of free association and freedom of contract. Therefore consenting adults should be able to do things like smoke cigarettes and operate businesses in which cigarettes are smoked. The underlying philosophy of smoking restrictions on adults denies that claim, and says instead that people do not know what is best for them and must be compelled in their own best interest. Children, of course, are treated in exactly that fashion by the law, and should be. Adults should not. True, smoking is a strange choice given the risks. But so is allowing the state to infantilize adults. Leaving aside the dangers of totalitarianism, intrusive regulations are not just an affront to human dignity, but also frequently counterproductive. We let adults make their own choices because their mistakes are less frequent and less lethal than those of the state. That's why we have defined rights, and courts to protect them. Since that's what just happened, the state should, well, butt out. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Mar 24 10:35:23 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B311B21B08 for ; Fri, 24 Mar 2000 10:35:23 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA08083 for ; Fri, 24 Mar 2000 10:35:23 -0500 Date: Fri, 24 Mar 2000 10:35:17 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] RJR seeks to quash federal suit by Canada RJR seeks to quash federal suit by WILLIAM MARSDEN / The Gazette Source: Montreal Gazette, Friday, 3/24/00 The RJ Reynolds Tobacco company has filed a motion in U.S. federal court to dismiss the Canadian government's $1-billion lawsuit against it, five of its affiliates and the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers Council. RJR filed its motion Wednesday in Syracuse, N.Y., on three separate grounds: - The court has no jurisdiction to interpret and enforce Canadian tax law. - The suit was filed after the four-year statute of limitations had expired. - The Canadian government has not met the specific requirements for filing a civil fraud action under the U.S. Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. Ottawa sued RJR in December, alleging that it defrauded the government of more than $1 billion U.S. from 1991 to 1994 by aiding and abetting the smuggling of tobacco from the U.S. into Canada. The federal suit alleges that most of the smuggling took place through the Akwesasne Indian reserve near Cornwall, Ont. The government filed its suit under the RICO statute, which gives courts the power to award triple the value of damages claimed, meaning Ottawa could win more than $3 billion. The lawsuit was the first to target a tobacco company for smuggling, and could signal a whole new round of court actions against international tobacco companies - which is probably why RJR has come out swinging. Its strongly worded motion indicates the company has no intention of rolling over and is ready for a long battle. The company claims the Canadian government is abusing the RICO statutes to avoid litigation in Canada and to try to collect taxes lost because of "the very excessive tax system it created a decade ago." The motion essentially blames the federal government's "excessive taxation" for the smuggling which, it states, Ottawa chose not to stop. RJR claims the "technically complex" questions of taxation and enforcement should be raised in Canada and not in the U.S. Outside U.S. Jurisdiction The motion states that U.S. revenue rules forbid involvement in a foreign country's tax laws and enforcement regulations. Since the lawsuit would inevitably require an analysis of Canadian tax law, the suit is outside U.S. jurisdiction, RJR says. "This action is nothing more than an attempt by Canada to collect tax revenues," the motion states. On the question of time limits, the motion cites a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, referred to as the Rotella judgment, that the four-year time clock for a RICO action begins ticking when the plaintiff discovers the injury. RJR notes that Canada's lawsuit admits the government knew it was being defrauded as early as 1991 - and it knew how it was being defrauded. It cites a 1994 speech by Prime Minister Jean Chretien to the House of Commons in which he said that the government was enacting anti-smuggling legislation "aimed at the tobacco companies who have benefited from this illegal trade and who also bear responsibility." "When viewed in its entirety, Mr. Chretien's speech fully admits Canada's knowledge of all aspects of what it now contends was a fraudulent smuggling scheme," the motion states. It then comes razor-close to admitting industry involvement in smuggling: "Based on these admissions, (the) plaintiff not only knew of its alleged injuries from smuggling, but also knew of the alleged involvement of the tobacco manufacturers, long before December 1995. Yet, for whatever reasons - political or otherwise - Canada simply chose not to pursue its claims at that time." The government claims that while it knew of its injury in 1991 at the latest, it did not have the necessary details to finger RJR. Furthermore, it claims RJR attempted to fraudulently conceal its part in the smuggling through statements made by the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers Council. But RJR claims there was no concealment and that the issue is irrelevant anyway, since the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the clock starts ticking when the injury is discovered. RJR basically ridicules the federal government for relying on press releases and statements from the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers Council that its members were not involved in the smuggling. The court has not set a date for hearing RJR's dismissal motion. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Mar 25 07:51:27 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2114221B02 for ; Sat, 25 Mar 2000 07:51:27 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id HAA28510 for ; Sat, 25 Mar 2000 07:51:26 -0500 Date: Sat, 25 Mar 2000 07:51:26 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Kenya Tobacco Bill 'Not Workable' (fwd) Africa News Online - Tobacco Bill 'Not Workable' by Mike Mwaniki / The Nation (Nairobi) Source: Panafrican News Agency, Thursday, 3/23/00 Nairobi - Tobacco companies were not involved in the formulation of a Tobacco Control Bill (1999) which is expected to be tabled in Parliament soon. As a result, British American Tobacco managing director Jeremy Pike said yesterday that the Bill, which aims at regulating the manufacture, sale, labelling, advertising, promotion of tobacco products and smoking, will not be "practical and feasible". Public Health Minister Sam Ongeri recently said the government is contemplating tightening tobacco regulation through the Bill, which will soon be tabled in Parliament. Yesterday, Mr. Pike said: "The government only incorporated the views of the anti-smoking lobby led by the Kenya Medical Association while drafting the Bill without involving other stakeholders. "This means that some aspects of the Bill, once legislated, will not be feasible," he said. The Bill, the BAT boss observed, would have been made "more practicable" if his organisation was "involved alongside other stakeholders". Mr. Pike was speaking after the official launching of prevention of under-age smoking campaign in Kenya at a Nairobi hotel. Home Affairs, Heritage and Sports Minister Katana Ngala presided over the occasion. Mr. Ngala welcomed the initiative which is part of a global campaign in which BAT has joined governments, educators and NGOs globally to reduce smoking by those below 18 years. The campaign's slogan is "If you are young to vote, you are young to smoke". "Additionally, the initiative includes giving support and training for retailers in encouraging voluntary agreements meant to deter the under-age smoking," the minister said. A former World Health Organisation country representative to Kenya, Dr Rufaro Chatora said recently that tobacco causes 3.5 million deaths worldwide each year. Mr. Pike said his company was "totally committed" to the view that smoking is a choice that should only be made by adults. "Children should not smoke. In fact, nobody under the age of 18 should smoke," he added. The initiative, whose message - If you're too young to vote, you're too young to smoke - the BAT boss noted, had been subjected to a thorough process of pre- testing by expert child psychologists. "This has resulted in the development of a comprehensive package of materials for retailers---and the launch of a parallel programme for children in schools,". Speaking during a recent function, former World Health Organisation country representative to Kenya, Dr Rufaro Chatora said tobacco causes 3.5 million deaths worldwide each year or about 10,000 deaths daily. "One million of these deaths currently occur in developing countries. At the same time, the global tobacco epidemic is predicted to prematurely claim the lives of some 2.5 million children and adolescents, a third of whom are in developing countries," he said. Research, Dr Chatora added, showed that smoking cessation greatly reduces the risk of tobacco-related diseases. "By 2020, it is predicted that tobacco will become the leading cause of death and disability, killing more than 10 million people annually, two million of them in China alone. "It will therefore, cause more deaths worldwide than HIV/Aids, Tuberculosis, Maternal mortality and Road Traffic accidents, homicides and suicides combined," he said. On average, the ex-WHO boss added, smokers who begin smoking in adolescence and continue to smoke regularly have a 50 per cent chance of dying from tobacco. "Half of these will die in middle age, before age 70, losing around 22 years of normal life expectancy," he said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Mar 25 08:13:55 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A415E21B02 for ; Sat, 25 Mar 2000 08:13:55 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id IAA28793 for ; Sat, 25 Mar 2000 08:13:55 -0500 Date: Sat, 25 Mar 2000 08:13:55 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Young workers common / In India, child labor is part of the culture Young workers common / In India, child labor is part of the culture by NIRAJ WARIKOO / FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER Source: Detroit Free Press, Tuesday, 3/21/00 NEW DELHI, India -- For the past 40 years, R.S. Chaurasia has spent much of his life crisscrossing India, trying to educate workers and eradicate child labor. It hasn't been easy. About 100 million children in India, ages 4 to 14, work full time, often in hazardous conditions, according to Chaurasia, general secretary of the South Asian Coalition Against Child Servitude. That's more than one-third of the children in that age group. Six million of them work in the bidi industry. They're a part of India that President Bill Clinton probably won't see during his weeklong visit to the subcontinent, which human rights groups say has the largest number of young laborers in the world. A 1986 law banned child labor in India. But loopholes, bribery of politicians and inspectors, and a culture that legitimizes child servitude keep it alive. Violators are rarely prosecuted. "There is a lack of political will to stop this," said Chaurasia, 69. "The government doesn't seem the least interested in their plight." One provision in the law allows children to help parents in their home. That has allowed the bidi industry to use the labor of millions of women and children in homes, instead of workers in factories. Chaurasia's group is an umbrella organization that includes more than 400 groups and unions that fight child labor in India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh. In 1991, the group helped create Rugmark, a consumer label on exported carpets that certifies they were made without child labor. Their fight against child servitude in bidi making has found some allies in the West. A group of California teenagers is trying to publicize the way bidis are made. "I don't think we should condone child labor and marketing to kids," said Katie Barton, 14, of Camarillo, Calif. "It's just not morally right -- in both ways." The end of child labor would not only free kids to be kids, but it would also improve the wages of India's poor, who make up a third of the country's nearly one billion people. By removing children from the labor market, adult workers could bargain for better wages, Chaurasia said. "It will be a long fight, but the law is on our side," he said. "We're on the right path." Contact NIRAJ WARIKOO at 734-432-6501 or warikoo@freepress.com. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Mar 25 08:26:04 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DAB6921B02 for ; Sat, 25 Mar 2000 08:26:03 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id IAA28920 for ; Sat, 25 Mar 2000 08:26:03 -0500 Date: Sat, 25 Mar 2000 08:26:03 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Australia - Lateline - 23/03/00: Tobacco Battle (fwd) Lateline - 23/03/00: Tobacco Battle Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Thursday, 3/23/00 LATELINE Late night news & current affairs TV PROGRAM TRANSCRIPT URL: http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/archives/s113020.htm Broadcast: 23/03/00 Tobacco Battle State Attorneys-General are set to consider legal action against tobacco companies in Australia. Sally Neighbour probes the likelihood of such action - and its chances for success - with two Attorneys-General and representatives from the tobacco industry and the anti-smoking lobby. --------- Compere: Sally Neighbour SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Rob Hulls is Victoria's Attorney-General and a vocal supporter of taking action against the tobacco companies. Eric Windholz is the director of corporate relations for the world's largest tobacco company, Philip Morris. Trevor Griffin is South Australia's Attorney-General and is yet to be convinced that Australia should follow the US path. All three join us from Melbourne. And here in Sydney is Andrew Penman. He heads the Tobacco Control Coalition, which is running a class action against Australia's tobacco companies. Welcome to all of you. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Rob Hulls, can you do here in Australia what Mississippi Attorney-General Mike Moore did in the States? ROB HULLS, VICTORIAN ATTORNEY-GENERAL: Look, I certainly think so. The reality is that smoking kills. 13 die every day in Victoria as a result of smoking. We also know that tobacco companies have in the past withheld information, pertinent information about the harmful effects of their product and we also know that State governments have spent billions of dollars in relation to health care costs to try and fix up the tobacco mess. The real question is who pays. In America, courts decided the tobacco companies should pay and I'm of the view, very strongly of the view, that that should also apply here in Australia. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: What commitment do you need from your fellow attorneys-general tomorrow to get the ball rolling? ROB HULLS: Well, no one State can take this on on their own. I understand in America, in one State alone, the disbursements amounted to some $20 million. So, it would need a concerted effort, but the fact is that I think that if all States get together, or at least three or four States show a real commitment to take on the tobacco companies, it should be done. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Trevor Griffin, how much support is there among the other attorneys-general for an action like this to be mounted? TREVOR GRIFFIN, SA ATTORNEY-GENERAL: Well, I can't speak for my colleagues. For myself, I've very cautious about embarking upon very expensive and extensive litigation where the prospects of success are not high. We sent from South Australia our Solicitor General to the United States in 1997. So to a very large extent, we're ahead of the game. He was given the task of looking at how the American system was operating to get these rather huge settlements that were being reported in Australia. He concluded that there were quite significant differences between the legal system and the constitutional system in the United States and that those systems in Australia and particularly, he came back with the view that largely the litigation occurred in the United States because of the separation of the executive from the legislatures and it was impossible to get the legislatures to act to recover some forms of compensation, perhaps by way of revenue. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Eric Windholz, why shouldn't Philip Morris be sued for false and misleading conduct and or negligence? ERIC WINDHOLZ, PHILIP MORRIS: Well, first of all, let me just say that our legal advice is very strong and very clear. Based on what we understand the attorneys-general are considering, we have very strong defences. Our advice is that the case would be speculative and have poor prospects of success. But also let me say that I don't think that anyone is served going back into the past and trying to analyse what companies did or didn't know, or did or didn't do. That will cost millions of dollars in lawyers' fees and tie up the court for months. We are better-served as a community in trying to have a reasonable rational dialogue about what is the best way of dealing with tobacco issues in our society. Is it through consultation, cooperation, dialogue, trying to seek common ground, or are we going to run off to the courts and engage in confrontation, time-consuming and very expensive litigation? SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Well, Rob Hulls, which are we going to do? ROB HULLS: This is a nonsense argument by the tobacco companies. We already know that back in 1993 the tobacco companies embarked upon an Australian witness development program. So, they've been waiting for this type of litigation to take place. They've been preparing for it since 1993. The other thing that we have to understand about tobacco companies is that they have delivered a memo to many of their employers, employees at least, that says that before you write anything down, always ask the question "Would you feel comfortable if a competitor, the Government, the Anti-Smoking Lobby or the news media saw your document?" So that raises real concerns about how fair dinkum the tobacco companies are in relation to any sort of negotiation. The action was successful in America and I would be very keen for all States here in Australia to get behind at least attempting to further pursue some sort of legal action. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Eric Windholz, a quick response to that? ERIC WINDHOLZ: Let me say that there was no court victory in the United States. What there was was an out of court settlement which was effectively a business decision to agree to a prospective tax increase. Tobacco taxes in Australia amount to billions of dollars each year. The Government in 1999 will collect close to $5 billion. The public health community have estimated that those taxes are more than three times what governments spend in treating smoking-related illnesses. They have also said themselves that because of that fact, the medical cost recovery argument that spearheaded the US settlement could not be sustained in Australia. That's their words, not ours. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Andrew Penman, what's your response to that -- that you can't set about claiming the recovery of medical costs here, because the tobacco companies pay so much tax? ANDREW PENMAN, TOBACCO CONTROL COALITION: Well let me say first of all, that I think the attorneys-general have an historic opportunity in their hands here to address the major public health problem in this country at the moment. But that historic opportunity will only be seized if the objectives are right. I don't think it's sufficient for the attorneys-general to simply be commercial lawyers seeking to pursue debt recovery for the States. The issue here is the fact that 18,000 people die of tobacco-related disorders every year in this country and around 25-30 per cent of our kids are addicted to nicotine by the age of 16. Now we have to have a litigation strategy which seeks to make the tobacco companies responsible for that state of affairs, because we have very strong evidence, based upon the documentation, that it's their misleading and deceptive behaviour over the last 25 years that has forestalled effective Government action. Now it's the very sort of action which the Attorney-General from South Australia is suggesting might be considered as an alternative. But the fact is that governments and the political process have failed us because of the power of the tobacco industry and its misleading representations to Government. So you've left the attorneys-general and the Tobacco Control Coalition with the only option available to them of litigation. But if I can go to the -- to Mr Windholz's statement about the situation in the United States. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Very quickly, so we can move on. ANDREW PENMAN: It's untrue to say there have been no decisions against the tobacco industry in the United States. There have been two jury decisions which have found the tobacco industry guilty on the very issues of false representation, misleading and deceptive conduct which the Tobacco Control Coalition alleges in the action that it's pursuing before the Federal Court at the moment. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Rob Hulls, we've heard a lot about the evidence in the United States, but the Federal Health Minister, Michael Wooldridge, says that the Commonwealth's legal advice is that such an action here would be very unlikely to succeed. How can you be sure this just won't be a giant waste of taxpayers' money? ROB HULLS: What will be suggested at tomorrow's meeting of the attorneys-general is that at least the majority of States, but certainly a number of States, get together and look at further pursuing this matter. I think that's very important. I think we owe it to our constituents to further pursue this matter. I have to say, I get sick and tired of the tobacco companies saying, "Look, we pay taxes and our taxes go into health care, and therefore you're wasting your time suing us." It's like me saying, "Look, damages have been awarded against me in a particular court matter, but I don't have to pay, because I pay taxes." It's an absolute nonsense argument and the States owe it to all members of their community to further pursue this matter. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Eric Windholz, a response? ERIC WINDHOLZ: First of all, the taxes are very relevant. Some States themselves have justified taxes or tax increases on the basis that they will recoup public health expenditure. As recently as 1996, the NSW Act stated as one of it objects that it was intended to recoup public health expenditure. But I'd like to come back to the main point and that is as a mature society, how are we going to deal with tobacco products in the future? Are we going to try to deal with these issues through consultation, discussion, trying to find common ground, or are we going to resort to timely confrontation and very expensive litigation, in the end, only the lawyers would be guaranteed to benefit from. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Trevor Griffin, what's your view? Are there alternatives to litigation here? TREVOR GRIFFIN: There may well be. What I think we have to do is to damp down all the hype at the moment about this being perhaps the 'Magic Pudding' that's going to provide more funds for our health system to combat the injuries and death which come from smoking tobacco. I think we've got to be realistic about this. In the United States, action was taken in civil litigation for no other reason than that they couldn't get legislators to move. Very largely because there was a great deal of influence by tobacco companies on legislators. They carried a great deal of weight in the voting system. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: What are the tiffs here then? TREVOR GRIFFIN: In Australia there are a couple of alternatives. One, of course, is just increase taxes. The taxes are already quite hefty in relation to tobacco products. Another may well be to look at whether there's any criminal action that might be pursued. I think we've got to look at this realistically. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: What sort of criminal action do you mean by that? TREVOR GRIFFIN: I'm not prepared to telegraph any punches on that at this stage. This debate is something we'll have in the standing committee of attorneys-general tomorrow. We'll look at whether or not we need to get further advice. >From my advisor's perspective, the Solicitor-General of South Australia, he's recommending caution and I naturally am reflecting that caution. I've been involved as a State Attorney-General in quite extensive litigation in my State, which has been very expensive for the State. It's brought some benefits, but we know where this can end up years down the track, tens of millions of dollars later, and we've gained nothing, when, in fact, maybe an alternative, such as increasing taxes, might have got us more in the short-term, rather than waiting around spending a lot of time and energy on civil litigation. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Rob Hulls, what is your agenda, is it just the money? If so, couldn't you achieve it as Trevor Griffin says, simply by raising taxes? ROB HULLS: The bottom line is you've got to do what's right. If, indeed, the tobacco companies happen to be found negligent in relation to the way they've promoted their product in the past, then they ought pay. It's as simple as that. I have to say that the taxation argument that's been promoted by the tobacco companies is a nonsense. I notice the tobacco company says now, after all these years of misinformation, that we ought to sit down and negotiate. When the tobacco companies knew this matter was going before SCAG, they sent off letters to every attorney-general in the country, in effect saying, "Don't pursue this litigation, otherwise we may pull our workforce out of Australia altogether." This is a nonsense argument where they say they want to sit down and negotiate. ANDREW PENMAN: That statement from Philip Morris, on the misleading and deceptive scale, ranks about a nine. There have been attempts to misrepresent the facts about smoking and health for about 25-30 years in this country. At every turn, the recommendations of science have been opposed bitterly by Philip Morris and the other tobacco companies in this country. It reminds me of Lady Macbeth, who was so steeped in blood that she had no other option but to continue to spill more blood. What Philip Morris wants to do is to spin out time, talk, misinform, restrain the legislative action, while it continues to reap the ill-gotten rewards of killing Australians. We have had 25 years in this country, since the passage of the Trade Practices Act, where we could have taken effective action. And had we taken effective action, we would have had smoking rates in this country around the 5-10 per cent mark. We've got to address that situation and it's a matter of urgency. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Eric Windholz, in the face of concerted action by several Australian States, won't you fold as you did in the US and negotiate a settlement? Isn't that the most pragmatic approach? ERIC WINDHOLZ: The reality is that Australia is very different to the US, and that the Australian tobacco market would be very unlikely to be able to sustain settlement payments of the billions of dollars that we hear attorney-generals referring to. The Government already takes 70 per cent of the recommended selling price of cigarettes in taxes. Any increase of that would have to be borne by smokers. The reality is we don't have billions of dollars sitting in the bottom drawer. We would have to increase prices -- smokers would have to pay. That would then increase the already burgeoning illegal trade in tobacco which now is estimated to be about 5 per cent of the legitimate market and costing Government about $300 million. It will also decrease the profitability of the industry which, in turn, would put into jeopardy the viability of the market. We have to recognise that we operate in a global market and according to global forces. Like any other company, Philip Morris looks for a predictable, stable investment environment. Today, we are committed to remaining in Australia, we are committed to providing jobs for Australians, markets to Australian farmers and business to the Australian companies that provide us with goods and services. But if action like this is contemplated, then I think it would only be prudent for any good businessman in any company to have to reassess the situation. ANDREW PENMAN: Can I just say that these threats about withdrawing from this country need to be taken with a grain of salt and on a misleading and deceptive scale, I'd rank that as about six. We have the World Bank, no less, a major anti-smoking lobbyist in Philip Morris' minds I'm sure, but the World Bank saying that the tobacco industry is really a net liability to economies. If you got rid of the tobacco industry, there would be a positive economic benefit. To say that we're going to lose jobs in the face of advice like that from the World Bank, you may as well go on to say there'll be less demand for undertakers and there'll be less demand for thoracic physicians. Because that's the sort of economic activity the tobacco industry spawns in this country. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Rob Hulls, is that what you are after -- putting the tobacco industry out of business? ROB HULLS: No, not at all. What we're really after -- and I think there are similarities between America and Australia. People die in America from smoking and people are dying in Australia as a result of smoking. And I think it's important that we at least look at the feasibility of taking action against tobacco companies with a view to try to recover some of those health care costs. It worked in America. I believe that we need at least to look at it in Australia. As I said, you've got to do what's right. If people are dying because of misinformation spread by tobacco companies, as attorneys-general, we have a crucial role to play. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Eric Windholz, are you fighting a losing battle here? ERIC WINDHOLZ: Look, we hope that, in the end, the facts will be seen for what they are and that some reason and commonsense will prevail and that as a mature society that we will come to the conclusion that discussion, consultation, cooperation is a preferable way of resolving issues concerning tobacco than time-consuming, confrontational and very expensive litigation. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Rob Hulls, what decision can we expect out of the attorney-generals' meeting tomorrow on this? ROB HULLS: Well, I would have hoped that I'd have my colleague, Trevor, on side. But from indications tonight, that may well not be the case. But look, I think we certainly need more than one State to take the tobacco companies on. I would hope that there will be three or four States that are at least prepared to look at a feasibility study in relation to this matter. That's the first step, but I would be very keen to pursue the matter further. I think the longer we leave it, who knows, the more documents are being shredded, and the more misinformation is being spread. I think we need to act now, and I would be very keen for most States to get on board. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Trevor Griffin, will SA get on board, at least to the extent of supporting a feasibility study into some course of action? TREVOR GRIFFIN: No-one can prejudge what I may say tomorrow. I want a cool, calm look at the issue. I want us to look at what the risks are. I want us to look at what the objective is, because if the objective can be achieved without litigation, maybe, as I've indicated earlier, through increased taxation measures or some other action, then I think we ought to look at those options. Because in the end, it is about providing support through our broader community. It is about dealing with the consequences, the very serious consequences of consuming tobacco products. I think both Rob Hulls and I are at one in relation to our concern about the tobacco industry and the damage it does to those who consume tobacco products. We may not be at one in relation to the way in which we both identify the objective we want to achieve, and more particularly, how we get to that objective, and that's the big issue. We want to take, I think, a calm, cool and collected look at what the options are, what we want to achieve and then make some considered decisions and not get swept up in the hype, which quite obviously is now accompanying this debate, about possible billions of dollars worth of damage, when maybe we can solve the problem in some other, easier way. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: Rob Hulls, just finally, even if you do get your feasibility study tomorrow, how many years is it going to be before we see you in court on this? ROB HULLS: Well, the tobacco companies have been preparing for this day for a long time. It wouldn't surprise me at all if they have some of the most senior QCs in the country already tied up on their side. That's why I think we need to move sooner rather than later. I would hope that this particular motion that's been debated tomorrow at SCAG doesn't go into a black hole. I hope we can move on the feasibility study almost immediately. And if the feasibility study says litigation is the way to go, we ought to move sooner rather than later. SALLY NEIGHBOUR: We are out of time. I'm sorry, Andrew Penman, we have run out of time. Gentlemen, thanks very much, all of you, for joining us. MULTIMEDIA Tobacco Battle. Audio Discussion Sally Neighbour probes the likelihood of such action - and its chances for success - with two Attorneys-General and representatives from the tobacco industry and the anti-smoking lobby. /lateline/av/20000323tobacco.ram Tobacco Battle. Background Video. Australia could soon be following the US through its war between state governments and the tobacco industry. Margot O'Neill looks at how big tobacco in America was forced to pay up. (RealVideo ) /lateline/av/20000323ll_tobacco.ram From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Mar 25 09:17:47 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id EAD0621B02 for ; Sat, 25 Mar 2000 09:17:46 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id JAA29530 for ; Sat, 25 Mar 2000 09:17:46 -0500 Date: Sat, 25 Mar 2000 09:17:46 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] IMF Threatens to Cut Relations w/ Moldova Unless Tobacco Privatization Occurs (fwd) March 24, 2000 Dow Jones Newswires IMF Threatens To Cut Relations With Moldova Dow Jones Newswires CHISINAU, Moldova (AP)--The International Monetary Fund threatened Friday to sever relations with Moldova if the former Soviet Republic fails to sell off key agricultural industries and meet other criteria set by the fund, a statement said. Hasan al-Atrash, the IMF representative to Chisinau, met early Friday with Parliament's finance and budget committee, and told lawmakers to follow the fund's directives if they want collaboration to continue, a statement by Parliament's press office said. Al-Atrash said Moldova must agree to sell its key wine and tobacco industries and to adopt this year's budget by the end of March. Moldova must cut special funding to widows with several children and war veterans, and must create an agricultural fund to help local farmers. If Moldova fails to meet these conditions, the IMF will cancel a promised loan of $35 million and freeze bilateral relations, al-Atrash said. New negotiations would be considered in six months, in accordance with IMF regulations. In an interview late Thursday broadcast by local television stations, Premier Dumitru Braghis said such a move would send "a bad signal" to potential foreign investors and would seriously hamper his government's efforts to make economic reforms. He also acknowledged Moldova might be unable to pay its foreign debts if the wine and tobacco privatizations do not proceed. Media in Chisinau said most of the IMF conditions could be easily met, but the wine and tobacco privatizations, which are estimated to bring the country more than $200 million, remain controversial. The communists, who hold 40% of parliamentary seats, oppose approving laws that would allow the sale. They argue the country's five tobacco and five wine producers are "strategic," and the state should retain a monopoly in those sectors, which are among the few that could be profitable. The proposed privatizations are expected to be debated in Parliament in the coming weeks. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Mar 25 18:11:21 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B50D421AFF for ; Sat, 25 Mar 2000 18:11:21 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA02613 for ; Sat, 25 Mar 2000 18:11:21 -0500 Date: Sat, 25 Mar 2000 18:11:21 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Thai Cigarette maker studies ways to sell products electronically Cigarette maker studies ways to sell products electronically Bid to increase its market share by Wichit Sirithaveeporn Source: Bangkok Post, Saturday, 3/25/00 The Thailand Tobacco Monopoly, under siege from heavy competitive pressure from foreign cigarette brands, plans to go online in a bid to expand market share. The TTM set up a web site six months ago at . The site, in Thai only, has received fewer than 1,800 hits, but executives say e-mails have poured in with inquiries about purchasing cigarettes from users in the United States, England and Brazil. "Some are businessmen, others are simply smokers who want to try Thai cigarettes," one TTM executive said. The requests prompted the state enterprise to study ways to use e-commerce to market its products online. Pricing, settlement and delivery details remain to be finalised. Government regulations remain an obstacle, however. Private companies on the Internet must absorb losses if buyers refuse to pay for orders made online, but state enterprises must abide by government regulations stating that any sales of services or goods must be paid for-otherwise officials are liable. Another difficulty lies in local and foreign restrictions on cigarette advertisements. The TTM says it is studying methods used by other cigarette manufacturers on the Internet for ideas. In any case, executives believe e-commerce could be a major tool to help the TTM remain competitive against foreign manufacturers as trade liberalisation continues. In the past few years, foreign manufacturers such as Philip Morris and Japan Tobacco have been doubling their share of the local market each year. Foreign brands now account for about 15% of all cigarettes sold legally in Thailand. Plans to privatise the TTM, meanwhile, remain on hold, although executives agree that a strategic partner is needed to help upgrade technology and manufacturing processes. The TTM remains one of the country's most profitable state enterprises, posting net profits of 5.8 billion baht in fiscal 1999. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 29 11:37:26 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A16F721AFF for ; Wed, 29 Mar 2000 11:37:26 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14726 for ; Wed, 29 Mar 2000 11:37:26 -0500 Date: Wed, 29 Mar 2000 11:37:18 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Up in smoke / Proposed ad law threatens to kill cigarette advertising (Czech) Up in smoke / Proposed ad law threatens to kill cigarette advertising by Jasna Sykorova CZECH REPUBLIC; Source: Prague Post, Wednesday, 3/22/00 Businesses that rely on tobacco advertising will be tightening their belts if a new advertising law expected to pass in Parliament goes into effect in the middle of next year. The amendment to the current Czech advertising law, expected to reach Parliament later this year, would prohibit all advertising, promotion and sponsoring of tobacco products. That's bad news for publications like the monthly culture guide Navigator, which rely heavily on advertising from cigarette makers to pay its bills. "If we lose all the advertising of tobacco products, it will have a fatal impact on our magazine," Navigator editor-in-chief Marek Slezak said. He said cigarette companies often provide up to 90 percent of the magazine's advertising revenue. The amendment is expected to be approved by the Cabinet in April and then would go to Parliament sometime later this year. Cigarette advertising, however, isn't all that the amendment would ban. It also would put an end to advertisements directed at children and may also ban endorsements from celebrities, doctors and local authorities, who might have more sway with the public. The amendment was drafted by the Ministry of Industry and Trade in order to come in line with the European Union (EU). The current proposal, however, is far stricter than EU standards. And that, some say, is unfair. "Advertising should not offend people," said Radek Pokorny, a lawyer from the Pokorny, Wagner & spol. law firm. "But if it doesn't offend anybody, it is not necessary to have a law to regulate it." Pokorny also argued that the amendment won't be effective because laws can't define what is or isn't offensive. Self-regulation Jiri Mikes, executive director of the Association of Advertising Agencies, said that while the current law needs improvement, the proposed amendment is overkill. He said that advertising is efficiently self-regulated in the Czech Republic by his association and the Advertising Council. As it now stands, if there is a written complaint from anyone concerning advertising or promotional activity, the council -- which has the power to judge what advertising is fit for distribution -- considers the case and takes measures if it finds that an ad is inappropriate. Stepan Wolde, director of communications for media representative company IP Praha, said that television advertising has several checkpoints to pass before it actually gets to the public. Since the proposal is at the start of the legislative road, Pokorny said that he thinks there will be time enough to discuss and change parts of it. However, tobacco companies might start to think about adjusting their marketing plans, and publications such as Navigator should start looking for alternative resources, since the trend in the EU is against cigarette advertising. "Every regulation can be worked around," Pokorny said. "It is a question of interpretation. We may expect that tobacco companies will start to produce a variety of products different from cigarettes and to promote them instead." Jasna Sykorova's e-mail address is jsykorova@praguepost.cz Selected provisions of the proposed advertising law: =96 TOBACCO Advertising of tobacco products will be prohibited everywhere except in tobacco shops. =96 CHILDREN Advertising targeting children under the age of 15 or ads showing children in dangerous situations will be prohibited. =96 MEDICINES All promotion of prescription medicine will be prohibited. Sponsorship by doctors and other specialists, who prescribe or distribute medicine will also be banned. Advertisements for non-medical items such as juice or tea cannot contain any claims of medical benefits. =96 COMPETITION Consumer competitions such as mail-entry sweepstakes are prohibited. =96 ENDORSEMENTS Celebrity endorsements or endorsements by professionals in a given field would be prohibited. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Mar 29 15:56:29 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B384521B10 for ; Wed, 29 Mar 2000 15:56:29 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA24241; Wed, 29 Mar 2000 15:56:29 -0500 Date: Wed, 29 Mar 2000 15:56:29 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Taiwan Passes Tobacco Law to Meet WTO Requirements (fwd) China Times 29 March 2000 Taiwan Passes Wine, Tobacco Law to Meet WTO Requirements TAIPEI, March 28 (AFP) - Taiwan's parliament passed a wine and tobacco law Tuesday to meet requirements set by the World Trade Organisation (WTO), officials said. The law allows for taxes on wine and tobacco sold here after Taiwan is admitted to the WTO, which is expected to happen later this year. Under the law a pack of cigarettes would be taxed a combined total of 16.8 Taiwan dollars (55 US cents). "Long Life" cigarettes, the most popular local brand, would rise from 25 Taiwan dollars to 32 Taiwan dollars. The biggest impact could be on the price hike for "red-label michiu," a cheap rice wine widely used in cooking here. The price tag for "michiu" would surge from the present 24 Taiwan dollars to 78 Taiwan dollars for a 0.6-litre bottle. The authorities were forced to reverse a ban on the rice wine last year, after protests by consumers and MPs. Despite a government crackdown, hoarding has erupted in anticipation of a price hike. Until now the government-run Taiwan Tobacco and Wine Board, the sole tobacco and wine supplier on the island, has been required to pay so-called "monopoly benefits" rather than taxes on its products. "In order to get a seat in the WTO, the protective shields must be removed, and head-on competition with imports are inevitable," parliamentarian Lai Shih-pao of the New Party said. Another law, which governs the manufacturing of wine and tobacco by private companies, cleared parliament last year. Wey Yau-hsiuan, secretary-general to the board, admitted the removal of government protection "would be the litmus test of the board's competitiveness." The Taiwan market for wine is estimated at 200 billion Taiwan dollars a year. Taiwan has completed talks with 26 WTO contracting parties and signed accession pacts with all of them except Hong Kong, which reverted to Chinese sovereignty in July 1997. Taiwan applied to join the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade in 1990 in the name of "the customs territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu." GATT was superceded by the WTO in 1995. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 30 12:11:57 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 33F7021B08 for ; Thu, 30 Mar 2000 12:11:57 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA12894 for ; Thu, 30 Mar 2000 12:11:56 -0500 Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2000 12:11:56 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Clinton, trade representatives seek to make the world safe for cigarettes Clinton, trade representatives seek to make the world safe for cigarettes by John Hall Richmond Times-Dispatch, Sunday, 3/26/00 WASHINGTON The same White House that has now begun a campaign to regulate tobacco as an addictive drug has just negotiated a trade agreement that substantially increases cigarette and tobacco exports to China. In a conversation with a U.S. trade official a few days ago, I asked her how the administration could be doing both -- restraining cigarettes at home and pushing them overseas; taxing them to the hilt here, and lowering tariffs there. Her answer was that she didn't know, but her job was to level the playing field for U.S. businesses against their foreign competitors, not to determine which industry is worthy of her best effort. She is right about that. The job of determining whether tobacco is a health hazard and addictive drug belongs to our elected officeholders. They are paid to make decisions. But they have decided to position their collective backside on the fence. Congress, the same body whose halls rang with thunderous rhetoric on the evils of smoking not long ago, has consistently voted against allowing the Food and Drug Administration or any other agency to regulate smoking. President Clinton has decried this. Yet while he endorses his own surgeon general's declaration that cigarettes are a health hazard, he sends his trade representative abroad to make the world safe for them. China is, if anything, more confused than we are about what to do about tobacco. The Yuxi Cigarette Factory, as it goes on producing cigarettes for China's 320 million smokers, is about to open up a museum displaying documents about the dangers of smoking. China, which is recording about 10,000 deaths per week from smoking, already has the highest death rate in the world. The Chinese, who railed against the West's policy to addict them to opium in the 19th century, don't seem at all resistant to another foreign scourge in the 21st. They already have their own home-grown scourge. So, they caved in on lowering tobacco and cigarette tariffs very early in the process, seeing that the ticket to selling textiles and electric fans in the United States was to allow more American tobacco products into China. China's government will have no cause to attack evil roundeyes when its health bills start mounting. Whatever concern it has had about the cigarette trade was not about keeping another addictive substance from enslaving China but about preserving the national tobacco company, the largest in the world. Hard-nosed negotiating by American trade representatives has now brought the Chinese around, just as they earlier forced Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and Thailand to open up their markets to U.S. tobacco. Asia, with 60 percent of the world's population, is awash in U.S. cigarettes, ads, billboards and giveaways. Some of the same practices are now banned in the United States. To be fair, Congress and the administration are in a quandary without much of a roadmap to guide them. Not since Prohibition, which drove the alcohol industry underground, has an entire American industry been under the kind of withering assault Big Tobacco faces. It was left to the black robes on the Supreme Court, in rejecting the FDA's plea for regulatory authority, to explain the politics at play here. Tobacco is "an industry constituting a significant portion of the American economy," said the court. To give the FDA authority to ban cigarettes would be to give it authority to destroy this industry. That Congress has refused to do. "Owing to its unique place in American history and society" Congress has created a unique regulatory scheme for tobacco that precludes any agency from exercising significant policy-making authority in the area. "For better or for worse," that's just the way it is, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor reasoned for the majority. The court said it didn't necessarily agree with that political decision. In fact, it went out of its way to say that tobacco use, particularly among young people, is a certified national health hazard -- perhaps "the single most significant threat to public health in the United States." But the court said its hands are tied until Congress passes a bill to give the FDA the power it seeks. So, back this case goes to the political world, where the partisans have also amply demonstrated they do not have the will or skill to bring the debate to a rational conclusion. It's kind of a Washington merry-go-round, to borrow a phrase. John Hall is the Washington bureau chief of Media General News Service. E-mail him at jhall@media-general.com From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Mar 30 19:32:45 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 01FF121B05 for ; Thu, 30 Mar 2000 19:32:45 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA26874 for ; Thu, 30 Mar 2000 19:32:44 -0500 Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2000 19:32:44 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ceylon Tobacco Says it Will Cease Advertising (fwd) Thursday March 23, 2:10 am Eastern Time Ceylon Tobacco says stops all advertising COLOMBO, March 23 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's monopoly cigarette maker Ceylon Tobacco Co Ltd (CTC) said on Thursday it had stopped advertising its products in the media with immediate effect under a new industry code of conduct it was introducing. The company said in a statement that in addition to television, radio, cinema, newspaper and magazine advertising, it would also discontinue advertising on billboards. Sports sponsorships under its brand trademarks will also cease immediately. The company would however continue to advertise its products at stores where its cigarettes are sold. "By regulating the conduct of its marketing activities, the company will demonstrate to the public at large its sincerity of purposein acting as a responsible company in an industry seen as controversial, the statement said. CTC's decision to stop most of its advertising follow government moves to set up a National Authority on Tobacco andAlcohol (NATA) to minimise the damaging effects of cigarettes and liquor on people's health. NATA will have the power to prosecute anybody who promotes or advertises cigarettes or alcohol under a new bill that thegovernment plans to bring to parliament soon in consultation with CTC. CTC, which is 84.1 percent owned by British American Tobacco Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) earlier said netprofit in calendar 1999 was up 74 percent at 1.498 billion rupees ($20.36 million) on turnover of 4.052 billion. The statement did not say how much CTC spent on advertising every year. Sri Lankans smoke some six billion cigarettes every year. (US$ = 73.56 rupees) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Mar 31 12:47:21 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 68BB921B15 for ; Fri, 31 Mar 2000 12:47:21 -0500 (EST) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA09679 for ; Fri, 31 Mar 2000 12:47:20 -0500 Date: Fri, 31 Mar 2000 12:47:20 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] US, Britain and Japan Block Anti-Tobacco Convention (fwd) Title: HEALTH: US, Britain and Japan Block Anti-Tobacco Convention By Gustavo Capdevila GENEVA, Mar 30 (IPS) - The world tobacco industry's three principal homes - the United States, Britain and Japan - are obstructing progress on a framework convention for controlling smoking, charge international organisations. The three are home to the large transnationals Phillip Morris, British American Tobacco and Japan Tobacco, respectively, and ''are pressing for a general convention,'' one that does not go into any detail, said Lucinda Wykle-Rosenberg, director of INFACT, a US non-governmental organisation (NGO). The consequences of a weak global tobacco policy will mean that countries without the capacity or resources to establish their own regulations will continue to lag behind more-advanced nations, said Yussuf Salojee, director of South Africa's National Council against Smoking. The disparities in equality and justice that exist between industrialised and developing countries in the health sphere will only grow worse if the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control is diluted, predicted the South African physician. The initiative to draw up a convention on tobacco was launched by the World Health Organisation (WHO) amid growing concern about the number of smoking-related deaths around the world each year, which reaches at least one million. Another independent group, the Network for the Accountability of Tobacco Transnationals (NATT), warned that in 2030, deaths related to tobacco addiction will reach 10 million annually, and most will be people in developing countries. NATT maintains that developing countries, a market actively pursued by tobacco transnationals, are some of the most vehement critics of the cigarette manufacturers. WHO held a public hearing this week in Geneva of its working group entrusted with the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. Representatives from governments, the tobacco industry and civil society made their voices heard. Gro Harlem Brundtland, director general of WHO, which is fighting to set up the anti-smoking convention, declared, ''let us see to it that ours will be the last generation to face this scourge.'' Since the working group began deliberations on the framework convention in October 1999, more than 1.7 million people have died from diseases related to tobacco use, Wykle-Rosenberg told a press conference. The NGOs present at the hearing back a solid convention that gives priority to public health and people's lives above the economic interests of the tobacco industry, she stated. ''Unfortunately, protecting people's lives was not the message we heard from several government delegations'' that spoke before the WHO working group, said Masaid Ali Sheikli, delegate from the Network Association for the Rational Use of Medicines in Pakistan. ''Public health, consumers and human rights organisations from around the world are united in our commitment to keep the tobacco industry out of this (framework convention) process, in spite of suggestions by a few countries that it has been opened to tobacco companies,'' he said. Salojee emphasised the need for the convention to address advertising and promotion issues and to limit the political influence of the tobacco industry. An international tobacco agreement such as the one being debated by the WHO must also offer consumer protections, demand full disclosure of the dangers of tobacco products, and shift the responsibility and costs for this preventable epidemic to the tobacco industry, said the South African official. He stressed that tobacco farmers will not be hurt by the framework convention. The WHO predicts the number of smokers will expand from the current 1.1 billion people worldwide to 1.6 billion by the year 2025. ''Even if the convention were remarkably successful and managed to hold consumption at current levels, there would be no decline in demand for tobacco,'' Salojee said. ''Opposition to this convention is about protecting tobacco industry profits, not the livelihoods of tobacco farmers.'' The real threat to the farmers comes from the technological innovations by the cigarette manufacturers. In the past decade, they have spent hundreds of millions of dollars developing cigarettes with little or even no tobacco in them, he pointed out. John Kapito, head of the Consumers Association of Malawi, said ''the fear that farmers have under this convention should be allayed because tobacco demand will remain static and will not affect the economic situation of tobacco growing countries.'' The tobacco industry exaggerates potential job losses from tobacco regulation, according to Ross Hammond, delegate from the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, a US-based NGO. Research done for the World Bank report shows that most countries will not see net job loss if tobacco consumption declines, said Hammond. Protecting health and protection employment are not mutually exclusive goals, stressed the US delegate. For the first time in its 52-year history, the WHO is promoting talks among its 191 member nations for an international public health agreement. The next meeting of the anti-smoking working group will be in late September or early October. The WHO expects the convention's text to be ready for ratification in 2003. (END/IPS/tra-so/pc/mj/ld/00) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Apr 8 08:31:02 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8ADD621B09 for ; Sat, 8 Apr 2000 08:31:02 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id IAA11591 for ; Sat, 8 Apr 2000 08:31:01 -0400 Date: Sat, 8 Apr 2000 08:31:01 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Litigation woes hit European tobacco stocks (fwd) Note this is prior to the Engle decision: Litigation woes hit European tobacco stocks Source: Reuters, Monday, 4/3/00 Monday April 3, 12:59 pm Eastern Time LONDON, April 3 (Reuters) - European tobacco stocks lost ground on Monday as new litigation risks emerged in Spain and doubts spread about a landmark smoking case in Florida. At 1615 BST, with European equities broadly lower, the Eurotop 300 tobacco index was down 5.4 percent, giving back most of the gains it made last week off a 17-month low. Cigarette giant British American Tobacco (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) was off 5.9 percent in London at 325 pence per share. In addition to profit-taking, industry analysts said BAT was down on new doubts about the introduction of a proposed measure in the Florida legislature that could blunt the impact of potentially damaging U.S. anti-smoking litigation. Last week it was reported that Florida State Attorney General Robert Butterworth was considering introducing legislation to effectively put off fixing punitive damages in the pivotal Engle sick-smokers case. The three-year-old case, a focus of intense concern in the tobacco industry, has reached a key phase in Miami. Speaking during closing arguments, smokers' attorney Stanley Rosenblatt denounced the Butterworth proposal as ``outrageous.'' Tobacco stocks worldwide moved up on reports of the proposal, but analysts said Monday it had yet to be seen, raising new doubts about whether it will be introduced at all. ``In an election year, I can't quite see the typical Florida assemblyman being willing to stick his head into this particular hornet's nest,'' said HSBC Securities tobacco analyst Nick Bunker. Despite BAT's weakness, U.S. tobacco giant Philip Morris (NYSE:MO - news) was up 3.8 percent in early New York trading. Actions such as the Engle case, expected to go to a jury this week, have clouded the outlook for tobacco stocks for years and a new one may have emerged in Spain on Sunday. Lawyers representing 2,000 victims of cancer of the larynx are preparing to file the first collective lawsuit against the Spanish tobacco industry, the newspaper El Pais reported. If the case proceeds, it could open a new litigation front for European tobacco companies, which have so far avoided the massive legal problems hammering their U.S. competitors. Franco-Spanish cigarette group Altadis was down 3.8 percent in Madrid and 3.3 percent in Paris. British cigarette group Imperial Tobacco (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: IMT.L) was also down, by 6.6 percent, although analysts were hard-pressed to explain the decrease on thin volume. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Apr 9 07:33:41 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id AA12B21B06 for ; Sun, 9 Apr 2000 07:33:41 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id HAA21477 for ; Sun, 9 Apr 2000 07:33:41 -0400 Date: Sun, 9 Apr 2000 07:33:41 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ex-VIPs At Tobacco Firm Helping Probe (fwd) Ex-VIPs At Tobacco Firm Helping Probe Some have tried to swing immunity or special-sentencing deals with Canadian authorities by WILLIAM MARSDEN / The Gazette Source: Montreal Gazette, Saturday, 4/8/00 Former senior tobacco executives at RJR-Macdonald Corp., including No.-2 man Stan Smith, have been co-operating with a criminal investigation into allegations that the tobacco giant defrauded the federal government of billions of dollar in taxes in the early 1990s. Some executives have attempted to swing immunity or special-sentencing deals with Canadian authorities in return for their co-operation, sources said. Smith was the first to break the wall of silence that for years had protected big tobacco against inquiries into the role it played in supplying cigarettes to smugglers during the high-tax era of 1989 to 1994. Smith resigned from Toronto-based RJR-Macdonald in 1998 about one year after discovering that both Canadian and police in the United States were investigating RJR. Through his Toronto lawyer, he approached the RCMP for an immunity deal. Police refuse to say whether he or any other executive has been granted immunity. Sources said Smith has spilled the beans about what went on in the executive suites of RJR during the smuggling era. Smith last summer sold his house in Oakville, Ont., and moved to Britain. The only RJR executive to be charged in Canada is Les Thompson. He pleaded guilty in February to one charge of conspiring to defraud the Canadian government of about $1 billion. In return for his ongoing co-operation, he was given a three-year suspended sentence. RJR has claimed Thompson and Smith, who has not been charged, were essentially lone wolves and rogue tobacco traders who broke company policy on smuggling and took millions of dollars in kickbacks. RJR lawyer Douglas Hunt said at Thompson's sentencing hearing that the company intended to file a victim- impact statement claiming that RJR suffered "physical or emotional loss" because of the criminal conduct of Thompson and Stan Smith. Prosecutor Michael Bernstein stated, however, that Thompson's actions were "part and parcel of a corporate strategy developed largely by other senior executives who closely monitored and supervised his work." Thompson, 52, was a top RJR sales executive. RJR sent him to Winston-Salem in 1992 to manage sales for Northern Brands International Inc., a newly formed affiliate of RJR Nabisco, the RJR holding company. Northern Brands (NBI) was used to funnel more than $110 million U.S. worth of Canadian tobacco products to smugglers on the Canadian-U.S. border. The company pleaded guilty in Syracuse, N.Y., in December 1998 to smuggling related charges and paid $15 million in fines and forfeitures. Thompson pleaded guilty in Syracuse last year to money laundering and is currently serving a 70-month sentence. He also paid a $20,000 fine and forfeited $100,000 U.S. Thompson is co-operating with a grand-jury investigation into tobacco smuggling in North Carolina. Other executives who have spoken to the RCMP include Franco Gabrieli, former head of RJR-Macdonald's duty-free sales in the U.S. and Peter MacGregor, who worked side-by-side with Thompson at Northern Brands. Gabrieli lives in Winston Salem, where he runs a tobacco export business. MacGregor was a former executive at RJR-Macdonald until he was transferred along with Thompson to Winston-Salem, N.C., to help manage NBI. MacGregor resigned from NBI in 1998 after U.S. authorities informed the company it was under investigation. He moved to Atlanta, Ga., where he took a job with Porsche America. Other RJR executives who held senior positions in the company during the heyday of tobacco smuggling have either retired or been transferred to Asia or Europe. Roland Kostantos, former controller and chief executive officer at RJR-Macdonald, is in Geneva along with former vice-president Paul Neumann. Former RJR-Macdonald president and CEO Ed Lang is retired and living in Florida. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have attempted to speak to him but they refuse to say if they succeeded. RJR-Macdonald, which is now called JTI-Macdonald Corp. after it was taken over last year by Japan Tobacco, has said that it is co-operating with the federal government on the criminal investigation. The company is trying to negotiate a global settlement. According to sources, an offer of $100 million last year was rebuffed. The federal government sued RJ Reynolds and its affiliates in December claiming $1 billion U.S. in damages from tobacco smuggling. The suit was launched in Syracuse, N.Y., under U.S. civil racketeering laws that allow plaintiffs to obtain treble damages if they win. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Apr 9 12:11:49 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DC96621B02 for ; Sun, 9 Apr 2000 12:11:48 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA23174 for ; Sun, 9 Apr 2000 12:11:48 -0400 Date: Sun, 9 Apr 2000 12:11:48 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Chinese tobacco advertising conference The Predicament and Developing Trend of Tobacco Ad Source: Tobacco China, Tuesday, 4/4/00 The competition in tobacco industry is getting fiercer with each passing day. To win more customers, tobacco manufacturers have to try every possible means to give wide publicity to their enterprises and products. However, the "Law on Advertisement of the People's Republic of China" and the "Provisional Regulation on Management of Tobacco Advertisement" impose strict restrictions on tobacco advertisement. Is the advertisement partially related with tobacco legal? Where the tobacco advertisement should go? Is there a room for tobacco advertisement under the socialist market economy in China? These are the questions of common concern in the trade of advertisement and issues the management department of advertisement must think over. The symposium on tobacco advertisement, jointly organized by the General Office of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration and the Advertisement Supervision and Management Department under the State Administration of Industry and Commerce on March 15, provides a good opportunity for tobacco advertisement staffs to exchange their views and learn from each other. Representatives from 25 large-and medium-sized tobacco enterprises compared notes with officials from the Advertisement Supervision and Management Department under the State Administration of Industry and Commerce on various aspects of tobacco advertisement. Participants shared a view that China's tobacco industry has shifted from the seller's market to buyer's market. There is a growing need for more tobacco advertisement. It contradicts severely with the strict restrictions on tobacco advertisement. Under the pressure of foreign competition after China joins the World Trade Organization and the movement of banning tobacco smoking, tobacco enterprises must redouble their efforts to probe a way to survive and develop. As an important means in market economy, advertisement is an indispensable instrument for tobacco enterprises to expand market share. All participants agree that tobacco is a legal product. Tobacco firms are legitimate state-owned enterprises and major taxpayers of the state. They should enjoy a bigger room in advertisement. Referring to present situation of tobacco advertisement, participants said that the present-day tobacco advertisement is a creation with wisdom and culture, forming a unique scene in China's advertisement culture. However, many of the advertisements are intelligible. Some people raised a query on the legality, effect and investment results of implicit advertisements. Many said there is no standard management on tobacco advertisement at the present stage. The criterion for law-enforcing is different in various parts of China. Many departments including the industry and commerce, urban management and public health meddle in tobacco advertisement. Unjustified charges on tobacco advertisement exist to various extent. Responding to questions put forward by participants, Qu Jianmin, director of the Advertisement Supervision and Management Department of the State Administration of Industry and commerce, said the predicament of tobacco advertisement clearly reflects the awkward position tobacco industry. Undoubtedly, tobacco enterprises are the leading taxpayers in China. But the worldwide development trend is to restrict the growth of tobacco industry. Therefore, it is impossible for the state to have an explicit policy on tobacco industry. Qu said he had acquired a better understanding of the present development of tobacco industry by exchanging views with representatives of tobacco enterprises. His department will sort out and study the opinions of tobacco enterprises and find a solution for existing problems. He said frankly that in a legal point of view, tobacco industry is discriminated against worldwide. The state advertisement supervision and management department should of course abide by the state law. Meanwhile, it has to make endeavors to promote development of national industry. Qu said China expects to nurture a number of famous brands to compete with foreign brands. Consequently, the country adopts a favorable policy towards brand-name products in tobacco publicity. This is a necessary measure to protect national industry. He revealed that China would revise its Advertisement Law next year. He urged tobacco enterprises to act in the right length and accords with the law in advertisement publicity to provide a practical basis for the modification of Advertisement Law. Nevertheless, it is unrealistic to expect a marked improvement in tobacco advertisement. Wang Shujun and Zhao Jian, officials with the Advertisement Supervision and Management Department of the ADIC, respectively gave explanations on a number of issues including the differentiation of tobacco advertisement prescribed in the Advertisement Law and the Provisional Regulation on Management of Tobacco Advertisement, the scope of tobacco advertisement and financial support from tobacco enterprises. Addressing the closing session, Zhou Ruizeng, director of the General Office of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, said, under the new situation, an active publicity of tobacco advertisement has an important bearing on the survival and development of tobacco industry. We should do a good job in tobacco publicity within the scope of law and won't do anything that violates the law. We should improve the quality of tobacco advertisement and its promotion and pay attention to substantial results. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Apr 9 12:14:02 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3B84C21B02 for ; Sun, 9 Apr 2000 12:14:02 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA23217 for ; Sun, 9 Apr 2000 12:14:01 -0400 Date: Sun, 9 Apr 2000 12:14:01 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] *Very Impt Story*: Chinese tobacco industry discusses affects of entry into WTO China's Tobacco: At the Door of WTO Source: Tobacco China, Tuesday, 3/28/00 Today the economic globalization is the trend of the times. The multilateral trade system with the World Trade Organization (WTO) as the representative has become an important carrier for globalization. To join WTO, of which the trade volume and investment account for more than 95 percent of the world's total, will enable China to gradually connect with the world and really flow into the sea of the world's economy. In the spring of 1999, the governments of China and the United States issued a joint statement, which announced the major progress achieved by China and the United States on China's access to WTO. The United States clearly undertook to resolutely support China to enter WTO. The marathon negotiation which lasted for 13 years reappeared vitality. People expect that China will have its own seat in those worn-out chairs in the gray building of the WTO headquarters at the river bank of Geneva. To join WTO makes the realization of the target of opening to be nearer, and brings some urgency and press to China's tobacco industry which has enjoyed the protection of high customs barrier. China's tobacco has walked at the door of WTO. It is worth saying that the day when China opens to the outside world is the time when we make a decisive battle with foreign cigarette. An international competition is survival of the fittest, and one has to do all he can to catch up or retreat in low spirit. These are choices for China's tobacco enterprises. China is a huge market with more than 300 million smokers. The number is more than the total population of the United States and Britain. At present, the anti-smoke drive runs high in the West. Therefore, tobacco companies from the United States and Britain eye covetously at China's huge market. Since China has adopted high tariff and strict import license system for imports of cigarette, US and British companies are not able to develop their ability to the full, and just make preparation for occupying China's market. Since 1990, various major international tobacco companies have set up many offices in China and made advertisements in may large and medium-sized cities in coastal and interior areas. Streets are flooded with billboards of "Malboro" and "555" cigarette, which are used as champion for league matches of football and basketball. To join WTO also means that we must open our market to the outside world. This will open the door for American and British companies to easily enter China's market, and inevitably make us to suffer. 1. We have to bear the duty of reducing tariffs and gradually abolishing import license and other tariff barrier. At present, China's composite tax rate from imported cigarette is 218 percent, of which the tariff is 36 percent. Take Malboro cigarette as an example. Its cost insurance and freight (CIF) is 26.1 yuan/carton and reaches 83 yuan/carton after adding various taxes. Its retail sales is 100 yuan/carton. China has promised to reduce import tariffs to 15 percent in 2000. Even if its tariffs remain unchangeable, the retail price for Malboro cigarette will be down to 80 yuan/carton. This will affect China's high-grade cigarette market. 2. At present, there is a gap between China's cigarette and foreign cigarette in terms of scientific content and quality. China's mixed cigarette is unable to compete with foreign brand cigarette. In line with the above-mentioned unfavorable conditions, some people might say that to join WTO means to push small sampans of Chinese tobacco enterprises to compete with aircraft carriers of multi-national tobacco corporations. Are Chinese enterprises, which have been under the situation of block and protection for years, able to compete? Doubts and worries are normal. Meanwhile, someone has asked a question in reply that how many wattled walls can block other's aircraft carriers. What is more, can small sampans be replaced with aircraft carriers? Besides, our tobacco enterprises are not all small sampans. Facts proves that tree in hothouse can not grow into a large tree, and a child in the arms of his parents can not walk himself. There is a famous story among the economic circle that in the past when the oxygen equipment was not developed, large amount of fish fries died on the long-distance transport and traders suffered greatly. Later on, someone put catfish into the water trough. To avoid being eaten by catfish, all fish fries swam at fast speed thus taking in oxygen, and their death rate dropped sharply. The catfish effect indicates that powerful competitive partner may stimulate the survival potential of weak opponent. China's color television market was almost occupied by Japan in the 1980s. Through years of hard efforts, Chinese-made color television has occupied three fourth of the market at present. The temporary labor pains will exchange for the promotion of efficiency and quality of the whole economy. To enter WTO will form a huge challenge for the development of China's tobacco industry. Meanwhile, China's tobacco industry will gain an opportunity for development by leaps and bounds. China's output of tobacco and cigarette ranks first in the world. However, in the world's tobacco trade, China's market shares are far from its position of being the world's tobacco producer. In 1998, China's export of cigarette accounted for only 1.81 percent of the world's total. After joining WTO, China may follow the stipulation on the most favored nation treatment and national treatment, and its products will enjoy multilateral, unconditional, stable and long-run most favored nation treatment and indiscrimination treatment among 134 treaty powers thus greatly improving the international environment for China's tobacco trade and offering more opportunities for China's tobacco and cigarette to participate in the international competition. WTO's basic spirit is to base on market economy and form a rational allocation of resources through free competition among enterprises. This has forced us to speed up the change of China's tobacco system and rearrange the organization structure of tobacco enterprises so as to enable to connect with worldwide enterprises as quickly as possible. Only by doing so, can we stand still in the process of the integration of the world's economy. In recent years, regional embargo and local protectionism, just like a persistent ailment, shackle the overall development of China's tobacco industry. WTO's "principle of fair trade and free competition" and its "principle of indiscrimination trade" help break local embargo so as to form a nationwide circulation and market thus enabling Chinese enterprises to foster the excellent and scrap the obsolete in the competition among themselves and develop healthily in the fair and free competition. To enter WTO does not mean that meat pies will be fallen from the sky or fierce floods and savage will come. Because we have the monopoly system; there is an evolutionary process for the reduction of cigarette import tariffs; we still have national brand cigarette which meets the needs of customers' taste and is appreciated by customers; and we have a complete retail and sales network. The present strength of China's tobacco industry is not at the same starting line with multi-national corporations. However, so long as we have the feeling of urgency and worry, positively participated in the competition and work hard, we surely win a market share and develop China from a large country of tobacco into a powerful country of tobacco. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Apr 9 12:14:57 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3570A21B02 for ; Sun, 9 Apr 2000 12:14:57 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA23268 for ; Sun, 9 Apr 2000 12:14:57 -0400 Date: Sun, 9 Apr 2000 12:14:56 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] China's Tobacco Industry Must Reduce Tar (fwd) China's Tobacco Industry Must Reduce Tar Source: Tobacco China, Tuesday, 3/28/00 China's tobacco industrial circle is discussing a hot topic: the country should quickly reduce cigarette tar in a bid to maintain its target of the weighted average of 15 mg. A related authoritative person noted that, with the acceleration of China's access to WTO, the process of internationalization of the domestic market is being sped up. China's tobacco industry will face with a lash of foreign low-tar and mix-type cigarette. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to cut cigarette tar, which concerns about the survival and development of tobacco industry. Health is the prerequisite of the existence and development of the mankind. To reduce the affection of smoking to people's health, the fifth article of the "Law the People's Republic of China on Tobacco Monopoly" stipulates that the state strengthens scientific research and technical development of tobacco monopoly products to raise the quality of tobacco products and cut tar and contents of other harmful elements. When it worked out the Ninth Five-Year Plan of scientific and technology development of the tobacco industry, the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau listed the tar reduction into one of the ten scientific research projects being carried during the 1996-2000 period; and has since launched a massive drive to reduce cigarette tar across the country. Meanwhile, it clearly put forward the cut of China's cigarette tar within 15 mg by the end of 2000. In 1998, the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau called for giving priority to the development of low-tar and mix-type cigarette, and disposed the work at the national tobacco working meeting in 1999. In an interview, Ren Min, Director of the Department of Science and Education under the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau, briefed on the situation of the change of China's cigarette tar over the past decade. He said that from 1989 to 1999, the amount of cigarette tar in China was cut from 21.53 mg to 16.62 mg, an average drop of 0.5 mg a year. The change could be divided into three stages. The first stage from 1990 to 1992 was a stage, which witnessed a rapid drop of tar content by 2.5 to 3 mg from 21.85 mg to 18.89 mg. One reason for the reduction was a big increase of filtered cigarette. During the second stage from 1992 to 1996, the cigarette tar maintained at 18-19 mg level. Until 1997, when the new state standard was put into effect, the industry employed many tar reduction techniques to cut tar content. During the third period from 1996 to 1999, the amount of tar went down steadily from 18.5 mg to 16.1 mg (the lowest level in the third quarter of 1999), an average of 0.8 mg a year. According to data of the quality examination of cigarette products in 1999 (by the end of November), a survey on 1,835 trademarks of 155 cigarette enterprises, the average tar content reached 16.62 mg, of which tar of brand cigarette averaged 16.8. The annual tar dropped steadily from 17.0 mg in the first quarter to 16.1 mg in the third quarter. The proportion of cigarette with tar content under 16 mg went up from 38.37 percent to 48.1 percent; and that of cigarette with tar content over 18 mg declined from 24 percent to 18.4 percent. Preliminary statistics show that there were a dozen trademarks of cigarette with tar content under 12 mg. Included are Zhongnanhai, Kalei, Hongshuangxi, Hongmei, Gaolei, Linhailingzhi and Techunshish. Director Ren Min was confident of China's realization of tar weight average of 15 mg by the end of 2000.He said that, according to the data of 1999, the number of trademarks of cigarette with tar under 15 mg accounted for 18 percent of the total, and the proportion of brand name cigarette also approached the figure. The examination result in the third quarter of 1999 showed that the proportion of cigarette with tar below 15 mg increased to 29 percent. If production of these products maintains stable, we may regard that the amount of tar of one third of the present trademark cigarette is between 15 mg and 16.4 mg. With the speed of tar reduction over the past two years and faster speed in the coming years, the tar content of 15 mg for these products can be reached by the end of 2000. In this case, the number of trademark cigarette with tar content of 15 mg will approach 60 percent by the end of 2000. If these products occupy the leading position of the gross output, the target to reduce tar content by the end of 2000 is realistic. According to Director Ren Min, to ensure the realization of the target in 2000, it is a must to concentrate on the work in major cigarette producing provinces, enterprises and products with large market shares. He noted that, in line with the tar weighted average of the provincial statistics in the third quarter of 1999, the Department of Science and Education under the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau listed 15 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions with tar weighted average around 16 mg. They were Sichuan, Chongqing, Beijing, Heilongjiang, Shanghai, Shaanxi, Jiangxi, Xinjiang, Yunnan, Hubei, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Hunan, Henan and Guizhou. According to the industrial aggregate in 1998, the output of the 15 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions accounted for 70 percent of the total ; and the tar weighted average was 215.69 mg. It is worth attention that 78 cigarette enterprises under statistics, which were enterprises with weak technical force, made breakthrough in tar reduction work after hard efforts. According to authoritative sources, the United States, European Communities and other countries and regions all have experienced a key development period of cutting tar content, and this is an inexorable trend for the world's tobacco development. To face with the challenge of the international market after joining WTO, China must accelerate the process of reducing cigarette tar to limit the gap between China and the internationalized market as quick as possible. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Apr 12 17:05:41 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id AA84E21B05 for ; Wed, 12 Apr 2000 17:05:41 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA09520 for ; Wed, 12 Apr 2000 17:05:41 -0400 Date: Wed, 12 Apr 2000 17:05:41 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Teenager Smoking on Rise in China: Report (fwd) Teenager Smoking on Rise in China: Report Source: NewsEdge, Wednesday, 4/12/00 BEIJING (April 11) XINHUA via NewsEdge Corporation - Almost one in every six smokers in China is a teenager and if the present situation remains unchanged, three million Chinese could die from smoking annually by the year 2050, according to the "People's Daily". There are some 50 million young smokers in China, the world's biggest tobacco producer and consumer. There are some 320 million smokers in China, or one fourth of smokers worldwide. The average age of taking up smoking is three years younger compared with 1984. About 38 percent of people over 15 are smokers. Medical studies show that smoking is closely linked with 25 kinds of life-threatening illnesses, such as lung cancer, cardio and cerebral vascular and heart diseases. Lung cancer has been rising by 4.5 percent annually in China in recent years. Specialists with the Chinese Academy of Medical Science and the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine said that if drastic changes are not made to curb smoking among teenagers, ten million people worldwide might be killed every year in the future, three million of whom are in China. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Apr 19 13:06:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9B74821B3A for ; Wed, 19 Apr 2000 13:06:25 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA28496 for ; Wed, 19 Apr 2000 13:06:23 -0400 Date: Wed, 19 Apr 2000 13:06:22 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] IMF Suspends Lending To Moldova Over Tobacco, Wine Privatizations April 19, 2000 IMF Suspends Lending To Moldova Over Privatizations Dow Jones Newswires CHISINAU, Moldova (AP)--The International Monetary Fund has suspended lending to Moldova because its conditions on turning the state-run wine and tobacco industries over to the private sector have not been met, an IMF official said Wednesday. "The IMF may reconsider its position by the end of this year, but our conditions remain the same," said Hasan al-Atrash, the IMF representative to Chisinau. Moldova's parliament refused Monday to approve privatization of the wine and tobacco industries, a key condition set forth by the IMF for granting a $35 million loan for this impoverished former Soviet republic. Only 16 members of the 101-seat parliament voted for the measure. The loan would have brought another $150 million from other foreign lenders, crucial for Moldova to prevent it from defaulting on its foreign debts. The lawmakers justified their refusal to vote for privatization by saying the wine and tobacco industries, almost the only profitable sectors in the country, are strategic, and the state should retain its monopoly. The industries are estimated to earn more than $200 million a year. Prime Minister Dumitru Braghis said the IMF's move will mean adjustments to the government budget. Braghis said the budget was drawn up assuming that the two sectors would be turned over to the private sector, resulting in the promised foreign loans. The National Bank reserves are of $200 million, insufficient to support the national currency, the leu, and to pay back the $90 million owed this year on Moldova's foreign debt. The government is also facing increasing pressure from students, state workers and pensioners who have not received their stipends and salaries for months. ***************************************** Please note new address and fax number: Ross Hammond 965 Mission Street, Suite 218 San Francisco, CA 94103 USA tel. 1-415-695-7492 fax. 1-415-369-9211 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Apr 20 10:41:49 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1822D21B02 for ; Thu, 20 Apr 2000 10:41:49 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA18552; Thu, 20 Apr 2000 10:41:48 -0400 Date: Thu, 20 Apr 2000 10:41:48 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Europe: Impotence warning on cigarettes (fwd) Impotence warning on cigarettes Source: Electronic Telegraph, Thursday, 4/20/00 CIGARETTE packets are to include explicit warnings that tobacco can affect men's sexual performance following a European Union decision to put strict new health messages on packaging. The EU is drawing up plans to include graphic impotence warnings. They will say "smoking causes impotence" or "smoking causes impotence; smoking may cause sexual impotence due to decreased blood flow to the penis. This can prevent you from having an erection." MEPs are currently working with the Council of Ministers to finalise the wording. They have proposed that the messages include a graphic image of a long drooping cigarette ash, modelled on an official health message shortly to be introduced in Canada. Chris Davies, Liberal Democrat MEP for North West Englan, said: "It is important that people, particularly young people, understand the reasons cigarettes can cause impotence." The Government is understood to be in favour of new warnings on cigarette packets, after research by the British Medical Association found that most men were unaware of a link between smoking and "male penile erectile dysfunction". Yvette Cooper, public health minister, said: "Very few smokers are fully aware of all the damage done by smoking. The fact that smoking can cause impotence should be another reason to encourage smokers to give up." The new health warnings will be included in an EU directive on the manufacture, presentation and sale of tobacco products that the Government will implement. The list of new warnings were drawn up at a confidential meeting of the powerful Council of Ministers' Working party on Health. They proposed the messages that "smoking causes ageing of the skin" and that "smoking is addictive" in addition to current warnings. Clive Bates, director of Action on Smoking and Health, said: "If people are going to decide about smoking they need to know the full range of risks, even if they are embarrassing." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Apr 20 10:42:16 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 591A721B3A for ; Thu, 20 Apr 2000 10:42:16 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA18589 for ; Thu, 20 Apr 2000 10:42:16 -0400 Date: Thu, 20 Apr 2000 10:42:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] NZ: Maoris sue state for 'luring them into smoking' (fwd) Maoris sue state for 'luring them into smoking' Source: Electronic Telegraph, Thursday, 4/20/00 MAORIS filed a lawsuit for damages against the New Zealand government yesterday, claiming that European settlers introduced them to smoking. They say successive governments have encouraged them to smoke for the past 160 years and have profited from the taxes raised on cigarettes and tobacco they have bought. Papers were filed with the Waitangi Tribunal, a quasi-judicial body which hears indigenous grievance cases, in what is being regarded as the first step towards a High Court action. The tobacco firms may also be named as defendants at a later stage. Helen Clark, the Prime Minister, has ordered an investigation into whether the government should consider suing the tobacco companies for the cost to the health service of treating diseases attributed to smoking. Yesterday's action was lodged by lawyers acting for "Bubbles" Mihinui, 80, a guide in the tourist centre of Rotorua, and the Maori Council, an umbrella group of Maori tribal interests. Mrs Mihinui, who has smoked since she was 20, claims she became a compulsive smoker, able to give up the habit only for Lent. The papers claim that Maoris have been affected by the failure of the Crown to provide equitably for Maori health services and education. They also claim that the tax raised from Maori smokers is "disproportionate to government expenditure on Maori hospitalisation from smoking-related causes". The tobacco plant was introduced to New Zealand by Captain James Cook and its use became widespread when European settlers began to arrive in large numbers early in the 19th century. Once Maoris acquired the smoking habit, tobacco became an unofficial currency along with guns, blankets and whisky. Maoris smoke twice as much as the rest of the population and statistics show that they suffer disproportionately from smoking-related illnesses. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri May 12 17:15:18 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DB2EB2A317 for ; Fri, 12 May 2000 17:15:18 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA20490 for ; Fri, 12 May 2000 17:15:18 -0400 Date: Fri, 12 May 2000 17:15:17 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] list update; Canada raising taxes Dear Friends: Our lists server at Essential Information has been down for the last three weeks or so, which is why you haven't seen my name in your inbox recently. We appear to be back on line, and ready to get things moving again. It is possible that some of you will have difficulty, or that some who asked to be removed from the list have been reinstated. If you have any trouble, please send me a note directly (rob@essential.org), and I'll attend to the problem as soon as possible. Robert Weissman Essential Information | Internet: rob@essential.org EDITORIAL: When it comes to cigarettes, tax 'em if you got 'em Ottawa and some provinces slashed tobacco taxes in 1994 to reduce smuggling. Fortunately, times have changed Source: Globe and Mail, Friday, 5/12/00 After a few years spent licking its wounds, the federal government is talking of a rematch with the tobacco smugglers. This is excellent news. As a matter of public policy, raising taxes on cigarettes is a no-brainer. Tobacco is a proven health hazard. Making it more expensive encourages smokers to kick the habit and helps discourage others, particularly young people, from starting. If governments receive a financial windfall in the bargain for such programs as health care, so much the better. That was Ottawa's reasoning when it sharply increased cigarette taxes in 1989 and 1991, raising the average price of a carton to $48. However, since the same cartons were selling in the United States in 1991 for $22 a carton, the incentive was there for a massive smuggling operation. Canadian cigarettes were exported to the U.S. free of Canadian tax, and, if earmarked for other destinations, free even of U.S. tax. They could then be smuggled back into Canada at enormous profit. Consider the case of Les Thompson, who worked for a subsidiary of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. called Northern Brands International, and who pleaded guilty in U.S. court to money-laundering and defrauding the Canadian government of $72-million (U.S.) in taxes. The loop he used was simple. U.S. customs officials were told that cigarettes exported from Canada were destined for Russia and Estonia, but the cartons were in reality handed off to smugglers who took them back to Canada. They did so by way of the Akwesasne Reserve straddling the Canada-U.S. border; its New York section, the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation, is a short boat ride from the section in Quebec and Ontario. (The Mohawk Council of Akwesasne last December decried the social damage done to the reserve by tobacco smuggling.) This and similar activity was so great that, by 1994, contraband cigarettes accounted for an estimated 40 per cent of those sold in Canada; 80 per cent of cigarettes exported from the country were being smuggled back in. The federal government and provinces east of Manitoba collapsed under the pressure and reduced the price of a carton by as much as $20. (Western Canada, under less pressure, didn't join in.) The proportion of young people smoking promptly rose. Now federal Finance Minister Paul Martin and his provincial counterparts in Central and Eastern Canada are considering raising the taxes on a carton by as much as $15. Though smuggling is far from a dead issue, they can take heart from two developments. For one, the activities of tobacco companies during the period of massive smuggling have been put under the microscope. Ottawa last December filed a civil suit in U.S. Federal Court against Toronto-based RJR-Macdonald, alleging, as Justice Minister Anne McLellan phrased it for reporters, "that the RJR-related companies used an elaborate network of smugglers and offshore shell companies to ensure an abundant supply of cheap cigarettes to the Canadian market." Documents from 1994 made public by British American Tobacco PLC, as part of the settlement of a U.S. court case, suggest that Imperial Tobacco made its major brands available to smugglers to regain market share from competitors who were benefiting from smuggling. The tobacco companies have strongly denied any involvement in the smuggling. Whatever the resolution of these allegations of complicity, cigarette manufacturers may feel a keener sense of obligation this time round to do what they can to discourage the contraband traffic. The finance ministers will also benefit from an increase in the price of cigarettes in northern U.S. border states. According to yesterday's article by Globe reporter Shawn McCarthy, a carton there costs as much as $15 more than one in Central and Eastern Canada. That leaves room for Canadian prices to climb a great distance before they whet the smugglers' appetites. Mr. Martin and his colleagues should use every inch of that distance to make cigarettes more -- and, for the sake of those who might otherwise get or remain hooked, prohibitively -- expensive. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 16 11:00:43 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 7E6662A3C6 for ; Tue, 16 May 2000 11:00:43 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA17646 for ; Tue, 16 May 2000 11:00:43 -0400 Date: Tue, 16 May 2000 11:00:43 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] First Damage Suit Filed Over Indirect Smoking (S. Korea) First Damage Suit Filed Over Indirect Smoking by Park Yoon-bae / Staff Reporter Source: Korea Daily (Hankook Ilbo), Tuesday, 5/16/00 Parents of a dead 30-year-old female worker from the Pusan branch of the National Agricultural Cooperatives Federation (NACF) launched a court battle over second-hand smoking, claiming that their daughter died of asthma complicated by indirect smoking at her workplace. The victim's family filed a lawsuit with the administrative court in Seoul on Monday, demanding compensation for her death because it was apparently related with second-hand smoking. The lawsuit is drawing keen attention because it is the first time a damage suit has been filed over second-hand smoking in Korea. Currently, a trial on first-hand smoking is under way in a damage suit against the government and the Korea Tobacco and Ginseng Corp. (KT&G). Thirty-one sick smokers and their family members are demanding 307 million won ($260,000) in compensation. The woman, identified only as Kim, died of dyspnea, or difficulty in breeding, as a result of complications from asthma in February. She was reported to have worked for the NACF over the past 10 years. Kim's parents demanded in the lawsuit that the state-run Korea Labor Welfare Corp. compensate for her daughter's death since her asthma developed into a fatal disease after being exposed to second hand smoke at her workplace. The plaintiffs claimed that Kim's death should be recognized as an industrial mishap arising from second-hand smoking in the NACF's branch, where both workers and clients are free to smoke anywhere, anytime. Legal experts said the court battle will focus on the definition of second-hand smoking and the seriousness of its health risks and damage to non-smokers. They also stressed that Kim's family will have to prove that their deceased daughter was exposed to a fatal level of smoke at the workplace. In addition, the plaintiffs are expected to meet with a tough task of proving that the death of their daughter had a direct link with indirect smoking. In the United States, a group of flight attendants won an agreement on a $300 million compensation from the cigarette maker Philip Morris in 1997 in a damage suit over second-hand smoking. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 17 13:35:06 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 203B72A3D8 for ; Wed, 17 May 2000 13:35:06 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA18365 for ; Wed, 17 May 2000 13:35:05 -0400 Date: Wed, 17 May 2000 13:35:05 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] China Lifts Curbs on Tobacco Imports From U.S., Barshefsky Says (fwd) China Lifts Curbs on Tobacco Imports From U.S., Barshefsky Says by Paul Basken Source: Bloomberg News, Wednesday, 5/17/00 Washington, May 17 (Bloomberg) -- China has agreed to drop restrictions on U.S. tobacco imports tied to its claims that the crop is unsanitary because of ``blue mold,'' U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky said. The Chinese government sent a letters yesterday to Barshefsky and Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman saying it now believes blue mold ``is not a problem,'' Barshefsky told a agricultural industry coalition. China already granted deep cuts in tobacco tariffs as part of an agreement it reached in November with the U.S. clearing the way for the country to join the World Trade Organization. That included a cut in its tariffs on cigarettes from 65 percent to 25 percent by 2004, Barshefsky said. Beijing probably would have been forced by the WTO to drop any restrictions on U.S. tobacco due to blue mold, which causes millions of dollars in crop damage but no known human health problems. Still, its decision to voluntary abandon the issue is significant since it comes as Congress faces a key vote on granting it normal trade ties. Barshefsky announced the Chinese decision at a breakfast meeting of the Agricultural Coalition for China Trade, a recently formed farm industry group dedicated to lobbying Congress on granting China permanent normal trade relations. The coalition includes representatives of major commodities producers such as wheat, corn, soybeans, cotton, rice, beef and pork, and also major agribusinesses, such as Cargill Inc., Bunge Corp., ConAgra Inc., Kraft Foods and Farmland industries Inc., the U.S.'s largest farmer-owned cooperative. Boosting U.S. Exports The Agriculture Department estimates China's entry into the WTO, which would lead to lower tariffs and the elimination of export subsidies, could boost U.S. farm exports by about $2 billion a year by 2005, up from almost $1 billion now. Current U.S. farm exports worldwide are projected at $49.5 billion for the year that ends Sept. 30. Supporters of permanent trade privileges for China remain short of the necessary 218 votes in the House, Barshefsky said. ``We're not quite there yet but we think that at the end of the day, the members of Congress will do the right thing,'' said Barshefsky. The lobby group's leader, Bob Stallman, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, called the vote ``essential to the survival'' of many in his industry. The administration has no plans to seek any delay in the House vote, Barshefsky told reporters after the meeting. Barshefsky spoke before she's was scheduled to appear before a House Agriculture Committee. Of the 50-member panel, six lawmakers oppose the trade deal, said Mary Kay Thatcher, a lobbyist for the American Farm Bureau Federation. China's pledge on tobacco could help sway some wavering tobacco-state lawmakers to support the trade pact, Thatcher said From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 17 18:36:12 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C87E22A05E for ; Wed, 17 May 2000 18:36:12 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA28589 for ; Wed, 17 May 2000 18:36:12 -0400 Date: Wed, 17 May 2000 18:36:12 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] NGOs Question Big Tobacco's Access to WHO (fwd) Wednesday, May 17, 2000 Contact: Judy Wilkenfeld, USA Juan Almendares, Honduras Mahamane Cisse, Mali (cell) 41 79 368-1258 --For immediate release- NGOs QUESTION BIG TOBACCO'S ACCESS TO W.H.O. TREATY NEGOTIATIONS AND DEMAND OFFICIAL RECOGNITION TO PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH We, as members of the Framework Convention Alliance, strongly object to the involvement of tobacco companies with member nations, as evidenced by industry briefing documents on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). [SEE ATTACHED DOCUMENTS] Recently in Africa, British American Tobacco (BAT) held its latest briefing session with delegations to encourage "proactive support" for its interests. BAT called on the delegations to "use British American Tobacco as a source of information and data." Given the industry's record of outright lies and misinformation campaigns, it is unacceptable that BAT be considered a legitimate information resource. Based on this industry intrusion, we support the inclusion of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in the official FCTC negotiations commencing in October 2000. Without broad NGO participation, the most vocal non-governmental voices at the table will be those of the tobacco industry. It is imperative that NGOs have official observer status in the negotiation debates. While we recognise that NGOs do not and cannot have voting status, NGOs bring first-hand experience with the epidemic and with tactical manoeuvres by the tobacco companies to sabotage public health efforts. From Austria to Zimbabwe, we bear witness to industry subversion of national efforts to end their predatory practices. We expect that the sovereign member states will strive to protect the interests of civil society by including NGOs as members of their delegations to the official FCTC negotiations. We applaud Malawi for choosing health over death by including Mr. John Kapito of the Consumers' Association of Malawi on their official delegation, and encourage other countries to follow suit. There is ample precedent for inclusion of NGOs in treaty negotiations. In 1996, the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) issued a resolution describing a broad role for NGOs in UN negotiations. As the Secretary General of the UN stated in 1998, "NGOs have played a very significant and helpful role by establishing bridges between the United Nations and the civil society at large." Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, USA SOS Tabagisme, Mali German Coalition Against Smoking INFACT, USA CONACTA, Honduras Consumers' Association of Malawi American Cancer Society From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 17 19:34:04 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 100F92A05E for ; Wed, 17 May 2000 19:34:04 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA29929 for ; Wed, 17 May 2000 19:34:03 -0400 Date: Wed, 17 May 2000 19:34:03 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Chinas Tobacco Industry Could Get Smoked by WTO Entry (fwd) China=92s Tobacco Industry Could Get Smoked by WTO Entry Source: China Online, Tuesday, 5/16/00 The May 10 Zhongguo Jingji Shibao (China Economic Times) reports that while China is a major tobacco country and taxes on tobacco bring in 10 percent of state revenue, the industry=92s long-standing domestic monopoly has not toughened it for international competition, a serious problem if and when China enters the World Trade Organization (WTO). According to a source from the Economic Research Institute of the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau, China is the largest tobacco country in the world. Currently, regular smokers in China account for 25 percent of the global total, numbering 310 million. During 1995-99, China purchased an annual average of 2.2 million tons of tobacco and each year produced 33.4 million cases of cigarettes (one case contains 50,000 cigarettes). On average, China's annual production of leaf tobacco makes up some 35 percent of the global total while cigarette production and sales account for 32 percent of the global total. In recent years, China has ranked first in the world in terms of the number of smokers, the purchase of leaf tobacco, and cigarette production and sales. For a country with such a huge population of smokers and such a massive scale of tobacco production, it is self-evident that the tobacco industry plays an important role in the national economy. In 1999, China's tobacco industry brought in a total of 98.9 billion renminbi (US$11.9 billion) in industrial and commercial tax, or 10 percent of state revenue. It has been the state=92s top revenue generator for 13 consecutive years. China's tobacco industry is massive in scale and its industrial system is relatively complete. It has fostered a number of large enterprises such as Yuxi, Shanghai and Changsha cigarette factories, whose technologies and equipment are world class and whose products are competitive. However, due to China's long-standing restrictions on tobacco imports and exports, the dependency of China's tobacco industry on foreign trade has been minimal. During 1995-99, China's total imports and exports of leaf tobacco was only about 4.5 percent of domestic purchases on average, and total cigarette imports and exports made up a mere 0.8 percent of domestic output on average. On the international tobacco export market, China's leaf tobacco exports accounted for just 3.5 percent of global exports and cigarettes for only 1.8 percent. Thus, the development of China's tobacco industry has clearly depended on the domestic market. This does not accord with its position as the world's No.1 tobacco producer and makes it difficult to integrate that industry into the world economy in line with current emphasis on globalization. Impact of WTO Entry on Tobacco Market China=92s WTO entry will mean that all domestic tobacco products now under the national monopoly will face increasing foreign competition. With the industry=92s limited export capacity, the primary impact will be the shrinking domestic market share of practically all tobacco products produced under the monopoly. I. Losses From Tariff Reductions 1. Leaf Tobacco In 1999, China imposed a 40 percent import tariff and a 64 percent consolidated tax, which increased the sales price of imported leaf tobacco. For example, leaf tobacco imported from Zimbabwe sold for Rmb 16.25 (US$1.96) per kilogram, while the price of domestic leaf tobacco was Rmb 5 (US$0.60) per kilogram, or one-third that of imports. The high tariff has made domestic leaf tobacco highly competitive in price. However, if the tariff on leaf tobacco is lowered to 17 percent by 2004 as agreed to by the Chinese government, the price of imported leaf tobacco per ton will be Rmb 10,000 (US$1,208.14)=97lower than it is now. Even though large-scale imports could raise the price of leaf tobacco on the international market, China=92s imports are likely to increase sharply due to the lower prices, adversely affecting China's own leaf tobacco production. 2. Cigarettes China began to slash import duties on cigarettes in 1997 from a high of 150 percent. In 1999, the rate fell to 36 percent. Meanwhile, China=92s consolidated tax on imported cigarettes dropped to 218 percent in 1999, down 26 percentage points compared with 1997. As China had committed itself to a large-margin cut of the average tariff on all imported commodities, a high tariff on cigarettes violates that promise. Consequently, the Chinese government will continue to reduce the import duty on cigarettes during WTO negotiations. If the rate drops to the average for all imports, i.e. 15 percent in the year 2000, one packet of imported cigarette that sells for Rmb 11 (US$1.33) now (corresponding to Marlboro and 555 brands) will sell for Rmb 2 to Rmb 3 (US$0.24 to US$0.36) less after the tariff reduction. This will greatly enhance the competitiveness of imported cigarettes on the Chinese market. 3. Cigarette Machines and Associated Materials In 1999, the tariff on imported cigarette machines was 14 percent, on tows it was 12 percent and on bobbins it was 20 percent. There is not much room for reducing these tariffs, so the impact of tariff cuts on these products after WTO entry will be minimal. Most of the impact will come from the relaxation of non-tariff barriers. II. Losses From Relaxation of Non-Tariff Barriers Most of the adverse effect of cigarette imports on the domestic market after China=92s WTO entry will not come from tariff reductions, but from th= e relaxation or even abolition of non-tariff barriers. Permitted a long transition period, China's tobacco industry must gradually relax and finally abolish the quota and license controls that are now in force. Inevitably, a large influx of foreign cigarettes will result. Since there is a huge potential demand for mixed cigarettes, because foreign tobacco enterprises are strong enough to exploit the market and since foreign cigarettes are higher in quality and less harmful to smokers=92 health, it is likely that after China joins the WTO, imported cigarettes will attract a large portion of Chinese smokers. Domestic cigarettes could lose 10 percent to 20 percent of their market share within five years. Net imports of leaf tobacco will also grow rapidly. Imported leaf tobacco, especially that of high quality, will account for some 10 percent of domestic demand. The impact on the market for cigarette machines and associated materials will be severe. For example, the China-U.S. WTO agreement stipulates that the tows import quota for China must be 113,000 tons, which equals national demand at present. The agreement also calls for China to abolish its tows import quota by 2001 and cigarette machine import quota before 2002. Without the protection of non-tariff barriers, not only will the enterprises that manufacture domestic cigarette machines and associated materials have to lower the prices of their products, but also their market share will be greatly reduced. If no effective countermeasures are adopted, the impact on cigarette machine manufacturers could be devastating. The import of associated materials will also shoot up. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu May 18 13:54:23 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 343332A05E for ; Thu, 18 May 2000 13:54:23 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA14821 for ; Thu, 18 May 2000 13:54:22 -0400 Date: Thu, 18 May 2000 13:54:22 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] European News Bulletin - EU0019 - 15 May 2000 (fwd) !# --------------------------------- !# GLOBALink Tobacco - Weekly European News Bulletin !# --------------------------------- EUROPEAN BULLETIN EU0019 =AD 15 May 2000 Headlines FINLAND: WHO study on smoking amongst youngsters FRANCE: Hospital patients to be given smoking cessation help FRANCE / ITALY: Cigarette caused tunnel fire FRANCE/SPAIN: Altadis sheds 168 jobs HUNGARY: Smoke-free caf=E9 chain expands IRELAND: Smoky pubs: health danger to staff spurs plan for curbs NORWAY: Doctors to receive anti-smoke training UNITED KINGDOM: =A35,000 payout for boy whose mother had to work in a smok= y office UZBEKISTAN: BAT triples production Full Text FINLAND: WHO study on smoking amongst youngsters According to a report by WHO, smoking amongst boys under the age of 15 has decreased in Finland to the average level in Europe. In 1986, every third Finnish boy under the age of 15 smoked, while in 1998, only every fifth boy in the age group smoked. For girls in the same age group the figure has varied between every fourth and every fifth. According to the report, 19% of Finnish boys and 20% of the girls under the age of 15 smoke. Professor Lasse Kannas of the Finnish University of JyvUskylU emphasises that the results show the average trends. Kannas has doubts about the actual decrease in smoking amongst Finnish youngsters as the figures do not include use of snuff. Kannas does not expect that the total exposure to nicotine has changed. The WHO study included over 4,800 Finnish youngsters. Source: Helsingin Sanomat (XFB) via The Gale Group, 12 Apr 2000 FRANCE: Hospital patients to be given smoking cessation help Specialist help is to be given to hospital patients to help them stop smoking with an increase in consultations to 450 in hospitals with a capacity of more than 500 beds from the current level of 250. Each unit will include a full time nurse and a doctor who will perform six weekly sessions of three and a half hours. The measures are the result of a FFr 25mn budget, part of the Finance bill for 2000. Such consultations account for two per cent of people who stop smoking each year. Source: Le Quotidien du Medecin (XNV) via The Gale Group, 7 Apr 2000 FRANCE / ITALY: News in brief: Cigarette 'caused tunnel fire' A smouldering cigarette end is likely to have started the fire in the Mont Blanc tunnel which killed 39 people last year. This was the preliminary conclusion of experts taking part in the official investigation who conducted a detailed analysis of the burnt-out Volvo lorry at the seat of the fire in the tunnel, which connects France and Italy. The cigarette end, thrown from another vehicle, entered the lorry=92s air intake, setting fire to the air filter and then the entire engine, the experts were quoted as saying. Source: Electronic Telegraph, Saturday, 6 May 2000 FRANCE/SPAIN: Altadis Sheds 168 Jobs European tobacco company Altadis announced after an extraordinary meeting of its reorganization committee that 168 jobs will be cut due to restructuring. Altadis is also implementing a voluntary job cuts programme in its cigarettes group as part of a plan to boost performance at the division. Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, 5/5/00 HUNGARY: Smoke-free caf=E9 chain expands A smoke-free caf=E9 chain, established by General Practitioner Gyula Morik in 1997, is set to expand across the country. Morik Cafes currently has five cafes throughout the country. Another four are to be set up by the end of 2000. Smoking is prohibited since it impairs the quality of coffee beans. Each coffee-house generates an annual turnover of Ft 24mn or more. Source: Budapest Business Journal (ANB) 10-16 Apr 2000 IRELAND: Smoky pubs health danger to staff spurs plan for curbs The highest levels of carbon monoxide from cigarette smoke have been recorded in public houses in Galway, giving rise to serious concern for the health of bar workers. Bar ventilation systems were found to be ineffective. In some instances publicans were apparently unwilling to turn on expensive ventilation systems because of incurring extra costs. Now new regulations are proposed to control the risk of passive smoking to bar staff and customers. Under current legislation, smoking is banned in a range of outlets, including hairdressing salons, bingo halls, doctors' and dentists' surgeries and chemist shops. Restaurants must provide for half of their seating space to be smoke free. But public houses and betting shops are exempt from smoking bans, despite concerns for customers, and particularly for those who work in such environments. Fifty pub workers in Dublin, all members of the Mandate trade union, have initiated legal action for damage to their health arising from the smoky atmosphere in which they have been obliged to work. The first of the landmark cases is not expected to be heard before next year. The study of passive smoking in pubs by Senior Environmental Health Officer, Maurice Mulcahy has revealed significantly higher levels of environmental tobacco smoke in pubs than were previously realised. Not only were the vast majority of bars surveyed unable to maintain effective ventilation, but readings at two bars showed unprecedented levels of carbon monoxide, suggesting that other tobacco constituents were also at high levels. Mr Mulcahy said: =93The readings were quite shocking, particularly as they were over 50 per cent higher than those recorded anywhere else in the world. No matter how limited out knowledge of the trigger level for cancer or cardiovascular disease or strokes, the duration of environmental tobacco smoke exposure of bar personnel in this study in combination with these new found peaks of a marker gas is a cause for concern. =93It suggests that, failing an outright ban on smoking in bars, much more work needs to be done to ensure a minimum of 12 fresh air changes per hour and to educate all those in the trade to manage passive smoking risks effectively,=94 he added. One Galway city publican who attempted to make his premises smoke-free, had to revert to allowing customers to smoke after only three months of the experiment, as he was losing trade. A growing lobby of health professionals, environmental health officers and consumer groups are now anxious to see Irish pubs follow the lead of restaurants by at least providing a smoke-free area. Environmental health officers are ideally seeking a change of emphasis in legislation which would only allow smoking in pubs shown to have adequate ventilation. Mr Mulcahy added: =93Enforcement of the 12 air changes per hour would go some way to dilute the effects of second-hand smoke on those involuntarily exposed, most especially bar personnel.=94 Mr Mulcahy=92s paper on passive smoking in bars has been prepared for submission to the Robens Centre for Occupational Safety at the University of Surrey and was presented to an environmental health conference organised by the Irish Environmental Health Officers Associations and the University of Ulster in Cavan yesterday. Leaders of the Vintners Federation of Ireland at their AGM in Wexford have called on the Government and the tobacco industry to help publicans install costly ventilation equipment to improve air quality in bars. Source: Irish Independent, Thursday, 11 May 2000 NORWAY: Doctors to receive anti-smoke training The Norwegian public health institute (Statens institutt for folkehelse) is developing a training programme for physicians that will help them help smokers to kick the habit. According to Karl Erik Lund, researcher at the institute, Norwegian physicians have never received any such training and lack the techniques needed to help their patients. Along with a special computer programme designed for the Norwegian doctor's association (Den norske legeforening), the institute hopes to train doctors to help 20,000 patients to stop smoking each year. Currently, the number is 5,000 patients. Source: Aftenposten (AF) via The Gale Group, 10 Apr 2000 UNITED KINGDOM: =A35,000 payout for boy whose mother had to work in a smok= y office A mother who claimed that passive smoking affected her unborn child=92s health has won a battle for compensation which could lead to thousands of similar cases. Colette Comstive says her son Matthew, now seven, suffers asthma and recurring chest infections after she was forced to work in a smoky office during her pregnancy. Despite her complaints, her employer, the catalogue company Great Universal Stores, failed to move her to a smoke-free environment at its office in Burnley. Following a four-year legal fight, the boy was awarded =A35,000, agreed by = a judge in chambers. GUS, which denied liability, also agreed to pay =A35,800 costs. Mrs Comstive worked as a part-time telephone clerk for GUS. She said that of the 100 staff in the open- plan office, around 90 smoked. She was often forced to sit next to a smoker and even the non- smoking table, to which she was eventually moved, was surrounded by clouds of smoke. =93The atmosphere was excessively smoky,=94 she said. =93Unfortunately beca= use of the situation we were working in it was not possible to move me out of the office.=94 Matthew was born in August 1992 weighing 6lb 11oz and began suffering respiratory problems at six months. His mother claims that by the age of two he had suffered at least 13 chest infections which required medical treatment. His asthma now forces him to use an inhaler daily during the summer. And he is so susceptible to illness that each winter he suffers on average five chest infections. In September 1995, two years after leaving the company, Mrs Comstive launched her legal battle for compensation claiming her son's illness had been caused as a direct result of passive smoking at work. Mrs Comstive, now a customer services adviser for a high street bank, decided to accept the payout rather than continue her battle as the amount was thought to be similar to that which could have been awarded if the matter had gone to trial. Her son will receive the cash, which has been invested by his legal team, when he is 18. Dr Ian Mecrow, consultant paediatrician at Stockport's Stepping Hill Hospital, who advised Mrs Comstive's legal team, said: =93There is no doub= t that mothers smoking in pregnancy have babies who are of lighter birth weight and are more likely to have chest infections. The logical argument therefore is that the same will be true for babies of women passively exposed to tobacco smoke.=94 Source: Daily Mail, 13 May 2000 UZBEKISTAN: BAT triples production British American Tobacco Uzbekistan has tripled production to dominate the Uzbek market in its five years of operations. The increase in sales from last year earned the joint venture between BAT and the former Uzbekistan tobacco monopoly more than $10 million from the foreign market. The company said it has seen an increase in domestic sales of 500% since operations began in 1995. Source: Tobacco International, April 2000 Amanda Sandford Research Manager ASH - 102 Clifton Street - LONDON EC2A 4HW tel: 020 7739 5902 - fax: 020 7613 0531 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri May 19 12:25:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8775C2A05E for ; Fri, 19 May 2000 12:25:25 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA05741 for ; Fri, 19 May 2000 12:25:25 -0400 Date: Fri, 19 May 2000 12:25:25 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Mexico's curb on smoking in trouble (fwd) Mexico's curb on smoking in trouble Enforcement record poor on past efforts by Ricardo Sandoval / KNIGHT RIDDER NEWS SERVICE Source: Lexington Herald-Leader, Friday, 5/19/00 MEXICO CITY It's billed as a clean start for anti-smoking efforts in Mexico, where 45,000 people died last year of smoking-related illness and a million more took up the tobacco habit. But even before it gets onto the books next week, a new rule banning smoking in Mexico's federal office buildings is in trouble. In a culture in which smokers light up pretty much wherever they please, experts fear Mexican bureaucrats will ignore the congressional edict, and that it won't be enforced. Guadalupe Ponciano, a cardiovascular specialist at the government-run Manuel G. Gonzales General Hospital in Mexico City, called the congressional move ``the strongest action yet by the government against a group of rampant smokers in Mexico.'' ``That it's aimed at the government itself gives the government a moral basis to then protect non-smokers in other areas of Mexican life,'' Ponciano said. But, as with past rules against smoking, Ponciano fears the new regulation may fail because of a lack of enforcement that's chronic in Mexico. ``Well, you caught me smoking, so what does that say about how I feel about the rule?'' asked Concepcion Garcia, 40, a secretary who was puffing away inside a government office building. ``No one here has told us anything about a new rule against smoking. I'll stop when they force me to and maybe it's a good thing. It could make me quit this ugly vice.'' Garcia is among the estimated 14 million Mexicans who smoke and who are pushing up health-care costs. Percentage-wise, far more Americans smoke, but the trend is static. In Mexico, with a population of 100 million, the numbers of smokers and smoking-related illnesses are growing fast. Public hospitals alone examined more than a million patients with smoking-related complaints last year, according to government figures. Progress against smoking in Mexico has been gradual. A decade ago, non-smokers applauded federal rules against smoking in hospitals and airports. Last year, even San Lazaro, the Mexican Congress's expansive headquarters, was put off-limits to smokers. But only hospitals and passenger jets, it seems, are truly smoke-free. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 23 00:02:04 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9E8642A061 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 00:02:04 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA31962 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 00:02:04 -0400 Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 00:02:04 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] UK Tobacco advertising ban - legal delays so far will cost over 1,300 lives (fwd) Tobacco advertising ban - legal delays so far will cost over 1,300 lives Source: ASH London, Monday, 5/22/00 Press Release Action on Smoking and Health ASH today called on the House of Lords to end the block on the ban on tobacco advertising. Using Government figures, ASH showed that the delay so far (164 days) would ultimately cause the avoidable loss of over 1,300 lives due to the extra smoking driven by continued advertising[1]. The advertising ban [2] has been opposed by the tobacco industry from the start. Having failed in the Appeal Court, it is continuing its legal delaying tactics in the House of Lords today (Monday) [3]. "Their Lordships should understand that this is quite literally a matter of life and death, with thousands of lives at stake. Smoking is so harmful that you don't need big changes in consumption to create huge health effects." said Clive Bates, Director of ASH. The tobacco advertising directive was agreed in June 1998 and a ban on tobacco advertising forms an important part of the Government's tobacco White Paper, and 1997 election manifesto. The Government had planned to introduce the first phase of the advertising ban on 10 December 1999 but was blocked by tobacco industry legal action. If the procedural and legal delays continue to block the advertising ban, ASH will press Ministers to introduce a comprehensive Tobacco Bill as primary legislation in the Queen's speech this year. This offers the opportunity to block the loopholes in the existing advertising directive and introduce other controls on the tobacco industry - it could even offer a better solution. Notes to the Editor [1] The Tobacco (Prohibition of Advertising and Promotion) Regulations 1999 p.16. The Government cautiously estimates that banning tobacco advertising will cause tobacco consumption to drop by 2.5%. The Government concludes "As mentioned earlier, smoking is estimated to kill 120,000 people in the UK each year. A 2.5% reduction in the number killed would mean that about 3000 lives a year could be saved." 3000 lives per year equates to 8.2 lives per day or 1345 lives in the 164 days of delay so far introduced by legal blocking tactics. See the Government assessment at: www.doh.gov.uk/pub/docs/doh/tobacco2.pdf [2] Directive 98/43/EC see explanation at: www.ash.org.uk/papers/eu-ban1.html and more detailed information at www.ash.org.uk/campaign.html [3] The tobacco companies are requesting a delay in implementing the advertising ban pending the resolution of their substantive complaint to the European Court of Justice - this is a challenge to the legal base of the Directive. The Advocate General of the ECJ will give an opinion on 15th June and it is unlikely that the Lords will decide before hearing that. The final decision of the ECJ is likely before October this year, and it is possible that the Lords will consider this near enough to justify waiting for the ECJ ruling - even if, like the Court of Appeal, they dismiss the companies' substantive arguments. In that event, the tobacco industry will have secured a delay of about one year. [4] The tobacco industry has a long and varied history of saying one thing in public, whilst knowing the truth in private: www.ash.org.uk/papers/tedbates1.html and www.ash.org.uk/papers/tobexpld4.html Contact Clive Bates, ASH (020) 7739 5902 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 23 00:27:46 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 18C132A061 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 00:27:46 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA32263 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 00:27:45 -0400 Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 00:27:45 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Study: China Deal May Hurt Deficit (fwd) This is worth reading through for the bit on tobacco. More information on this topic following this post. Robert Weissman Essential Information=09=09=09| Internet:=09rob@essential.org Study: China Deal May Hurt Deficit by Martin Crutsinger / AP Economics Writer Monday, May 22, 2000; 3:53 p.m. EDT WASHINGTON =96=96 Supporters of a landmark trade bill with China have a ticklish problem =96 the government's major study of the measure indicates it will make America's already huge trade deficit with China worse rather than better. U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefksy, who requested the review, calls the finished product "a very incomplete study, and to be frank, not much utilized." But opponents have gleefully seized on the report by the U.S. International Trade Commission to do their own analysis projecting the China deal will result in the loss of 872,000 American jobs over the next decade. Preposterous, says the Clinton administration, which published its own state-by-state assessment that proclaimed the China deal would "open new export and employment opportunities in all 50 states." As in the huge debate over free trade with Mexico in 1993, supporters and opponents offer starkly different views of the future if Congress passes legislation that would end the annual congressional review of China's trade privileges. President Clinton and his economic team contend the China agreement is a no-brainer. All the trade concessions are being made by China. In return for America's support for its bid to join the World Trade Organization, China would dismantle barriers that U.S. corporations and farmers have long complained about. The trade commission did predict that U.S. exports would rise by 10 percent. The study said the biggest benefits would go to American farmers, especially those producing cotton, tobacco and vegetable oils, and industries making paper, chemicals, plastics and airplanes. But the trade commission also predicted that imports from China to the United States would rise by 7 percent. Although U.S. trade barriers are not being changed, China's products will become more competitive on world markets as the country's efficiency improves by lowering its own barriers. Since China already sells $6 in the U.S. market for every $1 American manages to sell in China, the trade commission's projections would mean an increase in America's trade deficit with China. That deficit hit a record $68.7 billion last year, the largest for any country other than Japan. Chinese imports totaled $81.8 billion, reflecting that it is America's No. 1 supplier of toys, apparel, shoes and consumer electronics. U.S. exports to China totaled just $13.1 billion. Like the ITC report, a study by the Economic Policy Institute, a labor-supported think tank, called "Labor and the States," projected that over the next decade, U.S. job losses would total 872,091 with every industry suffering. California led all states with 84,294 lost jobs. "This is a very conservative estimate of job losses," said Robert Scott, author of the EPI study. "It assumes that China will live up to the agreement and not devalue its currency to gain competitive advantage." The administration, however, contends the job-loss report wrongly assumes that the gains made when the agreement is fully phased in will continue multiplying at the same high rate over the next decade. Barshefsky also attacked the ITC report's methodology because it focused only on tariff cuts and not the benefits from the removal of non-tariff barriers. "It is a terribly incomplete study because it only assumes tariff reductions," she told The Associated Press in an interview. "It didn't factor in things like trading rights and rights of distribution." New York investment firm Goldman Sachs has estimated that by 2005, U.S. exports to China could be $13.9 billion higher, double the current level, with 57 percent of the gain coming from the tariff cuts, 26 percent from the elimination of non-tariff barriers and the rest coming from higher U.S. investment in the country. But organized labor says rising U.S. investment in China will simply mean more U.S. companies building factories in China to take advantage of cheap wages. "We've seen a lot of good jobs become bad jobs =96 13-cent an hour jobs, child labor jobs, forced labor jobs," says AFL-CIO President John Sweeney. "That is the pattern that corporations take when they invest in other countries." =96=96=96 The bills are H.R. 4444 and S. 2277 On the Net: White House site: http://www.chinapntr.gov AFL-CIO site: http://www.aflcio.org/publ/press2000/pr0222.htm =A9 Copyright 2000 The Associated Press Back to the top From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 23 00:28:48 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 679E22A061 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 00:28:48 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA32295 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 00:28:48 -0400 Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 00:28:48 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] TFK Disappointed by Tobacco Provisions in China Trade Bill (fwd) 28 April 2000 Contact: Judith P. Wilkenfeld =09 Director, Campaign for Tobacco Free Kid's WHO/Framework Convention Initiative CAMPAIGN DISAPPOINTED BY TOBACCO PROVISIONS IN CHINA TRADE BILL The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids today released the following statement: The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids is deeply disappointed that the Administration has negotiated with China for a significant reduction in its tariffs on tobacco and tobacco products, as disclosed in the recently declassified text of the agreement now before Congress. Smoking in China is already predicted to claim the lives of more than 150 million current smokers and more than 50 million of the children alive in China today. While it was not the intention of the Administration to effect smoking rates in China, we believe that the proposed tariff reductions could have that result. If this were to occur by =93only=94 one or two percent, millio= ns of additional deaths will result. Should this agreement be approved, we will call on the Administration and Congress to waive enforcement of the tobacco-related provisions in the bill unless the Department of Health and Human Services can demonstrate that they promote public health. If the trade pact is ultimately rejected by Congress, we will urge the Administration to abstain from seeking increased market access for tobacco products in future negotiations. China: Why Trade Policy Affects Public Health Econometric research in other markets forced open by U.S. trade pressure (Thailand, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan) found that the average increase in per capita cigarette consumption attributable to U.S. tobacco trade actions was 10 percent. Providing open access to China=92s vast existing an= d potential tobacco market will create a huge economic incentive for domestic and foreign companies to compete aggressively for =93new smokers= =94, which in China means targeting traditionally nonsmoking women and children. Increased competition will also make highly sophisticated Western cigarettes much more available. Cigarettes such as Marlboro are carefully engineered to create and sustain addiction, and include flavorings and other additives that make them more appealing than Chinese cigarettes to traditionally nonsmoking women and children. Lower tariffs and increased competition will also create more intense price competition and thus lower cigarette prices. Price is known to be an enormous factor in smoking prevalence and cigarette consumption, especially in developing nations and among children. Finally, trade pressure on China=92 s domestic tobacco monopoly will inevitably lead it to compete aggressively in the cigarette export market to make up for lost market share. Logical targets for China=92s cigarette exports are other developing nations in Asia and beyond. This likely transformation of China=92s enormous monopoly into a global competitor means that forcing increased access for Western cigarettes in China is likely to be a public health catastrophe both for China and the world. When U.S. Trade Policy Conflicts with Public Health The Campaign believes that when U.S. trade policy conflicts with public health interests, concern for human life and public health should take precedence over other goals such as increased market access for the U.S. tobacco industry. In no case should the United States take any action that has the effect of increasing tobacco consumption overseas. The entry of multinational tobacco companies in previously closed markets has been shown to increase tobacco use within those markets. Therefore, the United States should not seek to lower foreign tariffs or other trade barriers on tobacco products - even if those policies were developed for protectionist purposes - if those barriers are applied equally to all foreign countries. In all other cases, the United States should not seek to break down tobacco-related trade barriers unless the Secretary of Health and Human Services determines that the trade action does not pose a threat to public health by stimulating higher rates of tobacco use. Tobacco trade policy decisions should be dealt with openly with ample opportunity for public input, and the reasoning behind any decision should be made public before any action is taken. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 23 00:32:02 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4C3592A061 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 00:32:02 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA32398 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 00:32:02 -0400 Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 00:32:01 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Save Lives on China Trade deal The PNTR vote in Congress -- with a "yes" vote portending shocking increases in tobacco-related disease and death in China -- is neck and neck. If you live in the United States, call your representative at 1-877-722-7494 (toll free), and urge them to vote "no" on PNTR. Robert Weissman Essential Information | Internet: rob@essential.org May 3, 2000 William J. Clinton The President The White House Washington, DC 20500 Dear Mr. President: We are writing to express our grave concern about the tobacco provisions in the U.S.-China trade deal and the pending vote to grant China permanent normal trade relations (PNTR). We believe that the deal would increase U.S. tobacco company access to the Chinese market, increase the companies' political influence in China, undermine tobacco controls in China, result in increased smoking rates and tobacco-related deaths. As you know, the agreement contains specific provisions mandating a reduction in tariffs on imported cigarettes, from a base rate of 65 to 25 by January 1, 2004. It also requires China's compliance with the WTO's Trade-Related Investment Measures agreement, which prevents discrimination against imports on the basis of performance requirements of any kind. The agreement excludes tobacco from Chinese concessions on retail and distribution rights. It is unclear if the tobacco category includes cigarettes. The papers uncovered in the tobacco litigation have confirmed what has long been obvious: breaking into the Chinese market is a top priority for Philip Morris and Big Tobacco, and high tariffs on imported cigarettes are a major obstacle to the U.S. companies gaining a substantial presence in China. The lowering of tobacco tariffs in connection with the U.S.-China agreement will go a long way to knock down the walls that have kept the U.S. companies out of China. And even if the retail and distribution rights do not extend to imported cigarettes -- a point that is not obvious to us -- the tariff reductions are dramatic in their own right. Moreover, the tariff reductions will give Philip Morris a substantial foot in the door to push for elimination on restrictions on its ability to do business in China. As you know, the U.S. tobacco companies have a long and sordid history of entering Asian markets with U.S. government assistance. When the U.S. companies have entered these markets, not only have they gained substantial market share, but smoking rates have gone up. In the case of South Korea, after the entry of U.S. companies, smoking rates among teenage boys went from 18 to 29 percent in a single year, according to GAO. The rate among girls more than quintupled, rising to 8.7 percent. That jump in smoking rates was presumably due to the introduction of slick U.S. marketing and advertising techniques. Over the long term, we have seen that the introduction of these techniques leads to a transformation of domestic companies -- faced with competition, they too begin to employ similar promotional techniques. Perhaps limitations on U.S. corporate activity, or existing Chinese tobacco control regulations, would prevent the jump in smoking rates in China from being as high as they are in Korea and elsewhere in Asia. But given the enormity of the Chinese market, even small up ticks in the smoking rate will lead to a surge in tobacco-related disease and death, probably on the order of hundreds of thousands or more. Mr. Clinton, we know there are many factors at play on the PNTR issue. But we believe the public health stakes involved in the tobacco opening are great enough that they should override other considerations. Sincerely, Co-Chairs of SAVE LIVES, NOT TOBACCO: The Coalition for Accountability Cassandra Welch, American Lung Association Tom Bantle, Public Citizen William Godshall, Smoke-Free Pennsylvania From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 23 12:16:26 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B0ACD2A3CD for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 12:16:26 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA09094 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 12:16:26 -0400 Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 12:16:26 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Malaysia: CAP: Impose stricter controls on tobacco use (fwd) CAP: Impose stricter controls on tobacco use by Jessinta Tan MALAYSIA; Source: The Star (Malaysia), Sunday, 5/21/00 PENANG: The Government should gazette and enforce fatwa (Islamic ruling) = =20 declaring smoking as haram (prohibited), the Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) said yesterday. Its vice-president Mohideen Abdul Kader said the fatwa provided by the state religious committees in Selangor and Kedah in 1995 had not been gazetted. He said the Government should gazette and enforce the fatwa in view of the serious health threats posed by smoking. "In drawing up a policy on smoking, the Government should place the health and lives of millions of people before the profits of tobacco companies,'' he said at CAP's Islamic Stand on the Cigarette Industry seminar here yesterday. He also urged the Government to impose stricter controls on tobacco use. "Ban all forms of direct or indirect promotions and sponsorship activities by tobacco companies. Register nicotine as an addictive drug and license retail sales of cigarettes. "Increase taxes on tobacco and put cigarettes beyond the reach of children and the poor,'' he said, adding that Pusat Islam could play a more active role in educating the Muslim community. Universiti Malaya medical faculty lecturer Dr Nabilla Al-Sadat Abdul Mohsein said claims by the tobacco industry that there were no economically viable alternatives to growing tobacco were constantly being disputed. She said there were many crops that could grow on land currently used for tobacco cultivation. "They include the majority of grain crops and vegetables such as cabbage, potatoes, chillies and roselle,'' she said in her paper. Universiti Sains Malaysia's Dr Mohd Isa Abdul Majid and Dr Dzulkifli Abdul Razak said cigarettes and tobacco use should be banned because they contained an addictive drug. "Addiction to smoking is the same as addiction to drugs such as heroin and cocaine and alcohol,'' they said in a working paper. They said a cigarette contained about 4,000 types of chemicals, including poisonous and carcinogenic substances. Pollution from the chemicals had an effect on non-smokers and the environment, they added. Copyright =A9 1995-2000. Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd. (Co No. 10894-D) All rights reserved. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 23 12:40:40 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6D13A2A3EB for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 12:40:40 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA10081 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 12:40:39 -0400 Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 12:40:38 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] European News Bulletin - EU0020 - 22 May 2000 (fwd) !# --------------------------------- !# GLOBALink Tobacco - Weekly European News Bulletin !# --------------------------------- EUROPEAN NEWS BULLETIN EU0020 =96 22 May 2000 Headlines FINLAND: Tobacco sales worth US$ 975mn in 1999 FINLAND/RUSSIA: Twinned towns to get stop smoking aids GERMANY: Tobacco market continues to expand ITALY: Health minister launches proposal to ban smoking in public places SPAIN: Canalenos starts production of cigars INTERNATIONAL CHINA: Tobacco firm to diversify its business Full Text FINLAND: Tobacco sales worth US$ 975mn in 1999 In Finland, legal tobacco sales totalled FIM 6,076.6mn (USD 975mn) in 1999, up by FIM 166mn from 1998. Cigarette sales were valued at FIM 5,212mn, pipe and other tobacco sales FIM 558mn, cigar sales FIM 178mn and smoking equipment sales FIM 129mn. The number of cigarettes sold totalled 4,798 million and cigars 73 million. Finnish retailers estimate that smuggling and private imports of tobacco products are worth approx. FIM 1bn. Finnish Amer Tobacco was the market leader in 1999 with a market share of 76.2%, up from 74.7% in 1998. Seita's market share declined slightly and BAT's by over 1 percentage point. The leading cigarette brand was Marlboro with a market share of 32%. Source: Kauppalehti (XFD) via The Gale Group, 6 Apr 2000 FINLAND/RUSSIA: Twinned towns to get stop smoking aids The Finnish town of Kuusankoski intends to become smoke-free and hopes to help break the nicotine habit in its Russian friendship town of Vologda. Kuusankoski is to take nicotine treatment products to Vologda to help 3,000 residents to stop smoking. The drugs have been donated by the pharmaceutical company which markets the products. Finnish experts will teach the Russians how to implement courses to help smokers to stop. The results of the project will be published in some scientific publication both in Finland and in Russia. In Russia, over two thirds of men in the working age smoke. Source: Kouvolan Sanomat (XYV) via the Gale Group, 04 Apr 2000 GERMANY: Tobacco market continues to expand Contrary to the trend in most European countries, the tobacco market in Germany is still growing. The Federal Statistics Office reported that in 1999, the value of the market was DM41.2 bn (US$20.24 bn), representing a 5.9 per cent rise on the 1998 turnover. Cigarette sales totalled DM 38.29bn (up 6.8 percent from 1998). In terms of quantity, 145.3 bn cigarettes were sold (up 5 percent). Philip Morris=92s Marlboro brand continued to be the market leader with a 33.4 per cent market share. =20 Marlboro is followed by Reemtsma=92s West brand which has a 10.6 per cent market share. While these figures hint at a strong market, there are some signs that an anti-tobacco sentiment is beginning to develop. The issue of tobacco additives has been raised in the media including accusations that the tobacco companies have added substances that cause or increase addiction. This prompted the German association of cigarette Manufacturers (VdC) to dismiss the accusations as =93totally false=94. According to Tobacco Reporter, new restrictions on tobacco advertising =93suggest that the business environment is becoming more challenging for German cigarette makers=94. However, the Government has not withdrawn its opposition to the EU tobacco advertising directive and Chancellor Schroeder is quoted as saying that =93one should be able to advertise products which have been legally produced.=94 Source: Tobacco Reporter, April 2000 ITALY: Health minister launches proposal to ban smoking in public places Italians' habit of having a cigarette with an espresso after lunch could soon be a thing of the past if Health Minister Umberto Veronesi has his way. Veronesi, one of the world's leading cancer specialists, has presented a draft law that if passed would practically ban smoking everywhere in Italy except for private homes. The proposal would forbid smoking in all public areas, including ministries, hospitals and airports. The ban would also include bars, restaurants and discotheques. The law, which is due to be discussed at the next cabinet meeting, would also include fines from 100,000 lire ($46.15) to 500,000 lire if the ban is broken. =93I have educated my children to keep themselves away from smoking and I think that any one who cares about the well-being of their loved ones should do the same,=94 Veronesi, a staunch anti-smoker, told newspaper La Repubblica in an interview. =93As a doctor I've always tried to convince smokers to quit, because you can stop the damage before it becomes irreversible. Veronesi, however, is not the first Italian health minister to try to stub out the nation's passion for cigarettes. Since 1975, three laws have been introduced banning smoking in places like hospitals, cinemas, ministries, offices and restaurants. The laws have been largely ignored. Consumer association Codacons, speaking on behalf of Italy's 14 million smokers, has asked why a new law is needed rather than a directive calling for the strict implementation of the three that already exist. Source: Reuters, 18 May 2000 SPAIN: Canalenos starts production of cigars Spanish tobacco producer Canalenos (Compania de Tabacos de la Canal de Navarres) has been awarded the third tobacco licence in Spain, which enables the firm to produce tobacco products. The firm has invested Pta 100mn in the construction of a factory in Chella (Valencia). The company expects to total 400,000 cigars produced during its first year. Source: Cinco Dias (CDS) via the Gale Group, 6 April 2000 INTERNATIONAL CHINA: Tobacco firm to diversify its business China's Yunnan Enterprise Holdings, a tobacco trader, is to diversify its business by venturing into the fields of information technology and biomedical science. The company is in talks with the Yunnan Provincial government to operate and construct broadband fibre-optic networks in several cities in Yunnan. Additionally, the company plans to acquire a drug company which produces an intravenous drug used to replenish white blood cells lost during cancer treatment. The company will finance the acquisition by issuing new shares, amounting to 20% of its enlarged share capital. South China Morning Post (XKT) via the Gale Group, 11 Apr 2000 Amanda Sandford Research Manager ASH 102 Clifton Street LONDON EC2A 4HW tel: 020 7739 5902 fax: 020 7613 0531 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 23 19:58:29 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E4F472A318 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 19:58:29 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA24804 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 19:58:29 -0400 Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 19:58:29 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Russia: Anti-smoking campaign launched in St. Petersburg. (fwd) by (Itar-Tass) via NewsEdge Source: NewsEdge, Monday, 5/22/00 ST.PETERSBURG, May 19 (Itar-Tass) via NewsEdge Corporation - The biggest tobacco companies, including Philip Morris, British American Tobacco, J.T. International and Reemtsma, have launched a campaign in St.Petersburg with the aim to limit tobacco sale to adolescents. A special anti-smoking programme will be realised in 63 big cities of Russia where a broad advertisement campaign will be launched to warn visitors of shopping areas about a threat to human health caused by smoking. Tobacco producers are guided by the " Code of the marketing responsibility" which strictly specifies the age of tobacco consumers, proceeding from the general assumption that smoking might be a choice consciously made by a grown-up person only. According to representatives of tobacco producing companies, the anti-smoking programme has been tested in Moscow where the assigned information was advertised on around 70 shopping areas in the capital. The organizers of the anti- smoking campaign are hoping that salesmen, parents, teachers and the city authorities and broad public circles will pool their efforts to achieve the goal. Russian lawmakers have a subject to think over now; in ninety world countries age restrictions of tobacco consumption have been in effect. ere/ast From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 23 20:04:10 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 63C6A2A318 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 20:04:10 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id UAA24917 for ; Tue, 23 May 2000 20:04:09 -0400 Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 20:04:09 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Beijing to Remove Cigarrete Stalls in 130 Streets (fwd) Beijing to Remove Cigarrete Stalls in 130 Streets Source: Tobacco China, Tuesday, 5/23/00 According to the Beijing Municipal Patriotic Health Commission, cigarette stalls are forbidden to be located along the Qianmen Street, Dongdan Yinjie Street and Xidan Beidajie Street. By the end of May next year, 130 streets in Beijing will not allow people to smoke in public places. Enditem From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 24 11:02:16 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2B2152A061 for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 11:02:16 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA02422 for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 11:02:15 -0400 Date: Wed, 24 May 2000 11:02:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] China Drops Ban on U.S. Tobacco leaf China Drops Ban on U.S. Tobacco Source: AP, Tuesday, 5/23/00 Tuesday, May 23, 2000; 6:46 p.m. EDT WASHINGTON =96=96 China dropped an 11-year-old ban on the importation of American tobacco Tuesday on the eve of the House vote on whether to grant the Chinese permanent normal trade relations. In a letter to the U.S. trade representative announcing the end of the ban, Chinese Ambassador Li Zhaoxing said "such good news will be conducive to the PNTR legislation in (the) U.S. Congress." China had claimed that a fungus on U.S. tobacco called blue mold could damage its domestic crop but had recently suspended research on the issue after scientists concluded that the fungus could not reproduce once the leaf is cured. Supporters of the trade agreement have said that an end to the Chinese ban could increase U.S. tobacco exports by 10 percent. Under an agreement that the Clinton administration negotiated last year, China is to drop its tariff on U.S. tobacco from 40 percent to 10 percent and on cigarettes from 65 percent to 25 percent. Several North Carolina lawmakers who represent large tobacco-growing regions have been undecided on the China trade vote. The end of the tobacco ban cemented a "yes" vote from Rep. Bob Etheridge, D-N.C. "With this development there ain't no question," said spokesman Brad Woodhouse. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 24 11:04:35 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E61872A3FE for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 11:04:35 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA02531 for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 11:04:35 -0400 Date: Wed, 24 May 2000 11:04:35 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Very Interesting: Colombia governors sue Philip Morris for tax evasion Colombia governors sue U.S. tobacco giant Source: Reuters, Wednesday, 5/24/00 Tuesday May 23, 9:17 pm Eastern Time BOGOTA, May 23 (Reuters) - Colombia's provincial governors' said Tuesday they filed suit in a federal court in New York alleging that U.S.-based Philip Morris Cos. Inc., the world's largest cigarette maker, had avoided paying the South American country of billions of dollars in tax and other revenues. Michael York, lawyer for Wehner & York which represents Phillip Morris, said: ``We're going to defend this vigorously . I absolutely believe we will prevail. The company has acted lawfully.'' ``The allegations don't have any factual or legal merit,'' York said. Jose Manuel Arias Carrizosa, executive director of Colombia's National Federation of Provinces, said a news conference in the capital Bogota that the complaint against Philip Morris, the maker of the top-selling Marlboro brand, was unveiled in a U.S. District Court in New York last Friday. The suit was filed by New York law firm Speiser, Krause, Nolan and Granito on behalf of Colombia's 32 provincial governments and the capital district of Bogota, Arias Carrizosa said. The law firm could not be reached for immediate comment. The National Federation of Provinces initially threatened to sue Philip Morris (NYSE:MO - news) and British American Tobacco Plc(quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) in May of last year, alleging the two companies had conspired with local distributors to illegally under-bill imports of their products to Colombia to avoid paying a hefty 65 percent duty. Speiser, Krause, Nolan and Granito went much further in a statement released at Tuesday's news conference in Bogota. The law firm, which credits itself with specialising in landmark cases throughout the United States for over 50 years, made no mention of British American. But it leveled explosive ``racketeering'' charges against Philip Morris. ``The lawsuit ... alleges that Philip Morris defrauded the government of billions of dollars in revenue through a pattern of racketeering offences involving money laundering and other violations of U.S. law,'' it said. ``The suit further alleges that the smuggling scheme was conceived, designed and implemented at the highest levels of the defendants corporations as a means of maximizing sales and profits,'' the law firm said in its statement. ``Cigarette smuggling has become an important avenue for laundering proceeds from illicit narcotics sales and another link in the drug production cycle,'' it added. Colombia's booming trade in contraband -- involving a whole catalogue of goods ranging anywhere from Scotch whisky to television sets and refrigerators -- has long been cited at one of the leading ways of laundering the proceeds from narcotics sales abroad and funnelling the money back into Colombia. The Andean country produces an estimated 80 percent of the world's cocaine and is a leading source of the high-grade heroin sold on U.S. streets. The country of 40 million inhabitants also has a sizable demand for tobacco, estimated at 30 billion cigarettes per year. Colombia's top cigarette maker, Compania Colombiana de Tobaco, has long alleged unfair competition, saying foreign-made imports to Colombia are often billed at prices well below their retail value in the country of origin. The bulk of the tax revenues Colombia was reputedly defrauded of by Philip Morris would have been paid into local government coffers to finance health and recreation programmes. Local spokesman for Philip Morris had declined comment when the suit was threatened last May. Legal problems then temporarily blocked imports of Marlboro cigarettes in the country, but they have resumed long since then. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 24 11:15:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A236C2A061 for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 11:15:17 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA02995 for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 11:15:17 -0400 Date: Wed, 24 May 2000 11:15:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris to Invest $300 Mln in Philippine Cigarette Plant (fwd) Philip Morris to Invest $300 Mln in Philippine Cigarette Plant by Dominic G. Diongson PHILIPPINES; Source: Bloomberg News, Wednesday, 5/24/00 Manila, May 24 (Bloomberg) -- Philip Morris Cos., the world's largest tobacco company, said it will spend $300 million on a new factory to triple production of Philip Morris and Marlboro brands in the Philippines to 60 billion cigarettes. Philip Morris Philippines will own 80 percent of the new plant, with longtime local associate La Suerte Cigar & Cigarette Factory holding the remainder. When the new plant, located about 50 kilometers south of Manila, begins operation in 2003, the partners will close their existing plant in a suburb of the capital. La Suerte has produced Marlboro and Philip Morris brands under a license for about 45 years. Once the new plant is in operation, Philip Morris will take over production, according to Renato Salud, a spokesman for Philip Morris Philippines. La Suerte wasn't immediately available for comment on the new arrangement. Salud said the 20 billion cigarettes a year sold under Philip Morris brand names represents about 28 percent of the domestic cigarette market. The Philippines is the biggest nation of smokers in Southeast Asia after Indonesia. The new factory's enlarged output offers export prospects, Salud said. ``Hopefully, we could use it as a base for exporting to other Asean countries,'' he said. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), which groups the Philippines with nine other countries in the region, is considering lowering tariffs in the future, which could benefit cigarette exports. In the region, Philip Morris has plants in Malaysia and Indonesia. It also imports some of its brands, such as Benson & Hedges and Virginia Slims, into the Philippines and other Asian countries From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 24 13:42:27 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4B0682A061 for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 13:42:27 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA07897 for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 13:42:27 -0400 Date: Wed, 24 May 2000 13:42:26 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] More on the Colombian smuggling lawsuit The URL for this story is: http://www.public-i.org/story_01_052300.htm The web page contains links to related materials. By Maud S. Beelman International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, The Center for Public Integrity (Washington, May 23) Philip Morris, the world's largest tobacco multinational, has engaged in smuggling and drug-money laundering for years in a scheme to avoid taxes and boost sales of its cigarettes, according to allegations in a new racketeering lawsuit filed in U.S. federal court. The civil lawsuit - filed by a majority of Colombia's governors - claims that Philip Morris Companies, Inc., and its subsidiaries, including Philip Morris International, Inc., defrauded the Colombian states out of billions of dollars in lost tax revenue over a 10-year period. Through actions in the United States and abroad, Philip Morris "conceived, directed, controlled, and implemented an international conspiracy to defraud Plaintiffs and deprive them of money and property, in order to increase their profits and market share, enhance the value of their tobacco operations, and expand the worldwide market for contraband cigarettes," the lawsuit claims. Employees accused of laundering The lawsuit alleges that, in some cases, Philip Morris employees themselves laundered drug money as part of the smuggling operation. In other instances, the company created a labyrinthine network of third-party payments and Swiss bank accounts in order to mask the illegality of their actions, according to the lawsuit filed Friday in U.S. District Court in New York. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the heads of 22 Colombian states, called "departments," as well as the city of Bogota, rather than by the Colombian federal government. The greatest part of Colombia's tax revenue from cigarettes and alcohol goes to the states. Philip Morris and its named subsidiaries are accused of violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, as well as negligence, fraud, unjust enrichment, public nuisance, and "acts of conspiracy." The Colombian governors are seeking actual and punitive damages that could run as high as Philip Morris' total tobacco profits for 1999. The governors are claiming about $3 billion in damages, which could be trebled under RICO, as well as punitive damages on several of the alleged violations of law, arguing that Philip Morris' "conduct amounts to a fraud on the public." Philip Morris reported tobacco profits of $9.8 billion in 1999 -- $4.9 billion in international tobacco sales. Philip Morris asserts lawfulness Michael York, an attorney for Philip Morris, said he had not yet seen the lawsuit, but added, "We believe Philip Morris has acted lawfully." According to the lawsuit, Philip Morris sent a Jan. 21 letter to the Colombian governors, attempting to block the RICO action. This is the second civil RICO action to be filed against a major U.S.-headquartered tobacco company within the last six months, but the first to target the world's largest tobacco multinational, whose Marlboro line is the world's most popular brand of cigarettes. In December, Canada filed a $1 billion civil RICO lawsuit in U.S. District Court against R.J. Reynolds and its related tobacco companies for alleged smuggling across the U.S.-Canadian border. Several people, including a former RJR senior sales manager, have already been convicted on U.S. criminal charges stemming from smuggling across that same border. Philip Morris is the third major tobacco multinational to be implicated in alleged smuggling, which allows cigarettes to enter a market untaxed, be sold at a lower price and, therefore, reach a greater number of consumers. The British government is considering an investigation into British American Tobacco after a report by the Center for Public Integrity in January showed that company's involvement in global smuggling. U.S. Customs Commissioner Raymond Kelly told Congress recently that "international cigarette smuggling has grown to a multibillion-dollar-a-year illegal enterprise linked to transnational organized crime and international terrorism. Profits from cigarette smuggling rival those of narcotic trafficking." According to the Colombian lawsuit, "the Philip Morris defendants have actively engaged in smuggling activities and concealed such conduct through illegal acts, including money laundering, wire fraud, mail fraud, and other violations of United States law. Defendants have collaborated with smugglers, encouraged smugglers, and sold cigarettes to smugglers, either directly or through intermediaries, while at the same time supporting the smugglers' sales through the establishment and maintenance of so-called 'umbrella operations' in the target jurisdictions." "Umbrella operations" refer to an alleged tobacco company practice of using the presence of a small amount of legal imports into a country to justify an advertising campaign that is really aimed at promoting sales of more numerous black-market cigarettes. 'Sophisticated and clandestine smuggling enterprise' The 74-page lawsuit charges that Philip Morris "created and exploited a sophisticated and clandestine smuggling enterprise that operates throughout the world and within the Departments of the Republic of Colombia. This international scheme has harmed, and continues to harm, the economic interests of many governments, including the Departments of the Republic of Colombia." Suspicions about industry involvement in cigarette smuggling have grown since 1997, when researchers demonstrated, by comparing annual global exports with global imports, that about one-third of all cigarettes entering international commerce each year could not be accounted for. But proof remained elusive until last year, when millions of pages of corporate documents, unearthed during numerous health-related lawsuits, became publicly available as part of the tobacco industry's November 1998 settlement with the U.S. states. An investigation by the Center's International Consortium of Investigative Journalists showed that British American Tobacco, the world's second-largest multinational tobacco company, had been involved in cigarette smuggling and tax evasion for years in a global effort to secure market share and lure generations of new smokers. The report was based on an analysis of more than 11,000 pages of internal corporate documents. That report also cited documents showing that senior executives of BAT and Philip Morris had met on at least two occasions, in New York and in England, to discuss fixing prices on legal and smuggled cigarettes - an allegation repeated in the Colombian RICO filing. Top tobacco executives said to be involved "The Philip Morris defendants created a circuitous and clandestine distribution chain for the sale of cigarettes in order to facilitate smuggling within the Departments of the Republic of Colombia," the lawsuit says. "The decision to establish and maintain this distribution chain was made at the highest executive levels of the Philip Morris defendants." As part of what they termed the "PM Smuggling Enterprise," the Colombian governors accused Philip Morris of earning hundreds of millions of dollars in illegal profits through: Selling cigarettes directly to smugglers or to distributors known to sell to smugglers; Labeling, mislabeling, or failing to label their cigarettes in such a way so as to facilitate the activities of smugglers; Providing marketing information to distributors and smugglers in order to have the most in-demand cigarettes in the market; Generating false or misleading invoices, bills of lading, shipping documents, and other documents that expedite the smuggling process; Shipping cigarettes designated for one port knowing that the cigarettes will be diverted to another port and then smuggled; Making arrangements for the cigarettes to be paid for in a virtually untraceable way, including using Swiss corporations and/or Swiss bank accounts "in an attempt to improperly utilize Swiss banking and privacy laws as a shield to protect the smugglers from government investigations." The Colombian lawsuit also contends that Philip Morris "knew that the currency provided to them represented the proceeds of unlawful activity, including trafficking in narcotics and controlled substances and that, by accepting such payments, aided the efforts of the drug traffickers to launder their ill-gotten gains." In some instances, "employees of the Philip Morris defendants were personally involved in the laundering of the proceeds of illicit narcotics sales," the lawsuit alleges, claiming that Philip Morris employees would bribe Colombian officials not to stamp their passports, so there would be no record of them entering or leaving the country. "These employees on multiple occasions received large volumes of cash that they took into their personal possession or these employees would be present when large volumes of cash were turned over to the distributors with whom the Philip Morris employees were traveling. These individuals would then smuggle the cash out of Colombia and into Venezuela, with the cash ultimately being deposited in banks and transferred into the coffers of the Philip Morris defendants," according to the lawsuit. 'Laundered drug money' The suit also contends that Miami bank accounts of various Philip Morris cigarette distributors were frozen in the early 1990s by U.S. law-enforcement officials "because funds credited to those accounts were laundered drug money. The freezing of these accounts was well known to Philip Morris." The lawsuit - plans for which were first reported by the Center in January - accuses Philip Morris of furthering criminality in Colombia through its business practices. A Colombian border-guard station, erected in a main smuggling area in an attempt to halt the contraband, was destroyed by smugglers firing an anti-tank weapon, and several of the station's personnel were killed in the attack, the lawsuit says. The Colombian governors also accuse Philip Morris of having "falsely denied their complicity in smuggling activities," citing a company response to the Center for Public Integrity in January. Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that Philip Morris used the existence of smuggling to successfully argue against higher government taxes, on the grounds that would encourage more smuggling. "The Defendants conduct this public relations and lobbying campaign without disclosing to the public or Plaintiffs their continuing complicity in smuggling." Maud Beelman is director of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists at the Center for Public Integrity, in Washington, D.C. Senior Research Associate Erik Schelzig contributed to this report. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 24 14:57:03 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 40FF62A38A for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 14:57:03 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA10632 for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 14:57:02 -0400 Date: Wed, 24 May 2000 14:57:01 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris Ramps Up Cigarette Production In Russia (fwd) Philip Morris Ramps Up Cigarette Production In Russia by Kristina Shevory / 7095-974-8055 -0- 24/05/00 08-20G Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Wednesday, 5/24/00 ST. PETERSBURG, Russia -- Tobacco giant Philip Morris (MO) expects to produce locally more than 90% of its cigarettes sold in Russia within two years, company spokesman Yuri Galibov said Tuesday. Philip Morris intends to increase production in Russia as the company's new $330 million factory, Philip Morris Izhora, attains full operating capacity. The plant, opened earlier this year in the Leningrad region outside St. Petersburg, will eventually produce 25 billion cigarettes a year, or 10% of the total number of cigarettes produced in Russia. The plant currently produces 5 billion cigarettes a year. Philip Morris Izhora, the largest of the U.S. company's three Russian factories, brings production of all Philip Morris brands, apart from Parliament and Virginia Slims, to Russia, the company said. "We expect to reduce imports of our mega-brands as our new factory comes on line. We can't produce 100% of all our cigarettes in Russia, like Parliament and Virginia Slims, since we don't have the specialized equipment to make them," said Galibov. "It's more cost-effective to import those cigarettes than to bring that very specific equipment to Russia." The plant is the company's first fully self-contained Russian factory with operations ranging from tobacco processing to cigarette production. Its smaller and older Leningrad factory, Philip Morris Neva, currently makes cigarettes using processed tobacco provided by the company's Krasnodar facility in southern Russia. Philip Morris has invested more than $500 million in Russia to date, making it one of the biggest private-sector investors in the country. URL for this Article: http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=DI-CO-20000524-001283.djml From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 24 22:03:37 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 7FB232A061 for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 22:03:37 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id WAA20723 for ; Wed, 24 May 2000 22:03:37 -0400 Date: Wed, 24 May 2000 22:03:36 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Russian parliament rejects anti-smoking bill (fwd) Russian parliament rejects anti-smoking bill Source: BBC Online, Wednesday, 5/24/00 The Russian parliament has rejected a bill aimed at cutting the health risks of smoking. Deputies in the lower house, the Duma, voted against a draft law to lower the levels of nicotine, tar and other harmful substances in Russian-made cigarettes. Opponents of the bill said it would impose huge extra costs on tobacco companies -- which would almost inevitably have forced up the price of cigarettes. An estimated sixty-five per cent of men and thirty per cent of women in Russia smoke. A BBC Russian Affairs analyst says that parliament did not want the responsibility for depriving the millions of ordinary Russians who are on the breadline of one of their few cheap pleasures -- albeit one which could kill them. >From the newsroom of the BBC World Service From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu May 25 22:45:21 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 081D72A31B for ; Thu, 25 May 2000 22:45:21 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id WAA15994 for ; Thu, 25 May 2000 22:45:20 -0400 Date: Thu, 25 May 2000 22:45:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Europe: MEPs vote to enlarge cigarette warnings / Manufacturers may have to increase warning size MEPs vote to enlarge cigarette warnings / Manufacturers may have to increase warning size Source: BBC Online, Thursday, 5/25/00 Euro-MPs have voted for massive increases in the size of health warnings on cigarette packs. But a UK anti-smoking pressure group fears that the demands by a small number of MEPs could jeopardise a whole raft of different restrictions. The MEPs want reminders of the risks of smoking to cover 40% of the front of every packet and 60% of the back. They want the warnings to be printed only in black on a white background to give them more impact, instead of the present system which requires only "contrasting colours" on packets. And they are calling for cigarette descriptions such as "low tar", "mild" and "light" to be banned. However, the proposals - which far exceed the 25% pack warning increase originally proposed, have to be agreed by a meeting of all MEPs - and then a committee of EU ministers later next month. Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) fears that important tobacco control measures in the directive could be lost if the ministers decide the new pack warning sizes are excessive. Spokesman Amanda Sandford said: "We would rather sacrifice the big warnings to save the other parts of the directive, like the new limits on the amount of tar and nicotine in cigarettes." Labour's environment spokesman David Bowe MEP said: "The Commission and many EU governments support the kind of measures we have voted for today and we therefore expect this to go through." Far stricter There are already EU rules governing health warnings on packets, advertising, and the tar and nicotine content of cigarettes. But the existing rules fall far short of what MEPs are now demanding - with health warnings currently required on only 4% of the surface of cigarette packets. The UK government exceeds this EU minimum, obliging companies to "advertise" the health dangers on 6% of the packet's surface. In contrast Canada has already made health warnings compulsory on 90% of the surface of a cigarette pack. After today's vote of the European Parliament's environment committee meeting in Brussels, Mr Bowe said tobacco companies were trying to kill the legislation. "They are using every trick in the book to put a stop to these new rules. "Cigarette companies say their products are for informed adults, but existing warnings are obscured by clever colour combinations, striking packaging and tucked behind careful displays. "Most smokers neither know the full risks nor bear the full costs of their choice." If passed by EU ministers at the end of June, it will still be several months before the directive comes into force. It will also force tobacco companies to include much more information about any additives they include in their products. FOREST, the group which campaigns for equal rights for the smoker, said the whole idea of warnings on cigarette packs was a waste of time. A spokeswoman said: "People are well aware of the dangers. This is totally pointless. It's a waste of taxpayers' money paying for MEPs to sit around debating this." A Department of Health spokesman said: "We will look at the call from the MEPs but we have been working on this through the European Commission and we are content with the proposal which has been put forward to increase the size of the warning to 25%, or possibly 30% in the case of certain foreign languages. "The regulations in the UK currently require only 6% of the pack to be used so this would represent a major increase in the size of the warning." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu May 25 22:56:32 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1FAAA2A39E for ; Thu, 25 May 2000 22:56:32 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id WAA16168 for ; Thu, 25 May 2000 22:56:31 -0400 Date: Thu, 25 May 2000 22:56:31 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Aggressive tobacco regulation proposed in Brazil Brazil Wants Heavy Cigarette Tax by Peter Muello / Associated Press Writer Source: AP, Thursday, 5/25/00 Thursday, May 25, 2000; 3:12 p.m. EDT RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil =96=96 In a new offensive against the tobacco indust= ry, Brazil's government announced it will propose a heavy surtax on cigarette sales and a ban on all advertising and sponsorship of cultural and sports events by the tobacco industry. Health Minster Jose Serra said the goal is to reduce smoking by 40 percent within four years. The new measures will be submitted to Congress next week. "The ministry starts from the premise that cigarettes are a drug and should be fought as a drug," Serra said in announcing the proposed legislation Wednesday. One bill would ban cigarette ads from television, radio, newspapers, magazines and billboards. Tobacco companies also would be prohibited from sponsoring many events, including an annual jazz festival and the popular Formula One and CART auto races. In the United States, cigarette advertising is also restricted =96 includin= g a ban on television ads. TV ads in Brazil now are allowed late at night and must carry a health warning at the end. But the warnings vary greatly in content, and some are as mild as: "Avoid smoking in the presence of children." The government hasn't set a rate for the surtax, which also would be levied on liquor manufacturers. But Serra said it could generate $81 million a year, which he said would be spent on health research. The main target of the campaign is teen-agers, he said. A 30-second TV spot that began airing on Thursday shows a drug dealer in a Brazilian slum, his face concealed with a ski mask, explaining how he gets clients hooked =96 on cigarettes. Health Ministry figures show that smoking-related diseases cause a death about every seven minutes in Brazil, a nation of 165 million people. Opposition parties, which have submitted five bills with varying sanctions against the tobacco industry, applauded the initiative. Souza Cruz, a major Brazilian tobacco company owned by British conglomerate BAT Industries PLC, declined to comment on the government proposal. Brazil, an important tobacco grower that for years ignored the anti-tobacco movement abroad, has stepped up efforts to curb smoking in recent years. Smoking now is banned in public buildings and on all domestic and international airplane flights. Some Brazilian state governments also have filed suit in U.S. courts against American tobacco companies to recover money spent in treating smoking-related diseases. The states of Rio de Janeiro and Goias are seeking at least $5 billion each. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon May 29 23:02:28 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C7CA62A05E for ; Mon, 29 May 2000 23:02:28 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA04043 for ; Mon, 29 May 2000 23:02:28 -0400 Date: Mon, 29 May 2000 23:02:28 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Malaysia: MMA: Ban all forms of tobacco promotions (fwd) MMA: Ban all forms of tobacco promotions Source: The Star (Malaysia), Monday, 5/29/00 KUCHING: The Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) yesterday called for a complete ban on all forms of tobacco and tobacco brand promotions in the country. MMA president Dr P. Krishnan said: "This includes promotion of non-tobacco products related with tobacco brands, including advertising, sponsorship, direct marketing, merchandising, loyalty schemes, and free cigarettes.'' He added packing of tobacco products should be dominated by health warnings with details of harmful effects and emissions. Dr Krishnan said a specialist cessation service should also be made available at all health centres, hospitals, and private healthcare facilities. "Impact of smoking cessation should be part of the core curriculum and basic training of health professionals and schools,'' he reiterated. Dr Krishnan also expressed concern over the increasing rate of HIV infection through sharing of intravenous needles among drug users. In Malaysia, there are more than 35,000 notified infections at the Health Ministry, he said. "However, the true picture may well be two to three times higher, he said. "MMA will continue and intensify its efforts in promoting CME (Continuous Medical Education) activities in the area of HIV medicine both at primary and secondary levels throughout the country,'' said Dr Krishnan. Dr Krishnan said MMA is always working together with the Government in its commitment to achieve a high standard of healthcare towards building a healthy nation. He said MMA has addressed many issues with the Government and its related agencies for the betterment of society. These include adolescent health, care for the elderly, women's health, healthcare in the plantation sector, action on smoking and health, substance abuse and accident prevention, said Dr Krishnan. Dr Krishnan also announced that the 19th Triennial Council Meeting of the Commonwealth Medical Association will be held in Malaysia next year. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon May 29 23:08:18 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B8E422A05E for ; Mon, 29 May 2000 23:08:18 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA04135 for ; Mon, 29 May 2000 23:08:18 -0400 Date: Mon, 29 May 2000 23:08:18 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] The Canadian Tobacco Papers / A selection of documents related to the Canadian Tobacco Industry The Canadian Tobacco Papers / A selection of documents related to the Canadian=20 Tobacco Industry Source: tobaccopapers.org, Monday, 5/29/00 Tobacco Industry Documents: The Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers Council (CTMC) - and its predecessors - and their response to public issues Canadian Tobacco Companies banded together in the mid-1960s to respond to the public and political pressures that resulted from increased knowledge about the health effects of smoking. The CTMC was not formed until the end of the decade, but documents show that the industry worked together long before. Industry documents telling the History of Tobacco in Canada and explaining the pressures that created the CTMC are also available on this site. October 12, 1962 Companies make secret deal to be quiet about tar & nicotine Title: Policy Statement by Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers on the Question of Tar, Nicotine and Other Smoke Constituents that may have similar connotations" Authors: varia Canadian tobacco companies sign an agreement to be quiet about tar, nicotine and other compounds in public communication =96 including packaging. "We the undersigned [each company] conceive it to be in the public interest to agree to refrain from the use, direct or implied, of the words tar, nicotine or other smoke constituents that may have similar connotations, in any and all advertising material or any package, document or other communication that is designed for public use or information. http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/62rothmans.pdf Rothmans http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/62imperial.pdf Imperial =20 http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/62Trans-Canada.pdf Trans-Canada http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/62Tuckett.pdf Tuckett =20 http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/62Macdonald.pdf Macdonald =20 http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/62Imperial&Benson&Hedges.pdf Imperial&Benson and Hedges http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/62rockcity.pdf Rock City source: Pmdocs, page 2024994264 2024258891 2024994268 2024994267 2024994266 2024994265 2024978197 ----------------- 1963 Establishment of the Ad Hoc Committee of the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers' Council see History of Tobacco http://www.tobaccopapers.org/index/history.htm (or a more legible transcript) =20 http://www.tobaccopapers.org/history/History%20-%20ITL.htm Pmdocs 1005144959 ----------------- November 25, 1963 Industry issues public position on smoking & health in Canada Title: "Some Scientific Perspectives for consideration of Smoking and Health Questions" Authors: Ad hoc committee of the Canadian Tobacco industry The Ad Hoc Committee of the Canadian Tobacco Industry makes a presentation to Health and Welfare's conference on smoking and health and publishes a 60 page booklet with its position "Some Scientific Perspectives for consideration of Smoking and Health Questions" Chapter titles: Lung cancer incidence Epidemiological factors in lung cancer Laboratory experimentation Clinical and pathological observations Cardiovascular diseases Future Canadian research 63-Presentation http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/63presentation-to-HWC.pdf Presentation to Health and Welfare Source: Pmdocs beginning page 2015027725 ----------------- June 16, 1964 First Canadian Tobacco Advertising Code Developed Title: "Canadian Cigarette Advertising Code June 16, 1964" Authors: Ad hoc committee of the Canadian Tobacco industry Four companies agree to 1 10-rule code for advertising. Prohibits advertisements on television before 9:00 p.m., ads immediately adjacent to primary schools, ads with appeal to persons under the age of 18 years, use of sports figures and other celebrities which appeal to children, etc. Ed: this code is similar in many respects to the provisions of the current Tobacco Act. 64 Code http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/64advertisigncode.pdf Source: Pmdocs beginning page 1005145171 ----------------- June 7, 1968 John Keith (ITL) writes Toledo (B&H) to threaten consequences if B&H releases report on ITL brand "Richmond" Title: no title Authors: Paul Pare, President, Imperial Tobacco Companies reinforce agreement not to discuss health effects or contents of cigarettes. (ITL had introduced the "Strickman filter" and made claims about its benefits) Keith Letter http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/69keithtotoledoletter.pdf Source: Pmdocs beginning page 002608756 ----------------- July 5, 1968 Circulation of a draft "Canadian Tobacco Industry Position Paper on Health Issues" Title: "Notes on July 5 Draft of Canadian Tobacco Industry Position Paper on Health Issues." Canadian Tobacco Industry Position Paper on Health Issues. Authors: unknown This 19-page paper provides insight into central arguments, including: Millions of people smoke tobacco because they enjoy it. Attacks on tobacco and its users =96 on health and other grounds =96 are not new. The present health controversy is "at best a muddied picture." The Canadian tobacco industry has diligently sought answers to the unsolved health problems. Even in the absence of established proof of harm from normal use, the industry has voluntarily modified its advertising and promotional programs. Although there is no proof of any health significance in the levels of so-called "tar" and nicotine in the smoke of cigarettes, the industry has responded to the demands of some of its consumers (and some of its critics) by producing brands that deliver less "tar" and "nicotine." The industry has sought to cooperate with the government and other official or public agencies. The industry has acted with restraint in challenging the extremist, biased and unproved charges. The industry maintains that smoking is and adult custom Tobacco is a legal and widely used and accepted product. This is a good example of the public relations strategy during the first wave of the "smoking and health" crisis. notes on paper http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/69notesonpaper.pdf paper on health issues http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/68paper%20on%20health%20issu= es.pd f source: Pmdocs beginning page 2016001810 ----------------- October 8, 1969 Ad Hoc Committee sells its message to its close allies - the retailers. Title: "The future of Tobacco in the Face of the Smoking and Health Controversy." An address by Paul Pare Chairman Ad Hoc Committee of Canadian Tobacco Industry to National ASsociation of Tobacco and Confectionery Distributors Convention, Vancouver." Authors: Paul Pare Paul Pare, chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee of the Canadian Tobacco Industry speaks to the National Association of Tobacco and Confectionery Distributors at their convention in Vancouver. Discusses "anti-tobaccoism" and offers vision of what needs to be done: "We must stand firm against punitive legislative and regulatory proposals that would shackle the legal and legitimate activities that are necessary to get tobacco from the farmer=92s fields into the hands of those who want it =96 in its various product forms. You people particularly have a stake i= n this." "We must continue to recognize that the use of tobacco is an adult custom and that adults should have the freedom of choice as to whether they smoke or not." "We should encourage and help enforcement of the Canadian law prohibiting sales of tobacco to minors. I need not remind most of you that an interest in the Tobacco Restraint Act as well as control of vending machine sales was expressed by some members of the Standing Committee in Ottawa last June. Manufacturers generally have a long-standing programme, perhaps insufficiently advertised, to cooperate with any vending machine operation in providing appropriate notices to reflect the essence of the Tobacco Restraint Act and its prohibition of sales to persons under 16 years of age." Cites several scientists who have concluded that smoking does not cause disease. Shows how they reached out for third party support early in the game. Pare Speech http://www.tobaccopapers.org/ctmc/CTMCbefore76/69Pare%20speech.pdf Source: Pmdocs beginning page 2024956951 ----------------- December, 1969 Isabelle Committee (the Standing Committee on Health of the House of Commons) reports Recommends: Phase out of cigarette advertising and promotion activity over a four-year period Warning notice and nicotine levels on all cigarette packages, cartons and vending machines Limit the permissible levels of tar and nicotine on all cigarettes Comprehensive communications programs to discourage smoking. History http://www.tobaccopapers.org/index/history.htm Source: Pmdocs beginning page 1005144959 Last revised: May 29, 2000 Contents Copyright =A9 by Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon May 29 23:13:40 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 659752A05E for ; Mon, 29 May 2000 23:13:40 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA04261 for ; Mon, 29 May 2000 23:13:40 -0400 Date: Mon, 29 May 2000 23:13:39 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Canada: TOBACCO SALES TARGET WAS YOUTH - The Globe and Mail (fwd) The Globe and Mail=20 Monday, May 29, 2000 TOBACCO SALES TARGET WAS YOUTH =09Young smokers 'major opportunity group,'=20 =09newly released industry documents say =09By Mark MacKinnon, Parliamentary Bureau Ottawa -- Despite repeated denials from the big tobacco companies, Canadian cigarette manufacturers spent much of the past 25 years trying to persuade young people to take up smoking, newly released documents reveal. The documents, obtained by The Globe and Mail, will be made public this week by the federal government in a further escalation of its all-out war on tobacco companies. Among the thousands of pages is evidence that the industry has been obsessed since the 1970s with reversing the declining popularity of smoking as social attitudes changed and government regulations tightened. Winning over the country's young people became a focus. "Young smokers represent the major opportunity group for the cigarette industry, we should therefore determine their attitudes to smoking and health and how this might change over time," reads a 1971 marketing plan, marked "confidential," for the Matin=E9e brand. Another document contains the notes for a speech almost 20 years later by Purdy Crawford, chairman of Imasco Ltd. British American Tobacco PLC (BAT) is parent of Imasco, which owns Montreal-based Imperial Tobacco Ltd. "Imperial Tobacco Ltd. has always focused its efforts on new smokers, believing that early impressions tend to stay with them throughout their lives," he told other BAT executives in 1989. He said his company "clearly dominates the young adult market today, and stands to prosper as these smokers age, and as it maintains its highly favourable youthful preference." Throughout the documents, children are never mentioned, but terms like "youths" and "non-adults" are liberally sprinkled. The papers were uncovered by Health Canada researchers in a huge depository in Guildford, England, where BAT made eight million pages of memos and faxes available to the public as part of a lawsuit settlement in the United States. The new documents show: The long-held tobacco industry defence -- that advertising was aimed at persuading those who already smoked to switch brands, rather than at getting non-smokers to smoke -- is a smokescreen. The target audience was given the nickname "switchers." "When we talk about a switcher . . . this definition includes starters (did not smoke before) and smokers that had no regular or particular previous brand," reads one document prepared for Imperial marked "strictly confidential." Player's Light, the most popular brand in Canada, was conceived in 1978 as "the brand for modern young smokers," with one of its prime target markets being "young people starting the smoking habit." This fact, Imperial president Donald Brown said under oath in a recent court case, "was not perceived to be a problem." In 1978, Mr. Brown was Imperial's vice-president of marketing. One scheme concocted by Imperial was the aptly named Project 16. A survey of younger smokers was commissioned in the summer of 1977 and the findings delivered to the company's top executives. Learning more about young smokers, it was written, "has implications for the future of the industry." Peer pressure, the study found, persuades many kids to try smoking between the ages of 11 and 13. They soon got hooked. "However intriguing smoking was at 11, 12 or 13, by the age of 16 or 17 many regretted their use of cigarettes for health reasons, and because they feel unable to stop smoking when they want to," the survey concluded. The script of a telephone survey conducted in 1992 by another market research firm on behalf of the industry shows tobacco companies continued to target young smokers even in recent years. "May I please speak to the person 15 years of age or older at home at the moment who smokes tobacco products?" the phone interview script begins. The survey then asks respondents how often they smoke, which brands they choose, and what influences their buying decisions. The legal smoking age that year was 18. A 1980 Imperial marketing plan lays out a campaign that would include advertising in media targeting the 12-to-17 age group. Neil Collishaw, research director with Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, said the new documents are further proof of the lengths tobacco companies have gone to in trying to court young people. "What's striking is how much careful planning goes into putting an emphasis on youth," he said. The motivation for Imperial, Mr. Collishaw said, was a market share that fell from 50 per cent in the 1960s to less than 40 per cent in the 1970s, when the documents suggest the company began targeting young people. The campaign seemingly paid off, since Imperial now controls about 70 per cent of the Canadian cigarette market. The release of the documents this week is just the latest stage of Health Minister Allan Rock's antitobacco campaign. In December, the federal government launched a $1-billion lawsuit against Toronto-based RJR-Macdonald Inc., the third-largest cigarette manufacturer in Canada, alleging it backed massive smuggling across the Canada-U.S. border. Documents released last year from the same collection showed how Imperial actively encouraged the smuggling of cigarettes across the Canada-U.S. border. The Guildford files, as the eight-million-page collection is known, are also central to a lawsuit launched by British Columbia against the tobacco industry that aims to recoup billions of dollars spent on smoking-related illnesses. Imperial spokesman Michel Descoteaux said the federal government is waging a campaign to "demonize" the tobacco industry.=20 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 30 10:11:50 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D92BE2A05E for ; Tue, 30 May 2000 10:11:50 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA10020 for ; Tue, 30 May 2000 10:11:50 -0400 Date: Tue, 30 May 2000 10:11:50 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] =?X-UNKNOWN?Q?Thailand=3A_Ash_Wants_Tobacco_Taken_Off=A0=A0Asea?= =?X-UNKNOWN?Q?n_Free_Trade_List_=28fwd=29?= Ash Wants Tobacco Taken Off=A0=A0Asean Free Trade List Retail shops selling cigarettes to minors by Aphaluck Bhatiasevi Source: Bangkok Post, Tuesday, 5/30/00 School children stage a No-Smoking Parade at Den La kindergarten in Bang Phlat district yesterday, to mark International Anti-Smoking Day, which falls =09=09=09=09=09=09on May 31. _ APICHART JINAKUL =09=09=09 =09=09=09 Anti-smoking advocates yesterday urged the government to remove tobacco from the list of products which will enjoy a level of tax exemption by 2003 under the Asean Free Trade Area agreement. Prakit Vathisathokit, secretary-general of Action on Smoking and Health Foundation (Ash), said since tobacco is a product harmful to health, it =09=09=09should not be allowed to enjoy tax privileges under Afta. At least two multi-national tobacco companies had moved their manufacturing plants into Asean, to take advantage of Afta, said Bang-on Rithiphakdi of Ash. Ms Bang-on was referring to the recent shift of the manufacturing plants of Philip Morris and British American Tobacco from Hong Kong to Malaysia. Judith Mackay of the World Health Organisation's Tobacco-Free Initiative, said though Thailand had done a lot to control cigarette smoking, it needed to take additional steps to keep the number of cigarette smokers from growing =09=09=09beyond 10 million. More serious enforcement of existing regulations against tobacco consumption is required, said Dr Prakit. He said a random survey conducted last week showed that 90% of retail shops in Bangkok continue to sell cigarettes to minors below 14 years of age, which is against the law. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 30 11:51:22 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id EF7942A05E for ; Tue, 30 May 2000 11:51:21 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA13528 for ; Tue, 30 May 2000 11:51:21 -0400 Date: Tue, 30 May 2000 11:51:19 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ireland: Minister bans all tobacco newspaper and magazine adverts Minister bans all tobacco promotion by RALPH RIEGEL Source: Irish Independent, Tuesday, 5/30/00 HEALTH Minister Micheal Martin dealt the tobacco industry a multi-million p= ound=20 blow yesterday by confirming a ban on all cigarette advertising and=20 sponsorships from July. The minister, speaking in Cork as he opened a major campaign against what he termed ``the tobacco epidemic,'' said that all tobacco advertising in newspapers and magazines will be outlawed from July 1. All tobacco sponsorships of major sporting events will also be outlawed in five weeks' time. And the Government are to work closely with pharmaceutical firms, such as the manufacturers of Nicorette, to co-ordinate support measures for those seeking to quit smoking. In a sweeping crackdown on the tobacco industry he promised further action including: * A trebling in fines, from =A3500 to =A31,500, for anyone selling cigaret= tes to the under-aged. * Further cigarette price-hikes on top of the 50p imposed on a pack of 20 cigarettes in the last Budget. * A nationwide schools education campaign. ``The reality is that tobacco-related illnesses kill half of those who use tobacco. I am determined to work towards a tobacco-free Ireland,'' he added. Under the minister's crackdown, all forms of tobacco advertising and sponsorship will be banned, including high-profile sponsorships in the motor-sport, snooker, horse-racing, greyhound-racing and entertainment sectors. Penalties for breaches of the proposed new Tobacco Act will be extremely heavy, the minister vowed. He stressed that the campaign will focus on underage smoking and drinking through an historic classroom initiative. This, co-ordinated by the Southern Health Board, is aimed at tackling the alarming findings of the HBSC survey in 1999, which confirmed that children as young as nine have experienced both alcohol and tobacco, some on a regular basis. The SHB's Policy on Alcohol, Tobacco and Drug Use in Schools is a drive aimed at using education in the classroom to alert children to the dangers of substance-abuse. The drive is aimed at alerting children as to the dangers of drug abuse at an early age - while making the process easy-to-understand. The campaign is being co-ordinated to run in conjunction with World No Tobacco Day, which occurs tomorrow. Last night, the National Newspapers of Ireland said it had absolutely no argument with the health issues which motivated the ban, but warned on the advertising repercussions. ``Advertising is the life-blood of media and there is a very real concern that a ban on tobacco advertising will lead to a domino effect on other forms of advertising,'' it said in a statement. ``Most important for newspapers is the principle of freedom of commercial speech no government should ban the advertising of a product which you can buy legally and use legally.'' From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue May 30 17:47:38 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 378B52A05E for ; Tue, 30 May 2000 17:47:38 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA26451 for ; Tue, 30 May 2000 17:47:38 -0400 Date: Tue, 30 May 2000 17:47:37 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Canada: New inside information on tobacco companies released (fwd) New inside information on tobacco companies released Source: Health Canada, Monday, 5/29/00 OTTAWA =96 Health Minister Allan Rock today released a second round of internal tobacco company documents, thus providing the public with more information on industry products and practices than ever before. The documents build on the insight gained through British American Tobacco Company papers retrieved from the Guildford Depository in England and released to the public last fall. "The first round of documents gave us the key to some of the industry's language, and a thread to follow in fully comprehending its internal objectives," said Mr. Rock. Health Canada has been working on interpreting the first documents received with the help of special advisor Dr. Jeffrey Wigand, former head of research for the U.S. tobacco company Brown & Williamson. To mark World No Tobacco Day on May 31, Health Canada will be co-hosting, with Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, an international roundtable of experts at the Ottawa Public Library. They will look at the manufacturing, packaging, and promotion of cigarettes in light of information that the documents provide, and Dr. Wigand will deliver a public lecture during the lunch hour. A key focus of the material released today is the tobacco industry's activities in areas such as environmental tobacco smoke, advertising bans, sponsorship restrictions, and health warning messages. It also sets out industry positions and arguments to use with governments on the effects of advertising and sponsorship bans, as well as extensive work undertaken on how to market the product effectively despite ad bans. There are also a number of studies on smoker behaviour, including a study suggesting that women may find it harder to quit than men. There are others suggesting that smokers of low nicotine and low tar cigarettes can inhale as much tar and nicotine as full-strength brands through "compensation" =96 either inhaling more deeply or smoking more cigarettes. "The studies collected show that cigarettes are a highly engineered product," said Mr. Rock. "Every aspect of the cigarette was studied in order to maximize its effectiveness and acceptability to consumers, from the paper used to wrap it, to the amount of smoke it produces. This information, supplemented by reports on research activity we will obtain through the proposed new reporting regulations, will help us regulate this industry in ways that work, so we can better protect Canadians." The information from the initial round of documents allowed Health Canada to take a substantial leap forward in understanding the tobacco industry, and focus its own tobacco control program. The documents lend support to federal strategies for youth, targeted public education initiatives, and the need for further measures to reduce tobacco use, including the Government of Canada's proposal for effective new regulations governing the labelling of tobacco products. They also reinforce the importance of Health Canada's proposal for the expansion of industry reporting requirements. Both regulatory proposals are currently before the House of Commons. The second round of information, or "Guildford II", contains 18,000 pages and 752 separate files. The files are listed by title and number on the National Clearinghouse on Tobacco and Health Programs's (NCTH) Internet site. The NCTH provides information and networking services related to tobacco reduction and prevention programs, projects, and resources. Health Canada experts are currently conducting research at the depository in order to bring back even more extensive information. Guildford is one of two document depositories established by order of the Minnesota Court prior to the conclusion of that state's tobacco-related health care cost-recovery litigation in 1998. It contains more than six million pages of information related solely to British American Tobacco Company Ltd. and its affiliates and subsidiaries =96 including Canada's Imperial Tobacco Ltd. =96 30 =96 Media inquiries: Derek Kent Office of Allan Rock (613) 957=961515 Lynn LeSage Health Canada (613) 941=968189 Public inquiries: (613) 957=962991 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 31 11:14:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9E0AF2A05E for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 11:14:17 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA07642 for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 11:14:17 -0400 Date: Wed, 31 May 2000 11:14:17 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Rockefeller launches tobacco control program Rockefeller Foundation launches a new program to support reducing the health burden of tobacco on the poor in developing countries "Trading Tobacco for Health," a new international health initiative, to focus initially on Southeast Asia Bangkok, Thailand - May 31, 2000. On World No-Tobacco Day, observed here in ceremonies by the Royal Thai Government and the Director General of the World Health Organization, the Rockefeller Foundation announces a new initiative to support reducing the health burden of tobacco on the poor in developing countries. By building local research and capacity, this program will help enable developing countries to respond to the threat of tobacco consumption. Initially the Foundation will concentrate its resources on Southeast Asia, with particular attention to Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam and Cambodia. It is anticipated that the Foundation will provide up to $10 million in support over the next five years through projects related to the "Trading Tobacco for Health Initiative". This program marks a new chapter in the Foundation's efforts in international health. As Dr. Lincoln Chen, the Foundation's Executive Vice President, remarked, "While we recognize and continue to work on the unfinished agenda for communicable diseases, the international health community cannot ignore the rising toll from the tobacco epidemic in developing countries. To avert tomorrow's tragedy, we must act today." Drawing upon proven effective practices, the Rockefeller Foundation will support locally-generated research and interventions. The evidence-based strategy will include, for example, efforts to reduce smoking initiation among youth; support for effective adoption of comprehensive tobacco control policies like smoke-free public spaces; and an examination of the impact of tobacco on the livelihoods of the poor. Between 1990 and 2020, the world death toll from tobacco will rise from 3.0 to 8.4 million per year. Virtually this entire annual increase is expected to occur in developing countries. Now responsible for one in ten deaths, it will claim one in six by 2030 - ten million lives a year. Put in perspective, over the next 30 years, the number of people expected to die from tobacco-related illness exceeds the death totals for AIDS, tuberculosis, maternal mortality, homicide, suicide, and automobile accidents combined. Reinforcing the Foundation's focus on equity in health, the initiative will emphasize tobacco's impact upon the poor and ways to respond to this disproportionate burden of disease. Tobacco use is more prevalent among the poor and amplifies other health problems. Tobacco-related disease can be a major precipitant of medical impoverishment. And tobacco consumption exacts a high opportunity cost on poor households, limiting resources available for feeding the family. "By supporting networking, research in the local context and access to expert resources, we can help bridge the lag in globalization between the trade of tobacco and the developing country response to it," said Professor Gordon Conway, president of the Rockefeller Foundation. "With this support, we hope that developing countries will themselves be better positioned to tackle the challenges of tobacco use over the long term and on their own terms." Conway remarked that globalization -- whose benefits have accrued to a very small fraction of humankind often at the expense of the world's poor -- has accelerated the trade and promotion of tobacco. "Trading Tobacco for Health" is an attempt to redirect the currents of globalization to benefit the world's poor. "Trading Tobacco for Health" comes just over ten years after several Asian markets, including Thailand's, were forced open to U.S. cigarette imports. With its passage of strong tobacco control policies and its active non-governmental efforts to reduce smoking, Thailand has lowered smoking prevalence over the past decade. Campaigns to raise public awareness of the health harms of smoking, increased excise taxes on tobacco, and the establishment of a Health Promotion Foundation set an example for the developing world. The program will benefit from the regional expertise this experience has afforded. The Rockefeller Foundation stressed that this new initiative can only be a small part of the platform of support necessary to reduce tobacco use among the poor in developing countries. In order to achieve substantial and sustainable long-term gains, the Rockefeller Foundation will work to encourage other organizations to make tobacco control an important part of their funding strategies. # # # About the Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation's approach to current global challenges focuses on poor people's daily existence - their lives and livelihoods - and how the process of globalization can be turned to their advantage. The Foundation's program funding is focused and targeted among four "themes" that reflect the interconnected and intertwined themes of people's lives - their health, food, work and creative expression. The Rockefeller Foundation has a long history of both creating new knowledge by employing the most up-to-date tools of science and technology and then disseminating that knowledge to ameliorate human suffering. In the Foundation's past this method of using knowledge to focus on the root causes of problems, rather than their symptoms, has led to successes including the eradication of hookworm, the development of a Yellow Fever vaccine, and the modernization of developing country agriculture known as the Green Revolution. contact: e-mail: ttfh@rockfound.org From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 31 11:23:18 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BFA2A2A05E for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 11:23:18 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA08000 for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 11:23:18 -0400 Date: Wed, 31 May 2000 11:23:18 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Study recommends 7% ownership limit in privatizing tobacco firm (fwd) Study recommends 7% ownership limit in privatizing tobacco firm Source: Korea Herald, Tuesday, 5/30/00 The privatization of the Korea Ginseng and Tobacco Corp. (KGTC) is expected to proceed in a way that prevents any company or individual from gaining a controlling stake. Unveiling its study on privatizing the tobacco monopoly in a public hearing yesterday, the Korea Development Institute suggested that the ceiling on ownership be set at 7 percent and maintained for 4-5 years. The rationale behind the idea is to prevent a chaebol group or multinational tobacco giant from emerging as a controlling shareholder. An official of the Ministry of Finance and Economy said the government will draw up a final privatization plan based on the views presented at the hearing. "But it will not deviate much from the KDI study." The studay said the ideal form of KGTC after privatization is the separation of management from ownership as is common among U.S. and British corporations. It opposed the sale of a controlling stake to a chaebol or multinational tobacco firm on three grounds. Firstly, the controlling shareholder is highly likely to put private benefits before maximization of corporate value; secondly, given the characteristics of the tobacco industry, it is more desirable to entrust the management of the company to a competent professional manager than to a chaebol group or foreign company; and thirdly, a chaebol group or foreign firm is unlikely to provide support to domestic tobacco leaf farmers. Based on these grounds, the study recommended that the present 7 percent ownership limit, which was scheduled to be lifted by the end of this year, be maintained till the professional management system takes roots. The KDI study also suggested the chief executive officer be selected by a CEO recommendation committee, to be formed by people independent from the government and company management, possibly including representatives of employees and consumers. The 10-15 person committee will have two thirds of its members filled by outside directors, who are to be recommended by a separate committee. The study also recommends formation of a committee comprising experts in management, accounting and personnel management to strengthen the role of the board of directors. A management committee should also be established with a president, vice president and managers of business divisions to carry out committee directives and execute day-to-day operations. If the government follows the recommendations, the sale of government shares, previously scheduled to be completed by the end of this year, is likely to be delayed depending on market conditions. The government is also likely to review a policy to pay subsidies to farmers which gives up growing tobacco leaves. The KDI study has drawn keen attention as it is believed to present a model for privatizing other state-invested corporations. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 31 11:24:26 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 837112A05E for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 11:24:26 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA08125 for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 11:24:25 -0400 Date: Wed, 31 May 2000 11:24:23 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Australia: Bid to extend tobacco advertising ban (fwd) Bid to extend tobacco advertising ban by DARREN GRAY / CANBERRA Source: The Age, Wednesday, 5/31/00 A new law banning tobacco advertising at major sports events will be introduced in Federal Parliament today, World No Tobacco Day. The proposed law would ban tobacco advertising at all events, such as the Melbourne formula one Grand Prix and the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix, from October 2006. A ban on tobacco sponsorship at sporting events exists, but events deemed of international significance can be exempted from the ban. The federal Health Minister must approve exemptions. The Australian Democrats and Labor said yesterday they would back the law. The anti-smoking group Quit said the ban could not happen soon enough. Health Minister Michael Wooldridge will today launch the Federal Government's latest anti-smoking commercials. The commercials show the amount of tar smokers inhale and illustrate how smoking can lead to blindness. Dr Wooldridge will also release a review of the National Tobacco Campaign. A spokeswoman for Victorian Health Minister John Thwaites said the State Government supported the tougher stand against tobacco sponsorship. The spokeswoman said the government did not believe the ban would harm attempts to host the race after 2006. Federal Labor health spokeswoman Jenny Macklin said a report recommended the government adopt a blanket ban covering sports events two years ago. "It has just taken a ridiculous amount of time to get the bill into the Parliament," she said. A Democrats source said the law would send a strong message to the international community that Australia did not think it was appropriate to associate tobacco with sport. Although the main sponsor of the Melbourne Grand Prix is not a tobacco company, some of the racing teams have tobacco sponsorship. Honda Indy 300 general manager Geoff Jones said tobacco advertising at the race was allowed only on cars. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 31 11:57:16 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 178732A05E for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 11:57:16 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA09305 for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 11:57:15 -0400 Date: Wed, 31 May 2000 11:57:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] WHO Seeks Global Ban on Tobacco Ads (fwd) WHO Seeks Global Ban on Tobacco Ads by Matthew Pennington / Associated Press Writer Wednesday, May 31, 2000; 5:53 a.m. EDT BANGKOK, Thailand =96=96 The World Health Organization launched a global campaign against the tobacco industry today, accusing the companies of systematically spreading death almost unchallenged. The organization said it would make a global ban on tobacco advertising a priority in an agreement to be negotiated by its 191 members. Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, director-general of the WHO, marked World No-Tobacco Day in the Thai capital to pay tribute to activists who won a nationwide ban on tobacco advertising in 1992. About 10,000 people demonstrated in central Bangkok, singing anti-tobacco songs and starting a clock representing one death every eight seconds from tobacco-related disease. "Tobacco is a communicable disease. It's communicated through advertising, marketing and making smoking appear admirable and glamorous," Brundtland said. Brundtland accused the tobacco industry of using sports and entertainment figures to market its products to children and create a new generation of smokers. "It is hard, if not impossible, to find any parallel in history where people who have gone about in such a systematic way perpetuating death and destruction have gone unpunished and unquestioned," said Brundtland, a former prime minister of Norway. Brundtland said 10 million people a year will die from tobacco-related deaths by 2030, more than 70 percent of them from the developing world, an increasingly important market for tobacco companies. Currently, the figure is 3.5 million to 4 million. David Wilson, regional manager of corporate affairs for British-American Tobacco, which has a 15 percent share of the global cigarette market, denied on Tuesday that children are targeted. Wilson also complained that the industry was being "locked out" of negotiations on the planned Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which will consider the global advertising ban. Brundtland said tobacco companies would be given the chance to put their case across to the WHO in Geneva in October. According to the WHO, about 1.15 billion of the world's 6 billion-plus people are smokers. China, the world's biggest tobacco producer and consumer, will draw up a national tobacco-control plan to reduce smoking-related health problems and economic losses, the state-run Beijing Morning Post said today. Brundtland praised Thailand for responding "forcibly" 10 years ago when it came under pressure to open its markets to foreign tobacco. Thailand eventually was forced to open to foreign imports, but the spat created momentum for the anti-tobacco campaign. Health Minister Korn Dabbaransi said Thailand's action had left it "the loser in trade, but the winner in health." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 31 12:04:44 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2A19C2A05E for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 12:04:44 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA09631 for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 12:04:43 -0400 Date: Wed, 31 May 2000 12:04:43 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] South African Smokers Have One Month To Puff Away (fwd) SA Smokers Have One Month To Puff Away Source: The Independent Online (IOL), Tuesday, 5/30/00 May 30 2000 at 03:34PM Regulations to curb the smoking habits of South Africans would be promulgated by the end of next month or early July, Patricia Lambert, adviser to the health minister, said on Tuesday. Speaking at a news conference in Pretoria to mark Wednesday's World No-Tobacco Day, she said the regulations would stop smoking in public places, which included the workplace. The legislation had to be altered to exclude regulation of smoking in people's homes, Lambert said. However, this presented problems as the constitution included an obligation to protect children. "It is difficult for children to protect themselves in their own homes against their smoking parents." Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang said: "The exposure of children to household tobacco levels has reached critical levels." Of the five-year-olds living in Soweto, 64 percent were found to live with at least one smoker in the home, she said. Dr Priscilla Reddy, director of the Medical Research Council's national health promotion and development office, said that according to preliminary findings of a survey conducted among 6 000 children nationwide, 43,6 percent of 13- to 15-year-olds were exposed to tobacco smoke in their homes. More than 42 percent had smoked at least once in their lives. "That is alarming. That is our nation's tomorrow." Reddy said 21 percent indicated that the first thing they wanted when they woke up in the morning was a cigarette. One-fifth of the respondents had smoked for the first time before they were 10 years old, 18 percent currently smoked and 10 percent smoked frequently. About 35 percent thought it was difficult to quit smoking, she said. "As the years progress, how much more addicted are they going to be?" Tshabalala-Msimang said passive smoking could have a particularly harmful effect on the respiratory systems of babies and young children. A recent study found that women were far more likely to develop cancer after exposure to second-hand smoke than men were. It also indicated that some non-smoking women might be genetically susceptible to second-hand smoke. In South Africa, 40 percent of men and 12 percent of women smoked. "How can we stand by and do nothing when we have proof that the smoking of men and a few women is endangering the lives and causing disease amongst most of our women, all of our children and a few of our men? "We have a duty to protect non-smokers from smokers, and we intend to do just that. We will promulgate our regulations as soon as possible, and in doing so, we will give real effect to people's constitutional right to live in a healthy environment." For decades, cigarette advertising glamourised smoking, yet failed to inform the public that the products were highly addictive, could kill, or at the least, cause serious illness. "It is our duty to protect people, especially young people, from this blatantly deceitful and downright dangerous advertising." Dr Yusuf Saloojee, director of the National Council against Smoking, lashed out at a cigarette advertisement posing the question: "Do I look afraid to take a chance?" He said it encouraged people to take the risk of smoking. "It's like encouraging people to drink and drive." Lambert said that within three months of the promulgation of the regulation, smoking rooms, not exceeding 25 percent of the total area of the premises, would have to be designated at workplaces. Smokers working at a place without a smoking room, would have to go outside to light up. The only place where smoking was not regulated was the open air, because that would have been too difficult, she said. Asked about the possible intimidation of or discrimination against non-smokers on the grounds of their complaints, Lambert said the Labour Relations Act protected employees against victimisation or threatening. However, more subtle threats might be difficult to control. She suggested that a complaint about smoking should be directed to a person in a high position and in written form. Saloojee said some people saw the legislation as anti-smokers, while the issue was smoking. "The struggle was against apartheid, never against white South Africans." Regarding suggestions that the law was painted as unworkable and unrealistic, he said: "This is not true." Tshabalala-Msimang said she was sure the law and regulations would achieve their objectives. She said her department would ensure that the regulations were in line with the constitution. "I'm convinced we are on the right track." South Africa's tobacco legislation was in line with that of many other countries - including banning tobacco advertising, creating smoke-free workplaces, prohibiting free cigarette hand-outs and reducing tar and nicotine in cigarettes. "They are doing this for the sake of their vulnerable citizens, and also because tobacco-related illnesses are costing health systems a great deal of money - money that is literally going up in smoke." - Sapa From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed May 31 12:42:37 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DDBBC2A05E for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 12:42:36 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA10987 for ; Wed, 31 May 2000 12:42:29 -0400 Date: Wed, 31 May 2000 12:42:27 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=Windows-1252 Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] End The Export Subsidy for Big Tobacco! (fwd) From=20the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Please respond to jglanz@tobaccofreekids.org, not to this list. End The Export Subsidy for Big Tobacco! Dear Colleagues: Attached is a letter to President Clinton asking the Administration to eliminate tax breaks for U.S. tobacco company exports. Currently, under the Foreign Sales Corporation (FSC) program, U.S. tobacco companies can legally avoid paying taxes on a portion of their profits from cigarette exports. This program has been challenged by the European Union at the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the Administration is trying to devise a replacement program that would comply with WTO rules. We are asking that tobacco companies be excluded from whatever they come up with.=20 What You Can Do: 1. Sign-on to the letter to President Clinton by close of business, Monday, June 5th. Please send organizational endorsements to: Judy Glanz, Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, e-mail: ; fax: 202-296-5427.=20 2. Contact your Congressional representative and encourage them to sign-on to =93the Doggett letter to end taxpayer subsidies for tobacco exports=94, = which currently has 68 co-signers. A copy of that letter and a list of current signatories is also attached. Congressional endorsements can be sent to Lindsay at Rep. Doggett=92s office; tel. 202-225-4865. Thanks Dear President Clinton: As your negotiators seek an agreement with the European Union on their challenge to U.S. export subsidies at the WTO, we are writing to ask you to exclude U.S. tobacco companies from any future program designed to enhance America=92s export competitiveness. Currently, tax subsidies for U.S. cigarette exporters under the Foreign Sales Corporation program cost American taxpayers $100 million a year.=20 The dangers of nicotine addiction to our children are well-known: three thousand young Americans each day become regular smokers =96 the leading ca= use of preventable death in America. But these dangers do not stop at our shores. Globally, the World Bank estimates that between 80,000 and 100,000 kids become addicted to cigarettes every day. With increasing pressure in the United States to stop hooking our kids on nicotine, the big tobacco companies are, with the unwitting support of American taxpayers, trying to addict new generations of smokers overseas. Tobacco-related illnesses kill = 4 million people a year around the globe. If current trends continue, by 2030= , ten million people will die every year, 70 percent of them in developing countries. The tobacco industry should not receive any assistance from the U.S. government in their quest to addict new generations of smokers overseas. At a time when your Administration is taking strong action against the tobacco companies for their deception and misconduct in the United States, we ask that they not be rewarded through select provisions of the tax code for their misconduct overseas. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Sincerely, cc. Lawrence Summers Stuart Eizenstat Lloyd Doggett =20 May 1, 2000 U.S. will take plan to Europe By MARTIN CRUTSINGER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) _ Trying to overturn the worst trade defeat the United States has suffered at the World Trade Organization, the Clinton administration said Monday it has achieved strong bipartisan backing for proposed changes to a tax benefit provided to American exporters. Deputy Treasury Secretary Stuart Eizenstat was to present the proposal in discussions Tuesday in Brussels with officials of the European Union. The 15-nation EU successfully challenged the $4 billion annual tax break fo= r U.S. exporters before the WTO, which ruled earlier this year that it represented an illegal export subsidy. Eizenstat told an audience at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Monday that he had discussed the administratio= n proposal with top Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate as well as the U.S. business community. =93We will go (to Brussels) with united support from the business community= , from congressional leadership,=94 Eizenstat said. =93That will give us a ve= ry strong hand in our discussions.=94 Eizenstat will have discussions over the next two days with Pascal Lamy, the EU's top trade negotiators, and other European economic officials in Brussels, London and Paris. Eizenstat refused to reveal details of his plan to reporters but he said the proposal was the result of =93intensive discussions=94 the administration has held with tax experts in both the House and Senate. The United States has until Oct. 1 to comply with the WTO decision that its Foreign Sales Corporation program is an illegal trade subsidy. After that date, the EU could retaliate with higher tariffs on American products. The program, which was created in 1984, allows some 6,000 U.S. companies including Boeing, General Motors, Microsoft and United Technology, to reduc= e income taxes by up to 15 percent by creating export subsidiaries in tax havens such as the Virgin Islands and Barbados. The intent of the program was to offset an EU tax rebate given to European companies for goods sold overseas. Eizenstat has held discussions with Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., the senior Democrat on the Ways and Means Committee= ; House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Archer, R-Texas, and Senate Finance Committee Chairman William Roth, R-Del. Aides said the gist of the administration's proposal is to repeal the Foreign Sales Corporation program entirely and then lower income taxes on the foreign subsidiaries of U.S. companies to make up the difference. This would avoid European Union charges of unfair trade practices by applying not only to U.S. exports from these subsidiarie= s but also to products they make overseas and sell back to the United States. No cost estimated was immediately available. =20 Rep. Doggett=92s Letter To End Taxpayer Subsidies For Tobacco Exports May 10, 2000 The Honorable Stuart E. Eizenstat Deputy Secretary of the Treasury 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20220 Dear Secretary Eizenstat: In your position as the lead Administration official charged with implementing an acceptable response to the adverse World Trade Organization (WTO) decision on Foreign Sales Corporations (FSC), we urge you to provide leadership in terminating any benefit for export of tobacco products.=20 As you are well aware, through FSC, US businesses export domestically manufactured goods and shelter a portion of that income from US taxes. Despite earlier estimates that the FSC provision accounts for $2 billion in lost revenues annually, new estimates show that the FSC accounts for at least $4 billion a year, soon to grow to $6 billion annually. The latest available data from the Statistics of Income division at the Internal Revenue Service (Spring 2000 Bulletin, analyzing 1996 tax year) show tobacc= o products sold through FSC=92s accounted for $100 million in lost tax revenu= e in 1996 (almost $7 billion in gross foreign tobacco sales through FSC=92s, providing $285 million in exempt income). There is no justification for compelling American taxpayers to support a $100 million tax subsidy annuall= y for the benefit of US tobacco companies. The dangers of nicotine addiction to our children are well-known: three thousand young Americans each day become caught up in a nicotine habit ?? our leading cause of preventable death in America. But these dangers do no= t stop at our American shores. With increasing pressure to stop hooking our kids on nicotine, the big tobacco companies have turned to other people=92s kids by peddling nicotine around the globe. Since 1990, while Philip Morris=92s sales have grown minimally in the Unite= d States, they have grown by 80% abroad. Smoking currently causes more than 3.5 million deaths each year throughout the world. Within 20 years, that number is expected to rise to 10 million, with 70% of all deaths from smoking coming in the developing countries that are the newest targets in big tobacco=92s continued addiction to making money at the expense of human lives. In fact, tobacco will be the leading cause of disease and premature death worldwide -- bypassing communicable diseases such as AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis. There is no reason that the American taxpayer need contribute to this export of death and disease, where the result, intended or otherwise, is more children around the globe smoking. The legislative history of the FSC provision (formerly DISC) shows exclusio= n from benefits for certain products for a number of reasons: the domestic supply not adequate to meet domestic demand (1971); products already receiving other government subsidies (1971); natural resources and energy products where cost depletion allowable (1975); products subject to export controls (1975); military products on the munitions list (1976); unprocesse= d timber (1993). In some cases, the exclusion of products from export benefits promotes congruence with other federal government policies, as wit= h items subject to the Export Administration Act. Other reasons for prohibiting certain items over the years have ranged from difficulty in tax administration (as with intangibles), benefits unnecessary due to high foreign demand (see 1976 House vote eliminating agricultural products), and concern for displacement of US jobs (as with timber). =20 As you know, this Administration is pursing legal remedies against the tobacco companies for decades of deception and addiction and has proposed allowing the Food and Drug Administration both to regulate tobacco as a drug-delivery device and to control access to minors. We seek your help to end the contradiction of using the tax code to encourage US companies, whic= h export products that, when used as intended, result in addicting children abroad to nicotine and pushing them down a path to cancer, heart disease, and emphysema. We urge the elimination and exclusion of these products fro= m any new FSC law. =09=09=09=09=09 Sincerely, Current List of Signatories, as of 26 May 2000 Ackerman Allen Baldacci Blagojevich Bluemenauer Brown, Sherrod Capps Capuano Conyers DeFazio DeLauro Deutsch Doggett Eshoo Farr Frank Ganske Green Gutierrez Hansen Hastings Hinchey Holt Hooley Jones, Stephanie Tubbs Kildee Kind Kucinich LaFalce Lampson Lantos Levin Lewis Lofgren Lowey Luther Maloney, Carolyn Markey Matsui McCarthy McDermott McGovern Meehan Millender-McDonald Miller, George Moakley Nadler Neal Olver Owens Pallone Payne Pelosi Rivers Rodriguez Rothman Royal-Allard Sanders Schakowsky Serrano Slaughter Snyder Stark Tierney Waxman Weygand Woolsey Wu From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 1 12:33:44 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8358B2A3D2 for ; Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:33:44 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA06663 for ; Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:33:42 -0400 Date: Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:33:40 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Africa Remains A Viable Market For Cigarette Companies (fwd) Africa Remains A Viable Market For Cigarette Companies by Peter Masebu / PANA Correspondent Source: Panafrican News Agency, Wednesday, 5/31/00 DAKAR, Senegal (PANA) - Combining beauty, charm and the ability to speak several foreign languages, Yaya sells stacks of cigarette packets to delegates at an African regional conference in Dakar, the Senegalese capital. Her multinational cigarette company is among those reputed for their "generous" sponsorship of sporting events ranging from football, horse racing to wrestling, the most popular sport in Senegal. The government also endorses it because it pays taxes and creates employment. Senegalese authorities are aware that cigarettes constitute a health hazard, but they turn a blind eye to the massive sale of cigarettes by beautiful girls like Yaya during conferences, or football matches. Tobacco smoking advertising has gone down considerably in Senegal over the last decade, but like in many other African countries the rate of smoking keeps on rising. African tobacco exporting countries cannot wage a viable anti-tobacco campaign because the crop earns them badly needed foreign currency. Hamstrung by tough anti-smoking regulations in the industrialised West, multinational cigarette companies have turned to the African region as a last resort for their earnings. They use several lies to dupe African governments into allowing their continued operations and crafty advertisement to attract youngsters to begin "puffing." Without realising it, they became nicotine addicts hooked to the cigarette for life. The Paris-based International Non Governmental Coalition Against Tobacco (INGCAT) put it bluntly at a recent conference in that the African region "is now the target for profit accumulation by the tobacco industry." INGCAT's co-ordinator, Dr Karen Slama, warned during the 13th conference of the African Region of the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease or IUATLD in Conakry, Guinea, that "tobacco marketing is a vector for tobacco diseases" including cancer and tuberculosis. But what was more alarming in her presentation during the 24-27 May conference was the revelation that Africa's increase of 3.2 percent per year in tobacco consumption was "the highest in the world." This consumption is rising dramatically particularly among 15-year olds. Slama provided startling statistics showing smoking prevalence rates among 15-year old Algerian males at 53 percent and 10 percent for females. South Africa's rates were 52 percent for males and 17 percent among young females while Mauritania's stood at 47 percent and 4 percent for the two sexes, respectively. The figure for Swaziland was 38 percent for males and 8 percent for females while Nigeria's stood at 24 percent for males and 7 percent for females. At the Conakry conference, Slama cited an article published by the London Times newspaper 15 May as being part of the strategy being employed by tobacco companies to maintain their grip on the African market. The article alleged that tobacco smoking causes "non-infectious diseases (which) pose individual but not public health risks." It purported that tobacco-use-related diseases "do not require the same degree of international co-ordination as the fight against contagious epidemics," including malaria and AIDS. But, in a note to PANA ahead of Wednesday's No Smoking Day, Slama affirmed: "This is a tobacco industry lie, but it is not true. Tobacco is a public health problem expected to cause 450 million deaths over the next 50 years." She also cited a 1988 letter from British American Tobacco (BAT) to the Ugandan health ministry, saying it did not believe "cigarette smoking is harmful to health." She produced a 1990 BAT internal document, which said: "We should not be depressed simply because the total free world markets appear to be declining. Within the total market, there are areas of strong growth particularly in Asia and Africa." In 1998, Rothman's representative said in Burkina Faso that "the average life expectancy here is 40 years, infant mortality is high, the health problems which some say are caused by cigarettes just won't be a problem here." Denouncing the misinformation, Slama told the conference that tobacco was an "urgent problem for Africa today." Some 90,000 deaths were attributed to tobacco in Africa 10 years ago. Tobacco use caused one in 20 adult deaths a decade ago or one in every 84 deaths. To curb further tobacco-related deaths, the IUATLD calls for total ban on tobacco promotions, advertisement and sponsorships, disclosure of product development and high taxation to make it out of reach to the majority. It also calls for restrictions to smoking in public places to protect the population from "the health consequences of involuntary exposure to others' smoking." Many African governments cannot afford to do away with tobacco use because this brings in money. However, it would be ethical if all smokers are clearly informed that their activity can lead to cancer or tuberculosis. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 1 12:36:13 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A58DE2A3D2 for ; Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:36:13 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA06834 for ; Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:36:13 -0400 Date: Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:36:12 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Swaziland Prepares Tobacco Control Law Swaziland Prepares Law to Ban Smoking by Vuyisile Hlatshwayo SWAZILAND; Source: Panafrican News Agency, Wednesday, 5/31/00 MBABANE, Swaziland (PANA) - Swaziland is currently preparing legislation aimed at discouraging smoking in public places and indiscriminate sale of tobacco in the country. Speaking in Mbabane Wednesday during the launch of World No Tobacco Day, the country's health and social welfare minister, Phetsile Dlamini, appealed to businesses to stop using sports sponsorship to advertise tobacco. She also appealed to larger countries not to dump cigarettes banned in their respective territory in Swaziland. She denounced the smuggling of such cigarettes into the country where they were being sold even to the youth. "We appeal to everyone not to smoke on 31 May, 2000 and onwards in the new millennium," she said. She justified the theme of this year's event, "Tobacco Kills, Do Not Be Fooled." She regretted that although tobacco kills many Swazis, it is over advertised. She warned Swazis not to be cheated that smoking was trendy and fashionable, highlighting the health hazards it causes. She said among the many diseases caused by tobacco smoking, were heart diseases and hypertension, cancers of the lung, throat, voice box and mouth, bronchitis, pneumonia and emphysema and asthma. Dlamini also warned that smoking pregnant mothers exposed their unborn baby to nicotine. "This causes small brain and poor growth rate and general failure to thrive as well as easy infections," she said. Dlamini added that smoking is also a health hazard to family and friends. "For this reason we discourage smoking in public which exposes other people. Smoking is an expensive slow suicide," she said. Meanwhile, Siboniso Mdluli of the Council of Swaziland Against Alcohol and Drug echoed the words of the minister, discouraging the youth from tobacco smoking. He lamented that the youth still think smoking is trendy and fashionable which has resulted in an increase in the number of youth smokers in the country. Swaziland's World Health Organisation representative, T. Lesikel, also warned Swazi nationals about the dangers associated with tobacco use. She singled out rolled tobacco as more harmful than the other tobacco products because it has a higher content of nicotine and tar. Lesikel also warned the youth not to be fooled by advertisements, which tell them that if they smoke they assume high status, look good, become popular and women feel more independent. She re-affirmed WHO's commitment in the fight against tobacco by providing technical and financial assistance to the ministry of health and social welfare and its partners in the fight against tobacco. The ministry of health and social welfare, jointly with the WHO office, would distribute brochure with information on the dangers of tobacco-smoking to people at the various strategic places like bus terminals and shopping malls in the two cities of Mbabane and Manzini. Copyright (c) 2000 Panafrican News Agency. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 1 12:36:47 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4D6082A3DA for ; Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:36:47 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA06860 for ; Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:36:47 -0400 Date: Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:36:46 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Thailand: House panel eyes teens, MPs, monks (fwd) House panel eyes teens, MPs, monks Source: Bangkok Post, Wednesday, 5/31/00 A House panel wants strict enforcement of bans on the sale of cigarettes to young teenagers, including controls on the installation of automatic vending machines. It will also target monks who smoke and push for no-smoking areas in the parliament building. "Many state officials, politicians and their aides smoke everywhere at the parliament. They must change their behaviour," Ratana Anantanakin, deputy spokeswoman for the committee for youth, women and the elderly said yesterday. Speaking after a meeting at the parliament to mark World No-Tobacco Day, she said the panel would fight against the lenient enforcement of non-smoking regulations. "Despite the Tobacco Control Act of 1992, violations are rampant such as smoking in state agencies and public places as well as cigarette sales to teens under 18, who can still buy cigarettes from traders and even easier from automatic vending machines at shopping centres and theatres," Ms Ratan said. The House committee would urge police to tackle traders who sell cigarettes to minors and to strictly control the installation of automatic cigarette vending machines. It would ask the Education Ministry to launch anti-smoking campaigns in schools and push for restricted smoking zones at the parliament to set a good example for other state agencies. "The Education Ministry should include smoking in the criteria for the calculation of the grade point average students use in the entrance examination process," Miss Ratana said. Surinan Ariyawongsophon, an adviser to the panel, said smoking was popular among the youth because they saw their teachers smoke in schools. The Education Ministry should step up its anti-smoking campaign and restrict the areas where teachers can smoke in school. Monks who smoke were also violating a basic Buddhist precept and the Sangha Council's rules, and the panel would ask the Religious Department to discipline them. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 1 12:38:41 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 138022A3F0 for ; Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:38:07 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA06941 for ; Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:38:06 -0400 Date: Thu, 1 Jun 2000 12:38:06 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Congratulations to our friend Dr. Hatai! Thai Medic's Anti-tobacco Role Honoured / Doctor one of only 18 people worldwide by Aphaluck Bhatiasevi Source: Bangkok Post, Thursday, 6/1/00 A Thai doctor who strongly advocates tobacco consumption control was among three Southeast Asians honoured yesterday with the World Health Organisation's first "Tobacco-Free World Awards 2000" only given to 18 people worldwide. Dr Hathai Chitanondh, president of the Thailand Health Promotion Foundation, was awarded for his effort in initiating and drafting two tobacco laws and in pushing for their enforcement. A staunch anti-smoking campaigner, Dr Hathai, 70, had actively pushed for the enforcement of the Non-Smokers' Health Protection Act and the Tobacco Products Control Act, both of which went into effect in 1992. After retiring as deputy permanent secretary for public health in 1989, Dr Hathai became the first secretary of the National Committee for the Control of Tobacco Use. He also chaired a committee drafting tobacco control laws. Dr Hathai has vowed to fight the tobacco industry for the rest of his life. "We have to fight them all the time, all our lives because the tobacco industry usually goes underground. They lobby under the table," he said. Dr Hathai said though Thailand has achieved a level of success in controlling tobacco consumption, a lot more needed to be done to counter trans-boundary problems such as cigarette smuggling. Dr Judith Mackay, a senior WHO policy adviser, said there were currently 10.2 million smokers in Thailand, and this was expected to rise to about 15 million by 2025, due mainly to increasing population. The other two organisations honoured by the WHO yesterday were the National Cancer Institute of India and the Ministry of Public Health of Maldives. WHO director-general, Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland said governments should be made to realise the gains they made from tobacco product sales would not be permanent. She said positive signs were being observed from major international foundations, such as the Rockefeller Foundation which has announced a US$10-million fund to help four developing countries in Southeast Asia fight tobacco consumption. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 1 21:47:55 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B3F262A3DD for ; Thu, 1 Jun 2000 21:47:55 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id VAA21981 for ; Thu, 1 Jun 2000 21:47:55 -0400 Date: Thu, 1 Jun 2000 21:47:55 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Brazil Moves to Ban Tobacco Ads, Hike Taxes (fwd) Brazil Moves to Ban Tobacco Ads, Hike Taxes by Shasta Darlington Source: Reuters, Thursday, 6/1/00 RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Brazil sent a bill to Congress on Wednesday proposing that Latin America's biggest country ban all tobacco advertising and sports sponsorship and hike cigarette taxes in a bid to prevent kids from getting hooked on smoking. To commemorate World No-Tobacco Day, the Health Ministry signed off on the bill and released its first major study on smoking in Brazil, which predicts higher taxes could cut smoking over time by up to 12%. ``The approval of this bill will be very important to our fight,'' Jacob Kligerman, general director of the ministry's National Cancer Institute, said at a press conference. Officials hope that by hiking prices and prohibiting advertising on television and at popular sports events like car races they can discourage youths from smoking. Brazilians smoke only half as much as US residents on a per capita basis, but officials in the country of 165 million people are alarmed by the number of youths lighting up. Brazil is home to 2.7 million smokers between the ages of 5 and 19. ``This is a fundamental question for a country if it doesn't want its children dying of cancer,'' said Vera Luiza da Costa Silva, coordinator of the ministry's smoking prevention programmes. Because Brazil is a low-cost tobacco producer, local cigarettes are some of the cheapest in the world at $1.62 a carton, including a 74% tax. The ministry said that with a 15% price increase through higher taxes, smoking would drop off between 1.5 and 3% in the short term and between 6 and 12% in the long term. The ministry has also launched a new advertising campaign that spotlights the death from lung cancer of Wayne McLaren, a former model for a famous brand of cigarettes. In the ad, one horseman asks another as they ride into the sunset ``You know that cowboy from the cigarette ads? He died from cancer.'' Worldwide, about 3.4 million people die from smoking each year, according to the World Health Organisation. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 8 12:59:00 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DA3782A066 for ; Thu, 8 Jun 2000 12:59:00 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA27302 for ; Thu, 8 Jun 2000 12:59:00 -0400 Date: Thu, 8 Jun 2000 12:58:59 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] EU: Cigarette makers show friendly opposition to Brussels (fwd) Cigarette makers show friendly opposition to Brussels by Michael Smith Source: Financial Times, Thursday, 6/8/00 Tobacco can kill; it can also lobby. Two years after the tobacco industry's last big European Union battle - over an advertising ban - cigarette makers are back in Brussels in force. This time their target is a proposal to tighten rules on cigarette content and labelling, due for debate next week in the European parliament. And this time the industry is presenting a more friendly face. Instead of outright opposition, the tactic used unsuccessfully in the advertising battle, the manufacturers are merely pressing for change to the proposals. Philip Morris says it "largely supports" the proposed directive. "Tobacco is a unique product that entails risks," says David Davies, a vice-president. "Public authorities have an important role to play in regulating its use." Wilfried Dembach, chairman of Ceccm, representing cigarette manufacturers, makes equally soothing noises but denies tactics have changed because of the defeat over advertising. There is, he suggests, room for debate and for compromise. "If you are faced with a total ban, as over advertising, what else can you do but oppose?" he says. "Here it is different". In spite of the industry's softer tone, the debate is likely to be vigorous. Tobacco generates controversy like few other subjects; it divides member states between supporters of tighter controls such as the UK and sceptics, such as Germany, and creates tensions within the political parties in the European parliament. Smoking-related deaths may kill 500,000 EU citizens every year, as David Byrne, union health commissioner responsible for the directive, asserts. But tobacco generates annual EU revenues of E60bn ($57bn) and supports 1m jobs. Figures like these impress, and members of the European parliament have submitted more than 200 amendments ahead of next week's debate which will culminate in the first of two parliamentary votes. Most seek to tighten controls but some MEPs feel the proposed legislation goes too far and Commission officials fear there may be attempts to postpone the debate to later in the year to allow the industry time to lobby. Under the Commission's proposals, permissible levels of tar would be cut from 12mg to 10mg a cigarette and a limit would be set for carbon monoxide for the first time, also at 10mg. Manufacturers would have to cover a quarter of packs with "smoking kills" or "smoking can kill" warnings printed in black and white. Descriptor terms such as "light" and "mild" would be banned unless specifically authorised by individual governments. The industry's chief concern appears to be a requirement that content rules apply to exported cigarettes. This, it says, would put E6.5bn in trade and 8,000 EU jobs at risk, and is unjustified. Ceccm argues that some of the other proposals in the directive would distort markets. Insisting on black and white labels would, for example, be discriminatory, causing more difficulties for some manufacturers than others, depending on existing packet colours. Jules Maaten, a Dutch MEP who prepared the report on which parliament will vote, says the industry's "positive" approach has influenced his and others' thinking. "I have followed some of their suggestions," he says, citing his backing for an industry proposal on additives analysis. Mr Maaten also wants the content controls on exports delayed until 2006. But the overall thrust of his and other MEPs' suggestions is to tighten the Commission's proposals. One would increase the proportion of the cigarette packs covered by health warnings to 40 per cent on the front and 50 per cent on the back. Another would ban descriptors altogether. Next week's debate, however, is just the start. Assuming MEPs take a vote as planned, the directive would go to government health ministers meeting later in the month before going back to parliament and then returning to health ministers again, perhaps later in the year. Finally a compromise would emerge. It may not get that far. The ban on tobacco advertising was approved by the smallest yes vote permissible under EU rules after four countries including Germany and Spain withheld their support. Supporters of tighter controls think the tide of opinion has turned against the tobacco industry since then but they are taking nothing for granted. "We are in for a long, hard fight," said one EU official supporting tighter controls. "And so are the manufacturers." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 8 14:53:08 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id CA58C2A066 for ; Thu, 8 Jun 2000 14:53:08 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA30700 for ; Thu, 8 Jun 2000 14:53:08 -0400 Date: Thu, 8 Jun 2000 14:53:05 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philippines: Philip Morris to invest $300 M in RP (fwd) (note the date) Philip Morris to invest $300 M in RP by Des Ferriols Source: Philippine Star, Wednesday, 5/24/00 US-based tobacco giant Philip Morris Co., Inc. is putting in $300 million worth of new investments for the development of a new and expanded cigarette manufacturing facility in Southern Tagalog. Top officials of PMCI's Philippine subsidiary, Philip Morris Philippines Inc., met with Trade and Industry Secretary Manuel Roxas II yesterday to explore the possibility of tapping government incentives available to export industries. Hit hard by a dramatic contraction in the increasingly health-conscious markets of Europe and North America, the world's biggest cigarette manufacturer has been moving into Asia and Africa where the markets continue to expand by leaps and bounds. Philip Morris already has tobacco processing and manufacturing facilities in Remban, Malaysian and Malang, Indonesia. During his meeting with PMPI managing director George Farrah, Roxas said the company remains upbeat about the prospects in the Philippine market and the Asian market in general. According to Roxas, the company is planning to put up a new joint venture with its long-time local partner, La Suerte Cigar and Cigarette Factory, which would eventually seek the registration of its project with the Board of Investments. Philip Morris, Roxas said, intends to close down its existing facility along South Super-Highway in Para=F1aque and move its operations to Souther= n Tagalog where it will construct a new and expanded manufacturing facility. The new facility, according to Roxas will be one and a half times bigger than the company's existing plant and will increase its production capacity from 20 billion cigarette sticks to 30 billion sticks. "They are planning to export part of their production so they are thinking of registering as an export business," Roxas said. "This would quality them for incentives available to all export industries." According to Roxas, "They want to continue and expand their business here because of our Western-style of doing business as well as our workforce," Roxas said. "Add to this the fact that the Philippines is the 15th largest cigarette market in the world." Roxas said Philip Morris plans to source part of its tobacco requirements from local sources. Traditionally, the company imports 60 percent of its requirement for Virginia tobacco while buying the rest from local producers. Philip Morris' existing joint venture with La Suerte employees 1,200 workers and generated P14.33 billion in sales in 1999 and P251.58 million in profits. PMPI is 19th in the top 100 companies listed by the Securities and Exchange Commission. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jun 14 12:23:40 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DE4682A30E for ; Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:23:40 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA19710 for ; Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:23:40 -0400 Date: Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:23:40 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] MPs demand virility warnings on cigarettes (fwd) MPs demand virility warnings on cigarettes Source: The Independent, Wednesday, 6/14/00 An all=96party committee of MPs has called for cigarette packets to carry harder=96hitting health warnings =96 including messages that smoking damage= s male potency. In a report the Commons Select Committee on Health said all packs should state the addictiveness and damage to health caused by smoking. They added: "In addition, a variety of health messages =96 such as that relating to male potency =96 should be used on certain packets. "These messages should be harder=96hitting and more relevant to consumers than those currently used." The long=96awaited report also called for the Department of Health to set much tougher targets for reducing smoking. They also called for tougher measures to stop non=96smokers being affected by other's cigarettes. "Bearing in mind that asthma causes 1,400 deaths per year, we do not regard asthma attacks as merely unpleasant and believe that policy goals relating to environmental tobacco smoke must take account of the real health risks it poses." The report also called for tougher measures to prevent sales to children and statutory regulation of tobacco advertising. The MPs also urged a Department of Trade and Industry investigation into claims that British American Tobacco has been involved in large scale cigarette smuggling. BAT has been accused of orchestrating, managing and controlling cigarette smuggling in Asia and Latin America in the early 1990s. The report said if the allegations "prove to be substantiated, the case for criminal proceedings against BAT should be considered". BAT has previously strenuously denied the allegations and insisted the company has been the victim of smuggling. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jun 14 12:24:49 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 333792A30E for ; Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:24:49 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA19755 for ; Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:24:48 -0400 Date: Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:24:48 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Lebanon Seeks to Stub Out Cigarette Ads (fwd) Karam hopes to butt out smoking ads by Alia Ibrahim / Daily Star staff Source: (Beirut, Lebanon) Daily Star, Tuesday, 6/6/00 Stepping up Lebanon's campaign against smoking, Health Minister Karam Karam announced on Monday that he wants to stop tobacco advertisements and boost taxes on all forms of tobacco. His ministry has made the hazards posed by smoking one of its most important public campaigns this year by launching a nationwide anti-smoking effort with the collaboration of the World Health Organization. As part of that campaign, Karam suggested that the government increase its tobacco taxes and more effectively implement existing smoking laws such as forbidding smoking in government offices. "In Lebanon, we're in serious need of raising public awareness and of guiding and warning people," he said during a press conference at the ministry in Mathaf. In following a Western platform adopted by countries like the United States, Karam also suggested creating laws that would forbid all forms of tobacco advertising. He said that advertising was a major element contributing to the high rate of smokers. "It's because of publicity that young men think that they're more virile and more attractive when they smoke, and the same applies for women," he said. Habib Latiri, the World Health Organization's representative in Lebanon, said that research shows that a person's decision to smoke was influenced by tobacco industry promotion and advertising featuring prominent sports and entertainment figures. Such promotion aims to reinforce the industry's image of tobacco as glamorous, fun, healthy and sophisticated. "So what is it that the tobacco industry is trying to conceal? Latiri asked. "In fact, they want to suppress the truth that documents their manipulation of nicotine to levels that ensure that addiction occurs and is sustained, among other truths," he argued. He also said that the number of smokers worldwide was on the increase and hence the effects of smoking-induced illnesses were rapidly mounting. "The number of smokers today is in excess of 1.25 billion. That's more than one-third of all people above the age of 15," he said. Latiri said that if current trends continued, smoking rates would increase until the number of people who die due to tobacco-induced illnesses in the year 2020 would reach a staggering 10 million people. Explaining why some people stick to the habit even though they may be aware of its hazards, Latiri quoted WHO's regional director, Hussein Jazaeiry, who said that there was a difference between people knowing the threats of smoking and realizing just how dangerous it could be. "Very few smokers realize that by the time I'm through reading this note, smoking would have killed 60 people, and that by the end of the day, it would have killed another 10,000 people worldwide," he said. Latiri said that if smokers around the world decided to quit smoking, cancer cases would be cut by one-third and a number of heart and circulatory disorders, as well as other chronic diseases, would be prevented. "Smoking has had a worse effect on humanity than wars, disasters and plagues," he said. "Nicotine is the most active ingredient in tobacco: which is physiologically and psychologically addictive, in a similar way to heroine and cocaine. That means that tobacco companies are in the drug business," he said. Latiri invited all concerned parties, including the tobacco industry, to present their views during a two-day public hearing that the WHO is holding in Geneva on Oct. 12-13. Another disadvantage of smoking that was stressed at the press conference was the economic cost. According to Youssef Bassim, director of Lebanon's National Anti-Smoking Campaign, an American study indicated that the cost to the government of medical coverage for smoking related illnesses from every pack of cigarettes was $2.40 =96 far less than what the Lebanese government receive= s in taxes from tobacco products, because a pack of cigarettes here costs just LL2,000. What putting out that cigarette means The benefits of quitting smoking according to the National Anti-Smoking Campaign: -After 20 minutes: Blood pressure, pulse rate and hand and feet temperatures return to normal. - After eight hours: The rate of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood returns to normal. - After 24 hours: The threat of a heart attack begins to decrease. - After 48 hours: Smell and taste sensation begins to improve. -After two weeks: Circulation starts to improve, lung efficiency is enhanced by 30 percent and walking becomes an easier task. - After one to nine months: Coughing is reduced, it is easier to breathe and lungs regain the ability to clean themselves and reduce possible inflammation. - After one year: The probability of suffering a heart attack decreases by 50 percent. -After 10 years: Life expectancy becomes identical to that of a non-smoker. DS From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jun 14 12:25:40 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3695B2A377 for ; Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:25:40 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA19771 for ; Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:25:39 -0400 Date: Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:25:39 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Indian Govt rejects Philip Morris arm's local unit proposal (fwd) Govt rejects Philip Morris arm's local unit proposal The Economic Times, Thursday Jun 08 2000 Javed Sayed & Arshdeep Sehgal NEW DELHI : IN A major setback to tobacco major Philip Morris' India plans, the government has shot down the proposal of its Swiss subsidiary, FTR Holdings, to set up a wholly-owned arm in the country. The government has communicated to FTR that it has decided to ``close the case'' and not consider its proposal as the company has not submitted a declaration stating that it did not have any existing joint venture in the ``same or allied field'' as is required by official regulations prescribed by press note 18. Philip Morris holds a 35.9 per cent stake in the K K Modi-promoted cigarette company Godfrey Phillips India. FTR is, however, not taking the rejection lying low. In a stronglyworded letter, written by its legal representatives to the government, it has stated that the grounds cited for closing the case are factually incorrect and unjustified. It has asked the government to reopen the case and approve its application which it says is not for the manufacture of cigarettes but for agronomy and bulk processing of tobacco. The issue of allowing 100 per cent FDI in the tobacco sector has generated intense controversy over the last few years and the present government does not seem to be in favour of permitting wholly owned subsidiaries in this sector. FTR has stated that the government's charge that it has failed to submit the requested declaration is incorrect. It has pointed out that in its original proposal it had said that it had no equity investment in India and that a US based affiliate has a 35.9 per cent minority interest in Godfrey Phillips. FTR has further argued that the provisions of press note 18 do not apply to its proposal as its planned end activities are not similar to Godfrey Phillips. It has stated that its end product will be processed tobacco and not cigarettes. Therefore, the activities to be done by the new subsidiary will not overlap with any business conducted by Godfrey Phillips. Moreover, the technology it is bringing in is not licensed to anyone in India and distinct from the technology provided by a group company to Godfrey Phillips. Notwithstanding FTR's claims that its activities will not overlap with Godfrey Phillips, sources point out that one of the proposed activities listed in the company's application relate to providing marketing, advertising and distribution support to licensed manufacturers of cigarettes. Lobbying for its proposal, FTR has said India is the world's third largest tobacco growing country and the introduction of modern agronomy techniques and processes would enable Indian tobacco growers to improve the quality and yield of their crops. FTR had in December 1998 sought government permission to set up a wholly-owned subsidiary in the country for establishing an international standard tobacco processing plant using proprietary technology and for establishing a Research and Technical Service Centre to implement programmes with farmers to improve tobacco leaf production. The 100 per cent subsidiary also proposed to sell cut tobacco products in bulk to licensed manufacturers of cigarettes. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jun 14 12:35:00 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 12C102A30E for ; Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:35:00 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA20225 for ; Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:34:59 -0400 Date: Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:34:59 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BBC: Tobacco Industry Under Attack in the EU Tobacco Industry Under Attack Source: BBC Online, Wednesday, 6/14/00 Wednesday, 14 June, 2000, 12:20 GMT 13:20 UK The tobacco industry is under fire from all sides with calls for tougher regulation in the UK and Europe. Euro-MPs have agreed proposals which could lead to vastly-enlarged health warnings, but have rejected calls for gruesome pictures of rotting teeth and lungs on packets. And MPs in the UK have urged the Department of Trade and Industry to investigate claims linking a tobacco firm to large-scale cigarette smuggling. The House of Commons Health Select Committee's hard-hitting report, released on Wednesday, says that criminal proceedings should be considered against British American Tobacco (BAT) should the allegations prove true. However, the European decision could prove more damaging to the industry in general, with warnings to cover at least 35% of the front of the pack. Currently the warnings cover 4% of the pack. In addition the use of terms such as "mild" and "low tar" would be banned. The Commons report also calls for packets to carry harder-hitting health warnings, including messages that smoking could cause impotence. It wants the creation of a new body to oversee advertising and labelling, and an end to the current voluntary agreements with the industry. =09=09=09Warnings are small on current packets The MPs said: "These messages should be harder hitting and more relevant to consumers than those currently used." The committee also called on the government to set tougher targets to stop people smoking - and to protect non-smokers from the effects of other people's smoke. Tobacco "bootlegging" costs the Treasury an estimated =A32.5bn a year in lost duty. It is alleged that some companies were "complicit" in organised tobacco smuggling by being prepared to supply large quantities of cigarettes to sources in continental Europe used by organised bootlegging operations. BAT has been accused of orchestrating, managing and controlling cigarette smuggling. It strenuously denies the claims. The committee said: "The allegations need to be looked at independently and we therefore call on the DTI to investigate them. If they prove to be substantiated, the case for criminal proceedings against BAT should be considered. "If they prove to be false, then those perpetrating them should publicly apologise." Trade and Industry Secretary Stephen Byers could use powers under the Companies Act to launch a probe of BAT's accounts and grill its staff under oath. Claims denied BAT's deputy chairman, former Conservative Chancellor of the Exchequer Kenneth Clarke, described the claims as "far-fetched", insisting that the company only sold to legitimate outlets, and paid all excise duties. Clive Bates, from anti-smoking group Ash, welcomed both decisions: "What we need now is a complete rethink and overhaul of the regulatory framework and a serious investigation into the rogue business practices related to smuggling." John Carlisle, from the Tobacco Manufacturer's Association, said: "Of course the health warnings should be on, but what we don't want is our own brand names being obliterated by health warnings - which, at the end of the day, aren't going to reduce cigarette consumption." The European proposals have infuriated tobacco industry bosses. Denise Claveloux, corporate affairs director for Philip Morris Europe, said: "What we're looking for is balance. I'm not sure we're achieving balance with the kinds of numbers that are being suggested." The European tobacco directive will still have to be approved by EU member governments. Other recommendations in the Commons Health Select Committee's report include: Regarding nicotine as comparable to drugs such as heroin and cocaine when anti-smoking strategies are producedEncouraging the use of proof of age cards to stop tobacco products being sold to children.Banning shopkeepers found guilty of selling cigarettes to under-16s from selling any tobacco productsIntroducing plain packaging for all tobacco products so all cigarette packs are the same colour and have brand names in a standard type faceMaking nicotine replacement therapies available on prescription for a total of six weeksMaking tobacco companies list the additives in tobacco on packets From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jun 14 12:37:50 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 004552A30E for ; Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:37:49 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA20373 for ; Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:37:49 -0400 Date: Wed, 14 Jun 2000 12:37:49 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Cooperation Between BAT and China's State-Owned Enterprises (fwd) A Milestone Achievement in Huang Gou Shu and BAT Cooperation TobaccoChina Online-05/30/2000 British American Tobacco and Guizhou Huang Guo Shu Tobacco Group celebrated their launch of a jointly developed new product-Huang Guo Shu Lights at a major national tobacco trade fair on May 19,2000. The launch marked an important milestone in British American Tobacco co-operation with STMA. Commenting at the launch ceremony attended by STMA Deputy Director General Jiang Chenkang and industry representatives from across the country. Russell Cameron, Area Director for BAT Asia Pacific North, said, "The official launch of Huang Guo Shu Group. Working together with dedicated management and staff of the Huang Guo Shu Group, we have been able to greatly enhance Huang Guo Shu brand's sales volume, improve machine efficiency and reduce material waste. And above all, beyond these tangible results, we have fostered true partnership and that is we value most highly." This brand new low tar product of superb quality is part of the ongoing program between China's Huang Guo Shu Group and British American Tobacco China. With the support and encouragement from STMA, the agreement for the Huang Guo Shu joint brand development project was signed at the end of 1996. BAT China team believed that HGS partners demonstrated high professional standards and true dedication the co-operation project, which was essential in making the project a success. Initial response to the new lights variant of Huang Guo Shu brand family has been very positive. The launch of the new lights product represents the emerging trend in Chinese tobacco industry and among consumers for lights cigarettes. Both co-operation partners are determined to make this new product a great success in its targeted markets. Looking toward future of enhanced partnership with Chinese tobacco industry, Mr. Cameron further commented, "the success of our co-operation shows the remarkable benefits of working together in partnership, of combining the international expertise, management and technology of British American Tobacco with the strength and local experience of the Chinese tobacco industry. I am very glad that the project so far has achieved such excellent results." Mr. Cameron further emphasized "as a responsible international company in China, we see supporting the progress of state owned tobacco enterprises as one of our important responsibilities. We at British American Tobacco will continue to give full devotion to our co-operation with Guizhou STMA and Huang Guo Shu Group and will work with our partners with unwavering commitment to ensure the continuing success of Huang Guo Shu brand." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 15 16:19:39 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 69DE22A30E for ; Thu, 15 Jun 2000 16:19:39 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA16478 for ; Thu, 15 Jun 2000 16:19:39 -0400 Date: Thu, 15 Jun 2000 16:19:38 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] One in Five Chinese Has Tried Smoking by 15 (fwd) One in Five Chinese Has Tried Smoking by 15 Source: Inside China, Thursday, 6/15/00 BEIJING, Jun 1, 2000 -- (Agence France Presse) More than one in five Chinese students has tried smoking cigarettes by the age of 15, often lured by tobacco companies that target their promotions at youth events, the China Daily reported Thursday. A survey of 12,000 students between the ages of 13 and 15 showed that 33 percent of the boys and 13 percent of the girls had tried smoking cigarettes at least once. The survey, part of a World Health Organization initiative to chart smoking habits of young people globally, also showed many had their first cigarette when they were only 10, suggesting that Chinese, among the world's biggest smokers, begin their habit early in life. The statistics indicate that the costs to society of smoking, already a major health problem in the world's most populous country could multiply in years to come. Previously released data show that 63 percent of all Chinese men are smokers, while an estimated 2,000 people die every day from smoking-related causes. To keep that problem from exploding in the future, the China Consumers Association urged tobacco manufacturers to stop sales promotions at sports and entertainment events, which usually attract a youthful audience. The paper also said health experts are demanding stricter control over the sale of cigarettes to people under the age of 18. Despite regulations banning the sale of tobacco to adolescents, up to 20 percent of the students participating in the survey said they were never turned away when buying cigarettes from street vendors. In another move to curb tobacco use, the Beijing municipal government recently said smoking will be banned on 130 major streets in the center of the Chinese capital, including a shopping area just east of Tiananmen Square, the China Daily said. ((c) 2000 Agence France Presse) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 15 23:03:03 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BEB6A2A328 for ; Thu, 15 Jun 2000 23:03:03 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA22644 for ; Thu, 15 Jun 2000 23:03:03 -0400 Date: Thu, 15 Jun 2000 23:03:03 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] EU advertising ban in trouble, but UK Government must respond with a Tobacco Bill through Westminster (fwd) EU advertising ban in trouble, but UK Government must respond with a Tobacco Bill through Westminster Source: ASH London, Thursday, 6/15/00 The Advocate General of the European Court of Justice produced a legal opinion arguing that the 1998 EU Directive (98/43/EC) banning tobacco advertising and sponsorship has an inappropriate legal base under the EU Amsterdam Treaty. The Advocate General has recommended that the ECJ annuls the directive when it decides on complaints of the German Government and tobacco industry latter this year. Clive Bates, Director of ASH comments: "It's a setback and we are disappointed. The law governing the single market is not supposed to promote trade at any cost, but with a high level of health and consumer protection. We hope the European Court will recognise this proper interpretation of the Amsterdam Treaty Article 95." But ASH highlighted the likely response to an adverse decision in the ECJ. "Despite this setback, there is a very big and bright silver lining. Ministers will now come under intense pressure to introduce a bill through Westminster to meet Labour's 1997 manifesto commitment to ban tobacco advertising. If a Tobacco Bill is introduced in Westminster it will be enable the Government to close all the loopholes in the advertising ban, introduce some of the Health Select Committee recommendations and implement the tobacco product directive that went through the European Parliament yesterday". said Bates. "Paradoxically, this setback in Europe could give us much tighter legislation in Britain. This will be better in the long term though we will have yet more frustrating delay and further unnecessary harm to health while sound tobacco policies are blocked with legal manoeuvring" said Bates. Notes: Advocate General's report www.curia.eu.int +352 4303 3355 for press office The ECJ does not have to follow the Advocate general's opinion, but this is likely to be influential. The ECJ's decision is expected in the autumn. The Advocate General's opinion will influence the House of Lords which is deciding whether to allow the UK government to introduce the first phase of the advertising ban. The Government had proposed to do this on 10 December 1999, but was blocked by a legal challenge by the tobacco industry. This was overturned at the Court of Appeal, but the block on the ban was kept in place pending a decision by the House of Lords. The HoL heard the case in May and a decision is awaited, but it is likely that the Lords will keep the block in place until the ECJ makes its ruling. Loopholes in the advertising ban include brand-stretching, point of sale advertising, specialist shops, and the Internet. More details at: www.ash.org.uk/papers/dir9843ec.html Contact Clive Bates, ASH (020) 7739 5902 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 15 23:07:04 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 506662A30E for ; Thu, 15 Jun 2000 23:07:04 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA22707 for ; Thu, 15 Jun 2000 23:07:04 -0400 Date: Thu, 15 Jun 2000 23:07:03 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Japan Tobacco Seeks Europe Acquisitions in Bid for No. 1 Spot (fwd) Japan Tobacco Seeks Europe Acquisitions in Bid for No. 1 Spot by Hanabusa Midori EUROPE; Source: Bloomberg News, Thursday, 6/15/00 Tokyo, June 16 (Bloomberg) -- Japan Tobacco Inc., which bought RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp.'s international operations last year, is seeking acquisitions or alliances in Europe to move closer to its goal of becoming the world's largest tobacco company, JT's new president said. The world's third-largest tobacco maker paid $7.8 billion for the RJR business, which gave it the right to sell RJR brands such as Camel, Winston and Salem outside the U.S. Now it's looking at Europe for assets ranging from factories to license agreements to acquisitions, said Katsuhiko Honda, who will become JT's president next month. ``The tobacco industry has been undergoing a global realignment of a once-in-a-century magnitude,'' said the 58-year- old Honda, who smokes more than 50 of his company's Cherry brand cigarettes a day. ``About 80 percent of that is now over, leaving Europe as the last remaining market.'' At the same time, Japan Tobacco is stepping up efforts to change laws in Japan that require two-thirds of its shares to be owned by the government. That restriction limits the company's ability to finance acquisitions and otherwise grow, Honda said. Global Realignment Japan Tobacco has annual cash flow of roughly 100 billion yen $939 million), which it hopes to double over the next five years. While it doesn't have any specific acquisition targets at the moment, it's prepared to move swiftly on any opportunities that may arise, Honda said. Japan Tobacco completed its purchase of RJR International last September, the biggest foreign acquisition by a Japanese company. RJR added production sites in 70 countries for Japan Tobacco, which until then had made cigarettes only in Japan. The acquisition also more than tripled the Japanese company's overseas sales to 378.7 billion yen ($3.6 billion) in the year ended March 31, from 117.1 billion yen a year ago. The transaction marked the former state monopoly's first step in building a global empire and moved it closer to No. 1 Philip Morris Cos. of the U.S. and British American Tobacco Plc of the U.K. As competition intensifies in maturing markets, and as some holding companies reduce their stakes in tobacco businesses amid growing litigation, the industry is in the final rounds of a global realignment, analysts said. In Europe, top Spanish tobacco maker Tabacalera SA acquired Seita SA, the No. 1 French tobacco company, forming Altadis SA, Europe's third-largest tobacco company, in December. South Korea, China Yesterday, Gallaher Group Plc, the U.K. maker of Silk Cut and Mayfair brand cigarettes, announced its purchase of the Russian tobacco business of Vector Group Ltd. for $390.5 million to expand outside the declining U.K. market. Apart from Europe, there are opportunities in South Korea, where the government may sell as much as 20 percent of its stake in Korea Tobacco & Ginseng Corp, Japan Tobacco's Honda said. China, the world's largest tobacco consumer with 320 million smokers, is another market that promises future growth. However, that will have to wait until China joins the World Trade Organization and opens its market to foreign competition, analysts said. ``If JT is interested in expanding further into Europe now, it's probably because they are focused on profitability,'' said Tsutomu Matsuno, an analyst at Daiwa Institute of Research. In underdeveloped markets like China and Russia, where Japan Tobacco already has footholds, it's the low-priced local brands that are selling well, not the international brand cigarettes with higher profit margins, he said. Legal Obstacle In addition to making acquisitions, Japan Tobacco is expected to sell or liquidate some overseas operations as it weeds out overlaps created when it merged Japan Tobacco International and the RJR business. The company plans to quit a Spanish joint venture that came with the RJR acquisition, Honda said. Back home, Honda has to grapple with a different task, of persuading the Japanese government to sell its two-thirds stake, which thwarts Japan Tobacco's efforts to operate as an ``ordinary'' company, he said. ``The government's two-thirds stake prevents us from issuing convertible bonds, providing stock options to employees or offering stock swaps,'' he said. The timing of an additional sale of the government's stake has surfaced on the political agenda from time to time. However, in the 15 years since Japan Tobacco's first public stock sale, the government has opted to retain its stake and use price increases on cigarettes to boost tax revenue. The wants parliament to revise law that requires the government to maintain a ``temporary'' two-thirds stake and a permanent stake of at least 50 percent stake, Honda said. Japan Tobacco wants a gradual reduction in the government's stake to nothing. Changing Times The ``two-thirds'' clause was passed as an assurance to tobacco farmers and small retailers who feared losing government protection when the initial public offering took place in 1985. However, times have changed, and now ``most farmers understand that you need to be competitive to survive in times of liberalization,'' Honda said. Honda's ascension to the top post is itself a sign of change. A 35-year Japan Tobacco veteran who was lured to the company by the challenge of working in a business that spanned the spectrum from agriculture to manufacturing to retailing , Honda will be the first company president who didn't come from government bureaucracy. Japan Tobacco shares rose 42,000 yen, or 4.4 percent, to 36,000 yen in midmorning trading. The shares are up 9.0 percent for the year, compared with a 12 percent fall in the TOPIX index of all shares listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 15 23:14:18 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6CB602A30E for ; Thu, 15 Jun 2000 23:14:18 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA22785 for ; Thu, 15 Jun 2000 23:14:18 -0400 Date: Thu, 15 Jun 2000 23:14:17 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Pakistan: Paying Lip Service to Anti-Tobacco Pledge (fwd) Title: HEALTH-PAKISTAN: Paying Lip Service to Anti-Tobacco Pledge By Nadeem Iqbal ISLAMABAD, Jun 1 (IPS) - Accused by health activists of inducing children to smoke, Pakistan's state-run television is seeking approval from the highest level for continuing with cigarette advertising that it was ordered to stop six years ago. Indeed, the government's Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV), which never heeded a 1994 ruling by the Federal Ombudsman banning it from carrying tobacco spots, may actually have succeeded in this. Officials in the federal Law Ministry who did not want to be identified told IPS that President Rafiq Tarar overturned the ombudsman's ruling earlier this year. The ombudsman, which listens to citizen complaints against government agencies, had banned tobacco advertising on PTV, agreeing with a public interest petition that this could encourage children to smoke. According to the Pakistan Pediatric Association, everyday more than 1,000 children between the age of six and 16 years, pick up the smoking habit. It is estimated that more than a third of men and some four percent of women in the country are smokers. PTV, which earns a third of its revenue from tobacco advertising, had appealed to then President Farooq Leghari. Appeals against ombudsman rulings are sent by the president to the Law Ministry for its advice. A PTV spokesman told IPS that it was in the television channel's ''commercial interest'' to accept cigarette advertising. Anti- smoking campaigners too could buy time on PTV, he added. Pakistan's anti-smoking campaigners argue that PTV may be a business company, but it is owned by the government which has a responsibility to protect the health of the people. Health activists remind the government that Pakistan is also a signatory to the World Health Assembly's resolutions calling on member states to eliminate all direct and indirect advertising, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco. A Health Ministry official said that every year, the government spends some 20,000 U.S. dollars on anti-smoking messages on PTV. But cigarette companies spend millions of dollars annually on advertising. PTV officials told IPS said that the channel has, in the past, buckled under pressure from the powerful tobacco industry. They recalled how an anti-tobacco spot prepared by PTV in the early 1990s was taken off air under pressure from cigarette companies. Those campaigning to take cigarette advertising off television got a shot in the arm from a message on World Tobacco Day Wednesday by one of the country's best-known sports stars. In a statement, former national cricket team captain-turned- politician Imran Khan urged sportspersons not to accept tobacco sponsorships. ''I have witnessed from close, the power and persuasiveness of tobacco promotion,'' said Khan, who called for ''banning all kinds of advertisements, promotion and sports sponsorships'' by tobacco companies. But anti-tobacco campaigners are up against the immense clout of cigarette companies that spend millions of dollar annually to promote smoking in Pakistan. According to the prestigious advertising magazine 'Age', the Lakson Tobacco Company spent an astounding 6.4 million dollars on publicity during 1998, making it the third largest business advertiser in Pakistan that year. Anti-tobacco campaigners accuse the government of being swayed by the tobacco industry. According to independent estimates, the Pakistani government collected some 311 million dollars as tobacco tax in 1990, slightly more than a tenth of the government's total revenue earnings that year. Every year, tobacco companies sell 50 billion sticks in the country. This does not include some 10 billion cigarettes that are either spurious brands or smuggled into Pakistan. Cigarette production went up from 29.9 billion sticks a decade ago, to 48.21 billion cigarettes in 1997-98. The tobacco industry argues that it not only swells the government's coffers, but is a big employer. An estimated 80,000 people are engaged in tobacco production and marketing. Tobacco farms occupy 0.2 percent of the country's irrigated land. In 1995-96, the tobacco crop was grown on some 46,100 hectares with a total production of 79,900 tonnes. The government's concern about the health risks of tobacco use has so far produced only a barely legible mandatory warning on cigarette packs that ''smoking is injurious to health'', say the critics. They are also unhappy with the fact that the higher law courts have tended to rule in favour of the tobacco industry. In early 1997, the Lahore High Court, which is the country's second highest, had put some curbs on the tobacco industry advertising on radio and television. But six months later, the court's ruling, on a petition of the Pakistan Chest Foundation and Anti-Tuberculosis Association, was overturned by a larger bench of the same court on appeal by tobacco companies. In 1994, the country's top court had dismissed an appeal to ban cigarette advertising that was made on the ground of violation of human rights. (END/IPS/ap-he/ni/mu/00) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Jun 16 00:23:46 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B7B922A374 for ; Fri, 16 Jun 2000 00:23:46 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA23411 for ; Fri, 16 Jun 2000 00:23:46 -0400 Date: Fri, 16 Jun 2000 00:23:45 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Murky future for China's tobacco industry (fwd) FEATURE: Murky future for China's tobacco industry by Geoffrey Murray / Source: Kyodo News Service/Associated Press Publicatio= n=20 date: 2000-06-02 Source: Brown & Williamson Industry Watch, Saturday, 6/3/00 BEIJING, June 3 (Kyodo) -- By: Geoffrey Murray Despite contributing 10% of the country's tax revenue and enjoying a long-standing domestic monopoly, China's tobacco industry faces a murky future after China enters the World Trade Organization (WTO). And this is in addition to existing problems of fighting the inroads into revenues achieved by fake brands and smuggled cigarettes. According to the Economic Research Institute of the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau, China's 310 million regular smokers account for 25% of the global total. A bureau official reels off a list of impressive figures. From 1995 to last year, China purchased an annual average of 2.2 million tons of tobacco to produce 33.4 million cases of cigarettes, each case containing 50,000 cigarettes. On average, China's annual production of leaf tobacco makes up some 35% of the global total while cigarette production and sales account for 32%. In 1999, the tobacco industry contributed 98.9 billion yuan ($11.9 billion) in industrial and commercial tax, 10% of state revenue, and has been the state's top revenue generator for 13 consecutive years. The industry is massive, and it has fostered a number of large enterprises such as the Yuxi, Shanghai and Changsha cigarette factories whose technologies and equipment are world-class. So, one would imagine, all is well. Not so, according to industry analysts, who firstly point out China's long-standing restrictions on tobacco imports and exports ensure the country currently has little presence overseas. During the 1995-1999 period, for example, total imports and exports of leaf tobacco averaged only about 4.5% of domestic purchases, and total cigarette imports and exports made up 0.8% of domestic output. China's leaf tobacco exports account for just 3.5% of global exports and cigarettes for only 1.8%. Thus, development of China's tobacco industry has clearly depended on the domestic market. This does not accord with its position as the world's No. 1 tobacco producer and makes it difficult to integrate that industry into the world economy in line with current emphasis on globalization. China's WTO entry will mean all domestic tobacco products now under the national monopoly will face increasing foreign competition they are ill-equipped to meet. Last year, the government imposed a 40% import tariff and a 64% consolidated tax, which increased prices of imported leaf tobacco. This ensured the price of the domestic product was only one-third that of imports, ensuring it can be highly competitive in price terms. Much of that advantage, however, will be lost when the tariff is lowered to 17% in 2004, as the government has agreed in the negotiations to achieve WTO entry. China began to slash import duties on cigarettes in 1997 from a high of 150%. In 1999, the rate fell to 36%. Meanwhile, China's consolidated tax on imported cigarettes came to 218% in 1999, down 26 percentage points from 1997. As the government has committed itself to a large-margin cut of the average tariff on all imported commodities, a high tariff on cigarettes violates that promise. If the rate drops to the average for all imports -- 15% in 2000 -- as is widely expected, one packet of imported cigarette that now sells for 11 yuan will be 2-3 yuan cheaper after the tariff reduction, making them much more competitive on the domestic market. Most of the adverse effect of cigarette imports on the domestic market after China's WTO entry will not come from tariff reductions, but from the relaxation or even abolition of nontariff barriers. Permitted a long transition period, China's tobacco industry must gradually relax and finally abolish the quota and license controls that are now in force. Inevitably, a large influx of foreign cigarettes will result. Since there is a huge potential demand for mixed cigarettes, because foreign tobacco enterprises are strong enough to exploit the market and since foreign cigarettes are higher in quality and possibly somewhat less harmful to smokers' health, it is likely that after China joins the WTO, imported cigarettes will attract a large portion of Chinese smokers. Some analysts believe domestic cigarettes could lose 10% to 20% of their market share within five years, while net imports of leaf tobacco will also grow rapidly. Imported leaf tobacco, especially that of high quality, will account for some 10% of domestic demand. As if these problems were not enough, the mainland also seems to be losing the battle against counterfeit cigarettes, which are making deep inroads into cherished tax revenues. Seizures by the State Tobacco Monopoly (STM) are soaring, while the number of brands being copied has increased from 30 in 1997 to more than 100 last year. There are, for example, 35 different kinds of counterfeit Marlboro, China's favorite foreign brand. The abundance of fakes, along with weakening demand for the domestic product, saw sales from state plants -- the only legal producers -- fall 8.6% last year. In recent years, the STM has spent 1.57 billion yuan on fighting counterfeiters, seizing more than 5,000 cigarette-making machines, but its efforts are failing. Copyright 2000 by Kyodo News Service All Rights Reserved The information contained in the KNI news report may not be published,=20 broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written=20 authority of The Associated Press as agent for Kyodo News Service. Publication date: 2000-06-02 =A9 2000, YellowBrix, Inc. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jun 17 13:57:11 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id ED3382A060 for ; Sat, 17 Jun 2000 13:57:10 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA13637 for ; Sat, 17 Jun 2000 13:57:10 -0400 Date: Sat, 17 Jun 2000 13:57:10 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Spanish smokers launch claim against Altadis (fwd) Note date: Spanish smokers launch claim against Altadis Source: Reuters, Wednesday, 5/31/00 MADRID, May 31 (Reuters) - A group of more than 4,000 cancer sufferers launched Spain's first class action lawsuit against the country's tobacco industry on Wednesday, a lawyer involved in the suit said. The claim was directed at Altadis -- a recently merged company combining former Spanish tobacco monopoly Tabalacera and France's Seita -- its distribution unit Logista and smaller Altadis unit CITA, said Jose Angel Manoso. He is one of four lawyers representing 4,339 smokers and ex-smokers who have been treated for cancer of the larynx. The lawyers presented the case on behalf of 16 associations of larynx cancer sufferers in 16 different cities, Manoso told Reuters. The claimants were seeking recognition from the companies that tobacco causes cancer as well as payment of medical costs for physical and psychological injury, he said. Manoso did not provide estimates for how much the compensation might be worth across Spain but in Barcelona, for example, a local association representing sufferers was seeking 400 million pesetas ($2.23 million) to buy an office plus 50 million pesetas a year to cover medical costs. Stock market analysts have said the case was unlikely to succeed. Class actions of this type are unusual in Spain and compensation cases tend to drag on for many years. Even so, the publicity could be damaging for the company, they say. Shares in Altadis, the Spanish-French company formed last year by the merger of Tabacalera and Seita, dropped two percent on Wednesday to 15.68 euros. Until now there have been only a handful of unsuccessful individual claims against tobacco companies in Spain. A spokesman for Altadis said he could not comment on the case. "We are waiting to see details of the claim before we can say anything," he said. ($1=179.10 Peseta) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Jun 18 09:42:21 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id CA25B2A060 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 09:42:21 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id JAA18112 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 09:42:21 -0400 Date: Sun, 18 Jun 2000 09:42:21 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Argentina and tobacco firms in anti-smuggling move (fwd) Argentina and tobacco firms in anti-smuggling move Source: Reuters, Friday, 6/16/00 Friday June 16, 6:35 pm Eastern Time BUENOS AIRES, June 16 (Reuters) - Argentina reached an agreement with the country's tobacco companies to suspend exports to bordering nations in an effort to curb cigarette smuggling, the Economy Minister said on Friday. ``We have an agreement with the companies so that they don't export to bordering countries,'' Economy Minister Jose Luis Machinea said at a press conference. He said the move hoped to stop cigarettes exported abroad be illegally smuggled back into the country. According to Machinea, the move could increase tax collection by $200 million. Machinea did not give any more details. Argentina's tobacco market is largely controlled by units of British American Tobacco (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) and Philip Morris (NYSE:MO - news). The Argentine government receives about $2 billion in taxes from tobacco a year but industry executive have said the government also loses about $230 million a year due to cigarette smuggling. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Jun 18 09:42:44 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2AC282A060 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 09:42:44 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id JAA18137 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 09:42:43 -0400 Date: Sun, 18 Jun 2000 09:42:43 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Venezuela's Suit Over Tobacco Damages Sent to Miami Court (fwd) Venezuela's Suit Over Tobacco Damages Sent to Miami Court by William McQuillen Source: Bloomberg News, Friday, 6/16/00 Miami, June 16 (Bloomberg) -- Philip Morris Cos. and other U.S. tobacco companies will face the Venezuelan government's lawsuit over smoking related health care costs in a Miami state courthouse that has been friendly to plaintiffs. A federal judge in Washington decided the Miami-Dade Circuit Court where the suit was initially filed in January 1999 is the proper venue after all. The case had been moved to federal court in Miami, then to the federal court in Washington, before it was returned to the state court. ``Nothing about the allegations in these lawsuits implicates interests that are `uniquely federal,''' U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman wrote. Friedman also wrote the court should conduct further discovery before deciding whether to remand a similar suit filed by Bolivia, to the state court. The suit, aimed at recovering public health-care costs, sought billions of dollars in damages. Venezuela claimed it suffered economically from a decreased labor force, a lower gross national product and lost taxes. Currently, the Miami court to which the case has been returned is the scene of a class-action lawsuit against cigarette makers over smoking-related damages -- the first of its kind to go to trial. A jury already has found the companies to be responsible for the death and disease of as many as 500,000 Florida smokers and has awarded $12.7 million to three named plaintiffs. The jurors will soon deliberate on punitive damages, which some analysts have estimated could exceed $100 billion. Steven Marks, an attorney for Venezuela, said he was excited about a possible trial date ``since Big Tobacco has repeatedly refused any attempt at a reasonable resolution.'' Representatives from Philip Morris couldn't immediately be reached for comment. Philip Morris shares fell 2 1/16 to 25 1/2 in trading today; R.J. Reynolds fell 1 to 30 7/16; Loews fell 2 1/2 to 62; British American Tobacco's American depositary receipts fell 5/8 to 12; and Vector rose 1/16 to 17 3/4 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Jun 18 22:17:00 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1DC872A05E for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:17:00 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id WAA22859 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:16:59 -0400 Date: Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:16:59 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] UK: Select Committee on Health Second Report: IV EXPANDING INTO NEW MARKETS (fwd) Select Committee on Health Second Report: IV EXPANDING INTO NEW MARKETS Source: House of Commons, Wednesday, 6/14/00 201. The main focus of the Committee's inquiry has been the health effects of smoking on consumers in the United Kingdom who buy their cigarettes through the legal channels provided by tobacco companies and legitimate retailers. However, during the course of the inquiry evidence was also taken concerning the alleged activities of the tobacco companies in seeking to expand their markets through two methods: by manipulating the market in smuggled tobacco goods, both in the United Kingdom and internationally; and by increasing cigarette consumption in the developing world. Both issues are complex and require further investigation. They raise issues outside the remit of this Committee; however, both activities lead to increased cigarette consumption, especially amongst groups of consumers who otherwise would not have access to cigarettes. The increased incidence of death and illness, domestically and internationally, caused by such consumption is of direct interest to us and is why we proceed to outline the evidence presented to us and our concerns. Smuggling 202. BAT told us that 25 per cent or more of the tobacco products consumed in this country are smuggled into it.[352] Imperial's evidence stated that "Cross-border trading now comprises at least 80 per cent of handrolling tobaccos smoked in the UK, and at least 20 per cent of cigarettes".[353] As well as the millions of pounds worth of revenue lost to the Government, we were told that the tobacco companies were damaged by this trade, and that they thought it was caused by differential duty rates, with the United Kingdom having higher rates than France and other continental countries. Mr Wilson, of Gallaher told us: "I deplore smuggling and we will do whatever we can in order to bring it to an end. It is not in our interests; it is not in the interests of government; it is certainly not in the interests of the Department of Health. It is making more and more low price cigarettes available in this country. It provides no control over the access of children to cigarettes and it is a direct consequence of the enormous disparity of duty rates".[354] This approach was echoed by the representatives of Philip Morris, BAT, Imperial and R J Reynolds giving evidence alongside Mr Wilson.[355] Andorra 203. It had been claimed that one route used to smuggle cigarettes into the United Kingdom was through Andorra. In March 1999, a Sunday Times article alleged that "Andorra.... is the hub of Europe's burgeoning smuggling trade ... with no tax, no VAT and almost no excise it is...a smuggler's paradise. Between 1993 and 1997, the number of British-made cigarettes sent to Andorra ... increased 117-fold. The tiny country imported 3.1 billion cigarettes in 1997 - equivalent to every Andorran smoking seven packets a day ... [Smugglers] operate by setting up front companies in the principality or in the neighbouring countries that buy cigarettes from British manufacturers, which are exempt from duty because of their destination. They are then legally exported from Britain, stored in warehouses in Andorra and then smuggled back to the United Kingdom".[356] HM Customs and Excise subsequently told the Home Affairs Committee that in 1996 cigarette exports from the United Kingdom to Andorra had risen very rapidly, but by late 1997 they had "tailed off just as quickly", following work undertaken with the Andorran and Spanish authorities by the European Commission's anti-fraud organization.[357] 204. When it was put to Mr Wilson of Gallaher that his company's annual report had noted the increase in sales to Andorra and that he must have been aware that illegal smuggling had been occurring, he said that "of course" he was aware of that, but that he was "delighted when the authorities.... [stopped] it, but they stopped the smuggling, not us, as we were not doing anything illegal. I was very unhappy about it. I deplore smuggling." He also said that his company had helped the authorities' investigations.[358] The Amber Leaf Briefing 205. Mr Wilson's robust stance against smuggling is to be welcomed, but it is undermined by the fact that the advertising agency employed on Gallaher's behalf was basing part of its strategy for one product - Amber Leaf hand rolling tobacco - on sales to bootleggers. The "Amber Leaf Briefing" prepared by M&C Saatchi and obtained by the Committee discusses "Trial through bootleggers" and describes "Adoption by bootleggers" as a key issue.[359] In oral evidence Mr Moray MacLennan of M&C Saatchi, told us that "Everyone is concerned about smuggling because it is the chief reason for more young smoking in the last two years".[360] He went on to say that the briefing document suggested that "what is being forced to happen in certain instances, because of the lack of control of smuggling in this country ... is that the tobacco companies, yes, are targeting legal distribution methods, some of which are on the continent. They sell it through legal distribution. Because of the lack of enforcement here in terms of smuggling, a lot of that finds its way back into this country through illegal distribution ... I think that really the onus is on the Government not the tobacco manufacturers".[361] 206. Mr Wilson told us that "The tragedy and the extraordinary thing about this whole situation is that we are here faced in the United Kingdom with the fact that four out of every five packets of hand rolling tobacco that are consumed in this country are sourced from outside this country. That is 80 per cent of the market sourced from outside the United Kingdom, predominantly Belgium and Holland. This is a direct consequence of the enormously high duty attaching to hand rolling tobacco here compared with Belgium. I think it is five times higher in this country than it is in Belgium. As a consequence, a pouch of hand rolling tobacco in this country which costs close to eight pounds will be available in Belgium for two pounds. That has led to a situation where 80 per cent of the market is sourced from outside this country and it leads to the ridiculous situation where the only way that you can develop distribution for a brand in this country is by making it available in Belgium".[362] 207. It seems that although Mr Wilson thinks it is a "tragedy" that hand rolling tobacco is smuggled into the country, his company works on the basis that it is prepared to sell to markets on the continent, aware of the knowledge that the goods will be smuggled back into this country; indeed not only are they aware, but their advertisers appear to deliberately frame their strategy to appeal to the criminals undertaking the smuggling. Gallaher's stance that they deplore smuggling appears to be contradicted by their advertising which seems to want to court those doing the smuggling. Gallaher noted in its evidence to us that smuggled tobacco gives children access to tobacco. If they genuinely believe that this and the other problems associated with smuggled tobacco are a "tragedy", they should make sure that all their business practices and those of their advertisers work against the illegal trade rather than encourage it. Allegations regarding BAT and smuggling 208. During our inquiry serious allegations concerning BAT's involvement in international smuggling operations were made in the Guardian newspaper. While it was not claimed that BAT carried out the smuggling itself, it stated that "British American Tobacco condoned tax evasion and exploited the smuggling of billions of cigarettes in a global effort to boost sales and lure generations of new smokers".[363] 209. The article was based on research undertaken by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, based in Washington DC. This research focused on the papers made public as a result of BAT's legal settlement of 1998, and which are now kept at BAT's depository in Guildford, which the Committee visited. The papers concerning smuggling are mainly from the early 1990s. The documents end in 1995. An additional memorandum received from ASH outlined the background to the smuggling claims, and gave examples of the original BAT documents on which the claims were founded. It stated that, against a "pitched battle" with Philip Morris for control of the worldwide cigarette market, evidence in the depository suggested that "manipulation and control of cigarette smuggling is an integral part of company business and expansion. The documents provide compelling evidence to suggest illegal trade is co-ordinated and promoted at the very highest level of the company".[364] 210. ASH's evidence further stated that a third of all internationally traded cigarettes (335 billion in 1996) are smuggled, thereby evading taxes and lowering the black market price. This stimulated demand, with knock-on health effects. They alleged that "cigarettes legitimately move through the 'in-transit' regime without bearing tax until they reach the final end market at which point tax is payable. Most smuggling involves the cigarettes moving out of the untaxed distribution chain and entering the final end market illegally - often through a third country. This can happen by legal export followed by illegal re-import or cigarettes in transit may be diverted from the legal to the illegal distribution chain".[365] 211. ASH claimed that while BAT's internal documents did not refer directly to smuggled goods, the following terms were used as euphemisms: DNP (Duty Not Paid); Transit; or GT (General Trade).[366] A background piece in the Guardian, also published on 31 January, quoted Lee Thompson, an RJR senior sales manager who pleaded guilty in 1999 to money-laundering charges, as saying that DNP is "an industry-wide term... It's essentially a long-winded term used by senior folks when they're talking around the topic of smuggling." Thompson was quoted as saying that "re-entry", "parallel market" and "transit" were similar euphemisms.[367] ASH's evidence quoted a number of BAT documents which it claimed showed the ways in which these euphemisms were used, for example: - "In 1993, it is estimated that nearly 6% of the total world cigarette sales of 5.4 trillion were DNP sales ... A key issue for BAT is to ensure that the Group's system-wide objectives and performance are given the necessary priority through the active and effective management of such business".[368] - "We will be consulting here on the ethical side of whether we should encourage or ignore the DNP segment. You know my view is that it is part of your market and to have it exploited by others is just not acceptable".[369] - "I am advised by Souza Cruz [BAT subsidiary] that the BAT Industries Chairman has endorsed the approach that the Brazilian operating Group increase its share of the Argentinian market via DNP".[370] The claims that the terms 'DNP' 'Transit' and 'GT' were euphemisms for smuggling were vigorously denied by BAT (see below, paragraph 219). 212. ASH also claimed that BAT engaged in 'umbrella operations' whereby a small trade in legitimate, duty paid exports could justify a large-scale marketing campaign to bolster sales in the much larger DNP sector. They claimed that the following extract provided evidence of such operations: - "It is recommended that BAT operate under "umbrella" operations. A small volume of Duty Paid exports would permit advertising and merchandising support in order to establish the brands for the medium/long term with the market being supplied initially primarily through the DNP channel".[371] The author of the three documents quoted above, Keith Dunt, was at that time BAT's regional director for Latin America. He now sits on BAT's board as finance director. 213. ASH claimed that the evidence demonstrated that BAT did not merely acknowledge the existence of smuggled cigarettes, but that it deliberately stimulated the market, not just by 'umbrella operations', but by: - treating smuggling routes as near-normal distribution channels; - establishing relations with intermediaries that directly or indirectly supplied smugglers; - controlling the price and supply of smuggled cigarettes; - placing warehouses and marketing personnel near borders; - organising complicated movements of goods to create difficulties in tracing the products; - targeting routes with weak or corrupt official controls.[372] 214. Some of the most serious allegations made concerned Colombia. The Guardian reported that "BAT records show that billions of cigarettes were shipped from BAT subsidiaries in the US, Venezuela and Brazil to distributors in the free trade zone of Aruba, an island in the Caribbean just off the coast of Colombia".[373] It was claimed that they were then moved to Maicao or to Turbo - two special customs zones - and from there that they were smuggled into the country's black market. Two BAT subsidiaries supply Colombia - Souza Cruz and Cigarrera Bigott. A fax from Keith Dunt to Laux, of Cigarerra Bigott in April 1992 stated that "I do need to clearly understand the answers to the following: - can we pursue the approach noted in your last strategy submission, ie continuing with DP and DNP in parallel and be seen as a clean and ethical company at the same time - This "ethical correctness" would be achieved via letters to Government...etc - can we really do this and continue DNP... A final point I must stress to you is that it is a key, key objective for you to achieve your company plan quoted total SOM [Share of Market] of 70.3%. This is an absolute focus for you."[374] 215. The Guardian stated that "in 1993 corporate records show that BAT subsidiaries imported a total of 3.98bn cigarettes into Colombia. However, 3.89bn of those cigarettes entered as duty not paid goods." However, it further stated that "since the mid 1990s legal imports of cigarettes have risen exponentially in Colombia. Official figures show that while only $4.6m in cigarette imports were registered in 1994, that number had leapt to $39.9m by November 1999. In August 1999 BAT signed a letter of commitment with the customs and tax department promising "....that if they have any evidence that distributors to whom they sell their products are, in turn, selling to smugglers, they will stop selling to those distributors." It also stated that "21 state governors and the mayor of Bogota have engaged American lawyers to prepare lawsuits in the US against British American Tobacco and Phillip Morris". It quoted Jose Manuel Arias Carrizosa, executive director of the federation of Colombian governors as saying that they were seeking "an indemnification for damages caused through contraband of cigarettes into the country ... We think there are two markets, one legitimate that pays its duties and taxes, and the other much bigger, illegal. That cannot be happening without the knowledge of the producing companies".[375] 216. The Guardian published a response to the allegations by Kenneth Clarke MP, BAT's deputy chairman, on 3 February. It stated that "BAT is a good corporate citizen which maintains high ethical standards. We reject allegations that we have 'condoned tax evasion and exploited smuggling'. We seek to work with governments around the world to find solutions to the problem of smuggling ... It is caused by high tax levels, different levels of tax on two sides of a border and the imposition of notional trade barriers to legal imports." It went on to state that "where governments are not prepared to address the underlying causes of the problem, businesses such as ours who are engaged in international trade are faced with a dilemma. If the demand for our brands is not met, consumers will either switch to our competitors' brands or there will be the kind of dramatic growth in counterfeit products that we have recently seen in our Asian markets. Where any government is unwilling to act or their efforts are unsuccessful, we act, completely within the law, on the basis that our brands will be available alongside those of our competitors in the smuggled as well as the legitimate market". The article concluded by stating that "When governments and health campaigners are prepared to accept policies to reduce and control smuggling, we will always welcome such policies and co-operate with them".[376] 217. We thought that the allegations made against BAT were serious enough to merit further questioning of the company, and so we invited Mr Broughton and Mr Clarke to give evidence on its behalf, alongside ASH and Mr Duncan Campbell, one of the authors of the Guardian articles. Dismissing the general allegations about BAT's involvement with smuggling, Mr Broughton said that the documents cited demonstrated that BAT was aware that smuggling went on, but that it was not involved with that smuggling in the way suggested by ASH and Mr Campbell. He told the Committee that "an assumption seems to be being made by Mr Campbell that knowledge of what happens in a market is a criminal offence. I would say to you that we do understand pretty well what happens in various markets ... You would expect that of a consumer goods company like British American Tobacco. So knowing what happens in a market....and knowing [that there are] some smuggled goods in there is hardly a surprise ... Knowledge of what is happening in a market is not, as far as I have understood, a criminal offence".[377] Mr Broughton also made the point that in some markets the distribution chain was extremely complex, the inference being that it was difficult to trace the movement of goods from beginning to end of that chain.[378] 218. Mr Kenneth Clarke MP, the Deputy Chairman of British American Tobacco, supported Mr Broughton's assertion that, while it was widely known that smuggling occurred, no evidence had been produced which proved that BAT was the "originator, the organiser, [or] a participant in that smuggling". Indeed, he went on to say that BAT was "the victim of smuggling ... We seek to minimise smuggling".[379] Mr Clarke later said that "I satisfied myself that [BAT] is a company of integrity. It is an extremely good corporate citizen".[380] 219. Relating to terminology , Mr Broughton denied that terms such as 'DNP', 'general trade', or 'transit' were "specifically euphemisms for 'smuggled'. That is not to say that there are not times where DNP would be the same as smuggled in one market".[381] Mr Broughton said that to look at individual documents, or to quote small parts of individual documents was to risk taking them out of context.[382] Mr Clarke went further: he told the Committee that "any case which depends on taking sentences out of eight million pages ... is absurd".[383] 220. Given the severity of the charges made against them, and their robustness in denying them, the Committee asked whether BAT were intending to take legal action against the Guardian. Mr Clarke said that "we did not contemplate legal action, there has been no question of legal action"[384] and that to bring such action would give the investigative journalists involved credibility.[385] 221. Mr Bates of ASH said that the concerns raised merited an investigation into BAT's conduct by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). Asked whether he would welcome such an inquiry, Mr Broughton said he would not, but that the appropriate thing would be to have BAT's own audit committee, chaired by Mr Rupert Pennant-Rea, a non-executive director, to look into the allegations and to "review all of our current trading practices and ensure they are all entirely legal and that we are entirely comfortable with those practices and that there are no conspiracies going on between people within the company, the company, our distributors and other people".[386] Mr Bates subsequently called this an "important and welcome development".[387] 222. The allegations made against BAT in regard to smuggling are extremely serious and merit careful investigation. This Committee is not the appropriate body to conduct such investigations and would be going beyond its remit were it to do so. We welcome the fact that BAT's audit committee will look into this matter and we will be calling for its findings when they are available. But this is not enough. The allegations need to be looked at independently and we therefore call on the DTI to investigate them. If they prove to be substantiated, the case for criminal proceedings against BAT should be considered; if they prove to be false, then those perpetrating them should publicly apologise to BAT for what will have amounted to a malicious slur on the company's name. Expanding markets in developing countries 223. The Government's tobacco White Paper notes that there are over a billion smokers across the world, with nearly one third of those in China. It states that worldwide deaths from smoking - currently standing at 3 million annually - will rise to 10 million in about 30 years' time. It further notes that "smoking is fast increasing in third world countries and in Eastern Europe ... Many of the countries in which smoking is increasing fast have limited regulation of tobacco or health education and health care systems which are ill-equipped to handle the consequences. In parts of Africa tobacco companies are using advertising and marketing campaigns, sponsorship of events and price wars to promote cut-priced cigarettes".[388] 224. The World Health Organisation (WHO) told us that "we cannot simply stand by and count the dead. Internationally, the WHO is taking the lead in the United Nations in heading the development of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. The Convention would address transnational aspects of tobacco control",[389] although the WHO makes it clear that there will still be a need for national and regional action. Dr Derek Yach told us that while the incidence of smoking in western countries was declining, smoking prevalence was rapidly increasing elsewhere. He said that over the past 20 years there had been a decline of "about 1.6 per cent of adult consumption per capita per year - compared to increases ... of 8 per cent per year for 20 years in China, 6.8 per cent in Indonesia, almost 5 per cent in Syria ... By the 2020s we estimate that there will be around 10 million deaths [caused by smoking] and 70 per cent of those will occur in developing countries ...which means we are going to face one of the largest, if not the largest, public health challenges in the 2020s and 2030s ... This eclipses the sum total of deaths from malaria and tuberculosis and many other causes of deaths worldwide".[390] 225. The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control mentioned by Dr Yach is a new legal instrument that will circumscribe the global spread of tobacco and tobacco products. The Framework Convention will establish legal parameters; separate protocols will make up the substantive part of the agreement. It is expected that the Convention and possible related protocols should be adopted by the World Health Assembly no later than May 2003. The Government has welcomed the Framework Convention and its White Paper states that "we will do everything we can to help, drawing on our experience of tackling tobacco, and will be discussing with the WHO how we can most effectively be involved in this landmark initiative".[391] 226. Given the huge scale of the problem, it is alarming to note the reaction of some tobacco companies to the WHO's actions. Mr Broughton of BAT told his company's AGM on 29 April 1999 that "driven by the western agenda, [WHO's] priorities are different from those of health ministers in the developing world, for whom issues like malnutrition, lack of sanitation, infant mortality and AIDS loom much larger ... Regrettably, the WHO has got the smoking issue completely out of proportion with its Tobacco Free Initiative ... Indeed the WHO seems to have been hijacked by zealots in its desire to set itself up as some sort of 'super-nanny'."[392] This approach seems to belie the claim made in BAT's written evidence to the Committee that it seeks "to co-operate with the Government and public health authorities to the fullest extent reasonably possible. The reason for this is simple. We take the view that the most effective way of developing rational smoking and health policies is for the industry, the Government and public health bodies to work with each other and to engage in a free and frank exchange of views".[393] 227. The idea that developing countries were uninterested in tobacco control was rebutted by Dr Yach. He said that the WHO represented the will of its 192 member states and that "there is virtually no other area of public health where there has been so much international consensus." He went on to state that, although it was sometimes said that African ministers accorded tobacco control a low priority, at a conference of African health ministers held in October 1999, a range of tobacco control options were discussed and that "in their discussions on tobacco they acknowledged the need for action on all the areas being discussed in western countries ... This was a relatively short meeting with a massive public health agenda. They selected to highlight the importance of tobacco as a public health problem because they know that somewhere down the line they are going to face the problem and addressing it early and vigorously is going to save enormous public resources. The truth is that wherever we go there is not a single country where increasingly the ministries of health and the ministries of finance are not beginning to recognise that tobacco control makes sound public health sense and sound economic sense".[394] 228. Mr Broughton's comments were further undermined by Zhang Wenkang, Minister for Public Health, People's Republic of China, who stated in correspondence to the Committee that "The Ministry of Health of China has recognized that the effect of tobacco on health is an important public health issue. In order to protect the health of the public, Chinese governments at all levels have been actively facilitating the tobacco control programme in the last twenty years .. We think that tobacco control ... [requires the] joint efforts of all countries in the world. Therefore, we support the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control of the World Health Organisation".[395] 229. There are also concerns that the tobacco industry's negative attitude towards the WHO's tobacco control objectives might go beyond words to deeds. Dr Yach quoted a senior Philip Morris official speaking at a Philip Morris sponsored conference in 1988, where there were also representatives from other tobacco companies, as saying that the WHO "'has an extraordinary influence on government and consumers and we must find a way to defuse this and reorientate the activities to their prescribed mandate'". Dr Yach also said that a document emerging from the conference "discussed 'countermeasures designed to contain, neutralise, reorientate =2E.. WHO' and stated 'the necessary resources should be allocated to stop WHO in their tracks'".[396] Such was the level of concern felt by the WHO at the activities of the tobacco industry, that it established an inquiry into "the way in which WHO and the UN systems have had their policies thwarted by the industry ... This is unprecedented ..." The World Bank has also joined the inquiry and has nominated a top anti-corruption expert to assist the inquiry.[397] 230. We welcome the Framework Convention proposed by the World Health Organisation and the Government's support for it. However, any success will be dependent on a responsible approach being taken by the tobacco companies. Depressingly, there is little sign of that in the cheap jibes made at the WHO's expense by BAT. To call an organisation committed to improving global health 'zealots' and a 'super-nanny' because of its concern about the 10 million deaths which will be caused by tobacco each year by the late 2020s seems to us bizarre. We hope that the other companies - and, belatedly, BAT - will work constructively with the WHO. On a national level, we recommend that the Government requires the British tobacco companies to provide an annual summary of the action they have taken to co-operate with the WHO, to which the WHO should be invited to respond. If the action taken by the companies is not satisfactory, further action, including legislative and fiscal approaches, should be considered. It would be a hollow victory if, as a result of more stringent action taken on tobacco control in the developed world, smoking related deaths were merely exported to the world's poorer nations. 352 Q1376. Back 353 Ev., p.223. Back 354 Q1064. Back 355 QQ1065-66. Back 356 Sunday Times, 'Bootleg Britain', 7.3.99, p.12. Back 357 Home Affairs Committee, Minutes of Evidence, 25 May 1999, The Work of HM Customs & Excise: Matters Relating to Crime, HC478, QQ131- 32. Back 358 QQ1059-1060. Back 359 Ev. p.309. Back 360 Q775. Back 361 QQ776-77. Back 362 Q1054. Back 363 The Guardian, 31.1.2000, p.1. Back 364 Ev., pp.429-30. Back 365 Ev., pp.430-31. Back 366 Ev., pp.431-32. Back 367 The Guardian, 31.1.2000, p2. Back 368 BAT Co Global Five-year Plan 1994-1998, quoted in Ev., p.433. Back 369 Letter from Keith Dunt (now BAT's Finance Director), to 'Grant' [of Nobleza Piccardo, a BAT subsidiary], 24 June 1992, quoted in Ev., p.432. Back 370 Memo from Keith Dunt to Ulrich Hester, Barry Bramley [Chairman, BAT Co Industries], Pilbeam, Castro, quoted in Ev., p.432. Back 371 Note from Keith Dunt to Barry Bramley (BAT), 6 September 1992, quoted in Ev., p.436. Back 372 Ev., p.429. Back 373 The Guardian, 31.1.2000, p2. Back 374 TB 18A, p.6, not published. Back 375 The Guardian, 31.1.2000, p2. Back 376 The Guardian, 3.2.2000, p.12. Back 377 Q1361. Back 378 Q1361. Back 379 Q1369. Back 380 Q1384. Back 381 Q1361. Back 382 Q1387. Back 383 Q1400. Back 384 Q1367. Back 385 Q1372. Back 386 Q1509. Back 387 Ev., p.483. Back 388 Smoking Kills, p.75. Back 389 Ev., p.97. Back 390 Q283. Back 391 Smoking Kills, p.79. Back 392 Speech by Mr Broughton at the BAT Annual General Meeting on 29 April 1999 (TB 28G, not published). Back 393 Ev., p.130. Back 394 Q286. Back 395 Amongst the measures adopted by the Chinese Government are: bans and restrictions on advertising; restrictions on smoking in public places; and a Tobacco Free Schools initiative. See Ev., p.631. Back 396 Q269. Back 397 Q269. Back =A9 Parliamentary copyright 2000 Prepared 14 June 2000 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Jun 18 22:18:13 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 478B42A060 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:18:13 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id WAA22902 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:18:13 -0400 Date: Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:18:12 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] UK: Select Committee on Health Second Report: SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS (fwd) Select Committee on Health Second Report: SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS AND=20 RECOMMENDATIONS Source: House of Commons, Wednesday, 6/14/00 (a)We very much welcome the Government's firm commitment to action to combat smoking in its White Paper Smoking Kills. We do not, however, regard the targets they have set as sufficiently challenging to justify the Department of Health's rhetoric that it is for the first time tackling smoking seriously. The target trends for adult smoking are no more than would be expected extrapolating from the general trends since the 1970s. We believe that the DoH should set much tougher targets and take such measures as are open to it to achieve those targets (paragraph 19). (b)The Royal College of Physcians (RCP) drew the following main conclusion: "Cigarette smoking should be understood as a manifestation of nicotine addiction ... the extent to which smokers are addicted to nicotine is comparable with addiction to 'hard' drugs such as heroin and cocaine." We endorse this conclusion, which underlies many of the recommendations in our report and is, we believe, of fundamental importance to policy makers in the UK and elsewhere (paragraph 33). (c)Bearing in mind that asthma causes 1,400 death per year, we do not regard asthma attacks as merely unpleasant and believe that policy goals related to Environmental Tobacco Smoke must take account of the real health risks it poses (paragraph 42). (d)We find it inherently unsatisfactory that the trade association of the tobacco companies was unable to comment on the research activities of its predecessor body. It seems to us that this is symptomatic of a more general failure by the industry as a whole to take responsibility for the effect of its activities (paragraph 52). We also find extremely unconvincing the explanation that the Harrogate research stopped simply because analytical techniques improved to such an extent that researchers were able to analyse ever-smaller components (paragraph 53). (e)Tobacco companies are commercial enterprises whose imperatives have nothing in common with the public health community. Their past records of denial and obfuscation militate against any claims they may make towards scientific objectivity. We find ourselves most strongly agreeing with the viewpoint expressed by Dr Axel Gietz, Vice President of R J Reynolds Tobacco (UK) Limited: "we are aware that we do produce and market a very controversial product ... what we do in terms of product development ... is much more important than anything we say". We believe it is for public health authorities to measure the risks of smoking and to set appropriate regulatory parameters (paragraph 55). (f)The current regulation applying to tobacco products is entirely inadequate (paragraph 59). We take the view that if the Government fails to take the sort of direct regulatory action we recommend below as a consequence of its anxiety not to be seen to be 'nannying', it would be failing in its responsibilities (paragraph 61). (g)We believe that the Department should urgently commission comprehensive research relating to the age at which children start smoking, the reasons they begin, continue and quit smoking, the relationship between pack size and consumption by children, and the sources from which children obtain cigarettes. We believe that the Tobacco Regulatory Authority we propose below at paragraph 189 would be the appropriate body to commission and analyse such research (paragraph 63). (h)We believe that a much more widespread use of proof of age cards would reduce the incidence of retailers unwittingly selling tobacco products to children. We think it would be helpful if the Government could approve those photo-identity proof of age cards it regards as reliable and useful. Such cards could then bear an appropriate marking to indicate that they belonged to a Government approved scheme (paragraph 70). (i)Detection of those illegally selling tobacco to youngsters is the job of trading standards officers, and we believe they need to be given clear instructions, definite targets and dedicated resources. They should also be made accountable for the success of their operations and ensuring shopkeeper compliance (paragraph 71). (j)We believe it is deplorable that so many local authorities have failed in their responsibilities to deter under age tobacco sales. Those not undertaking regular enforcement procedures should be named and shamed (paragraph 72). (k)We regret the fact that the Scottish Office has not modified its guidance [on the use of children in test purchase cases], and call on the Secretary of State to make appropriate representations to achieve a uniformity of approach towards tackling sales of tobacco products to children (paragraph 73). (l)The policy failure on youth access to tobacco results from both inadvertent and deliberate law breaking. This was recognized in the White Paper, which promised to draw up an enforcement protocol with local authorities to tackle both issues. We welcome this - the terms of the Children and Young Persons (Protection from Tobacco) Act need to be greatly strengthened - but we feel that the protocol will need to be strongly worded, and backed by both adequate resources and severe penalties for non-compliance, if it is to have any effect. We also note that, despite "lengthy discussions" having taken place, no such protocol has yet been agreed. With this in mind, it is our view that Government cannot simply shift the blame for lack of enforcement on to local authorities, trading standards officers and magistrates. It is essential that the Government issues clear guidelines and quickly develops effective protocols to ensure more test purchases take place and more convictions are secured. (Paragraph 74). (m)We recommend that magistrates should be actively encouraged to pass deterrent sentences by means of guidance from central Government (paragraph 75). (n)One possible way to enhance deterrence, would be to introduce a system of 'negative licensing'. Rather than requiring all retailers to be licensed, this would simply forbid sale by those who have infringed the law. We believe that this would act as a potentially powerful deterrent. It would also be appealingly appropriate in that the punishment would fit the crime - "shopkeepers who sell to children can't be trusted to retail tobacco responsibly, therefore should not be permitted to do it at all". Such a system would also, we believe, act as an incentive for retailers and those aged 16 and over to involve themselves in proof of age schemes. However, perhaps the most attractive feature of negative licensing is that it would not require a new or extensive bureaucracy to support it. Existing local licensing boards could implement it as and when convictions occur. Alternatively, the Department might wish to assess the advantages of introducing a comprehensive licensing system for all retailers of tobacco, which would give consistency with the arrangements for the sale of alcohol (paragraph 76). (o)We believe that the measures set out in this and the previous section will bring about significant reductions in the numbers taking up smoking. The tobacco industry's public stance on children's smoking is explicit: they see tobacco use as an adult activity, do not endorse underage sales and, and in some cases support an increase of the legal age to 18. On the other hand, as noted above, most smokers start as children and complete prevention of child access to the product would have serious repercussions for their profits. The companies' response to the proposals made here will help establish where their priorities really lie (paragraph 77). (p)The evidence we have reviewed from the advertising agencies leads us to conclude that, once more, voluntary agreements have served the industry well and the public badly. Regulations have been seen as hurdles to be overcome or side-stepped; legislation banning advertising as a challenge, a policy to be systematically undermined by whatever means possible. We recommend that any future regulation of marketing should be statutory, and overseen by an independent and powerful regulatory body which has the consumer's interest at heart, such as the Tobacco Regulatory Authority which we propose below at paragraph 189 (paragraph 88). (q)Most of the tobacco companies have sought to challenge the Government's commitment to introduce an advertising ban in advance of the date for implementation set by the EU directive. The argument they have repeatedly advanced is that tobacco advertising does not increase consumption, it merely persuades smokers to switch brands. However, looking through the documents that the agencies themselves produced, this view is completely discredited (paragraph 89). (r)Our review of the copious evidence from the advertising agencies, which includes substantial quantities of market research, leads us to conclude that the advertising agencies have connived in promoting tobacco consumption, have shamelessly exploited smoking as an aspirational pursuit in ways which inevitably make it attractive to children, and have attempted to use their creative talents to undermine Government policy and evade regulation. We welcome the Government's commitment to end all forms of tobacco advertising and sponsorship (paragraph 99). (s)In our view, such connotations [associations between smoking and the 'glamour' of Formula 1 in the advertising papers we examined] blatantly subvert the attempts of successive Governments to dissociate smoking from aspiration and glamour. They also expose as pusillanimous the decision of the present Government to agree to the exemption for Formula One from the EU Directive banning advertising and sponsorship until 2006 (paragraph 102). (t)We share Mr Mosley's view that the EU's tobacco subsidy undermines its anti-tobacco health promotion strategy, a point we touch on elsewhere. We also regard it as unacceptable that the majority of health ministers [in each of the countries where Grand Prix are held] questioned have not had the courtesy to reply to an invitation to contribute on a crucial health issue put to them by a major sporting body [the FIA]. We recommend that the Department of Health writes to each its counterparts in those countries which have and have not replied, to ascertain the nature of the replies given and the factors underlying the failure to reply by 10 governments. We would like to be provided with copies of this correspondence (paragraph 106). (u)We see no reason why sponsorship has been treated more leniently than advertising in the White Paper, and we call on the Government to remove tobacco sponsorship in general, and that pertaining to Formula One in particular, as soon as is legally possible. If more evidence is needed to support this move, Formula One Management's offer, in response to an inquiry we made, to fund independent research should be accepted and supervised by the Tobacco Regulatory Authority which we propose below (paragraph 108). (v)We believe that the extraordinarily dangerous nature of the product being marketed means that tobacco companies cannot expect to operate in the same commercial environment as most other industries. We are concerned that tobacco manufacturers continue to think of cigarette packs as being a way either of exploiting the aspirational nature of their products or conveying implied health messages. Notwithstanding the potential restrictions caused by EU single market legislation we believe that the advantages and disadvantages of introducing generic or plain packaging for all tobacco products should be carefully assessed by the Tobacco Regulatory Authority we propose below (paragraph 189). Such packaging would be of a standard colour with the brand name in a standard type face. Beyond this, the only other permitted information would be health warnings and consumer information about product contents (paragraph 112). (w)Other promotional techniques, such as direct marketing, point of sale displays, brand stretching (the branding of non-tobacco products such as clothing with tobacco marques) have also received less attention than advertising. We believe that the proposed Tobacco Regulatory Authority (see below) should monitor these activities, check compliance with current controls and propose new ones whenever there is a danger that a particular activity will encourage consumption. Innovative promotional efforts are also a threat, especially on the internet, and will, we believe, require careful monitoring (paragraph 113). (x)Most fundamental of all, every effort needs to be made by both the Government and the tobacco companies to limit the appeal of tobacco brands to young and new smokers. As a start, we believe the Government should compile and publish information on those brands that have particular appeal amongst children. Such data could inform the operation of the proposed Tobacco Regulatory Authority, both in terms of its analysis of any ongoing marketing activity and its assessment of additives (paragraph 114). (y)In our view, voluntary agreement on passive smoking cannot yet be said to be really delivering smoke-free environments to all those who want them. The very real improvements of recent years probably owe more to market forces than to any action by Government. Indeed, we believe that market forces will continue to be a significant driver for change in this area. On balance, we accept that in the leisure sector, voluntary codes may offer the best way forward. We would hope, however, that these yield much more effective action on the part of the hospitality sector than has been the case to date. In this respect, we believe it is essential that the Government sets out a strict timetable for the targets to measure performance cited in its White Paper. Certainly, if the latest agreements do not significantly improve the situation we think the Government will have to consider what more stringent actions it could take. In respect of the workplace, we believe that the proposed Health and Safety Commission Code of Practice offers a good way forward (paragraph 121). (z)We believe that even greater efforts need to be made throughout the primary care teams to educate adults on the dangers their smoking poses to children (paragraph 121). (aa)We believe that a tobacco regulatory authority such as that we propose below in paragraph 189, with access to high quality scientific advice, would be the appropriate body to advise the Government on the evidence as to the health risks of passive smoking, possible measures to reduce its impact and even the potential benefits of innovative products which might reduce the amount of sidestream smoke which cigarettes emit (paragraph 123). (bb)Tobacco companies should produce the least harmful product possible. We are totally unconvinced that Imperial Tobacco can be committed to producing such a product while its public stance is to refuse to accept that cigarettes are intrinsically unsafe (paragraph 125). (cc)Three charges are made against the tar reduction strategy. The first - that, mainly because of compensatory smoking, it is simply ineffective in making cigarettes less harmful - is disputed amongst experts. Although the evidence about compensatory smoking is convincing, it is difficult to reconcile this with the fact that deaths from smoking have fallen faster than can otherwise be accounted for during the period in which the policy was enacted. This latter point leads us to support the further reduction in tar levels in the proposed EU Directive and the further provisions made in the Directive to review the effectiveness of the tar reduction programme based on the best evidence available. We further recommend that the Tobacco Regulatory Authority which we want to see established should, as a high priority, examine the factors responsible for the reductions in death rates from smoking, with a view to establishing a firmer basis for regulating cigarettes in the future (paragraph 137). (dd)The two further charges are that actual or implied claims about beneficial health effects of low-tar cigarettes have lessened the incentive of people to give up smoking entirely; and that it has distracted from the other, potentially much more effective, regulatory options available. We take these two charges very seriously. In order to tackle the first, we recommend that the terms 'light', 'mild' 'ultra', 'low tar' and 'low nicotine' be proscribed by law in cigarette branding and marketing (by EU Directive, or by primary legislation in the United Kingdom). To tackle the second charge we recommend that the Tobacco Regulatory Authority which we propose at paragraph 189 be able to examine, propose and enforce innovative and effective alternative regulatory regimes. It is clear that a regulatory approach based on reducing nominal tar yields alone is inadequate (paragraph 138). (ee)Given that, because of their addiction, people will demand cigarettes for the foreseeable future, it is clearly preferable that they smoke 'safer' cigarettes. We therefore hope that such products will be developed. We note the argument put forward by some of the companies that the successful marketing of such products is stymied by the regulatory framework. We recommend that the new Tobacco Regulatory Authority which we want to see established should have powers to review and approve applications from companies to market such products in a way which conveys their potential benefits compared to normal cigarettes, as long as full information about the product is provided and assessed by an independent panel of experts (appointed by the Authority), a process which should be funded - via a charge by the Authority - by the company applying. There should then be regular and rigorous reviews of the product and its effects to ensure that it deserves to retain its preferential marketing status. We would expect that status to be very narrowly defined and its promulgation strictly enforced by the Authority (paragraph 146). (ff)We believe responsibility for licensing additives permitted for use in tobacco products sold in the UK should be passed to the Tobacco Regulatory Authority we propose below. We further believe that this body should take account of the overall public health impact of the inclusion of an additive in determining whether or not it should be permitted for use in tobacco products (paragraph 154). (gg)We think that the position of the tobacco companies in withholding information on the additives their cigarettes contain is completely untenable. Consumers have a right to know what they are smoking, including the percentage of the product such additives form, and we believe that this information should be available on every packet. We believe the companies should immediately take steps to ensure this is done and that the Secretary of State should introduce measures to make such labelling a mandatory requirement for cigarettes sold or manufactured in the UK (paragraph 158). (hh)We do not believe it would be appropriate for health policy to be shaped by the activities of criminal gangs. With this in mind we welcome the additional funding the Treasury is providing to boost Customs and Excise in their efforts to secure compliance with the law [in respect of smuggling of tobacco products into the UK] (paragraph 164). (ii)We welcome the fact that the Government has launched its ambitious recent [tobacco education] campaign. We are not, however, convinced that the Government has enough knowledge of the reasons why people smoke to make such a campaign fully effective (paragraph 165). (jj)We would draw the attention of health education authorities to the materials we have uncovered from the advertising agencies relating to the motivations of young and adult smokers. We believe that if this material were to be analysed carefully it could yield important information which could be used to dissuade people from smoking (paragraph 169). (kk)We think it important that the information provided by public health authorities on cigarette packets, and given out in public health campaigns (in schools, workplaces, via primary care or through other media) adopts a greater variety of messages and conveys information not yet addressed in the health warnings. We believe that the general assertions that "smoking causes heart disease" or "smoking causes lung cancer", whilst having a place in an overall educational strategy, are not in themselves sufficient (paragraph 170). (ll)We believe that the Department of Health should instigate a much more comprehensive and sophisticated educational programme. From our meetings with public health groups in America we think it is vital that young people should themselves be actively involved in dissuading their peers from smoking (paragraph 172). (mm)We believe that messages for young people, who are often not impressed by arguments that their life will be shortened by smoking since death for them seems such a distant prospect, should range from information on the way smoking makes them less desirable socially to the ways in which tobacco makes poor people poorer. For example, the fact that smoking can damage skin and teeth should be made clear. There is also evidence that male potency can be damaged by smoking. This is a particularly strong message for young men and we recommend that the Government and health authorities make greater use of it when communicating the dangers of smoking. We further recommend that this message be included as one of the health warnings on packs (paragraph 172). (nn)So far as adults are concerned, it is our view that the Department should take account of the fact that smoking is skewed towards those in poorer and less well educated households, as the advertising agencies do in many of their campaigns. We believe that the Department should examine the ways in which the agencies have marketed their advertising to this sector and copy some of their most successful strategies. We think it important that public health authorities, as well as conveying the risk of smoking attempt to convey the magnitude of the risks of smoking, in terms of stressing, for example, the numbers of years of life lost by an average smoker or the fact that smoking kills half of all lifelong smokers, and half of those before the age of 69. We think it important that adults should be much more aware of the benefits of quitting in respect of the surprisingly rapid health gains, not least in terms of the speedy improvement in likely life-expectancy that quitting yields. (Paragraph 173). (oo)We believe it is essential that the packet contains clear and effective labelling to the effect that tobacco products are drug-delivery devices creating addiction through nicotine (paragraph 174). (pp)We also believe that packs should have a contact number to gain access to NHS smoking cessation advice and programmes, (paragraph 174). (qq)Messages should appear on all packs, stating the addictiveness of, and damage to health caused by smoking. In addition, a variety of health messages - such as that relating to male potency which we recommend above - should be used on certain packets. These messages should be harder hitting and more relevant to consumers than those currently used. (Paragraph 174). (rr)If NRT is shown to increase smokers' motivations to quit, we believe the Government should consider making NRT available on prescription - available from smoking cessation clinics - for two weeks at a time, up to a maximum of six weeks in total. (Paragraph 180). (ss)We believe that the Government is right to keep its distance from the tobacco industry which has, in our view, been the main beneficiary of the regime of voluntary agreements (paragraph 188). (tt)The final conclusion of the RCP in its Report Nicotine Addiction in Britain was that "an independent expert committee should be established to examine the institutional options for nicotine regulation, and to report to the Secretary of State for Health on the appropriate future regulation of nicotine products and the management and prevention of nicotine addiction in Britain". We concur. It seems to us entirely illogical that treatments for nicotine replacement therapy are subject to stringent regulation whereas the infinitely more deadly tobacco products they are designed to supersede escape any fundamental regulation. So we believe a Tobacco Regulatory Authority (TRA) should be introduced (paragraph 189). (uu)The proposed TRA could examine nicotine:tar ratios to determine how these could be optimised to minimise exposure to toxins (paragraph 191). (vv)The TRA could consider the marketing of tobacco products, looking at areas of promotion going beyond advertising into issues such as point of sale displays (paragraph 192). (ww)We think that technological means to make cigarettes safer and less addictive should be explored and that a TRA could provide the necessary impetus for this. The TRA could, we believe, profitably set upper limits, and progressive reductions for known carcinogens (paragraph 193). (xx)We recommend that the UK should institute a TRA with responsibility for all aspects of tobacco regulation consistent with the limitations posed by EU law. We would eventually like to see a Europe-wide TRA, but we feel that such a body would have no credibility until such time as the CAP subsidy for tobacco growing is eliminated (paragraph 197). (yy)We regard the current staff resources devoted to tobacco control, especially in the area of scientific knowledge and advice, to be pitifully weak. Irrespective of whether the Secretary of State accepts our recommendation that root and branch reform is needed in terms of a TRA, we would expect to see a major increase in resources, met out of the enormous income the tobacco companies pay in duties to the Treasury (paragraph 199). (zz)We recommend that the Secretary of State makes immediate and urgent representations in Brussels to create a far more substantial unit to combat the enormous resources of the tobacco industry. We believe that European policy is already hugely compromised by the CAP subsidy, and that unless appropriate resources go into tobacco control European action in this sphere will lack credibility (paragraph 200). (aaa)Gallaher's stance that they deplore smuggling appears to be contradicted by their advertising which seems to want to court those doing the smuggling. Gallaher noted in its evidence to us that smuggled tobacco gives children access to tobacco. If they genuinely believe that this and the other problems associated with smuggled tobacco are a "tragedy", they should make sure that all their business practices and those of their advertisers work against the illegal trade rather than encourage it (paragraph 207). (bbb)We welcome the fact that BAT's audit committee will look into this matter [allegations of BAT involvement in smuggling] and we will be calling for its findings when they are available. But this is not enough. The allegations need to be looked at independently and we therefore call on the DTI to investigate them. If they prove to be substantiated, the case for criminal proceedings against BAT should be considered; if they prove to be false, then those perpetrating them should publicly apologise to BAT for what will have amounted to a malicious slur on the company's name (paragraph 222). (ccc)We welcome the Framework Convention proposed by the World Health Organisation and the Government's support for it. However, any success will be dependent on a responsible approach being taken by the tobacco companies. Depressingly, there is little sign of that in the cheap jibes made at the WHO's expense by BAT. To call an organisation committed to improving global health 'zealots' and a 'super-nanny' because of its concern about the 10 million deaths which will be caused by tobacco each year by the late 2020s seems to us bizarre. We hope that the other companies - and, belatedly, BAT - will work constructively with the WHO. On a national level, we recommend that the Government requires the British tobacco companies to provide an annual summary of the action they have taken to co-operate with the WHO, to which the WHO should be invited to respond. If the action taken by the companies is not satisfactory, further action, including legislative and fiscal approaches, should be considered. It would be a hollow victory if, as a result of more stringent action taken on tobacco control in the developed world, smoking related deaths were merely exported to the world's poorer nations (paragraph 230). (ddd)We believe that a commitment on the part of BAT to put all non-privileged documents held at Guildford on the internet, preferably in a searchable form, would indicate that it was serious in its attempts to "start the new millennium with a positive approach" to bringing an end to the allegations and arguments which have characterised relationships between public health authorities and the tobacco companies. At the very least, we believe BAT should automatically put all non-privileged documents which it has already scanned, or which it scans in the future, on the internet. Should BAT find this simple, and relatively cheap, option beyond it, the obvious inference should be drawn that they are resisting any attempts to have wider public access to this material. We regard BAT's limits of one organization, and a maximum of six visitors, per day to be indefensible. It seems to us that BAT is failing to enter into the spirit of the Minnesota agreement. Finally, we think that BAT should employ professionally qualified staff and up to date computers at Guildford - in this respect the contrast between the company's research and development facilities, with their highly qualified staff and state of the art equipment which we saw at Southampton, and the archive, with its untrained staff and slow computers, was stark (paragraph 241). (eee)We very much welcome the approach that Gallaher has taken to our request that it should make its archival material on the health risks of smoking publicly accessible. We believe that this represents a more mature response to the public health issues than has been evinced by UK companies in the past and that Gallaher should be commended for its responsible approach in this area (paragraph 243). (fff)We believe that Imperial have adopted a reactionary and defensive posture. Their refusal to place in the public domain documents which may have a real bearing on the public health community's knowledge of the health risks of smoking seems to us lamentable (paragraph 245). =A9 Parliamentary copyright 2000 Prepared 14 June 2000 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Jun 18 22:20:15 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9DF5C2A317 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:20:15 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id WAA22971 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:20:15 -0400 Date: Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:20:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] UK MPs to produce report on BAT, inquiry may follow (fwd) UK MPs to produce report on BAT, inquiry may follow Source: Reuters, Tuesday, 6/13/00 Tuesday June 13, 1:06 pm Eastern Time LONDON, June 13 (Reuters) - A cross-party group of British MPs will publish a long-awaited report on Wednesday into the activities of British American Tobacco (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) which could lead to a full government inquiry. In February, parliament's Health Select Committee heard allegations from an anti-smoking group and an investigative journalist that the tobacco corporation had links to a major cigarette smuggling conspiracy. BAT executives hotly denied the charges. The company acknowledged smuggling may have taken place in certain markets but insisted that if it did, it was without company backing. A committee official said the report would be released at 11 A.M. (1000 Gmt). A source close to the investigation said the MPs would press Trade and Industry Secretary Stephen Byers to launch a full-scale inquiry. Officials at the DTI said a decision would be made only after the report had been studied in detail. Byers could use powers under the Companies Act to launch a probe of BAT's accounts and to grill its staff under oath. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Jun 18 22:28:46 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 802AA2A060 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:28:46 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id WAA23119 for ; Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:28:46 -0400 Date: Sun, 18 Jun 2000 22:28:45 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT eyes world's leading tobacco group (fwd) BAT eyes world's leading tobacco group Source: Korea Post , Wednesday, 6/14/00 The following article was contributed to The Korea Post by British American Tobacco Korea in Seoul for publication on the occasion of the publication of a Special Report on the United Kingdom.--Ed. Our vision is to become the world's leading international tobacco group. We aim to achieve our vision through our strategy of seeking leadership in individual markets, by growing strong positions in the premium segment, and by improving our share of the value segment when it makes sense to do so. We are confident in the future of the tobacco industry as a dynamic business with real growth prospects, and have no plans to diversify. We believe that our brand portfolio, management and financial capacity will continue to enable us to achieve organic growth in our existing markets, and to make quick and effective entry into markets where we are not yet strong. Our business development strategy combines organic growth and new market entries through acquisition, joint venture or other strategic alliances. BAT world's most international tobacco group British American Tobacco is the world's most international tobacco group, with an active business presence in more countries than any other. We acknowledge that along with the pleasures of cigarette smoking come real risks of serious diseases such as lung cancer, respiratory disease and heart disease. We also recognise that, for many people, smoking is difficult to quit. We accept the significant social responsibilities that our business entails, while firmly believing that informed adult consumers should have the right to choose to smoke or not. We compete worldwide for the business of those who choose to do so. Over a billion adults around the world choose to smoke, buying some 14.8 billion cigarettes a day. In 1998, the global cigarette market was approximately 5.4 trillion cigarettes, of which British American Tobacco and Rothmans International together sold over 900 billion. In 1998, combined revenue for British American Tobacco and Rothmans International was over =A1=CC25 billion. British American Tobacco's brand portfolio is made up of both Virginia and American blend cigarettes, and includes well-established international brands such as Dunhill, Lucky Strike, Kent, State Express 555, Rothmans, Peter Stuyvesant, Benson Hedges, Kool, Pall Mall, Viceroy, Winfield and Join Player Gold Leaf. We also have interests in smoking tobacco and cigars, complementing the ready-made cigarette sector. The new British American Tobacco Did you know? Following our merger with Rothmans International in June 1999, British American Tobacco... --Has an active business presence in 180 countries with 97 factories and 4 major R&D centers --Has a global market share of about 17.6% in the premium international segment with the production of over 800 bil. sticks per year --Is the market leader in more than 60 countries --Has a strong portfolio of over 320 brands --Manufactures in 68 countries --Employs 90,000 people worldwide --Countries some =A1=CC13 billion a year to national exchequers worldwide through excise duties and taxes, well over ten times as much as the group's profit after tax --Works with over 250,000 tobacco farmers, providing seed and advice on planting, growing and harvesting --Makes the cigarette chosen by more than one in six of the one billion adults in the world who choose to smoke --Ranked 5th among the world's most respected food/beverages companies at the survey conducted by the Financial Times --And is better positioned for long-term growth in a changing and challenging business. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Jun 25 10:18:09 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 892B52A060 for ; Sun, 25 Jun 2000 10:18:09 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA08596 for ; Sun, 25 Jun 2000 10:18:09 -0400 Date: Sun, 25 Jun 2000 10:18:09 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Russia's Aeroflot opposed to U.S. smoking ban (fwd) Russia's Aeroflot opposed to U.S. smoking ban Source: UPI, Friday, 6/23/00 Friday, 23 June 2000 13:30 (ET) MOSCOW, June 23 (UPI) -- Aeroflot, Russia's largest airline with regular air services to half a dozen cities in the United States, has appealed to the International Air Transport Association over a smoking ban on its flights imposed by the U.S. Transportation Department, it was announced Friday. Aeroflot has been forced to ban smoking on its flights to and from the United States from the beginning of this month under a U.S. regulation that bans smoking on board commercial air services arriving in or leaving from the United States. The airline says it is appealing to IATA because the U.S. is "interfering in domestic economic policies of foreign nations, violating the principle of national sovereignty and the principle of non-interference in domestic affairs of nations, as established by the charter of the United Nations Organization." Aeroflot claims the U.S. ban on smoking breaks international law. Russians are some of the world's heaviest smokers, and passengers frequently choose to fly on Aeroflot because it, unlike most major international carriers, still allows smoking in its cabins on long-haul routes. Aeroflot's U.S. destinations include New York, Washington, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jun 26 10:18:00 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 758502A060 for ; Mon, 26 Jun 2000 10:18:00 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA18947 for ; Mon, 26 Jun 2000 10:18:00 -0400 Date: Mon, 26 Jun 2000 10:17:59 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Norwegian Tobacco Industry Faces Lawsuits Norwegian Tobacco Industry Faces Lawsuits Source: Aftenposten, Monday, 6/26/00 Updated 26.06.00, 08:03 (GMT +01:00)=20 A public report has determined that there are legal grounds for damage suits against the Norwegian tobacco industry. A vital 1964 US report pointing out the dangers of smoking was ignored. Norwegian tobacco companies not only brushed aside the warnings of health authorities, they instead increased their advertising campaigns. The American tobacco industry will pay NOK 1600 (US$ 180) billion over 25 years for damages caused by smoking. Estimates indicate a figure of about NOK 200 billion could be the bill for Norway's industry. (Aftenposten/Interactive) Utgiver: Aftenposten A/S, Oslo, Norge. Telefon +47 22 86 30 00. Alt innhold er opphavsrettslig beskyttet. =A9 Aftenposten. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jun 26 11:35:39 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DBEFB2A066 for ; Mon, 26 Jun 2000 11:35:39 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA21036 for ; Mon, 26 Jun 2000 11:35:39 -0400 Date: Mon, 26 Jun 2000 11:35:39 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] European News bulletin - EU0025 - 26 June 2000 (fwd) !# --------------------------------- !# GLOBALink Tobacco - Weekly European News Bulletin !# --------------------------------- EUROPEAN BULLETIN EU0025 =96 26 June 2000 Headlines FINLAND: Camel boots ad breaches Tobacco Act FINLAND: Amer Tobacco's position to be studied FRANCE: Anti-smoking campaign for 12-14 year olds HUNGARY: Philip Morris launches schools anti-smoking campaign ISRAEL: Radioactive cigarettes cited in Israeli lawsuit ITALY: Bootleg cigarettes found inside mattress RUSSIA: Aeroflot accuses US of breaking international law INTERNATIONAL MALAYSIA: 1,366 teenagers fined for smoking SINGAPORE: Grisly images planned for city-state's cigarette packs Full Text FINLAND: Camel boots ad breaches Tobacco Act A Finnish Court has ruled that an advertisement for Camel boots was a form of indirect advertising for tobacco and it thus breached the Finnish Tobacco Act which bans tobacco advertising. According to the ruling, the logo and text used in the Camel boots ad were too similar to the logo of Camel tobacco. The importer of Camel boots will have to pay the court costs to the state. Source: Hufvudstadsbladet via the Gale Group, 10 Jun 2000 FINLAND: Amer Tobacco's position to be studied It has been reported that the Finnish Office of Free Competition is to examine whether Amer Tobacco has abused its leading market position on the Finnish markets. Amer Tobacco will be required to present the Office with a report on sales agreements it has signed with restaurants and retailers. The investigation follows concerns from competitors about the concentration of tobacco trade in Finland. Source: Helsingin Sanomat via the Gale Group, 10 Jun 2000 FRANCE: Anti-smoking campaign for 12-14 year olds The National Federation of Centres to Combat Cancer (FNCLCC) and Aventis Pharma have launched a no-smoking campaign targeting 12-14 year olds. The campaign will include the presentation of shocking images (cancer in smokers, effects of tobacco on smell, tobacco companies' strategy, etc). The exhibition will be visited by students aged 12 to 14 years old in 18 French cities until the end of June 2000. =93The Truth if I Smoke=94 campa= ign has the backing of the Ministry of Education, and the Secretaries of State of Education and Health. Source: Le Quotidien du Medecin via the Gale Group, 13 Jun 2000 HUNGARY: Philip Morris launches schools anti-smoking campaign Philip Morris Hungary is launching an anti-smoking campaign in schools with the [alleged] aim of discouraging 12-16 year-olds from smoking. The company will also set up an interactive internet site for the youngsters. According to a poll by the Gallup Institute, about 33% of Hungarian boys and 20% of girls in the age of 11-15 are regular smokers. About 33% of all Hungarians smoke. Smoking among women aged 18-24 has risen from 24% to 42% in the past five years. According to the Health Ministry, about 36,000 deaths per year in Hungary are linked with smoking. Source: Budapest Business Journal (ANB) via the Gale Group. 5-11 June 2000 ISRAEL: Radioactive cigarettes cited in Israeli lawsuit An Israeli lawsuit against US cigarette companies is citing an alleged internal Philip Morris memo as evidence that the biggest US cigarette manufacturer made cigarettes containing naturally radioactive tobacco. Attorney Amos Hausner is fighting the biggest suit in Israel's history to make one Israeli and six US tobacco companies pay up to $8 billion for allegedly poisoning and possibly irradiating Israelis with cigarettes. =93Whether the amount of radioactivity is harmful or not, we don't know bu= t it is quite possible it is harmful because of the simple reason that nobody is checking,=94 Hausner said. The case was brought on behalf of the Clalit national health fund which represents 60 percent of Israelis. It will be the first major suit to use what is alleged to be an internal Philip Morris memo found in the Minnesota archive that cigarette companies were forced to establish by US court order, Hausner said. Marked Confidential, the purported memo dated April 2, 1980, says that phosphate fertilisers and especially superphosphate fertilisers used in tobacco fields can contain natural uranium. =93Soils to which these products (the fertilisers) are applied show an increase in radioactivity,= =94 the document says, adding that the by-products of decaying uranium, lead and polonium, were present in tobacco and smoke. Polonium is radioactive. The document concludes that while it is unlikely that a person would get lung cancer by inhaling the polonium present in the tobacco, =93evidence to date, however, does not allow one to state that this is an impossibility=94= =2E The alleged memo notes that suggestions that Philip Morris use a different fertiliser would be =93a valid but expensive point=94. Hausner said cigarette makers usually defended themselves in court by claiming that smokers knew the risks and chose to smoke anyway. But he pointed out that smokers never knew or in any way agreed to smoke radioactive cigarettes. Philip Morris attorney Chuck Nunley told Reuters the issue of polonium in tobacco has been studied by scientists and even the US surgeon-general who, the lawyer said, concluded in 1971 that it was significant only if found in relatively high concentrations. =93As I understand it, polonium is a naturally occurring element that ther= e is a background level of in the environment. It's present in trace amounts in lots of things that we eat,=94' Nunley said. Hausner is seeking $2 billion in damages allegedly caused by the tobacco products and by the companies' actions and around $6 billion as damages for smokers who he says will die or become ill in the future. The case, filed in 1998, is still at a preliminary stage. Once it goes to trial, Hausner said he will demand that Philip Morris provide details about how widely the fertilisers were used and whether they are still used. He said that it was possible the radioactive fertiliser was used by other cigarette companies besides Philip Morris. Hausner has campaigned against smoking for years, first forcing Israel's army to ban cigarette advertising from a magazine given to soldiers and then helping make El Al Israel Airlines implement a non-smoking policy on its flights. Source: Reuters, 22 June 2000 ITALY: Bootleg cigarettes found inside mattress Customs officials in the Italian city of Venice have seized two tons of cigarettes bound for the UK - stuffed inside a mattress. The discovery was made as officials made a routine check of a lorry heading from Greece to the UK. The officers say they found one of the mattresses to be unusually firm. When they asked the driver about it he told them they were specially designed for people with bad backs. But when the matress was opened, it was stuffed full with packets of cigarettes. Customs officials in Venice have seized more than 40 tonnes of smuggled cigarettes since the beginning of the year. Last year they confiscated more than 140 tonnes, all from Greece. Source: PA News, Monday, 19 June 2000 RUSSIA: Aeroflot accuses US of breaking international law Russia's largest air carrier, Aeroflot, has accused the United States of breaking international law by banning smoking on all scheduled airline flights between the United States and other countries. Aeroflot has appealed to the International Air Transport Association asking it to decide whether the ban, which went into effect June 4, was legal. =93By introducing the new regulation, the United States has extended its law to foreign legal entities beyond its (American) territory, which blatantly contradicts the norms of international law,=94 Aeroflot said in a statement. =93The United States is interfering in domestic economic policie= s of foreign nations, and violating the principle of national sovereignty and the principle of non-interference in domestic affairs of nations, as established by Article 2 of the charter of the United Nations Organization,=94 the statement said. Many Russian smokers used to choose Aeroflot for long-distance flights over other airlines because it allowed smoking. Source: Associated Press, 23 June 2000 INTERNATIONAL MALAYSIA: 1,366 teenagers fined for smoking At the launch of the =93Week Without Tobacco=94 in Masjid Tanah of Malacca State, Malaysia, it was revealed that a total of 1,366 teenagers were fined for smoking in 1999. The figure is up 64% from 832 cases in 1998. Dr S Arumugam Lingam, deputy director-general for Contagious Diseases Control Division of the Health Ministry, said that active anti-smoking programs across schools were not successful in stamping out smoking among youngsters. However, the number of smokers caught in non-smoking areas had declined to 11,211 in 1999, as opposed to 11,850 in 1998. Source: New Straits Times via the Gale Group, 14 Jun 2000 SINGAPORE: Grisly images planned for city-state's cigarette packs Images of diseased brains, fat-clogged arteries and lung cancers could soon adorn cigarette packaging as the Government adopts shock tactics in the war against smoking. The Committee on Smoking Control wants Singapore to become the first Asian country to force cigarette makers to print such images on packs to provide a more striking message than traditional health warnings. "I think there is a good chance of this going through," said committee chairman Alex Chan. "In general, the Health and Environment ministries are in full support." Singapore, which already boasts stiff anti-smoking curbs, first experimented with shock advertising therapy last year, with a series of gruesome television adverts. Viewers saw brain tumours, cancerous lungs and fat-choked arteries with the insides squeezed out. The television adverts, adapted from Australia's National Tobacco Campaign, proved exceptionally effective during their first year. Previously, the committee's telephone hotline received on average 1,000 calls a year from people wanting advice on how to quit. After the campaign was launched, 11,000 calls were received in just the first four months. Smoking is banned in all public places and all air-conditioned places that serve food, and heavy taxes are levied on tobacco. The Government's last national survey, in 1998, found that 15 per cent of Singaporeans smoked, down two per cent on its previous survey. However, smoking among young women was rising. South China Morning Post, 17 June 2000 Amanda Sandford Research Manager ASH 102 Clifton Street LONDON EC2A 4HW tel: 020 7739 5902 fax: 020 7613 0531 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jun 26 12:05:56 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 482EF2A05E for ; Mon, 26 Jun 2000 12:05:56 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA22135 for ; Mon, 26 Jun 2000 12:05:56 -0400 Date: Mon, 26 Jun 2000 12:05:55 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco Industry of Russia--Progress and Prospects (fwd) Tobacco Industry of Russia--Progress and Prospects Source: Tobacco China, Tuesday, 6/20/00 Background: This report was issued by the General director of the association of the producers of tobacco commodities "Tabakprom" Mr. Terevzov, at the symposium "Prospects of the development of tobacco industry and technology for Europe and Asia", in frames of the internatioal fair of tobacco industry and equipment "Euro Tab 2000", which was hold in Amsterdam, 16--18 June 2000. According to the different estimations in Russia smokes from 30 to 40% of the population, moreover there is the certain trend to increase the number of smokers. The stable annual consumption of the tobacco market of Russia in present time is estimated in volume of 250-260 Billion cigarettes. The tobacco industry of Russia includes more than 30 of big factories and more than 60 of works, including ones with the non-complete technological circle, being established in the resent few years. Association "Tabakprom" includes 23 big cigarette factories which produce approximated 90% of the cigarette made in Russia. Russian tobacco industry is one of few branches of industry which increases annual volume of production. So in 1994 it was produced 136 Bln. Pcs. The increase of the volume of the production is being done mostly by the manufacturing of the filter cigarettes, including light ones with low tar and nicotine contents, and also cigarettes with special filters. The expected production volume of the year 2000=A1=AAis not less than 270 B= ln. Pcs. Thus with the capacity of local factories which reached already 310-320 Bln. Pcs. and expected production volume in the current year, the tobacco market is being fully covered with the local products. The volume of the produced and sold goods is stipulated only by the demand of the consumers. The acute question emerged of the overproduction of the cigarettes, of the competition and of the surviving of the particular enterprises. Structure of the demand of the smokers also changes quickly=A1=AAin recent = 10 years the production of papirosa was reduced 2 times, and the same time the volume of production of the filter cigarette is being increased reaching the almost half of the total production volume. Annual grow incomes of tax payments from the tobacco industry to the budgets of all levels. Only in the period from 1997 to 1999 they increased 3 times. Modernization of production facilities and the stable increase of the volume, improvement of the quality of cigarette is being done mostly by Russian and foreign investments to local tobacco industry. From the beginning of 90th totally 2 Bln. doll. US has been invested to the tobacco industry. The import of the cigarettes to Russia has definite trend to decrease, from 1997 to 1999 import decreased more than 3 times. The decrease of the import of cigarettes, which usually more costly than local ones, is stipulated not only by relatively low purchasing capacity of the population, but also by the continues grow of the production volumes of the local high quality cigarettes, including ones with low tar and nicotine contents, which are not worse than import brands. This brands are: "21 century", "Emperor", "Golden Ring", "Java Golden", "Peter I", "LD" and others. Besides that in Russia few years before began and is successfully growing the local production of the international brands as "Magna", "Pall Mall", "Dalllas", "Bond Street", "Marlboro" and others, which makes importation of them unsuitable. Thus the Russia tobacco market according to the results of the year 1999 consisted of 150 Bln. filter cigarettes, from which 128 Bln. were made in Russia, others=A1=AAimport. The rest of the market share was occupied by non-filter cigarette i.e. 130 Bln. pcs. and more than 15 Bln. pcs. of papirosa. For producing of 270 Bln. of the cigarette is to be used not less than 240 thousand tons of leaf tobacco, the crop of leaf tobacco in Russia in the recent years is not more than 1-2 thousand tons and it mainly from the former Soviet republics dropped drastically. At the same tine considerably increased the import of tobacco froma abroad=A1=AAi.e. from Greece, Turkey, China, India and other counties. So if before the beginning of 90th Russia imported the cigarette and tipping paper, acetate filters, aluminum foil and other materials of various kinds and characteristics, the acetate fiber for the filter manufacturing is being produced, a number of the factories have free choice=A1=AAto buy the materials either locally or from abroad. To the group of the biggest factories belong such enterprises as "Petro" and "Nevo-Tabak" in St. Petersburg, "Philip Morris-Izora" in Leningrad province, "Donskoy tabak" in Rostoy-on-Don, "BAT=A1=AAYava" and "Liggett=A1=AADukat" in Moscow, "Balkanskaya Zvezda" in Jaroslavl, " "BAT=A1=AASaratovskaya tobacco factory" in Saratov, " Krasnodartabakprom" i= n Krasnodar and number of other enterprises. All factories situated in Russia belong to two categories=A1=AAfactories wi= th foreign investments and without foreign investments. In present time more than 10 factories and works are controlled by foreign firms. In conditions of the severe competition on the market, Russian tobacco industry has to solve the extremely difficult tasks, the most import from which being the improvement of quality of the local tobacco products together with the considerable cutting of production costs. That needs big investments for technical re-equipment and introducing of the new technologies. Using own and foreign sources of financing the factories in the first place make the reconstruction of the primaries, install the modern equipment, which enable to provide the most effective technological process with the reasonable costs, and also in considerably short time to refund this costs. The equipment for sauce and aroma are being brought into the technological circle which considerably facilitates the possibilities for the manufacturing of the new products. The cigarette factories---members of the Association pay great attention to the improvement of quality and safety of the tobacco products. For this purpose by every factory---member of the Association the long term programs were developed and the complex measures are being implemented which enable to reduce tar and nicotine contents in the cigarettes to the levels stipulated by the Ministry of health of the Russian Federation. Due to the introducing of new technologies in recent years the average tar and nicotine contents in Russian cigarettes considerably dropped. All brands manufactured now by the factories=A1=AAmembers of the Association meet the requirements of the Ministry of health and more strict norms for the future are being considered. At the same time, the Association, being concerned of the health of the nation and of the safety of it's genetic fund, supports the initiatives of the deputies of the State Duma on banning of the sale of the tobacco products to under aged persons, sale by automatic machines, sale in the organizations of the health=A1=AAcare, education, culture, sport and a numb= er of the other measures. Despite the fact, that all tobacco enterprises are joint stock companies, i.e. in fact private enterprises, the state provides the policy of regulation both in the sphere of the wholesale. Such policy is conducted by determination of the excise-taxes, import taxes for tobacco goods, requirements for the obligatory certification of these products, putting on the products of the special stamps, licensing of the import of leaf tobacco and tobacco goods, licensing of the activities on the production and wholesale turnover of the tobacco goods, and also issuing of the regulations, including state standards for tobacco goods. And now, in conclusion allow me to briefly tell You about the members, charter, aims and tasks of the association of the producers of tobacco goods "Tabakprom". The non-commercial non-government association of the producers of the tobacco goods "Tabakprom" was established on the initiative of the Russian cigarette factories in November 1996 with the purpose being to protect rights and represent the interest of the producers in the state ruling and administrating bodies, and in public organizations. The main directions of the activity of the Association are relations with the state Duma, Government, Ministries and departments, solving of the problems with taxation on local and import products, levels of tar and nicotine contents in the cigarettes and number of other questions which are put by the Board of directors and the members of the Association. The number of members of the Association grow every year. In present time the Association already includes 23 cigarette factories, including 6 ones with foreign capital and 2 enterprises: printing factory for production of packs for cigarettes and factory for production of the expanded stems, which is in fact the enterprise with foreign investments. Many factories express the wish to be admitted to the Association. Enditem SOURCE BY: TobaccoChina Online dispatch from Amsterdam, June 16 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Jun 27 10:07:57 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 036B02A05E for ; Tue, 27 Jun 2000 10:07:56 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA10927 for ; Tue, 27 Jun 2000 10:07:56 -0400 Date: Tue, 27 Jun 2000 10:07:56 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Australia: Anti-smoking spending drags behind other drug campaigns Anti-smoking spending drags behind other drug campaigns Source: Sydney Morning Herald, Monday, 6/19/00 The Federal Government spends $112 on anti-smoking measures for every death from tobacco-related diseases - a thousand times less than the $118,571 per death spent on anti-drugs campaigns. Anti-tobacco spending is also dwarfed, in terms of the number of deaths, by money devoted to the black-spot road safety program ($419, 619), AIDS control ($264,706), breast cancer ($20,172 ) and preventing falls ($1,438). These figures are in an article published today in the Medical Journal of Australia by Associate Professor Simon Chapman, from the Department of Public Health and Community Medicine at the University of Sydney. Professor Chapman, who is chairman of the campaign group Action on Smoking and Health, attacked funding for tobacco control as "appallingly neglected" and said it was at a historic low. "Ill-informed views that robust tobacco control will rapidly strangle the goose that lays the annual $5 billion golden egg of tobacco excise" appeared to have slowed any progress in tobacco control, he said. Tobacco controls were allocated $3.8 million in the 1998-99 Federal Budget. Professor Chapman said the Government was likely to get a $400 million windfall because of a change to the tobacco tax system lobbied for by the Australian Cancer Society, but none of this money had been committed to smoking prevention. But a spokeswoman for the Health Minister, Mr Wooldridge, said tobacco harm minimisation funding had been introduced by the Howard Government. She said it was wrong to speak of a "historic" low in spending, even if follow-up funding was not as high as the initial funding. The "very successful" Every Cigarette is Doing You Damage advertising campaign had reduced the number of smokers and new advertisements were going to air, she said. The chairman of the Australian Cancer Society's Tobacco Issues Committee, Mr Mike Daube, said Australia lagged behind other countries in its commitment to tobacco control. "Until we commit a serious amount of money to tobacco control, the costs in terms of deaths, disease and the economy will continue to rise," he said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Jun 27 10:09:28 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 7D4902A05E for ; Tue, 27 Jun 2000 10:09:28 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA10982 for ; Tue, 27 Jun 2000 10:09:27 -0400 Date: Tue, 27 Jun 2000 10:09:27 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Who's Funding The Fight Against The Smoking Ban In B.C.? (fwd) Who's Funding The Fight Against The Smoking Ban In B.C.? by Darlene Heidemann Source: BCTV, Thursday, 6/15/00 Remember the smoking ban that was recently lifted from all the bars and pubs in the province? The Worker's Compensation Board is trying to get that ban re-instated. And public hearings are being held around the province landing this week in Prince George. But in the middle of it all questions are being raised about who's funding the fight against the ban. Could big tobacco be involved? Darlene Heidemann, reporting: "The tobacco industry says it is staying out of the smoking ban battle-between B.C.'s Worker's Compensation Board and the hospitality industry. But now cigarette manufacturers admit to funneling $800,000 a year into a program run by the Canadian Hotel Association." Rob Cunningham, Author of "Smoke and Mirrors: the Canadian Tobacco War": "The tobacco industry has a long history of using front groups in Canada for opposing smoking restrictions through other organizations. In the 1980's and 90's they used a group called the Smokers Freedom Group." David Laundy, Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers Council: "...The hotel's association is saying it's not going to the WCB fight and I have to believe them. (Is there anyway to track the money?) I don't know, I'd have to contact the group that runs it." Darlene Heidemann, reporting: "The program is called "Courtesy of Choice". So far it has received 3.2 million tobacco dollars. B.C.'s hospitality industry can access the money and everyone involved denies the fund has anything to do with the fight against the smoking ban." Vance Campbell, Coalition of Hospitality Organizations: "The group that speaks on behalf of all the organizations has not taken any money from tobacco. (You say your umbrella group has not, what about individual members?) I don't know." Darlene Heidemann, reporting: "Since January, many of the same owners fighting the ban have installed cigarette vending machines following a marketing push by tobacco companies." Nick Losito, Vancouver-Richmond Health Board: "Talking to somebody within the industry, it sounds like it was a January to March or April program - an aggressive marketing campaign - this year right around when the WCB's smoking ban was supposed to come into place." Darlene Heidemann, reporting: "And there's another connection between Vance Campbell's Association and the Courtesy of Choice program. Both have hired the same PR consultant - a man by the name of Tim Crowhurst who has been doing a lot of work behind the scenes." Vance Campbell, Coalition of Hospitality Organizations: (There is no other connection other than the advice of a media consultant...We hired the firm for its expertise.) Rob Cunningham, Author: "We don't know exactly what the money has been used for - we think the tobacco company...and a ventilation alternative." Darlene Heidemann, reporting: "Tobacco kills and now the question is "Is tobacco money killing the hospitality industry's arguments against the WCB and its ban"." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Jun 27 11:07:01 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DAE422A32B for ; Tue, 27 Jun 2000 11:07:01 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA12795 for ; Tue, 27 Jun 2000 11:07:01 -0400 Date: Tue, 27 Jun 2000 11:07:01 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Japan Tobacco looks abroad Smoke Alarm / The world's third-largest cigarette maker, Japan Tobacco, now looks to Asian markets for future growth. But is its staid management up to the challenge? by Chester Dawson / TOKYO / Issue cover-dated June 22, 2000 Source: Far Eastern Economic Review, Thursday, 6/15/00 STARING OUT of a window on the 33rd floor of the Japan Tobacco building, which towers over Tokyo's main government district, Masaru Mizuno surveys the heavy clouds blocking the view of Mount Fuji southwest of the city. "You can't see very far when it's overcast," says the company president, who's soon to become chairman. "It's like the Japanese economy." The same can be said of Japan Tobacco, which faces a hazy future despite its commanding position in its home market and the purchase last year of RJR Nabisco's international tobacco operations. A slumping stock price shows the former state-run monopoly faces plenty of problems. Chief among them: Profits have stagnated, forcing JT to trim its payroll and close factories at home in order to streamline operations. Moreover, Japan's population of smokers is expected to peak by 2007, in line with the overall population. More importantly, concerns about antitrust violations prevent JT from expanding its dominant market share in Japan. These constraints have forced the staid company, a haven for ex-bureaucrats that was established by government charter in 1898, to plot a radical new course. "We don't have any choice but to go abroad," says former tax-agency head Mizuno, 67, who began smoking in earnest only just before his appointment as president in 1994. "Our new focus is on Asia and other international markets." For an inward-looking workhorse like JT, morphing into a global warhorse presents a big challenge--but perhaps not an insurmountable one. That's because the company is seeking its fortunes in other national markets in Asia--the tobacco industry's most fertile region for growth and one where JT already has a limited presence. What's more, it has reinvented itself before. In 1985, the company was privatized and forced to compete on its home turf after Japan's cigarette market was opened to imports. Since then, it has ceded only about 25% of the market to the likes of British American Tobacco and Philip Morris. JT's marketing prowess and reputation for high quality enabled it to hold its own at home and establish strategic toeholds in South Korea and Taiwan, where it has intentionally grown slowly to avoid trade friction. A huge war chest also helps. A year ago JT paid $7.8 billion in cash for RJR Nabisco's tobacco business outside the United States--the biggest-ever foreign acquisition by a Japanese firm. It made JT the world's third-largest tobacco company with about 8% of the global market. The deal secured three key brands: Camel, Salem and Winston. Terrence Oliver, head of the Tokyo office of international brand consultancy Interbrand, says that was a smart move, because smokers are becoming more brand-conscious. Indeed, annual sales of so-called global brands are increasing at about 5% a year, compared to the average 1% growth in overall cigarette sales. The deal also gave JT an established position in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. But the Pacific Rim is where Big Tobacco sees its future. The region accounts for more than 40% of the $330 billion in annual global cigarette sales and two of the world's largest cigarette markets--China and Japan. Mizuno says JT is initially targeting Southeast Asian nations such as Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand for a marketing push to expand sales of its flagship Mild Seven brand. By far the biggest market, however, is right next door in China, which consumes 1.7 trillion cigarettes a year. The Chinese government's tobacco monopoly severely limits inroads by foreign cigarette makers, but that's expected to change once the country joins the World Trade Organization. The state-run China Economic Times reported in May that domestic cigarette brands "could lose 10% to 20% of their market share within five years" of the country joining the WTO. As a first step, JT reached a deal last year to consign production and sales of Mild Seven in China to Shanghai Gaoyang International Tobacco. Though company officials are reluctant to talk about China strategy, they hint that JT may eventually invest in a joint venture--something that's currently prohibited in China's tobacco industry. "If China becomes a member of WTO it will create new opportunities for us," Mizuno says cryptically. Of course, major players like British American Tobacco and Philip Morris, which each have roughly 15% of the world market, also want to expand in China. And as it squares off against these rivals, JT must contend with the vicissitudes of far-flung markets to a greater extent than ever before. Mizuno says overseas operations, which in volume terms made up about 5% of total cigarette sales before the purchase of RJR's international business, now account for closer to 40%. Oddly, though, Mizuno insists that "nothing has changed" in terms of day-to-day management at the company's headquarters since the takeover. That could pose a problem in future: Success abroad will depend on JT's managerial moxie, which some observers say is in short supply, especially when it comes to foreign markets. "They've done a very good job close to home, but not so good further away," says James Sculley, president of Philip Morris's unit in Japan. While Mild Seven has made inroads in Asia, it has failed to sell well in Europe and America. Managing JT's newly acquired empire will test the acumen of Katsuhiko Honda, who takes over as president when Mizuno becomes chairman later this month. Honda, 58, won kudos within the company for spearheading the negotiations with RJR Nabisco. He will be the first nonbureaucrat to rise through the JT ranks to the top job since the company was privatized 15 years ago. But he has got his work cut out for him. In fact, JT came under heavy criticism in the domestic media for paying too much in the RJR deal, which was concluded just before sales tanked in Eastern Europe and Russia. Company officials admit the transaction was ill-timed and has weighed on earnings more than anticipated. In May, JT posted a 32% drop in group net profit to Yen51 billion ($475 million) for the year to March 31 on sales of Yen4.4 trillion. It projects profit will fall to Yen35 billion in the current year. Even those numbers may prove optimistic because of a downturn in European sales due to factors such as higher cigarette taxes in Germany. "I'm sceptical about their forecast," says Keiko Sasaki, an analyst at UBS Warburg (formerly Warburg Dillon Read), who rates the stock a "hold." Still, JT enjoys some clear advantages at home over other big tobacco companies that could cushion the blow from any missteps abroad. For one, its majority shareholder has few complaints. That's because the company is two-thirds owned by the Finance Ministry, which views it as something akin to a sacred cow for tax revenue. The firm also has the support of heavy-hitting politicians in Japan's ruling party; they recently gutted a Health Ministry plan to halve the number of smokers in the country by 2010. Then there's the Japanese legal system, which frowns upon class-action suits. JT officials say they are not interested in insuring the company against legal action, citing a flawless record in court. That's one reason why some investors consider JT a safe bet. Another is its projection for a sharp profit upturn in the coming years. A business plan released in February commits the cigarette maker to wringing out a profit of Yen140 billion from sales of Yen4.8 trillion by the year ending in March 2005. Bullish analysts say those goals are achievable thanks to JT's stable of world-class brands and the industry's high profit margin. "We believe they can make it work," says Morgan Stanley Dean Witter analyst Taizo Demura. For that to happen, though, JT will also need contributions from its loss-making food and drug units. It is now pouring money into biotechnology research to develop strains of genetically modified rice and, not without irony, a drug for lung-cancer treatment. Yet JT's track record for noncore investments is mixed. Previous forays in the 1990s included such flops as mushroom cultivation and a sports-club venture. JT officials admit that changing the company's corporate culture enough to allow it to become a thriving global player won't be easy. As Mizuno notes: "Even changing our company's name would require an amendment of law." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Jun 27 11:25:51 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9E4E82A05E for ; Tue, 27 Jun 2000 11:25:51 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA13439 for ; Tue, 27 Jun 2000 11:25:47 -0400 Date: Tue, 27 Jun 2000 11:25:40 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Marlboro man races east (to Bulgaria) from tobacco control Marlboro man races east from tobacco control Source: UPI, Monday, 6/26/00 Monday, 26 June 2000 12:40 (ET) SOFIA, Bulgaria, June 26 (UPI) -- The Marlboro man's ride into Bulgaria is among the latest signs that major cigarette makers are racing into Eastern Europe before the European Union's expansion and international anti-smoking campaigns lead to stricter tobacco laws. Marlboro-producer Philip Morris and other tobacco giants today are taking advantage of the region's emerging consumerism, apathy toward smoke-free lifestyles and health regulations that fall short of western standards. The World Health Organization says aggressive marketing and advertising in developing countries is creating a "tobacco iron curtain" that separates regions such as Eastern Europe from Western Europe and the United States. An EU plan to ban tobacco advertising next year, for example, will have no effect on non-EU countries such as Bulgaria, Slovakia, Ukraine and Romania. Most of these former Soviet satellites have applied for EU membership, but acceptance is still years away and there is little if any domestic pressure for smoking laws. Smokers in Eastern Europe face fewer restrictions in restaurants, offices and schools than in the West. According to a World Bank report, Bulgarian schools do not restrict smoking and Romanian children can legally buy cigarettes. Tobacco laws are especially lax in Ukraine, where smoking is allowed even on public transportation. In this environment Philip Morris recently launched sales of Marlboro cigarettes, the world's most popular brand. Cartons appeared on store shelves overnight in cities across Bulgaria. Strong demand was reported immediately "irrespective of prices," according to a Sofia newspaper. Marlboros have been sold on the Bulgarian black market for years, but the legal packets are advertised as fresher and more flavorful. Philip Morris says it has cornered a dominant share of the tobacco market in several parts of Eastern Europe. For example the company says it controls 33 percent of the market in Poland, 53 percent in Slovakia and 79 percent in Czech Republic. Another big player in the region is BAT, which aggressively advertises its Lucky Strike brand as "real American" cigarettes. Tobacco companies say they're working with Eastern European governments to protect the public. Philip Morris, for example, says it helped Estonia create the Baltic country's first tobacco-industry marketing code. Nevertheless Eastern Europe's demand for cigarettes is one reason why a WHO report two weeks ago predicted a global increase in smokers to 1.6 billion by 2020 from 1.2 billion today. A World Bank report says by 2020 seven out of every 10 people who die from smoking-related illness will be in low- to middle-income nations. The surge in smoking -- and subsequent health dangers -- prompted the EU, WHO, World Bank and other international agencies to begin shaping so-called "tobacco control" policies in the past year. Under review are large-scale policies such as regional advertising bans, tax increases and tobacco-growing restrictions. The proposed EU ban on advertising would remove cigarette ads from billboards and magazines. Only point-of-sale ads and so-called "business-to-business" promotions would be allowed in the 15 EU countries, most of which already restrict tobacco ads. The WHO-funded Collaborating Centre on Tobacco at the Karolisnka Institute in Stockholm is focusing on training Eastern European health officials to combat smoking with education and regulation. Among other measures, the World Bank is pushing for higher cigarette taxes. It says a 10 percent increase in taxes in 1995 would have spurred 40 million people to quit and save 10 million lives. The call for tobacco control is getting louder, particularly in Europe. In October, the subject will be debated for two days at a WHO-sponsored public hearing in Geneva, Switzerland. It's being billed as history's largest gathering of representatives from the tobacco industry, anti-smoking groups, health agencies and governments. Yet the industry's push into Eastern Europe is not expected to soften. Industry documents obtained by WHO include this statement from a BAT executive speaking about the region's potential for sales growth: "Obviously there is enormous potential in these countries. I would say that the demand for Western cigarettes is insatiable. It's a fantastic opportunity for everybody... in any number of countries." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jun 28 11:17:42 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DC2B72A05E for ; Wed, 28 Jun 2000 11:17:42 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA05553 for ; Wed, 28 Jun 2000 11:17:42 -0400 Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2000 11:17:42 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Brazil Co. Made To Pay Cancer Bills (fwd) Brazil Co. Made To Pay Cancer Bills by Stan Lehman / Associated Press Writer Source: AP, Tuesday, 6/27/00 Tuesday, June 27, 2000; 5:36 p.m. EDT SAO PAULO, Brazil =96=96 Brazil's largest cigarette manufacturer must pay t= he medical bills of a terminally ill cancer patient who said he contracted the disease by smoking the company's cigarettes for 27 years, a judge said Tuesday. Pending the outcome of a $2.5 million lawsuit filed by 42-year-old Joao Lopes Lamenha Lins, the Souza Cruz tobacco company must front $27,500 to cover the cost of treating Lins' lung cancer, Judge Henrique Gomes de Barros Teixeira said. Teixeira issued the ruling last week in Maceio, a city 1,200 miles northeast of Sao Paulo. The company can appeal his decision, he said. Souza Cruz, which is owned by British conglomerate BAT Industries, said it would not comment until it had been officially notified of the ruling. "Lins presented sufficient evidence linking his cancer to the habit of smoking, which he was persuaded to do by misleading advertisements showing smokers as healthy, virile and successful individuals," the judge said. In May, the government sent Congress a bill to ban cigarette ads from television, radio, newspapers, magazines and billboards. Tobacco companies also would be prohibited from sponsoring many events, including an annual jazz festival and the Formula One and CART auto races. Brazil, an important tobacco grower that for years ignored the anti-tobacco movement abroad, has recently stepped up efforts to curb smoking, banning it in public buildings and on domestic and international flights. Some states have filed suits in U.S. courts against American tobacco companies to recover money spent in treating smoking-related diseases. Rio de Janeiro and Goias states are seeking at least $5 billion each. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jun 28 15:45:03 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 77A852A330 for ; Wed, 28 Jun 2000 15:45:03 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA13219 for ; Wed, 28 Jun 2000 15:45:03 -0400 Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2000 15:45:02 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Russia's Parliament Bans Smoking in Parliament Russia's Parliament Bans Smoking Source: AP, Wednesday, 6/28/00 Wednesday, June 28, 2000; 3:08 p.m. EDT MOSCOW =96=96 Citing tobacco's health risks, Russia's lower house of parliament voted Wednesday to ban smoking on its premises. Russia is one of the world's most smoker-friendly countries, and smokers can often be seen lighting up in parliament's offices, halls and stairwells. The resolution passed in the lower house, the State Duma, by a vote of 290-72 with three abstentions, according to the Duma press service. The bill cited the need to "promote a healthy lifestyle and increase labor productivity," the ITAR-Tass news agency said. However, nationalist lawmaker Alexei Mitrofanov claimed the measure had a political thrust. He called it "part of a larger campaign against Western tobacco monopolies that control the Russian market," ITAR-Tass said. Smoking in Russia is allowed almost everywhere other than on public transportation. More than 50 percent of Russians smoke, and doctors cite the high rate as a reason for Russians' low life expectancy. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jun 28 15:46:51 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id CA34E2A330 for ; Wed, 28 Jun 2000 15:46:51 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA13272 for ; Wed, 28 Jun 2000 15:46:51 -0400 Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2000 15:46:51 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Canada to require grotesque new tobacco labels (fwd) Canada to require grotesque new tobacco labels by Randall Palmer Source: Reuters, Wednesday, 6/28/00 Wednesday June 28, 3:12 pm Eastern Time OTTAWA, June 28 (Reuters) - Smokers in Canada are to be confronted with grotesque depictions of cancerous tumours, sexual impotence or other afflictions under tobacco packaging regulations the government says are the toughest in the world. Health Minister Allan Rock said on Wednesday the regulations requiring graphic health warnings, which he proposed in January, have now become law and will take effect for most tobacco products next January. ``Canada is the first country in the world to implement such strong labeling and reporting measures,'' a statement from his office said. The warnings will have to cover the top half of the fronts and backs of the tobacco product packs and will feature a text warning -- like ``Cigarettes Cause Mouth Disease'' -- alongside a graph or photo, for example of rotten gums and stained teeth. Another of the 16 different warnings features a drooping cigarette next to the warning: ``Cigarettes may cause sexual impotence due to decreased blood flow to the penis. This can prevent you from having an erection.'' Cigarettes sold in Canada already carry warnings but smaller and on a voluntary basis because of a 1995 Supreme Court ruling. The United States became the first country to impose a mandatory health warning on all cigarette packs, but the label takes up less than 20 percent of the pack and is on the side. Bills to implement measures similar to Canada's have been held up in the U.S. Congress. ``Canada has set an example that we need to follow in order to protect the health of millions of American citizens,'' Senator Frank Lautenberg, a co-sponsor of one bill, said in a statement in Washington. ``It's time for Congress to stop letting the tobacco lobby's money dictate national policy on what amounts to a serious public health hazard.'' The Canadian measures, which became law on Monday, were almost certain to face legal action but it was not clear that this would delay application of the rules. ``More than likely there will be a court challenge, for sure,'' Marie-Josee Lapointe said for the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers' Council. But Ottawa says it is comfortable it is operating within the guidelines of the 1995 Supreme Court decision. That ruling struck down a government ban on tobacco ads and said it was unconstitutional to require unattributed warnings. The new regulations attribute the messages to the government department Health Canada. ``The Supreme Court of Canada has given us some pretty clear guidance,'' Health Canada spokeswoman Lynn LeSage said. The requirement to start the labeling in January applies to an estimated 98 to 99 percent of the market -- any brand with 2 percent or more of the market. The smallest players have until next June to comply. Imperial Tobacco Ltd., a wholly owned unit of British American Tobacco (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) of Britain, holds 69 percent of Canada's tailor-made cigarette market. Rothmans, Benson & Hedges is the No 2 maker. It is owned 60 percent by the Canadian firm Rothmans Inc. (Toronto:ROC.TO - news) and 40 percent by Philip Morris Cos. Inc. (NYSE:MO - news), the United States' biggest cigarette company. Canada's third-largest cigarette maker is JTI-Macdonald Corp., owned by Japan Tobacco Inc. . From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jun 29 14:40:35 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4F0162A05E for ; Thu, 29 Jun 2000 14:40:35 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA02400 for ; Thu, 29 Jun 2000 14:40:34 -0400 Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 14:40:31 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] ENEWS: EU Ministers Agree on Stricter Tobacco Regulations, Labeling Robert Weissman Essential Information=09=09=09| Internet:=09rob@essential.org ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 12:21:44 -0400 From: geneb@tobacco.org To: rob@essential.org Subject: ENEWS: EU Ministers Agree on Stricter Tobacco Regulations, Labelin= g This is article number 45430 --------------------------------- EU Ministers Agree on Stricter Tobacco Regulations, Labeling by Adrian Cox EUROPE; Source: Bloomberg News, Thursday, 6/29/00 Brussels, June 29 (Bloomberg) -- European Union health ministers approved a= cut=20 in the tar content of cigarettes, tighter rules on cigarette labeling, and= =20 larger health warnings on packs, such as ``Smoking is deadly'' and ``Smokin= g=20 leads to impotence.'' The ministers agreed to enlarge health warnings to cover 25 percent on both= =20 sides of the pack, higher than the current 4 percent, although lower than a= =20 measure voted on by the European Parliament earlier this month that called = for=20 35 percent on the front of a pack and 45 percent on the back. ``Tobacco must be regulated through a responsible manufacturing and marketi= ng=20 policy,'' said David Byrne, European Commissioner for Consumer and Health= =20 Affairs, adding that ``the appalling and entirely preventable death toll fr= om=20 smoking'' claims one European life a minute. Smoking kills half a million EU citizens a year and is the single biggest= =20 preventable health threat to Europeans, according to the commission, the EU= 's=20 executive arm. Almost 30 percent of Europeans are regular smokers. Ministers voted to ban phrases such as ``low tar,'' and to lower the maximu= m=20 tar level to 10 milligrams per cigarette from 12 milligrams and set a=20 1-milligram ceiling on nicotine content. Germany opposed these measures, but was outvoted by a majority of countries= in=20 the 15-nation bloc, according to a U.K. spokesman. Luxembourg, Austria and= =20 Spain abstained. The proposal needs to be agreed by the commission before returning to the= =20 parliament for final approval. =A92000 Bloomberg L.P. All rights reserved. Terms of Service, Privacy Polic= y and=20 Trademarks.=20 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 5 10:23:58 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id AA8AA2A066 for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:23:58 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA06014 for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:23:58 -0400 Date: Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:23:55 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Kenya: BAT targets lower end of the market (fwd) BAT targets lower end of the market by NATION Correspondent Source: Daily Nation, Tuesday, 7/4/00 A new cigarette brand was introduced into the market yesterday. The Safari King Size Filter by the British American Tobacco (K) Ltd is a medium tar cigarette that targets consumers at the lower end of the market, according head of marketing Joe Muganda. Mr Muganda said at the launch in Nairobi that the brand, the latest in the Sh7-billion-a-year industry =96 would retail at Sh28 per packet and Sh1.40 per stick. He told the launch that BAT's strategy was demand-driven, adding that "we are not panicking due to competition." He said the company recognised that the purchasing power of consumers had gone down and therefore wanted to provide smokers a "high quality product at an affordable price." The launch comes at a time when the tobacco industry is facing a strong anti-smoking lobby fronted by the World Health Organisation (WHO). While the tobacco industry prefers a market-based approach based on choice, WHO and anti-tobacco crusaders advocate for a total ban. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 5 10:24:41 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 91E742A05E for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:24:41 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA06036 for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:24:41 -0400 Date: Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:24:41 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Paraguay: BAT to set up tobacco plant in Paraguay (fwd) Paraguay: BAT to set up tobacco plant in Paraguay Source: NewsEdge, Tuesday, 7/4/00 The English tobacco company, British American Tobacco (BAT) will invest US$7mil to build a plant in Paraguay designed to supply this market and the Andean countries, Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador, according to sources in the sector. The business would employ more than 200 people directly and would produce around 1.8 million cigarettes per year. This decision is linked to tax incentives and low duties on capital investment in the country. In this way, Nobleza Piccardo, which belongs to BAT and produces brands like Jockey Club, Camel and Parisiennes, will review its regional strategy as, for 50 years, it has served the Paraguayan market exclusively through importing its products from Argentina and other Latin American countries. This decision could be related to the agreement made by the Government last week to reduce the 'additional emergency tax' which was raised from 7% to 21%. In exchange, the tobacco companies committed themselves to reaching a level of tax collection to US$1.800mil and to stop exporting cigarettes to neighbouring countries in order to prevent smuggling. The smuggling trade market is estimated at US$260mil a year. In Argentina, Nobleza Piccardo has a market share of 41.3%. In January, when total taxes went up from 68% to 73%, Massalin Particulares immediately raised the prices of its Marlboro, Parliament and Benson brands. However, Nobleza maintained its prices, and managed to raise its market share by 0.6%. The brands which benefited most were the most expensive: Camel (with 8% of total sales) and Lucky (1%), which compete directly with Marlboro, absolute leader of the market with a share of around 40%, and which went up by 20 cents for the Box line. Now Nobleza decided to follow suit and have just raised the price of their Camel Box by 20 cents. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 5 10:26:08 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0FF5E2A05E for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:26:08 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA06072 for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:26:07 -0400 Date: Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:26:07 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] European News Bulletin - EU0026 - 3 July 2000 (fwd) Globalink's EUROPEAN BULLETIN EU0026 =96 3 July 2000 Headlines EUROPE: EU Ministers agree on stricter tobacco regulations EUROPE: EU court rejects challenge to tobacco advertising law BULGARIA: Marlboro man races east from tobacco control FRANCE/CUBA: Co-President of Altadis SA sees more opportunities in Cuba GERMANY: Swedish Match To Appeal German Ban On Tobacco Product GERMANY: Reemtsma expansion plans ITALY: Manslaughter inquiry over passive smoking death NORWAY: Report clears way for smoker claims ROMANIA: Philip Morris goes local Full Text EUROPE: EU Ministers agree on stricter tobacco regulations European Union health ministers have approved the tobacco product directive which will reduce the maximum tar content of cigarettes to 10 milligrams per cigarette from 12 milligrams and set a 1-milligram ceiling on nicotine content. The ministers agreed to enlarge health warnings to cover 25 percent on both sides of the pack, higher than the current 4 percent, although lower than a measure voted on by the European Parliament earlier this month which called for 35 percent on the front of a pack and 45 percent on the back. =93Tobacco must be regulated through a responsible manufacturing and marketing policy,=94 said David Byrne, European Commissioner for Consumer and Health Affairs, adding that =93the appalling and entirely preventable death toll from smoking=94 claims one European life a minute. Germany, the only country to oppose the directive, has said it will consider a legal challenge, arguing that parts of the directive could not be justified under the single market legal base proposed. Luxembourg, Austria and Spain abstained. The proposal needs to be agreed by the commission before returning to the parliament for final approval. Source: Bloomberg News, 29 June 2000 EUROPE: EU court rejects challenge to tobacco advertising law The European Court has ruled that a challenge by clothing, media and advertising companies to the EU's ban on tobacco advertising is inadmissible and should not be heard. A separate challenge by Germany to this directive is unaffected by the ruling. The challenge was mounted by a group of companies variously affected by the advertising ban passed in 1998, including Salamander AG, a German-incorporated company making shoes and boots, which holds the license for Camel boots. Other parties were Una Film "City Revue" GmbH, an Austrian company which distributes advertising films in cinemas; a partner of Austrian Tabak, which holds exclusive rights over tobacco advertising in Austria; Alma Media group, which sells advertising space in public places in Greece and has 90% of that market; and Zino Davidoff SA and Davidoff & Cie SA, which hold the right attached to the Davidoff trade mark and grant licenses to cosmetic products and leather goods. The action was supported by Markenverbrand of Germany, Manifattura Lane Gaetano Marzotto & Figli SpA of Italy and Lancaster BV of the Netherlands. The companies all sought the annulment of the directive but the European Court of First Instance ruled that their applications were not admissible because they were individuals, not member states, and that the directive did not directly affect their legal situation even if it might be of concern to them. Source: NewsEdge, Wednesday, 28 June 2000 BULGARIA: Marlboro man races east from tobacco control The Marlboro man's ride into Bulgaria is among the latest signs that major cigarette makers are racing into Eastern Europe before the European Union's expansion and international anti-smoking campaigns lead to stricter tobacco laws. Smokers in Eastern Europe face fewer restrictions in restaurants, offices and schools than in the West. According to a World Bank report, Bulgarian schools do not restrict smoking and Romanian children can legally buy cigarettes. Tobacco laws are especially lax in Ukraine, where smoking is allowed even on public transportation. In this environment Philip Morris recently launched sales of Marlboro cigarettes, the world's most popular brand. Cartons appeared on store shelves overnight in cities across Bulgaria. Strong demand was reported immediately "irrespective of prices," according to a Sofia newspaper. Marlboros have been sold on the Bulgarian black market for years, but the legal packets are advertised as fresher and more flavourful. Philip Morris says it has cornered a dominant share of the tobacco market in several parts of Eastern Europe. For example the company says it controls 33 percent of the market in Poland, 53 percent in Slovakia and 79 percent in Czech Republic. Another big player in the region is BAT, which aggressively advertises its Lucky Strike brand as "real American" =20 cigarettes. Tobacco companies say they're working with Eastern European governments to protect the public. Philip Morris, for example, says it helped Estonia create the Baltic country's first tobacco-industry marketing code. Nevertheless Eastern Europe's demand for cigarettes is one reason why a WHO report two weeks ago predicted a global increase in smokers to 1.6 billion by 2020 from 1.2 billion today. A World Bank report says by 2020 seven out of every 10 people who die from smoking-related illness will be in low- to middle-income nations. The WHO-funded Collaborating Centre on Tobacco at the Karolisnka Institute in Stockholm is focusing on training Eastern European health officials to combat smoking with education and regulation. Among other measures, the World Bank is pushing for higher cigarette taxes. It says a 10 percent increase in taxes in 1995 would have spurred 40 million people to quit and save 10 million lives. The call for tobacco control is getting louder, particularly in Europe. In October, the subject will be debated for two days at a WHO-sponsored public hearing in Geneva, Switzerland. It's being billed as history's largest gathering of representatives from the tobacco industry, anti-smoking groups, health agencies and governments. Yet the industry's push into Eastern Europe is not expected to soften. Industry documents obtained by WHO include this statement from a BAT executive speaking about the region's potential for sales growth: "Obviously there is enormous potential in these countries. I would say that the demand for Western cigarettes is insatiable. It's a fantastic opportunity for everybody... in any number of countries." Source: UPI, 26 June 2000 FRANCE/CUBA: Co-President of Altadis SA sees more opportunities in Cuba Jean Dominique Comolli, co-president of cigar industry giant, Altadis SA, recently headed a French business delegation to Cuba on a mission to increase trade between the two countries, according to Granma, Cuba's state newspaper. The French delegation, representing 25 companies, visited Cuba's tobacco farms in Pinar del Rio province, southwest Cuba, where Cuban farmers grow most of the tobacco wrapper leaf used in the manufacture of hand-made Cuban cigars. Last December, Altadis SA purchased a 50 percent stake in Habanos SA, Cuba's global marketer and distributor of its cigars, for $500 million. The purchase was completed this month and under the arrangement Habanos SA has two presidents, Oscar Basulto, a former vice minister of Cuban agriculture and Jamie Garcia Andrade, a Spaniard who worked 10 years in Cuba for Tabacalera SA as the Spanish tobacco giant's point man in Havana. Comolli told Granma that in terms of bilateral trade, France occupies second place among Cuba's trading partners with $280 million in exports, ahead of both Canada and Germany. Source: Bloomberg News, Thursday, 29 June 2000 GERMANY: Swedish Match To Appeal German Ban On Tobacco Product Tobacco products group Swedish Match AB has said that it will appeal the ruling of a court in Cologne to ban the sale of snus - a moist snuff tobacco product - in Germany. Swedish Match will also seek to question the legality of a European Union ban on certain smokeless tobacco products through the European Court of Justice. "It is our firm opinion that the E.U. ban on certain smokeless tobacco products - to the extent it covers snus - violates fundamental E.U. principles, foremost the principles of non-discrimination and proportionality," said Swedish Match President and Chief Executive Lennart Sunden. "A significant body of scientific evidence now clearly shows that the health risks associated with using snus are significantly less than those associated with cigarette smoking," said Sunden. Since snus is widely used in Sweden, the Swedish government has obtained a permanent derogation from the E.U. ban on certain smokeless tobaccos. Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, 28 June 2000 GERMANY: Reemtsma expansion plans The German cigarette producer Reemtsma, which registered worldwide sales of 137.2bn (up from 129.4bn) cigarettes, a turnover (excluding tobacco tax) of DM 4.841bn (+8.4%) and a net profit of DM 435.5mn (after DM 369.3mn) in 1999, wants to expand further. Reemtsma is targeting in particular eastern and central Europe as well as Asia. In 1999, Reemtsma sold 104.9bn (97.8bn) cigarettes abroad. In Germany, the group ranked second with a market share of 22.9% (22.8%). Reemtsma is also the number two in central Europe and Taiwan and the market leader in Ukraine and Kirgizia. In Cambodia, Reemtsma acquired the majority of Paradise Tobacco, which represents a market share of 6% in that country. After a 10% turnover rise in the first five months of 2000, Reemtsma targets a 'high single-digit' growth rate for the full year. Profits should develop in line with the turnover. In 1999 pre-tax profits increased by 44% to DM 735.6mn. Source: Handelsblatt via the Gale Group, 09 Jun 2000 ITALY: Manslaughter inquiry over passive smoking death A Milan prosecutor has begun investigating whether an asthma sufferer died from passive smoking, with a view to charging her employers and colleagues with manslaughter. The victim, identified by Italian newspapers as Stefania C, 25, collapsed at her desk in a Milan bank 10 months ago and died of an acute asthma attack. Employers have in the past been ordered to pay compensation for the effects on health of passive smoking, but this would be the first time in Italian legal history that anyone had been charged with culpable homicide in such a case. The woman, who suffered from chronic bronchial asthma, had been hired under a scheme that gives tax incentives to employers who take on staff with physical handicaps. But her family say she was forced to work in a small, windowless room, surrounded by habitual smokers. Her repeated written requests to be transferred to a healthier environment were allegedly ignored by her employers. The prosecutor, Luca Poniz, is investigating whether those who continued to smoke around her and those who ignored her pleas for help should be charged with manslaughter. The intervention of trade union officials achieved no improvement in Mrs C's working conditions. She returned from work every day with her clothes reeking of smoke and feeling humiliated by the insensitivity of her colleagues, her husband told the prosecutor. Her anxiety at having to work in an airless, smoke-filled room often caused her to break down in tears, he said. According to Francesco Bacchini, a researcher on labour rights at the University of Modena, the entire bank hierarchy could be liable to prosecution. "There is still no law against passive smoking in Italy, but using an extensive interpretation of other laws on safety in the workplace, there is no doubt that this case has serious penal implications," he said. Four years ago the constitutional court established that smoking should only be allowed in the workplace in specially designated rooms or adequately ventilated smoking areas. Mr Poniz will decide if he should go ahead with charges against the bank staff after questioning all those involved in Mrs C's case. His decision is expected by the end of the month. Source: The Guardian, Saturday, 24 June 2000 NORWAY: Report clears way for smoker claims A 700-page official report on Norway's tobacco industry will make it easier for individuals and local authorities to claim damages against the industry. However, the authors say it won't be an easy legal process. The document - put together by a team of legal and medical experts - marks a crucial turning point in the fight against tobacco. Emphasis will now be on responsibility and compensation whereas in the past, priority was given to the prevention of tobacco related illnesses. Health minister Tore T=F8nne, who received the report last week, says sick smokers cost the nation NOK 2 billion ($230.7 million) each year and that 7,500 people die of tobacco related illnesses. He says it is strange that a product designed to be addictive, and which can be fatal, is sold with few restrictions, but he did not envisage a ban on the sale of tobacco. Source: Aftenposten, Wednesday, 28 June 2000 ROMANIA: Philip Morris goes local Philip Morris Romania last week officially launched a new cigarette created especially for Romanian market. "This is the first time that an international tobacco company has decided to launch a local brand of cigarettes," said Peter Imre, Corporate Affairs Director with Philip Morris Romania. Research showed that 46.1 percent of the Romanian tobacco market is covered by local brands, 31.6 percent by low price cigarettes, 13,9 percent by medium price cigarettes and only 8.4 percent by high price cigarettes. The Callatis brand is designed to attract smokers on low income who cannot afford to buy high price cigarettes. The new brand will be supported by "the biggest campaign ever made for a local cigarette brand. The budget for the campaign is valued at a couple of hundred thousand of dollars," said Imre without mentioning the exact amount of money that will be invested in promoting the brand. He was also reluctant to mention the value of the investment that Phillip Morris has made on the Romanian market and in its factory. Source: The Business Review - Bucharest; June26 - July2, 2000 / Volume 3, no. 25 Amanda Sandford Research Manager ASH 102 Clifton Street LONDON EC2A 4HW tel: 020 7739 5902 fax: 020 7613 0531 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 5 10:37:30 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6F9E12A05E for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:37:30 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA06371 for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:37:30 -0400 Date: Wed, 5 Jul 2000 10:37:29 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Judge Strikes Blow to Canadian Smuggling Suit in US Judge Strikes Blow to Tobacco Suit Source: Reuters, Tuesday, 7/4/00 VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - A U.S. District Court judge has struck a blow to Canada's $1 billion lawsuit against RJ Reynolds Tobacco Holdings (NYSE:RJR - news) that accused the tobacco giant and its subsidiaries of cigarette smuggling. Judge Thomas McAvoy said the lawsuit ran afoul of a 1700s English common law rule adopted by the United States that prohibits its courts from being used to collect another country's revenue. McAvoy handed down the decision Thursday but it was not made public until Tuesday. The ``Revenue Rule'' has been criticized as outdated in the modern era of closely-linked national economies and tax treaties, and McAvoy's ruling hints he would like to see the issue of its continued validity decided at higher level of the U.S. justice system. McAvoy, who sits on the U.S. District Court for northern New York state, said if it were within his legal jurisdiction, he ''would be inclined to find the Revenue Rule outdated'' at least in some instances. Canada filed suit in December alleging that cigarette makers attempted to defraud it of tax revenue in the early 1990s with a scheme that shipped Canadian brands of cigarettes to the United States and then smuggled them back into Canada. The smuggling of over cigarettes into Canada ran rampant in the early 1990s as Canadians attempted to avoid high taxes that were designed to reduce smoking. The flood of illegal smokes eventually forced the taxes to be reduced. The civil lawsuit, which also named the Canadian Tobacco Manufactures Council, accused the tobacco maker of breaking U.S. anti-racketeering laws and sought compensation for the lost tax revenue. McAvoy's 55-page ruling dismissed the lawsuit at the request of the defendants, although he sided with Canada on several legal points and acknowledged that Canada suffered economic harm. A copy of the ruling was first obtained by the French language broadcasting service Radio Canada. Efforts to reach the tobacco makers for comment on the ruling were not immediately successful. Fred Bartlit, the private attorney in the United States representing Canada, said on Tuesday that he had only just received a copy of the ruling and no decision had been made on filing an appeal. RJ Reynolds International sold its Canadian unit, RJR MacDonald, to Japan Tobacco Inc (2914.T) last year, but retained all liabilities that might arise from the smuggling investigation. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 5 15:05:26 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D5D482A05E for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 15:05:26 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA13277 for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 15:05:20 -0400 Date: Wed, 5 Jul 2000 15:05:10 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Central Europe to See Rise in Cancer Deaths (fwd) Central Europe to See Rise in Cancer Deaths CENTRAL EUROPE; Source: Reuters, Wednesday, 7/5/00 NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The number of deaths from cancers related to alcohol and tobacco use will rise dramatically in several central European countries over the next ten years, according to French researchers. They note that in recent years, life expectancy among men has fallen in formerly socialist countries. This worrying trend is attributed to a steep rise in deaths due to heart disease and cancer in middle-aged men. ``In particular, recent increases in cancers related to smoking and alcohol consumption have been reported in (Central and Eastern Europe),'' according to the report. And the worst is not over, according to the researchers' projections of cancer deaths for these nations. Dr. Paul Brennan and colleagues from the International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France, collected and analyzed data from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland and Romania on cancer deaths from 1965 to 1994. The team looked specifically at cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, esophagus, bladder, kidney and pancreas. The group then extrapolated to estimate the mortality rates for 1995-1999 and 2004-2009. The team concludes that death rates for these cancers is ''increasing dramatically in several Central European countries.'' Of the countries included in the study, Hungary has the highest projected rates for most cancers, and ``particularly rapid increases are expected for cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx and of the larynx in Hungarian men,'' according to the report published in the July issue of the International Journal of Cancer. ``Our results,'' the team concludes, ``indicate that further increases may be expected on top of the already high cancer mortality levels in Central Europe. Policies to reduce alcohol consumption and prevent smoking in younger generations are necessary to reduce mortality as these (groups) age.'' SOURCE: International Journal of Cancer 2000;87:122-128. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 5 15:07:59 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 643772A05E for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 15:07:59 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA13351 for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 15:07:58 -0400 Date: Wed, 5 Jul 2000 15:07:56 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] PUBLIC HEARINGS ON FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON TOBACCO CONTROL: GENEVA, 12-13 OCTOBER 2000 (fwd) PUBLIC HEARINGS ON FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON TOBACCO CONTROL: GENEVA, 12-13= =20 OCTOBER 2000 The World Health Organization (WHO) is organizing two days of public hearings on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) on 12 and 13 October in Geneva, Switzerland. The hearings come just two days before the start of formal negotiations on the FCTC, the parameters of which were set forth in Resolutions WHA52.18 and WHA53.16 which were adopted by consensus by the World Health Assembly in 1999 and 2000 respectively. =20 Registration is now open to attend these hearings, either as a journalist or as a participant. WHERE: The two-day hearings, which will run from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., will be held at Geneva's International Conference Centre (CICG). WHEN: 12-13 October 2000 HOW TO REGISTER AS A JOURNALIST: Send proof of journalist=92s credentials to: Office of the Spokesperson (SPO) World Health Organization 20 Avenue Appia 1211 Geneva 27 Switzerland e-mail: hartlg@who.int HOW TO PARTICIPATE AS AN INTERESTED PARTY: Pre-Hearing Submissions WHO will receive comments on the FCTC from all interested institutions in any of the six official United Nations languages, i.e., Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish. The deadline for receiving submissions is the close of business (Geneva time) on 31 August 2000. Submissions should be sent to fctchearings@who.int or posted to TFI, WHO, 20 Avenue Appia, 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland. Submissions must not exceed 5 pages (standard size paper and type), including attachments. Private sector and non-governmental organizations and institutions may submit these. Organizations and institutions will be limited to one submission. Each submission must clearly identify: The organisational or institutional submitter The scope of activities or mandate of the organization The organization=92s interest in the FCTC process Source of funding of the commenting/submitting organization. WHO must receive all submissions by the deadline, which will not be extended under any circumstances. Testifying at the Hearings A panel comprising three members of TFI=92s Policy and Strategy Advisory Committee (PSAC) will moderate the proceedings. PSAC was established by the Director-General of WHO to provide advice; its members are international tobacco control experts. Opportunities to speak are limited to institutions or organizations that have made written submissions. Each speaker may speak for up to a maximum of five minutes. Speakers may: Provide a synopsis of their written testimony Add to their written testimony Comment on other people=92s testimony For planning and organization purposes, please state clearly, at the time of the original submission, if you wish to testify in person in the hearings in Geneva. Speakers should hand a hard copy of their statement to the Secretariat of the Hearings before they speak to facilitate interpretation into other languages and for future reference. For those not able to attend in person, testimony may be videotaped and, time permitting, these videos will be shown during the Hearings. If possible, videos should, be submitted in PAL format and a transcript should be provided. Subsequent Submissions by All Previous Submitters All submitters (i.e. all those organizations and institutions that have made submissions by the close of business [Geneva time] 31 August 2000) may file submissions in reply to presentations after the hearings. The submissions must reach WHO by the close of business (Geneva time) 27 October 2000, and must not exceed 3 pages. For further information from WHO, journalists can contact Mr Gregory Hartl WHO Spokesperson, WHO, Geneva, tel (+41 22) 791 4458 fax (+41 22) 791 4858. E-mail: hartlg@who.int. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 5 22:55:10 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 55DEA2A05E for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 22:55:10 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id WAA20894 for ; Wed, 5 Jul 2000 22:55:10 -0400 Date: Wed, 5 Jul 2000 22:55:09 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Canada may appeal U.S. tobacco decision (fwd) Canada may appeal U.S. tobacco decision by Randall Palmer Source: Reuters, Wednesday, 7/5/00 OTTAWA, July 5 (Reuters) - The Canadian government said on Wednesday it might appeal a U.S. court decision dismissing its $1-billion lawsuit against RJ Reynolds Tobacco Holdings (NYSE:RJR - news) and its affiliates. The court decision, made public on Tuesday, openly hinted at one area where it was open to challenge -- a centuries-old English rule that prohibits U.S. courts from acting as another country's tax collector. ``We're reviewing the decision. An appeal is not out of the question,'' said Farah Mohamed, a spokeswoman for Canadian Justice Minister Anne McLellan. ``Certainly we feel that we have a very strong case and we'll have to look at it in that light.'' Meantime, the tobacco industry hailed the ruling as a victory. Rob Parker, president of the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers' Council, declared: ``It's a massive defeat for the government, and an embarrassing one for them.'' Parker also pointed out that in February a British Columbia court declared that province's efforts to seek damages for the public health costs of smoking-related illnesses were unconstitutional. However, British Columbia is relaunching its lawsuit, minus the portion of the case struck down by the court, and may be joined in the legal action by Newfoundland. Ontario is also suing the tobacco industry, but in U.S. court. Ottawa launched its U.S. suit in December, accusing RJ Reynolds and its Canadian subsidiary, RJR-Macdonald, of smuggling cigarettes into Canada, thereby undermining anti-smoking policies and adding to health and enforcement costs. RJ Reynolds sold its Canadian unit, RJR-Macdonald, and other international operations to Japan Tobacco Inc. last year, but retained all liabilities that might arise from the smuggling investigation. U.S. District Court Judge Thomas McAvoy in New York state said the lawsuit ran afoul of a 1700s English rule adopted by the United States -- the ``revenue rule'' -- which prohibits U.S. courts from being used to collect another country's revenue. A lawyer at Canada's Justice Department, Gordon Bourgard, said in a statement: ``In its ruling the court did not address the factual merits. Rather it dismissed the lawsuit based on a rule of law that has been called into question by several courts.'' McAvoy himself hinted he would like to see the issue of the continued validity of the revenue rule decided at a higher level of the U.S. justice system. He said in his ruling that if it were within his legal jurisdiction, he ``would be inclined to find the revenue rule outdated,'' at least in some instances. Bourgard said: ``Obviously we are disappointed with the ruling but it's important to remember that when reading this ruling, the judge did not deal with the factual issues of the claim. This lawsuit was filed only after substantial investigation convinced the Canadian government it had a strong and meritorious case.'' The suit alleged that Canadian cigarette makers attempted to defraud the government of tax revenues in the early 1990s by shipping cigarettes to the United States and then smuggling them back into Canada, especially through Indian reserves straddling the border. Ottawa hiked tobacco taxes sharply in 1989 and 1991, partly in an attempt to curb smoking among teens and young adults. But the flood of illegal cigarettes prompted the government to roll back taxes in eastern Canada in 1994 to take away the incentive for smuggling, a move many critics have blamed for a subsequent rise in youth smoking. Since the Canadian case was filed under the U.S. Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations (RICO) Act, if it were successful it could result in an award triple the actual damages -- meaning a possible windfall of $3 billion. The case is being closely watched by other countries. Similar suits have been filed in U.S. courts by Ecuador and by Colombia's provincial governments. (Additional reporting by Allan Dowd in Vancouver) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jul 6 09:51:20 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C60552A05E for ; Thu, 6 Jul 2000 09:51:20 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id JAA25071 for ; Thu, 6 Jul 2000 09:51:20 -0400 Date: Thu, 6 Jul 2000 09:51:19 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Canada Tobacco Suit Far From Over (fwd) Tobacco Suit Far From Over U.S. ruling offers lots of room to appeal by WILLIAM MARSDEN / The Gazette Source: Montreal Gazette, Thursday, 7/6/00 The decision by a U.S. federal judge to dismiss Canada's $1-billion racketeering lawsuit against RJ Reynolds Tobacco Holding does not mean the case is over. In fact, the judgment appears to offer plenty of room for appeal. Close reading of the 52-page ruling appears to show that U.S. federal court Judge Thomas McAvoy is inviting an appeal on the U.S. Revenue Rule - a law that even the judge refers to as "outdated" and irrational. It bars U.S. courts from ruling on foreign tax laws. In his judgment, McAvoy states that Canada's lawsuit alleging violations of the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) is essentially a tax-recovery case that would require his court to interpret Canadian tax laws. This is a violation of the Revenue Rule and therefore McAvoy dismissed the case. At the June hearing in Binghamton, N.Y., RJR lawyer Stephen Heard forcefully pushed this issue. He said Canada's suit was essentially an attempt to recover taxes lost from 1991 to 1997 to tobacco-smuggling. He also argued it was merely an attempt to use RICO to obtain triple damages, winning a possible $3 billion U.S. The federal government's counter-argument appears to have failed. But not entirely. Canada claimed it was attempting to recover damages caused by a conspiracy by the tobacco company to aid and abet smuggling. The fact that the damages included lost taxes, it argued, is incidental in law. Even though McAvoy agreed with RJR, he clearly believes current interpretation of the Revenue Rule is obsolete. He seems to be saying that in a modern world, where sovereign economies are closely entwined, license has to be given to courts to interpret foreign tax laws. In a footnote, he finds the Revenue Rule "outdated" and states that the rational for the rule is "largely unpersuasive." He also quotes two court decisions. One called the rule "obsolete" and the other states that it is not "analytically justified." But while clearly uncomfortable with the law, McAvoy was compelled to follow earlier rulings of the Second Circuit appeals court. Essentially, McAvoy seems to be begging Canada to appeal his judgment to the Second Circuit, which is equivalent to the Quebec Court of Appeal. He seems to be saying that the court should take a fresh look at the Revenue Rule and its applicability to RICO. Indeed, McAvoy rejected or wavered on most of RJR's other dismissal arguments. He agreed with Canada's stance that the racketeering case alleging U.S. mail and wire fraud does not require validation of any Canadian law. RJR had argued that the case required an "Act of State Doctrine," which bars a court from ruling on foreign laws. Another important issue won by Canada was whether it has standing under the U.S. civil RICO laws. RJR had argued that since Canada is a sovereign state, it is immune from prosecution under RICO. Therefore, on the other side of the coin, it cannot be a plaintiff. McAvoy, however, noted that the RICO law clearly states that foreign governments can sue. Case closed and another point to Canada. Canada lost, however, on a second important point. But even here, the judge wavered. Under RICO, a plaintiff must show he suffered injuries to business or property. Canada claims its injuries came in the form of lost tax revenue and higher law-enforcement costs. McAvoy ruled that a government cannot claim increased enforcement costs. He cited the case of the town of West Hartford, Conn., which claimed damages for increased policing resulting from a demonstration against a medical facility by anti-abortion activists. The U.S. Second Circuit appeals court rejected the claim, stating that police were simply a part of town services, and not a commercial enterprise under RICO. But McAvoy recognized an importance difference. Canada claims that its increased law-enforcement costs were a direct result of RJR's conspiracy to defraud it. For this reason, it claims, these losses are recognizable under RICO. McAvoy at first agrees with this argument, but then cites the Second Circuits ruling on the Hartford case and reverses himself. Oddly, McAvoy does not even mention RJR's claim that Canada was late in filing its RICO case. Unless he forgot, he obviously did not believe it worth addressing. Gordon Bourgard, general counsel for the Department of Justice, called the ruling a "very complex judgment." He said the government expects to make a decision within the next two weeks. It has 30 days to appeal. RJR has remained largely silent on the judgment. According to RJR official Guy Cote, the company is "assessing its next move." With several important openings for an appeal, there may also be openings for a settlement. Settlement discussions ended abruptly in December, when the government launched its massive suit. It has already paid more than $4 million to its Chicago law firm, Bartlit Beck. RJR lawyer Stephen Heard said in an interview before the judgment: "Any time you can settle a case on the basis of fairness, it makes sense." With this judgment and its cryptic waffling, both sides might tend to be conciliatory. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jul 6 09:58:38 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1638B2A386 for ; Thu, 6 Jul 2000 09:58:38 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id JAA25318 for ; Thu, 6 Jul 2000 09:58:37 -0400 Date: Thu, 6 Jul 2000 09:58:37 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Germany opposes cigarette curbs (fwd) (note date) Germany opposes cigarette curbs by Michael Smith / in Luxembourg Source: Financial Times, Friday, 6/30/00 European Union governments Thursday approved tighter controls on cigarette contents and health warnings as part of a drive to cut down on smoking-related deaths, estimated at 500,000 a year. However Germany - the only country to vote against - and tobacco manufacturers are to consider a legal challenge. Berlin said it was not against tighter controls but argued that parts of the directive could not be justified under the single market legal base proposed. In Thursday's vote, 11 of the 15 health ministers were in favour of the directive which forces the printing of "smoking kills" warnings on cigarette packs and imposes tighter restrictions on the use of carbon monoxide, tar and nicotine. Austria, Luxembourg and Spain abstained. The health ministers' endorsement came just eight months after the European Commission tabled the directive. "In legislative terms this is formula one speed," said David Byrne, health commissioner. The package will now go back to the European Parliament for a second reading, probably later in the year, and the final shape of the package will be decided next year in negotiations between the parliament and governments. Parliament gave broad endorsement to the proposals in a first reading earlier this month. The package approved by health ministers Thursday would set ceilings for tar and carbon monoxide at 10mg per cigarette and for nicotine at 1mg. Germany and the tobacco manufacturers say there is no justification for extending these limits to export cigarettes as the directive proposes. The industry says the exports measure will cost it 9,000 jobs. Cigarette manufacturers also argue that requirements to print "smoking kills" or "smoking can kill" warnings on a quarter of the surface of each packet are excessive. However, the parliament wants the labels to be larger still. The directive also introduces a prohibition on descriptor terms for cigarettes such as "light", "low tar" and "mild", another measure to which Germany and cigarette manufacturers object. In addition the directive will force manufacturers to supply details of ingredients. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Jul 7 11:54:35 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 97D542A374 for ; Fri, 7 Jul 2000 11:54:35 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA16859 for ; Fri, 7 Jul 2000 11:54:35 -0400 Date: Fri, 7 Jul 2000 11:54:35 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris lobbies for Colombian aid - what gives? Colombia's Unlikely Advocate Legal Times By Sam Loewenberg Monday, June 26, 2000 The $1 billion-plus Colombian anti-drug package that passed the U.S. Senate last week has had a string of unlikely advocates: defense contractors, oil companies, and now, apparently, tobacco. Representatives of the Philip Morris Cos. lobbied both the House and the Senate to pass the package, according to a GOP aide in the Senate and a former committee staffer in the House. The cigarette company's lobbyists said that they were pressing the issue at the request of the Colombian government, according to the Hill staffers. Philip Morris did not return multiple calls seeking comment. But Colombian Ambassador Luis Alberto Moreno denies that the tobacco company was acting on his government's behalf. "Nothing is farther from the truth," Moreno says. The legislation, proposed by the Clinton administration, calls for roughly $1.6 billion in aid, most of which comes in the form of military hardware and intelligence for the Colombian army. Critics in Congress and human rights groups argue that the aid will not help in drug interdiction, but is instead a military package whose purpose is counterinsurgency, not counternarcotics. It is unclear what interest Philip Morris has in the legislation. There is no record of the tobacco company either registering on the issue with the Justice Department as a foreign agent or registering on the issue with Congress to lobby. But some who follow the tobacco company suspect there may be a link between the company's lobbying here and its problems in Colombia. Troubling Civil Suit In May, Philip Morris was slapped with a civil lawsuit by 22 Colombian states and the capital city Bogota. The suit, filed in federal court in New York, alleges that Philip Morris worked with Colombian drug dealers to engage in cigarette smuggling and money laundering. The states claim they have lost billions of dollars as a result. In what some observers have since interpreted as a move to pre-empt the suit, Philip Morris announced in March an agreement with the Colombian central government to fight smuggling. It was also around this time that the tobacco company's lobbyists went to Capitol Hill to discuss the Colombian anti-drug package, according to the two congressional staffers. The lobbyists made the case that the package would curb cigarette smuggling and also discussed the importance of the Colombian market to the company's business. "It seems pretty clear to me that they are trying to get in good with the Colombian government because of these lawsuits," says Ross Hammond, a Latin American specialist with the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, a D.C.-based anti-smoking group. "They are probably hoping that by doing the Colombian federal government a favor that pressure can be brought on the states to drop the suit." Ambassador Moreno says that the suggestion of a behind-the-scenes deal with Philip Morris is "absolutely false." Moreno says he did talk with Philip Morris officials on several occasions about cigarette smuggling and the lawsuit, but that he never asked them to lobby for the aid package. He acknowledges asking other companies, through the U.S.-Colombia Business Partnership, to push for the aid. Lawyers from the New York office of Speiser, Krause, Nolan & Granito, who are counsel to the Colombian states, say that they have cut no deal with Philip Morris, and that the central government has no formal authority to intervene in their legal action. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Jul 7 12:09:32 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 90B522A374 for ; Fri, 7 Jul 2000 12:09:32 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA17368 for ; Fri, 7 Jul 2000 12:09:32 -0400 Date: Fri, 7 Jul 2000 12:09:32 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Australian High Court Rejects Class Action Against BAT Australasia High Court Rejects Class Action Against BAT Australasia by Graham Morgan / Dow Jones Newswires; 61-2-8235-2962 graham.morgan@dowjones.com AUSTRALIA; Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Wednesday, 6/21/00 SYDNEY -- British American Tobacco PLC's (BTI) Australasian arm Wednesday welcomed the High Court of Australia's decision to reject an application for leave to appeal in a class action against the company. Law firm Slater & Gordon, acting on behalf of a group of complainants in a class action against British American Tobacco Australasia, had applied to the High Court of Australia seeking leave to appeal a decision of the Federal Court. The Federal Court recently dismissed the class action. The High Court of Australia's decision ends the proceedings concerning the health effects of smoking, which was known as the Nixon class action. Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Director of British American Tobacco Brendan Brady said the company will seek to recover court costs. "Not only has this action taken up substantial court time, but it has also been an expensive exercise for the named class members who will have to pay costs," Brady said. "Those promoting this kind of American-style, speculative litigation should bear the costs, and I assume they will be prepared to do so on behalf of their clients," he said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Jul 7 17:39:43 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 924E42A374 for ; Fri, 7 Jul 2000 17:39:43 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA26422 for ; Fri, 7 Jul 2000 17:39:43 -0400 Date: Fri, 7 Jul 2000 17:39:42 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco Companies File Lawsuit Against Federal Labelling Law (fwd) Tobacco Companies File Lawsuit Against Federal Labelling Law Source: Vancouver Sun, Friday, 7/7/00 MONTREAL (CP) - Three tobacco companies, led by Imperial Tobacco, filed a lawsuit Thursday that aims to strike down new federal legislation requiring larger health warnings on cigarette packages. The lawsuit, filed in Quebec Superior Court, asks for an immediate halt to the law's requirement that the warnings be big enough to cover half of a cigarette package. Imperial was joined in the suit by JTI-Macdonald Corp. and Rothmans, Benson and Hedges Inc. Imperial, Canada's largest manufacturer of tobacco, contends the labelling law is unconstitutional because it infringes on the corporation's freedom of expression. "These packages belong to us," said Michel Descoteaux, an Imperial Tobacco spokesman. "We believe that for the government to come and seize 50 per cent of the package for their own purposes is an expropriation of our trademarks and of our packages." He said the firm, whose brands include Du Maurier and Players, doesn't object to warning labels but requiring half the package to contain health messages is excessive. The suit says the government has not produced any credible evidence that large warning notices would lead to a reduction in the number of Canadians who smoke. Rothmans, Benson and Hedges is Canada's second-largest cigarette company and is owned 60 per cent by Canada's Rothman Inc. with the remainder held by Philip Morris Cos. Inc., the biggest cigarette manufacturer in the United States. JTI-Macdonald holds the No. 3 spot in Canada and is owned by Japan Tobacco Inc. Garfield Mahood, executive director of the Non-Smokers Rights' Association, argued the lawsuit suggests the industry is hypocritical about tobacco's health dangers. "We're obviously very critical of the industry for attempting to deny to customers the real risk of its products," he said in an interview from Ottawa. Mahood said it was only days ago that tobacco firms told a Senate committee "they'd made mistakes and said they wanted to work with the government to keep kids away from their products." But Imperial Tobacco said the labelling requirements make a mockery of a 1995 Supreme Court of Canada decision which struck down sections of the Tobacco Products Control Act as illegal. That decision under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms came only after five years of court proceedings. The firm said it's "unfair to again violate its rights until the constitutional fate of this new similar legislation is decided." The Imperial Tobacco lawsuit comes less than a week after U.S. District Court Judge Thomas McAvoy threw out Canada's court action against U.S.-based RJ Reynolds Tobacco Co., five related companies and the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers' Council. The Canadian government's $1 billion US suit claimed the tobacco firms had been involved in racketeering and fraud but McAvoy dismissed the case last Friday before it could even go to trial. The judge agreed with the defendants who cited the rule that U.S. courts cannot enforce tax laws of foreign nations. Ottawa says it was defrauded of more than $1 billion US between 1991 and 1994 in foregone taxes, duties and other revenue. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jul 8 11:45:03 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id AD0DC2A374 for ; Sat, 8 Jul 2000 11:45:03 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA32171 for ; Sat, 8 Jul 2000 11:45:03 -0400 Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 11:45:03 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Italy Tightens No-Smoking Law (fwd) Italy Tightens No-Smoking Law Source: AP, Friday, 7/7/00 Friday, July 7, 2000; 6:28 p.m. EDT ROME =96=96 For four years Italians have largely puffed away in defiance of= a national no-smoking law. It was not uncommon to see bank tellers lighting up behind signs asking customers not to smoke, or passengers indifferently drawing from cigarettes in airport no smoking areas. But on Friday, the Cabinet approved temporary measures aimed at forcing Italians to take its "No Smoking" signs seriously. Under the measures, Italians who defy the bans will risk fines of up to $150. Restaurant owners or office managers who fail to enforce smoking bans will face even stiffer fines, up to $3,000. The bans will also be extended to almost all enclosed spaces, public and private, including indoor cafes and restaurants, where smoking is now unrestricted. As in the United States, parts of restaurants can still be designated as smoking areas. The Cabinet decree also includes a provision for businesses to appoint a kind of "minder" to see that no smoking takes place. It is now up to the Parliament to decide whether to turn the measures, which expire before the end of the year, into law. Spearheading support for the law is Italy's new health minister, Umberto Veronesi, a doctor who is one of the country's foremost cancer experts. Business organizations have promised to lobby hard against the law, contending it would raise costs too much for hoteliers, eatery and bar owners to set up separate smoking and nonsmoking areas. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jul 8 12:10:57 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3F95A2A374 for ; Sat, 8 Jul 2000 12:10:57 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32439 for ; Sat, 8 Jul 2000 12:10:57 -0400 Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 12:10:56 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris local cigarette for Romania Raluca Topliceanu The business review - Bucharest; June26 - July2, 2000 / Volume 3, number25 PHILIP MORRIS GOES LOCAL Philip Morris Romania last week officially launched a new cigarette created especially for Romanian market, Callatis. "This is the first time that an international tobacco company has decided to launch a local brand of cigarettes," said Peter Imre, Corporate Affairs Director with Philip Morris Romania. "The new product comes after five months of market studies made with AC Nielsen, studies that showed us the interest of the Romanian Smoker for local cigarette brands, produced at the highest quality levels and having an affordable price," added Dan Dumitrescu, Brand Manager with Philip Morris Romania. The studies showed that 46.1 percent of the Romanian tobacco market is covered by local brands, 31.6 percent by low price cigarettes, 13,9 percent by medium price cigarettes and only 8.4 percent by high quality, high price cigarettes.=20 "We noticed that there was a niche between Snagov and the cheaper international brands," added Dumitrscu. Though the Callatis brand is designed to attract smokers with low income that can not afford to buy high price cigarettes, the Philip Morris team is keen to point out that the cigarettes retain a high quality, as they are made here in the Philip Morris factory, with imported tobacco. "The price for a pack of Callatis cigarettes will be 8,500 lei. The name of the brand and the design of the packaging was chosen by our consumers who were looking for quality and a cheap price. Callatis is a perfect combination between traditional and modern," said Imre. He also mentioned that the new brand will be supported by "the biggest campaign ever made for a local cigarette brand. The budget for the campaign is valued at a couple of hundred=20 thousand of dollars," said Imre without mentioning the exact amount of money that will be invested in promoting the brand. He was also reluctant to mention the value of the investment that Phillip Morris has made on the Romanian market and in its factory. "The works on the factory are made step by step. At the moment we are almost about to finish the work and we want to start processing the tobacco here in our factory. When we will finish what we want to do here, than we will be=20 able to reveal the value of the investment. Until then we just want to do something for the Romanian market," concluded Imre. The Philip Morris factory in Romania is one of the most modern production units the company has worldwide, as Romania was and still is considered as one of the most dynamic markets in Central and Eastern Europe. Raluca Topliceanu The business review - Bucharest; June26 - July2, 2000 / Volume 3, number25 Snagov=3Dlocal brand 1USD =3D 21.500 lei =E0 A pack of Callatis =3D 0.395 USD From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jul 10 19:35:47 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C02332A066 for ; Mon, 10 Jul 2000 19:35:47 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA29779 for ; Mon, 10 Jul 2000 19:35:47 -0400 Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 19:35:47 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] European News Bulletin - EU0027 - 10 JULY 2000 (fwd) !# --------------------------------- !# GLOBALink Tobacco - Weekly European News Bulletin !# --------------------------------- EUROPEAN BULLETIN EU0027 =96 10 July 2000 Headlines EU: Anti-smoking subsidies not used CENTRAL EUROPE: Rise in Cancer Deaths FINLAND: Military offered help in stopping smoking FRANCE: Bollore buys stake in African tobacco company GERMANY: Poll on attitudes towards smoking INTERNATIONAL ARGENTINA: Government to reduce tax on tobacco MEXICO: Pesticides linked to death and disease MEXICO: Heart disease rated primary cause of death USA: Cigar packs get warnings Full Text EU: Anti-smoking subsidies not used Only 3mn-4mn Euros, out of a total of 19mn Euros worth of European Union (EU) subsidies allocated for anti-smoking initiatives, is being invested, i= t emerged on 28 June 2000. EU commissioner, Franz Fischler, noted that since 1997, the EU has not spent any cash on new projects to encourage smokers t= o quit. Source: Het Financieele Dagblad via The Gale Group, 29 Jun 2000 Online CENTRAL EUROPE: Rise in Cancer Deaths The number of deaths from cancers related to alcohol and tobacco use will rise dramatically in several central European countries over the next ten years, according to French researchers. They note that in recent years, life expectancy among men has fallen in formerly socialist countries. This worrying trend is attributed to a steep rise in deaths due to heart disease and cancer in middle-aged men. In particular, recent increases in cancers related to smoking and alcohol consumption have been reported in Central and Eastern Europe, according to the report. And the worst is not over, according to the researchers' projections of cancer deaths for these nations. Dr. Paul Brennan and colleagues from the International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France, collected and analysed data from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland and Romania on cancer deaths from 1965 to 1994. The team looked specificall= y at cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, oesophagus, bladder, kidney and pancreas. The group then extrapolated to estimate the mortality rates for 1995-1999 and 2004-2009. The team concludes that death rates for these cancers is increasing dramatically in several Central European countries. Of the countries included in the study, Hungary has the highest projected rates for most cancers, and particularly rapid increases are expected for cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx and of the larynx in Hungarian men, according to th= e report published in the July issue of the International Journal of Cancer. The team concludes: =93Our results indicate that further increases may be expected on top of the already high cancer mortality levels in Central Europe. Policies to reduce alcohol consumption and prevent smoking in younger generations are necessary to reduce mortality as these groups age.= =94 Study published in: International Journal of Cancer 2000;87:122-128. Source: Reuters, 5 July 2000 FINLAND: Military offered help in stopping smoking The southern anti-aircraft regiment in Turku has been engaged in a non-smoking military service campaign. Forty per cent of the 66 participants managed to stop smoking or stop snuff usage for the six month period. The participants were given free nicotine products. In Finland, approx. every third draftee smokes. The Association of the Pulmonary Diseases in Finland is planning t= o expand the campaign nationwide. Source: Helsingin Sanomat via the Gale Group, 28 Jun 2000 FRANCE: Bollore buys stake in African tobacco company The French conglomerate Bollore has announced that it is buying a 40-percen= t stake in Coralma, a joint venture company making and selling cigarettes in Africa, from the Seita group. Bollore and French tobacco company Seita created Coralma in 1990. The venture manufactured 12.5 billion cigarettes in Africa last year and made net profit of 20 million euros (19 million dollars) on sales of 223 million euros, Bollore said. Bollore, which did not disclose the purchase price, invoked a clause which allowed it to buy out Seita's stake in Coralma following Seita's merger wit= h Tabacalera of Spain at the end of last year, to create the Altadis group. Bollore also said it had sold tobacco paper brands OCB, Job and Zig Zag to US group Republic Technologies for 150 million euros. The three brands had total sales of 309 million euros in 1999. Source: Tocqueville Connection, 3 July 2000 GERMANY: Poll on attitudes towards smoking According to a new representative poll by German market research institute Infratest, only 24% of non-smokers and 4% of smokers advocate legally valid smoking bans. 27% of non-smokers and 7% of smokers think that the state should regulate the co-existence of smokers and non-smokers. 91% of smokers and 70% of non-smokers prefer to arrange the co-existence of both groups without any official interference. 97% of smokers and 88% of non-smokers say that it is the individual's decision whether to smoke or not. 57% of non-smokers never try to influence smokers to give up or reduce smoking, 23% rarely do so. 71% of non-smokers, 74% of ex-smokers and 70% of smokers say they never experienced any quarrel due to smokers. 58% of smokers and 32% of non-smokers agree that smoking can have a positive effect on a smoker's well-being. Die Tabak Zeitung (TZ) via the Gale Group, 19 May 2000 Comment: This brief report does not state who was behind the poll, but judging by the way the questions have been phrased, it seems likely to be a= n industry-funded report. INTERNATIONAL ARGENTINA: Government to reduce tax on tobacco Smokers in Argentina will soon pay more to buy a pack of cigarettes, but it won't be because the government is raising taxes on tobacco products. Instead, the Economy Ministry is actually reducing tax levies on cigarette manufacturers in exchange for a guarantee from producers to provide the government with $1.8 billion annually in tax revenue. This would be $400 million more than the reportedly $1.4 billion that the industry normally generates in federal taxes each year. Beginning this week, the government will cut indirect taxes on cigarettes t= o 16% from a current 21%. It will then lower them to 12% in October, and eventually to 7% in February 2001, according to a decree published Monday i= n the Official Register. In return, tobacco producers will raise cigarette prices by between 10-15% to help boost corporate revenue. The additional income would go in part toward meeting the $1.8 billion guaranteed to the federal government. Prior to this year, the indirect tax on cigarettes was 7%. However, the government in January raised it to 21% as part of a larger plan to boost federal revenue, and help reduce the country's fiscal deficit. In total, the government raised taxes by $1.9 billion. The cigarette industry was one the areas hardest hit by the tax increase, but it wasn't necessarily a slowdown in sales that hurt tobacco manufacturers. In most cases, they did not transfer the tax increase on to consumers. "Tobacco companies are going raise the price of cigarettes, but according t= o the agreement they'll actually be paying a smaller percentage of earnings i= n taxes," said economist Federico Munoz. This will help the industry boost profits, he said. Argentina's two primary cigarette manufacturers are Massalin Particulares, = a unit of Philip Morris, and Nobleza Piccardo, which is controlled by British American Tobacco. The tobacco industry also agreed to stop exporting locally sold products to neighboring countries. The government hopes this will help it clamp down on contraband. "What happens is that locally made products are exported to bordering countries and then brought back into Argentina and sold in the black market," said Munoz. The Economy Ministry estimates this costs the government about $200 million per year in lost revenue. Munoz said he thought it was unlikely that the government would reduce taxes in the near-term on other sectors. "This is = a very industry-specific accord," he stated. "A similar reduction in any othe= r sector is practically impossible to imagine." Source: BridgeNews, 4 July 2000 MEXICO: Pesticides linked to death and disease In the tobacco growing areas of Nayarit in Mexico, farm workers are being exposed to pesticides that are said to cause intoxication, illness and even death, with small children said to be the most affected. During the last 15 years a group of researchers have been studying the effects of pesticides used in tobacco crops with alarming results. Some deaths have been linked directly with cancer caused by the use of pesticides and also intoxications due to nicotine absorption through the skin. The study, which includes a video in 12 dialects warning farmers about the dangers of certain substances, will be ready for publication within the next two weeks. Moreover, researcher believe that some measure= s must be taken by the health authorities. Source: El Financiero (Mexico) via the Gale Group, 28 Jun 2000 Online MEXICO: Heart disease rated primary cause of death During the last 20 years, there has been an increase of 300% in the number of deaths related to heart disease in Mexico. Although the number of cardiac illnesses has augmented, resources in the health sector have only increased by 10%. Meanwhile, the most common causes of heart disease are mostly related to obesity, high blood pressure, stress, lack of exercise, smoking, etc. At the same time, there is an alarming number of high blood pressure cases among people between 25 and 44 years old. Source: El Financiero (Mexico) via the Gale Group, 19 Jun 2000 USA: Cigar packs get warnings In what is said to be the first step towards curbing cigar smoking in the US, seven major cigar companies and government regulators have joined force to place health warnings on all cigar packaging and advertising. Cigarette packaging has been required to include health warnings since 1966, and since 1986 smokeless tobacco has been subject to the same scrutiny. However cigars have escaped this regulation until now, possibly sending the wrong signal to consumers that cigars are safe. Recently there has been an increase in the number of teenagers and women smoking cigars. Source: Wall Street Journal Europe via the Gale Group, 28 Jun 2000 p.31 Amanda Sandford Research Manager ASH 102 Clifton Street LONDON EC2A 4HW tel: 020 7739 5902 fax: 020 7613 0531 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 12 10:41:46 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id F309F2A05E for ; Wed, 12 Jul 2000 10:41:45 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA24916 for ; Wed, 12 Jul 2000 10:41:45 -0400 Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 10:41:45 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Romania: Tobacco privatization delayed by trials (fwd) Tobacco damaged by trials by Bogdan Tudorache / 10 July, 2000 Vol. 4, Nr. 26 Source: Bucharest Business Week, Monday, 7/10/00 Recent law suits involving the Romanian Tobacco Company (SNTR) are likely to delay its privatization and block much-needed investments in the company until late autumn, industry officials warned. Upset about last week's decision by the Supreme Court of Justice to suspend SNTR's privatization contract with Interagro, Ioan Niculae, Interagro's president, told BBW: "Until a final verdict is reached, which will probably happen this autumn, all the investments will be blocked." Another decision is expected this week on the Ministry of Agriculture's appeal against the Court of Appeal, which had canceled the contract. "Both courts' decisions gradually suspended and then canceled SNTR's privatization contract," explained Aureliu Popescu, lawyer of Leaf Tobacco A. Michailides, the Greek company which lost the bid for SNTR. "Although the Court of Appeal canceled the contract last week, Interagro and the ministry do not respect the sentence, continuing to follow the terms and conditions of the initial contract," said Popescu. Niculae claimed the contract was in order and the Court of Appeal violated the law, impeaching the ministry and Interagro to file a new appeal. "It did not present the reason for suspending and canceling the contract within the legal term of ten days, and we cannot file a complete suit against Leaf Tobacco without the Court's motivation. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jul 15 10:48:36 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id CBC672A05E for ; Sat, 15 Jul 2000 10:48:36 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA19889 for ; Sat, 15 Jul 2000 10:48:36 -0400 Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 10:48:36 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Taiwan Tobacco & Wine Bd To Be Incorporated, Privatized (fwd) Taiwan Tobacco & Wine Bd To Be Incorporated, Privatized by Y.H. Sun / Dow Jones Newswires; (8862) 2502 2557; yhsun@ap.org TAIWAN; Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Wednesday, 7/12/00 TAIPEI -- The Taiwan Tobacco & Wine Board will be "incorporated within one year and than privatized after another three to four years," said Chen Wen-kai, deputy director general of the board, Wednesday. The government will start to sell off shares in the new company one year later and government's stake is expected to be reduced to less than 50% after two years to three years after that, Chen said. With 1999 revenue at NT$100.43 billion (US$1=NT$30.862), the board, currently under the Ministry of Finance, was Taiwan's fourth largest manufacturer, according to the Chinese-language business monthly Commonwealth. The board monopolizes production of alcohol and tobacco products in Taiwan, but the government has pledged to end the monopoly. The government is linking the breakup of the monopoly with Taiwan's admission into the World Trade Organization, Chen explained. Taiwan's pending entry into the WTO will push the government to deregulate imports of alcohol and tobacco products, Chen said, adding that Taiwan currently bans these products from China. Taiwan has completed bilateral negotiations on its WTO accession with trading partners that demanded such talks, while Taiwan officials say the country has been prevented from joining due to pressure from China. URL for this Article: http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=DI-CO-20000712-002791.djml From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jul 15 12:23:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 683B42A05E for ; Sat, 15 Jul 2000 12:23:17 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA21026 for ; Sat, 15 Jul 2000 12:23:17 -0400 Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 12:23:16 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Australians take lead from US tobacco damages (fwd) Australians take lead from US tobacco damages Source: AAP (Australian Associated Press), Saturday, 7/15/00 SYDNEY - Australian anti-smoking campaigners have vowed to step up legal action in light of a landmark decision against tobacco giants in the United States. The Australian Cancer Society and Tobacco Control Coalition say the decision to award $A240 billion in damages to hundreds of thousands of sick Florida smokers should have a roll-on effect in Australia. The NSW Cancer Council chief and Tobacco Control Coalition convenor Dr Andrew Penman said Australian tobacco companies were also guilty of negligence, fraud, conspiracy and endangering the lives of those addicted to their product. In March, Melbourne law firm Slater and Gordon's class action against individual tobacco companies was struck out of the Federal Court on technical grounds. Last September, the Tobacco Control Coalition, which represents a class of more than a million and a half Australian smokers, launched its case in the Federal Court. The difference between the two Australian class actions was that the coalition's action centres on addicted smokers, not those with illnesses, and on the "conspiracy and conspiratorial action among tobacco companies". Slater and Gordon emphasised the individual action of individual companies, and they found that the action couldn't be brought collectively, Dr Penman said. "The American case is very similar to the case we're now pleading in the Australian courts and the US precedent weighs very heavily in the Australian context," he said. "For more than 30 years, the tobacco companies have engaged in an international conspiracy to try and confuse the Australian public that smoking was not harmful. "This decision destroy's the industry's defence that tobacco is a legal product and that the industry is legitimate business." American tobacco lawyers have pledged to spend years appealing against the jury's stinging liability and damages verdicts and may negotiate a more modest settlement. Australian Cancer Society chief executive Professor Alan Coates said smoking killed 18,000 Australians each year or one every 30 minutes. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Jul 16 00:03:35 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6BA582A05E for ; Sun, 16 Jul 2000 00:03:35 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id AAA25371 for ; Sun, 16 Jul 2000 00:03:35 -0400 Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2000 00:03:34 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco wars 'will spread to UK' (fwd) Tobacco wars 'will spread to UK' UK companies should be ready for a fight, say campaigners Source: BBC Online, Saturday, 7/15/00 =09The legal ruling to make US tobacco firms give huge pay-outs to sick smokers will spark similiar cases in Britain, say anti-smoking groups. Five major US tobacco companies say they will fight the decision, which ordered them to pay $145bn (=A396.6 bn) in punitive damages to sick Florida smokers. A case against two UK tobacco companies, abandoned last February, was an attempt to open the floodgates for thousands of lung cancer victims to make claims. But now British lawyers and claimants will almost certainly be spurred on by the US jury's decision, say campaigners. Clive Bates, director of Ash (Action on Smoking and Health) said: "We had a setback in the UK last year when a class action failed. "But the big law firms will be looking at the United States and thinking, 'If it can work there it will work here'. "There are astronomical amounts of money involved and it will spur a big law firm to back a 'no win-no fee' action against the tobacco firms in the UK, I have no doubt about that." Case up in smoke A multi-million pound lawsuit against Britain's two major tobacco companies - Gallaher and Imperial Tobacco - was abandoned in the High Court last February, when the solicitors pulled out. The collapse of the case last followed the judge's refusal to allow a selection of test claims - which had been launched outside the legal time limits - to go ahead. =09=09=09Thousands of smokers could be encouraged to make claims Claimants were faced with the prospect of taking the case to the Court of Appeal but, with legal costs mounting into millions, the "no win-no fee" = =20 solicitors Leigh Day & Co and Irwin Mitchell decided to pull out. The court action was based on the argument that the companies knew, or ought to have known, cigarettes they sold to the claimants between the 1950s and 1970s contained far more tar than was reasonably safe. It was believed the companies should have taken action to reduce health risks. 'Enormous blow' Gallaher and Imperial Tobacco, which between them have an 80% share of the UK market and employ several thousand people, maintained their denial of liability. Clive Bates says the US ruling will be "an enormous blow" to UK companies, and something they will not be able to "talk their way out of" easily. But Martyn Day, senior partner in Leigh Day & Co, said: "I would love Clive to be right, but we see no sign that any other firm is coming forward. "One big problem with the system is that if you lose you are liable for the defendants' costs. "They were =A315m and the one way we stopped the 50 plaintiffs being bankrupted was to undertake not to bring another case until 2008. "So are there any other firms prepared to come forward? We haven't seen it so far. "It is quite clear that legal aid is not available. It cost us =A32.5m and got us nowhere. "Clearly the rewards can be great - in the States you have lawyers seen to make massive wealth - but here the best you can do is double what you would get with another case." Lawyers for the tobacco companies involved in the American action warned that the damages award could bankrupt them and break the industry. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jul 17 10:31:35 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B48082A324 for ; Mon, 17 Jul 2000 10:31:35 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA03720 for ; Mon, 17 Jul 2000 10:31:33 -0400 Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 10:31:31 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Italy Could Sue U.S. Tobacco Firms - Paper (fwd) Italy Could Sue U.S. Tobacco Firms - Paper Source: Reuters, Sunday, 7/16/00 ROME (Reuters) - Italy may consider suing U.S. tobacco firms on their own soil for the harm caused to Italian smokers, Corriere della Sera newspaper reported on Sunday. The move follows a legal decision last week to make U.S. tobacco companies pay massive reparations to American smokers. Codacons, Italy's main consumer association, said it had proposed that the government ``begin legal proceedings on behalf of the Italian people directly in the United States,'' Corriere della Sera reported. On Friday, a jury in Miami, Florida ordered U.S. tobacco companies to pay $145 billion in punitive damages for injuring hundreds of thousands of Florida smokers. Tobacco lawyers have pledged to spend years appealing the verdict and may negotiate a more modest settlement. Italy's agriculture minister, Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, said any legal action in the United States would be within the power of Prime Minister Giuliano Amato. ``We will decide the steps the government will take once we have received an opinion from the State Bar Association,'' Scanio, who has already had contact with lawyers in the United States, told Il Sole 24 Ore newspaper on Sunday. Italy's health minister, Dr Umberto Veronesi, plans to meet executives of Philip Morris (NYSE:MO - news), the world's largest tobacco company, in the near future, Corriere della Sera said. Codacons said the aim would be to obtain compensation for Italian smokers which they cannot get from their own country. The Italian state itself manufactures cigarettes under the brand Monopoli di Stato. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jul 17 10:53:33 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C42592A05E for ; Mon, 17 Jul 2000 10:53:33 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA04284 for ; Mon, 17 Jul 2000 10:53:33 -0400 Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 10:53:33 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] British smokers to launch suit (fwd) British smokers to launch suit by Anthony Browne / health editor Source: The Guardian, Sunday, 7/16/00 Sick smokers are set to relaunch a huge lawsuit against the tobacco industry in Britain, following an American jury's decision that cigarette makers should pay out record multi-billion-dollar damages. Five major US tobacco companies were ordered last week to pay $145 billion - almost =A3100 billion - in punitive damages to sick Florida smokers. A previous multi-million-pound lawsuit against tobacco companies in Britain collapsed last February, when legal costs forced the solicitors bringing the action to pull out. However, Clive Bates, the director of Ash - Action on Smoking and Health - said that the case in Florida will prompt sick smokers to relaunch their case. 'We had a setback in the UK last year when a class action failed. But the big law firms will be looking at the United States and thinking, "If it can work there, it will work here",' he said. 'There are astronomical amounts of money involved and it will spur a big law firm to back a no-win-no-fee action against the tobacco firms in the UK, I have no doubt about that.' Lawyers for the tobacco companies involved in the American action warned that the size of the damages would bankrupt them and break the industry. They said that the five companies involved in the lawsuit could only afford to pay between =A3100 million to =A3250 million. They planned to appeal, a process which could take years and offset any impact on the industry. Bates insisted: 'They can raise that amount of money very easily by raising the price of cigarettes, because the defendant companies in this action cover almost all the American market.' The failed British court action was based on the argument that the companies knew, or ought to have known, that cigarettes they sold to the claimants between the 1950s and 1970s contained far more tar than was reasonably safe and that they should have taken action. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 19 19:10:04 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 7A1BE2A05E for ; Wed, 19 Jul 2000 19:10:04 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA23163 for ; Wed, 19 Jul 2000 19:10:04 -0400 Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 19:10:04 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] EU To Sue U.S. Tobacco Companies, Alleging They Allow Cigarette Smuggling (fwd) EU To Sue U.S. Tobacco Companies, Alleging They Allow Cigarette Smuggling by Adrian Cox Source: Bloomberg News, Wednesday, 7/19/00 Brussels, July 19 (Bloomberg) -- The European Commission is set to sue a number of U.S. tobacco companies, alleging they allow cigarette smuggling, which costs about 2 billion euros ($1.8 billion) in lost tax annually, a spokesman said. The commission will take the unidentified companies to U.S. courts ``based on evidence that they are complicit in the smuggling,'' spokesman Luc Veron said. It will be the first time the commission has started civil action of this sort in the U.S. ``We are pretty confident that we have a good case,'' Veron said, adding that the commission, the European Union's executive arm, will have to contract a law firm on a no win, no fee basis. The EU already is targeting tobacco smuggling with stiffer border controls and increased customs cooperation with third countries, Veron said. Almost 30 percent of Europeans are regular smokers. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jul 20 06:13:42 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6F30F2A05E for ; Thu, 20 Jul 2000 06:13:42 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id GAA27917 for ; Thu, 20 Jul 2000 06:13:42 -0400 Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 06:13:41 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] In Italy, smoking curbs face an uphill battle (fwd) In Italy, smoking curbs face an uphill battle by Jeff Israely / Globe Correspondent Source: The Boston Globe, Wednesday, 7/19/00 ROME - A visitor to Italy gets a taste for the country's attitude toward its antismoking laws about eight minutes after the plane touches the ground. The first cigarette on home soil for Italian smokers is often lit directly under the ''No Smoking'' signs posted by the airport's baggage claim area. Though smoking has been banned in airports for 25 years, smokers, including airline employees, janitors, and even policemen, have kept lighting up. Another law in 1996, aimed to protect workers throughout Italy from secondhand smoke, has also done little to stop smoking in banks, offices and factories. Italy's new health minister, Umberto Veronesi, has decided to get serious about the battle to break the habit in a country where smokers make up 36 percent of the adult population. He has introduced a proposal that would not only extend and strengthen the ban on lighting up in public places but would make Italy the first country after the United States to sue tobacco producers for health-related damages caused by cigarettes. There is, however, one big problem with plan B: The government produces one-third of all cigarettes consumed here, and is the sole legal distributor of tobacco products nationwide. The Finance Ministry takes in some $8 billion each year from the sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products. ''The cancer of the cigarettes is the cancer of the state,'' said Giuliano Bianucci, president of the Italian Polite Smokers' Association. ''It will be fun watching the government try to file a lawsuit against itself.'' Veronesi, who admits that taking the tobacco companies to court could turn into a ''vicious circle'' for the Italian government, is nevertheless convinced that such measures are needed to raise awareness of the dangers of smoking, and eventually squeeze citizens into quitting. The proposed amendment to the existing smoking ban would extend the prohibition to bars and restaurants and would raise fines for illicit smoking from as little as $2 to as much as $150. But the real revolution would be that business owners would be held responsible for smoking on their premises, with fines reaching $3,000. ''Smoking doubles an individual's risk of lung cancer, so this kind of law was inevitable,'' the health minister, himself a cancer researcher, said last week as he introduced the proposal that is expected to go before the Legislature this fall. ''We don't want to marginalize smokers, but we want to make it clear that they can't smoke in the presence of others.'' Caterina Levantesi, whose mother spent years trying to quit smoking, has never had a cigarette. Still the 31-year-old microbiologist said she finds the idea of a smoking ban in restaurants far-fetched. ''Sure, personally, it would suit me fine,'' said Levantesi. ''But I'm always out with people who smoke, so I don't know what would happen. I don't like the idea of `ghettoizing' smokers.'' The Rome native said she has her own way of monitoring the acceptability of the smoking going on around her. ''Usually I'll just do this,'' she said, waving her hand back and forth in front of her face. ''And then they understand and will turn away.'' For other nonsmokers, the effects of cigarettes in public places is not a casual matter. Gemma Luzzi quit smoking 20 years ago when she began suffering from asthma. Her grown children and friends still smoke in front of her. ''Sure if it works, this law it would be the right thing,'' she said. ''But this is one of those things where they make a lot of noise and then it isn't respected.'' Stefano Aliotta, who smokes a pack-and-a-half of Diana brand cigarettes a day, said he looks to respect the existing laws as much as possible, refraining from lighting up in airports and the office if there are nonsmokers present. Though he doesn't think of quitting, Aliotta, who works for a Naples-based humanitarian organization, admits that he was shocked on a recent trip to Kosovo to see 10- and 11-year-olds smoking. In Italy, smoking bans - like traffic laws, parking restrictions, and the seatbelt requirement, - are seen largely as the ''little prohibitions'' that are brushed off as quickly as they are instituted. Still Bianucci, whose smoking association of 208,000 members includes 15,000 nonsmokers, said the health minister is trying to attack an Italian problem with American solutions. ''It's an issue of culture,'' said Bianucci. ''Prohibition doesn't tend to work in Italy. We are by nature a very tolerant society.'' From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jul 20 06:15:45 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E1A2E2A05E for ; Thu, 20 Jul 2000 06:15:45 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id GAA27943 for ; Thu, 20 Jul 2000 06:15:45 -0400 Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 06:15:45 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Smoking Culture in Russia Russia's High-Tar Tasters Live and Breathe Cigarettes by ROBYN DIXON / Times Staff Writer Source: Los Angeles Times, Wednesday, 7/19/00 YELETS, Russia--Through waxy red lips, Larissa Solovyova expels a heavy cloud of acrid-smelling smoke, which wafts like a small thundercloud by her face. She thrusts her nose into the smoke, sniffing heavily, her face stern with concentration. She says it takes years of practical smoking classes at Russia's main tobacco university to learn to smoke correctly. Even after five years of study there, her palate was green and inexperienced. Solovyova, 45, takes another pull on one of Russia's roughest cigarettes, dubbed papirosi, inhaling for so long that the end flares brightly. "You just breathe it in as deeply as possible into your lungs," she says. "This is the final inhalation, to see how strong it is." Solovyova isn't smoking for pleasure. It is the most important part of her job. She and four other members of the Yelets tobacco factory "degustation committee" take their work--as quality barometers of high-tar cigarettes--seriously. "I've been smoking 48 years, and I never tried to quit. All my conscious life has been devoted to this," says the committee chairman, Anatoly Topekha. "He taught me everything I know," Solovyova says humbly. "He taught me to memorize the flavor specifics of each tobacco and the sensory perceptions that a smoker has while smoking. It's a complicated process." The pair have matching smokers' coughs, barking into their hands from time to time. Solovyova and Topekha are testing Belomorkanal papirosi, made of fifth-grade tobacco. No one in Russia is making papirosi of lower-grade tobacco than Belomorkanal, a big seller for the Yelets factory, which makes 5 billion papirosi and other cigarettes a year. Papirosi are peculiarly Russian, popular among the poor, prisoners and soldiers. Instead of a filter, each one has a long hollow cardboard tube that smokers squash flat at both ends before lighting up. Even as cigarette sales decline in the United States, Russians smoke 265 billion cigarettes annually--about 1,800 per capita--and the figure is expected to rise 1% to 1.5% this year. Smoking is much more common among men than women, although young women, particularly in Moscow, are taking up smoking in increasing numbers. Among men ages 30 to 34, 72% smoke, and 59.8% of males older than 15 smoke. The comparable figure for females older than 15 is 9.1%. In mortality rates for cardiovascular disease, cancer and infectious diseases, Russia ranks second highest in the world among 140 countries, behind Hungary. Another former Soviet bloc country, Latvia, is in third place. Last year, 63,092 Russians died of lung or throat cancer, and health authorities blame 90% of the cases on smoking. In the same year, 2,355,658 died of cardiac disease, and 25% of these fatalities are blamed on smoking. Not deterred, Solovyova's committee meets every Thursday at 2 p.m. in this town 220 miles south of Moscow to smoke for one to two hours, randomly testing all the factory's products and all the raw tobacco to be used in production. The papirosi and filterless cigarettes that the company turns out have very high tar levels. For its Prima cigarettes, the level is 22 milligrams of tar per cigarette. There is no regulation in Russia governing the amount of tar in papirosi such as Belomorkanal. The committee members couldn't say how much tar the papirosi had but acknowledged that it's harder to reduce the tar in them. While Western cigarette companies also have regular panel samplings of cigarettes for subjective values such as taste, their products are much lower in tar, often around the 12-milligram mark or lower, and they use machines rather than the Russian deep inhalation method to test for strength. Typically, testers don't smoke raw tobacco samples, as the Russian panels do. "It is hard when we are tasting for more than an hour," Solovyova says. "Sometimes we take a 10-minute break to revive." The committee members avoid spicy foods on Thursdays and drink weak black tea at testing sessions to refresh their exhausted palates. Topekha insists that the work isn't harmful and doesn't lead to disease because "tobacco leaves the body very quickly." "According to the latest research from the Academy of Medical Science [in Russia], tobacco is useful for your body in certain quantities," he asserts. "Tar is hazardous, but nicotine is not." Belomorkanal papirosi were launched in 1933 to commemorate the opening of the White Sea-Baltic Sea canal, a project Russians today associate with the 300,000 gulag prisoners who died building it. Solovyova, who says her salary is a commercial secret, is the chief tobacco engineer at the factory and, when she isn't smoking, is responsible for quality control of papirosi and cigarettes, labels and boxes. She takes her job so seriously that even off duty she smokes only Yelets tobacco factory products: Belomorkanal papirosi, Prima cigarettes made of fourth-grade tobacco and Yeletskiye filter cigarettes. Smoking the product full time, she says, improves her work on the degustation committee. Although she says she tried her first papirosi secretly when she was 7 and found it repugnant, she took up smoking seriously when she began her studies at the tobacco institute. During the degustation, committee members remain silent, scoring each item on detailed sheets for flavor, bitterness, acidity, the degree of irritation to the throat, the burning sensation on and around the tongue and other qualities. Although the Yelets tobacco factory experienced some difficulties in the transition to a market economy, production has increased since the collapse of the Soviet Union--despite the invasion by Western companies that have surged into Russia, investing in many local tobacco factories or setting up their own operations. "Not everybody has the chance to smoke expensive products," Topekha says. "Lots of people are extremely poor but can't quit smoking." The company's heyday was in the 1960s, when the factory products were in heavy demand on the black market and security at the plant had to be tightened to prevent theft. Anatoly Berezhnov, 69, a pensioner and former cowherd from the village of Tishanka, 325 miles southeast of Moscow, is a typical Belomorkanal smoker. "You either eat meat or potatoes," he says of his smoking habit, comparing Western cigarettes to meat--often too expensive for many Russians--and Belomorkanal to potatoes. He took up smoking out of boredom when he was 30 and working as a cowherd, with nothing to do but stare at cattle all day. His daily pack costs him 2 rubles, or 7 cents, but popping down to the local shop to buy the cheapest brand makes him feel rich, "because tobacco is a very difficult plant to grow. It's very hard to raise your own tobacco and cure it and roll your own cigarettes." Berezhnov has his first daily papirosi before breakfast, "and it's good. If I didn't smoke, I'd probably live for a hundred years, but I'll probably live 10 or 15 years less than that," he says lightly. Five years ago, Berezhnov managed to give up vodka on his doctor's advice, but he finds it much harder to quit smoking. Like many of the factory's clients, Solovyova has been trying to cut down. "I think the health of the nation is the key thing, but our task as producers is to make cigarettes that will cause as little harm as possible to people," says Solovyova, despite the high tar levels in the factory's cigarettes. Sounding a little prim, she adds that people should limit their intake, suggesting that less than 10 a day would be a reasonable level, though she herself smokes double that. But in the next breath comes a rueful admission: "I'm trying to reduce the number, but it's really hard." By now she is coughing heavily. In the United States, major tobacco companies have suffered legal setbacks in recent years, most stunningly on Friday, when jurors ordered cigarette makers to pay $144.8 billion in punitive damages to Florida smokers who became sick or died as a result of addiction to cigarette smoking. But Solovyova and Topekha are certain that Russian manufacturers will never have to face that problem. "It might happen in America. It would never happen here," Topekha says. "In America there are more rights for consumers than there are here." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jul 20 06:34:15 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 94DD52A05E for ; Thu, 20 Jul 2000 06:34:15 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id GAA28135 for ; Thu, 20 Jul 2000 06:34:15 -0400 Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 06:34:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ukraine tobacco exports up 19 Jul 2000 Cigarette exports on the increase By Vitaly Sych, Kyiv Post Staff Writer www.kpnews.com Ukraine's tobacco factories more than doubled exports in the first half of this year compared to the same period last year, with shipments flowing mostly to other former Soviet republics. Exports of Ukrainian-made cigarettes rose to 3.7 billion in the first six months of this year , from just 1.7 billion in the first half of last year, according to Ukrtabak Association. Dmitry Redko, spokesman for the United States' R.J. Reynolds, owner of the Kremenchug tobacco factory, said Ukrainian tobacco producers fill niches in the former Soviet republics, with about a half of Ukraine's total tobacco exports destined for the Russian market. R.J. Reynolds has more than tripled exports from the country to 1.18 billion cigarettes in the first half this year, with Monte Carlo and Magna Classic being the company's biggest export brands. Redko said his company has invested some $26 million in Ukraine. He said Ukrainian tobacco makers have raised sales abroad, despite a 5 percent tax to the Pension Fund they have to pay on exporting their products. Redko said the dramatic increase in Ukrainian exports is in part caused by the manufacturers' shift to producing filter cigarettes following an influx of cheap contraband filterless cigarettes. He said smuggled cigarettes account for about 15 percent to 30 percent of domestic consumption. Others, such as Germany's Reemtsma and U.S' Philip Morris, also saw their exports soar. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Jul 21 13:50:20 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 688122A05E for ; Fri, 21 Jul 2000 13:50:20 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA27277 for ; Fri, 21 Jul 2000 13:50:20 -0400 Date: Fri, 21 Jul 2000 13:50:19 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] EU Will Sue U.S. Tobacco Groups In Response to Alleged Smuggling EU Will Sue U.S. Tobacco Groups In Response to Alleged Smuggling by THANASSIS CAMBANIS / Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Friday, 7/21/00 BRUSSELS -- The European Commission said it plans to file its first-ever civil suit in a U.S. court against at least two American cigarette makers in an effort to recover "billions" of euros in taxes lost to smuggling. It suspects the companies of complicity in circumventing European customs duties and value-added tax. A spokesman for OLAF, the European Anti-Fraud Office, said the European Union lost a potential 4.7 billion euros ($4.39 billion) in tax revenue in 1998 as the result of bootlegged cigarettes. "Cigarette smuggling is one of the most important international crimes at this moment," said the spokesman, Alessandro Buttice. The commission plans to file a suit within "several weeks" in U.S. courts asking cigarette manufacturers to compensate the EU for lost tax revenue. "We want our money back," said Luc Veron, a commission spokesman. "The commission is determined to defend the financial interests of the European community. So we want money." 'Recovering Our Money' OLAF has been investigating cigarette smuggling for two years, in close cooperation the Italian Anti-Mafia Directorate, other European national authorities, and the U.S. justice department. The commission decided to announce its impending lawsuit because it only now acquired sufficient evidence for "a good case for recovering our money," Mr. Veron said. 1EU Backs Tighter Control on Cigarette Labeling (June 30) 2Colombian Officials Sue Philip Morris Over Alleged Cigarette-Smuggling Plot (May 25) Mark Transon, a spokesman for Philip Morris Europe SA, said the company had no comment on the commission's announcement. "We don't know what they're looking for," he said. A spokeswoman for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. also wouldn't comment on the potential lawsuit, but said "to suggest that Reynolds Tobacco has been involved in smuggling activity -- in Europe or elsewhere -- is unsupportable and untrue." Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds are the leading American cigarette companies in Europe. People close to the investigation said both companies are likely be defendants in the civil action. "If you sell cigarettes, you must know who the buyers are," Mr. Buttice said, adding that to determine the likely defendants in a civil suit "the biggest companies are the ones you should look at." Looking to Wholesalers, Too EU Budget Commissioner Michaele Schreyer didn't preclude extending legal action to wholesalers engaged in the illegal cigarette trade. "We're adopting a radical approach," she said. "We have to get to the root of the problem." Mr. Veron said that recently uncovered evidence showed smuggling was on the rise. "Cigarette smuggling is the single-biggest fraud against the community budget," he said. Illegal cigarette sales are most prevalent in Italy, Spain, the U.K., and Germany; by some estimates, 10% of the market in those countries consists of untaxed contraband. A single container, or truckload, of cigarettes is valued at 1 million euros in tax revenue to the EU and its member states. Such high margins have spawned a vibrant and inventive black market trade for cigarettes. Italian financial police regularly battle smugglers along Italy's southeast coast, where two officers were killed in a clash this February. Italy confiscated 1,673 tons of cigarettes in 1999. Puglia a Key Entry Point According to Mr. Buttice, the antifraud spokesman, the major European point of entry for bootlegged cigarettes is the Puglia region of Italy, which lies just across the Adriatic Sea from Montenegro and Albania. Italian authorities said international crime organizations had taken over the high-stakes cigarette smuggling trade from local syndicates in recent years. Investigators have seized loads bound for Spain and the U.K., but estimate that they only seize 10% of the total illegal traffic. Philip Morris signed an agreement with Italy last year to track the movement of contraband cigarettes. Antitobacco lobbyists have pushed hard for government prosecution of what they believe is open cooperation between smugglers and cigarette companies. Clive Bates, president of the U.K.-based organization Action on Smoking and Health, said one-third of all internationally traded cigarettes, or about 350 billion smokes, disappear into the illegal distribution chain every year. Tobacco companies sell large amounts of their duty-free cigarettes to dubious wholesalers, Mr. Bates said. And internal documents from tobacco companies show that industry officials are aware of and often indirectly manage the illegal market, he added. The governments of Colombia and Ecuador have both filed civil suits in U.S. courts this year demanding damages from cigarette companies accused of cooperating with smugglers. A similar suit by Canada was dismissed in May. Luk Joossens, an expert on contraband tobacco who consults for the Union of International Cancer Leagues and the World Bank, said many of the cigarettes smuggled through Montenegro originally reach Europe as transit parcels shipped to Antwerp. From there, Mr. Joossens said, the cigarettes are usually driven overland to Montenegro before eventually re-entering the EU. Finding the Proof Secondary smuggling routes that pose major headaches include shipments from Africa to the southern coast of Spain and cigarettes flown to central Europe and Russia and then brought into the EU overland, Mr. Joossens said. Increased information sharing between EU and U.S. customs officials, along with reams of documents obtained during U.S. tobacco litigation, has made it far easier for investigators to examine links between major cigarette companies and smuggling. "The problem always has been to prove it," Mr. Joossens said. "It's not possible that they export 70 billion cigarettes to Antwerp and don't know what is happening to it afterward." OLAF is coordinating an international task force, originally requested by Italy and the U.K., to combat cigarette smuggling in cooperation with all Group of Eight leading industrialized countries. -- Staff writer Tomaso Eridani in Milan and Jochen Hoenig of Handelsblatt contributed to this article. Write to Thanassis Cambanis at athanasios.cambanis@dowjones.com3 URL for this Article: Hyperlinks in this Article: (1) http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=3DSB962293520472129383.d= jm (2) http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=3DSB959208592304648993.d= jm (3) mailto:athanasios.cambanis@dowjones.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Copyright =A9 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printing, distribution, and use of this material is governed by your Subscription Agreement and copyright laws. For information about subscribing, go to http://wsj.com From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Jul 21 16:08:07 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 69DAA2A05E for ; Fri, 21 Jul 2000 16:08:07 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA30966 for ; Fri, 21 Jul 2000 16:08:06 -0400 Date: Fri, 21 Jul 2000 16:08:06 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Bulgaria to Extend Bidding for State-Owned Tobacco Company (fwd) Bulgaria to Extend Bidding for State-Owned Tobacco Company by Elza Vladimirova Source: Bloomberg News, Friday, 7/21/00 Sofia, July 21 (Bloomberg) -- Bulgaria will extend bidding for Bulgartabac AD in a move to boost revenue from the sale of a 51 percent stake in the nation's largest tobacco company. Bulgaria said it would announce new conditions for bids next week, which would include opening the sale to financial institutions. The original plan called for selling Bulgartabac to an industry investor with a July 24 deadline for bids. Dresdner Kleinwort Benson and Creditanstalt are advising on the sale. The government has received letters of intent from Philip Morris Cos., the world's largest tobacco company, Gallaher Group Plc, U.K. maker of Silk Cut and Mayfair cigarettes, with Reemtsma Cigarettenfabriken GmbH, Europe's No. 4 tobacco company, saying it was interested in individual assets, not the entire holding. ``After the talks held so far, it cannot be guaranteed that there will be enough competition just among the manufacturers,'' said Slavka Bozukova, Economics Ministry spokeswoman. Bulgaria wants to sell the tobacco holding by the end of the year, as it picks up pace in its program for selling state assets to satisfy international loan agencies and prepare itself for eventual entry into the European Union. Bulgaria last month approved the sale of Bulbank AD, the largest state-owned bank, to Unicredito Italiano SpA and Allianz AG of Germany, for 360 million euros ($336.6 million). Talks have stalled with the Dutch-Greek venture Royal KPN NV and Hellenic Telecommunications Organization over the sale of 51 percent of the state's Bulgarian Telecommunications Co. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 26 13:12:39 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 58B672A05E for ; Wed, 26 Jul 2000 13:12:39 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA23051 for ; Wed, 26 Jul 2000 13:12:38 -0400 Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 13:12:36 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Latin American lawmakers favor joint tobacco suit (fwd) Latin American lawmakers favor joint tobacco suit by David Monjaraz Source: Reuters, Tuesday, 7/25/00 MEXICO CITY, July 25 (Reuters) - A group of lawmakers from across Latin America agreed on Tuesday to pressure their governments to sue large tobacco companies over health costs, a Mexican deputy said. ``There's a consensus in most Latin American countries to formulate the lawsuit,'' Deputy Ricardo Padilla of the leftist Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) told Reuters, adding that any suit would have to be presented by governments. Inspired by a Florida jury verdict directing big cigarette manufacturers to pay sick smokers $145 billion in punitive damages, legislators from 14 countries will consult with lawyers and present their governments with legal proposals, Padilla said. Head of the health committee in Mexico's lower house, he said that his counterparts from Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador and six Central American nations had agreed to form a common front. ``The whole of Latin America will present a suit, en bloc, against the multinationals,'' he said. The deputy said the targets would include Philip Morris Cos. (NYSE:MO - news), British American Tobacco Plc. (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) and R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. (NYSE:RJR - news), as well as their subsidiaries in Latin America. The agreement preceded a two-day meeting of Latin lawmakers in Mexico City on Thursday and Friday. U.S. and Canadian legislators are also expected to attend the conference, dubbed ``For a Tobacco-Free World.'' Padilla said the Latin Americans had agreed to seek consultations with the lawyers who won a July 14 verdict in Miami by which a Florida state court jury directed the five largest U.S. cigarette makers to pay $145 billion as punishment for making up to 500,000 Florida smokers sick. The verdict has been appealed, and its review could take years. Mexican health authorities say that 15 million of the country's 98 million people are smokers and that around 122 people a day die from diseases believed to be related to smoking. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 26 13:14:54 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5492F2A36E for ; Wed, 26 Jul 2000 13:14:53 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA23150 for ; Wed, 26 Jul 2000 13:14:53 -0400 Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 13:14:52 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Polish court dismisses its first anti-tobacco case (fwd) Polish court dismisses its first anti-tobacco case Source: Reuters, Tuesday, 7/25/00 WARSAW, July 25 (Reuters) =97 A court in Poland's southern city of Krakow o= n Tuesday dismissed the country's first anti-tobacco case against Philip Morris (MO.N) and a local firm controlled by France's (SEIT.PA) Seita, court officials said. The plaintiff, Slawomir Lubicz-Sienicki, sued the U.S. firm, which invests heavily in Poland, and the local cigarette maker for 10 million zlotys ($2.32 million) in punitive damages after his mother, who smoked for many years, died of lung cancer. But the court said the man, who represented himself during the case, failed to show the cigarette makers' fault behind his mother's death, local PAP news agency said. PAP said the court ordered Lubicz-Sienicki to pay trial costs of 6,000 zlotys to each of the two sued companies. Lubicz-Sienicki said that the trial served its purpose of raising public awareness about damaging effects of smoking. He said he planned to appeal the verdict. "I think this case has already fulfilled its goal even though there are years of court proceedings still ahead of me,'' Lubicz-Sienicki was quoted as saying by PAP. Philip Morris and other tobacco companies face multiple individual and class-action suits in the United States for the damage to health from smoking. Earlier in July, a jury in Florida ordered America's big cigarette makers to pay a stunning $145 billion in punitive damages for injuring hundreds of thousands of the state's smokers. But the vast majority of verdicts over the past 50 years in the United States still have been in favour of tobacco firms. Philip Morris and other Western cigarette makers have been attracted to Poland and eastern Europe after the fall of communism in 1989 to profit from higher demand for tobacco products among populations in the former Soviet bloc. Poland's tobacco consumption has eased in 1998 to some 2,400 cigarettes per capita annually, or nearly seven cigarettes a day per each of 38 million Poles, according to the latest statistical data. ($1-4.304 Zloty) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Jul 26 18:14:06 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id ADE1E2A061 for ; Wed, 26 Jul 2000 18:14:06 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA31926 for ; Wed, 26 Jul 2000 18:14:06 -0400 Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 18:14:06 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tanzania: Cigarette Company To List On Dar Exchange (fwd) Tanzania: Cigarette Company To List On Dar Exchange by Ongeri John Source: Panafrican News Agency, Tuesday, 7/25/00 Dar Es Salaam - Leading East African tobacco producer, Tanzania Cigarette Company (TCC), will next month float shares worth US$10 million on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange ahead of its planned listing in September. Exchange finance and operations manager Oswald Urassa said work on the company's prospectus - an information booklet containing its profile - was almost complete. "It is hoped that public subscription of the TCC shares could start around mid-next month," Urassa said. The listing of TCC will bring to five the number of firms listed on the two-year-old exchange. The first three companies to list - Tanzania Breweries Limited, TOL Limited, and Tanzania Tea Packers - have a combined market capitalisation of US$173 million. East African Development Bank listed last December. The tobacco company's floatation will make it the second largest company on the exchange after Tanzania Breweries, which has a market capitalisation of US$165 million. The Tanzanian bourse is markedly smaller than the older Nairobi Stock Exchange in neighbouring Kenya, whose market capitalisation is 10 times higher. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jul 27 16:40:01 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id CF8FD2A061 for ; Thu, 27 Jul 2000 16:40:01 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA22047 for ; Thu, 27 Jul 2000 16:40:01 -0400 Date: Thu, 27 Jul 2000 16:40:01 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Finland No Longer Passive About Secondhand Smoke (fwd) Finland No Longer Passive About Secondhand Smoke Europe: Some hail the ban on cigarettes in most public places; others see r= ules=20 as interference. by CAROL J. WILLIAMS / Times Staff Writer Source: Los Angeles Times, Tuesday, 7/25/00 =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0HELSINKI, Finland--American travelers seldom get as far as = the baggage claim area when arriving on a visit to just about any city in Europe before being struck by what may be the continent's biggest culture clash with the United States: smoking. While most U.S. public buildings and all its airliners have been smoke-free for years, it remains customary--and seldom commented upon--for European smokers to tumble off an overseas flight with cigarettes and lighters at the ready. But Finland, frightened by dismal health statistics and freed up by a booming economy that allowed more investment in health care, has broken with the live-and-let-live attitude toward smoking that prevails on the continent. It recently became the first European country to classify passive smoke as a carcinogen and oblige employers in this heavily unionized society to protect their workers from the inherent risk of cancer. New measures introduced this spring that prohibit smoking in most public facilities and require bars and restaurants to limit smoking to well-ventilated areas would hardly be considered revolutionary in California. But they're making waves in normally unflappable Finland because some see the changes as the work of government busybodies trying to impose a dictatorship of clean living. "I think the authorities are trying to stigmatize smoking, and it doesn't feel good," said Anne Frey, manager of the Cantina West restaurant here, which now has to commit a third of its 550 seats to nonsmoking areas, even though demand is less than 15%. "It makes me feel uncomfortable to smoke now, but that doesn't make me want to quit. It just makes me a little bit angry." Health and trade union officials, however, contend that they have a responsibility to disabuse society of its bad habits. "Secondhand smoke can cause cancer, and employers must protect their workers from this danger like any other hazard in the workplace," said Anna-Liisa Sundquist, an advisor with the Department for Occupational Safety and Health. Dozens of nonsmoking Finns become ill each year with lung cancer or heart disease blamed on their exposure to the cigarette smoke of others, she said. The government has stepped in to toughen laws to protect the public's health from smoking's well-documented dangers and private businesses from the lawsuits that could be expected from sick employees if no regulatory action was taken, Sundquist said. Smoking in offices and in buses, taxis and other transport was restricted in 1994, but only with the changes imposed in March is the practice banned in airports, ferry terminals and large public buildings. The new laws also prohibit smoking at restaurant and pub bar counters, to reduce the toxic fumes wafting over the bar help. "It's a lot easier to be at work now that there isn't smoke pouring over me all night," said bartender Hinni-Riikka Heiskanen, a 23-year-old smoker who nonetheless said she appreciates the restrictions. "I would get up in the morning and feel like I had a hangover even if I didn't drink or smoke myself." Unlike many of their fellow smokers in Europe, Finns have long exhibited more politeness in their puffing since some restrictions were imposed six years ago. "No one would ever just light up in your home. People go outside to smoke, even in the winter," said Jorma Kallio, president of the Hotel and Restaurant Workers Union, who smokes but still strongly supports the crackdown aimed at making smoking more difficult, if not outright unpleasant. "Quitting is difficult for a lot of people, and they need more incentive to try," said the union boss, who represents 48,500 members. "I consider it a proper role for myself and other social leaders to push this. Labor unions have a responsibility to protect their members' health." Kallio's union represents 80% of Finnish restaurant workers and 85% of its members are women, he noted. Because the new laws also prohibit assigning pregnant women to work in areas where smoking is allowed, the changes were accompanied by expanded state maternity leave benefits for workers whose employers cannot provide a smoke-free environment. Sundquist noted that backing the restrictions with more public assistance helps secure public support for what is effectively a state campaign against smoking. But she and others note that change has to be executed with caution, or the government's noble goal will lose the liberty-minded mainstream. "We have to do this step by step if we want to keep the public with us," said Tapani Melkas, director of health promotion and disease prevention at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. "Finns are very law-abiding people. If there is a law, they think it should be followed, and if there is an area designated as smoke-free, they will respect that. But we have to be patient and careful not to alienate people." He pointed to the admirable drop in adult male smoking achieved since the 1960s, when 60% of Finnish men smoked. Today, the figure is 27%, and most of the reduction has occurred since the government began taking a more aggressive stance against smoking six years ago. Smoking among women has risen during the same period, to about 25%, Melkas said. There is also little or no change in the number of teenage smokers despite costly public education programs to make youths aware of cancer and heart disease risks. Nearly 30% of 18-year-olds embrace the habit. "We've seen encouraging decreases in lung cancer and coronary disease in line with the decline in adult male smoking," Melkas said, explaining that Finland had the highest risk of heart disease in Europe two decades ago but now has the lowest. "But people are very worried about young smokers. Like kids everywhere, ours see smoking as a sign of independence and rejection of old people's advice." But he and others steering Finland away from the smoking lifestyle believe that the recent changes are creating enough inconvenience that smokers will at least light up less and may eventually be compelled to quit. And for the long-silent majority of Finns who don't smoke, the restrictions are making their time spent in public places more enjoyable, even if nothing approaching the concept of nonsmokers' rights has yet emerged here. "I'm all for it. I find that I am getting more sensitive to external substances as I get older," said Eva Vamer, a middle-aged diner enjoying the lakeside view and fresh air at the Toeoeloenranta restaurant here, where smokers now tend to take their cigarettes outside. "I would never ask someone not to smoke. As a Finn, I think people should be able to live freely, however they want. But it's nice that smokers have become more sensitive nowadays." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jul 27 17:28:52 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3FB3A2A061 for ; Thu, 27 Jul 2000 17:28:52 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA23953; Thu, 27 Jul 2000 17:28:51 -0400 Date: Thu, 27 Jul 2000 17:28:51 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] India: Sponsorship of zoos by tobacco firms decried Sponsorship of zoos by tobacco firms decried Source: The Economic Times (India), Wednesday, 7/26/00 BANGALORE=20 THE NATIONAL Organisation for Tobacco Eradication has protested any attempted involvement in the sponsorship of the Nehru Zoological Gardens in Hyderabad by tobacco manufacturing companies. A recent news-report has stated that the Hyderabad zoo is turning to corporates for help and that leading tobacco manufacturers and paper mills have indicated interest in sponsorship of the zoo and adoption of animals. In a press release, NOTE national chairman Sharad Vaidya has stated that sponsorship of zoological gardens by tobacco manufacturers would amount to targeting of children to promote their products. It is estimated that the Nehru Zoological Gardens attracted 16,27,300 children during the last financial year, 4,35,600 below 12 years. MNC tobacco companies have, Dr Vaidya says, been known to rush to the sites of disasters to show they are good corporate citizens. As educational institutions, zoos, he adds, should be the last place MNC tobacco manufacturers should be associated with. NOTE has claimed that the sponsorship of the Indian cricket team for the 1996 Wills World Cup and the associated marketing had resulted in over five per cent of children below the age of 15 smoking Wills and 13 to 16 per cent smoking other brands and that more than half of them have been permanently hooked. "While all over the world people are revolting against tobacco companies and courts are imposing heavy penalties for millions of deaths every year, it is utterly anachronistic that the so-called modern government of Andhra Pradesh should think of giving animals for adoption to tobacco companies whose aim is to addict youth to the most dangerous product of this century," NOTE has argued. NOTE has appealed to all animal lovers, medical associations, public spirited citizens, womens=92 groups and environmentalists to strongly oppos= e corporate sponsorship of zoos by tobacco manufacturers. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jul 27 18:22:09 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1160E2A398 for ; Thu, 27 Jul 2000 18:22:08 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA25553 for ; Thu, 27 Jul 2000 18:22:08 -0400 Date: Thu, 27 Jul 2000 18:22:08 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Israel: Clearing the Air (fwd) Clearing the Air by Judy Siegel-Itzkovich Source: Jerusalem Post, Thursday, 7/27/00 (July 27) -- Founded under one year ago, the non-profit organization Ma'avak Be'tabak is playing an active role in the war on tobacco - and taking the city to task on anti-smoking law violations -- Most people who fume about an injustice or a problem in society stay angry for a while and then just calm down and forget it. But Dov Rabinowitz, an immigrant from Boston who lives with his wife and two young children, decided to take action. His target is the violation of anti-smoking laws and the offering of aid to smokers who are addicted to tobacco and want to quit. The result is Ma'avak Be'tabak (Struggle Against Tobacco), a registered voluntary organization that he chairs and that has been taking important initiatives - even testifying before the Health Ministry's Public Commission on Reducing Tobacco Smoking. Rabinowitz, who made aliya at 15 and has a Bar-Ilan University law degree but spends his time running a softball team in Jerusalem, first became aware of the smoking toll from a news story in The Jerusalem Post. Written by The Post's health reporter about eight years ago, the story reached him at his dorm at Yeshivat Kerem Be'Yavne and quoted statistics that some 5,000 Israelis die from smoking each year - making it the leading single cause of death in the country. "I was shocked. I had thought it was a typographical error and called The Post's newsroom, where I was assured it was correct. Since then, the death toll has doubled. Passive smoking is the second largest cause of death, after active smoking. Deaths on the road and from terrorism can't compare." The young immigrant was so outraged that he joined a small anti-smoking organization in Jerusalem that was "lots of talk but no action." After having his own family, he became increasingly worried about his own and their exposure to sidestream smoke in public places and regretted the senseless loss of life and health that results from smoking. He got together a few dozen friends and registered the non-profit organization last September. Most of the members are English-speakers, but the group wants Hebrew-speakers to join too. Before he became involved, Rabinowitz wasn't particularly assertive about his right to breathe clean air. "If I were in a taxi whose driver was smoking, I'd think: 'He's had a long day, and he's tired. Who am I to tell him not to smoke?' But now I am insistent, although I do it politely, in a nice way. I don't hate smokers; they're addicted. They can't help it. And especially the kids - they don't know they're prisoners of tobacco. They're not to blame." After setting up stands outside the Hamashbir department store, handing out information about the health dangers of tobacco and offering to help smokers quit, Ma'avak Be'tabak decided to focus on a number of targets that would bring about quick changes of behavior and an improvement in the quality of life. The first target on the list was Jerusalem-area restaurants and cafes. In coordination with the Jerusalem District Health Office, the group sent volunteers to such establishments to check whether they were observing the law requiring any place that serves food and has 20 seats to set aside at least half the space for non-smokers. "The law is not perfect. The non-smokers' area may be right next to the smokers' area with nothing in between to prevent smoke from entering. But it's something, and owners are bound to post visible signs for the designated areas." Rabinowitz and his friends regularly query restaurant and cafe owners, asking them to estimate what percentage of Israeli adults smoke; the owners regularly overestimate the figure, which is about 27 percent. "And when we ask customers themselves, including smokers, whether they would advocate non-smoking areas, they are invariably in favor. This opens the businessmen's eyes." The organization is preparing large stickers in Hebrew and English that will be affixed to the windows of restaurants where the law is being observed, with a special certificate for those that are completely smoke-free. Rabinowitz is also printing up cards that customers can leave at a restaurant saying that they "would have enjoyed the meal more if you had observed the rules restricting smoking." Rabinowitz notes that for people who are disgusted by or sensitive to cigarette smoke, being stuck next to smokers at a restaurant can mean a ruined evening. And Western tourists are even more likely than Israelis never to return to place with smoke in the air. "We don't hand out fines. We try to persuade. But in blatant cases of refusal to observe the law, we will tell the authorities about the violators." Ma'avak Be'tabak will soon issue its first Non-Smoker's Guide to Jerusalem Restaurants with listings of establishments where one really can enjoy a meal protected from tobacco fumes. Among those that already bar smoking completely are Bagel Bite, Village Green, Agas Vetapuah, and Eucalyptus. (For more information, write der@bezeqint.net or call 02- 6735061.) Max Brenner's Chocolates also prohibits anyone from bringing a lighted cigarette into the shop, says Rabinowitz. "They explain that they produce outstanding chocolates and don't want cigarette smoke to be one of the ingredients. That really shows their pride in quality. Bakeries and other food shops should feel the same." The Jerusalem activist hopes the law will be changed to bar all smoking in roofed shopping centers such as the Jerusalem Mall, where the air is stale during rush hours. Rabinowitz is disappointed by the Jerusalem Municipality's inadequate efforts to fight smoking in public places, even though the city could earn a lot of money collecting fines. "The city certainly is not enthusiastic about fining smokers who break the law. And when The Post published a story about Mayor Ehud Olmert declaring city council meeting rooms as 'smoking rooms' so he could light up his cigar - in violation of the law - he did us a service. Many Jerusalemites were outraged about his behavior, and it even brought us new members," Rabinowitz recalls. "We are planning to lobby Olmert with demands that he enforce the law." But Ma'avak Be'tabak does give a lot of credit to former health minister MK Shlomo Benizri for his vigorous battle against smoking. Other initiatives include lobbying for legislation to bar the sale of cigarettes to minors and increasing awareness among observant Jews that smoking violates Halacha. "No one would say it's reasonable to sell an addictive substance - nicotine is more addictive than heroin - to minors," says Rabinowitz. "If, as they claim, tobacco companies really promote their products to get adult smokers to switch brands, why do they invest so much in promoting sports competitions and other events attended primarily by teenagers?" He also feels that the Israel Defense Force, in whose service many young people begin to smoke, should do more to educate soldiers about the health risks posed by smoking. "I know they're busy with life-and-death matters, but this is one of them. Commanders are very concerned about each soldier, who they are charged with taking care of, so they should stress more the physical and psychological addiction posed by tobacco." As for religious Jews, "there is incredible dissonance between being an Orthodox Jew and smoking. Jews are not allowed to damage their own or others' health. But you can't get the message across to them in the general media," concludes Rabinowitz, who is modern Orthodox. "You have to reach them with messages that they will understand." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Jul 27 19:31:48 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3937D2A399 for ; Thu, 27 Jul 2000 19:31:48 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA26852 for ; Thu, 27 Jul 2000 19:31:47 -0400 Date: Thu, 27 Jul 2000 19:31:47 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] =?X-UNKNOWN?Q?More_To_Inhale=3A_Tobacco=A0=A0Production=2C_Sales?= =?X-UNKNOWN?Q?_Increasing_=28fwd=29?= More To Inhale: Tobacco=A0=A0Production, Sales Increasing Source: China Online, Monday, 7/17/00 China is succeeding in increasing both its production and sales of tobacco, while also decreasing its stocks of this product, the July 13 Zhongguo Jingji Shibao (China Economic Times) reported. Zhou Ruizeng, director of the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau=92s Foreign Affairs Office, said recently that the country=92s tobacco industry has achieved a 10 percent increase in output and sales in the first half of this year compared with the same period last year. Currently, 14.66 million mu (2.4 million acres) across China are planted with flue-cured-type tobacco=97230,000 mu (37,812 acres) fewer than in 1999= =2E =20 Flue-cured tobacco is dried by hot air that is passed through a tube. By the end of June, Chinese companies had 61 million dan (3.1 billion kg/6.8 billion lbs.) of tobacco in stock, down 14.5 million dan (725 million kg/1.6 billion tons) from the same period last year, the article said. These accomplishments are helping pave the way for the tobacco industry to meet the State Council=92s requirement of "reducing the nation=92s tobacco stocks by 20 million dan (100 million kg/220 million lbs.) within three years." In the first half of this year, Chinese companies produced 16.4 million cartons of cigarettes. This was 462,000 cartons more than in the same period last year and constituted a 2.9 percent increase, the article said. Also during the first half of this year, Chinese companies sold 16.3 million cartons of cigarettes, or 987,000 cartons more (up about 6 percent) than in the same period last year. By the end of 1999, 14 of China=92s 90 medium- or large-sized tobacco enterprises were suffering losses. Twelve of these companies say their situations have improved, and five of these 12 firms say they are already back in the black, the article said. Zhou explained that if these strong results continue through this year=92s second half, the industry as a whole is likely to experience a profitable year. China=92s government also hopes its tax revenues from tobacco production and sales increase to 100 billion renminbi (US$12.1 billion) within this year, he added. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Jul 28 15:00:05 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BEA922A060 for ; Fri, 28 Jul 2000 15:00:04 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA10704 for ; Fri, 28 Jul 2000 15:00:04 -0400 Date: Fri, 28 Jul 2000 15:00:04 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Changing the tobacco trend in China (fwd) LETTER: Changing the tobacco trend in China Volume 356, Number 9227 29 July 2000 / Lancet 2000; 356: 425 - 434 Source: The Lancet, Friday, 7/28/00 Sir--To combat the spread of the tobacco epidemic in the 21st century, WHO has promoted the Tobacco Free Initiative as one of its major activities and many countries have set targets to combat tobacco smoking. China is the largest tobacco producing country in the world, and has over 300 million smokers. 1 Despite the current tobacco control activities, including the Tobacco Monopoly Law (the law on the exclusive sale of Chinese tobacco within China), and the fact that the government acknowledges that tobacco use is harmful, prevalence of smoking in China continues to increase. WHO predicts that China's current 500 000-700 000 tobacco-attributable deaths per year, the highest in the world, could rise to 2 million by the year 2025. 2 May 31, 2000, was the World No Tobacco Day, since 1988 the day has been recognised in China. This year the whole world was waiting to see a comprehensive anti-tobacco policy implemented in this heavily tobacco-orientated country. Instead, just 2 days before the no tobacco day, a report, Total Tobacco Policy, was published3 in the Guanyang district of Chongqing. The slogan of this policy "fully implement the total tobacco-growing policy" was pasted up on walls and billboards all over the district. Local cadres were putting pressure on farmers and punishing those who were reluctant to follow, and coercing them into attending a course called "Learn the Policy". This shows how the tobacco industries have the power to buy cadres to bring them onto their side, to succeed in the tobacco market, and to persuade farmers to grow more tobacco. This sort of campaign also illustrates the lax tobacco-control policy in China. More should be found out about this "Learn the Policy" course, to clarify whether it is another way to encourage people to consume tobacco. The slogan of the World No Tobacco Day--"Tobacco kills, don't be duped"--falls flat in China and public-health advocates and anti-tobacco lobbyists make no progress. Furthermore, the aggressive promotion of free western-brand tobacco, offered by beautiful models in the bars, discos, and restaurants of south China, is also another way of boosting the tobacco addiction in the country. Do we really want to stop the trend of tobacco consumption in China? If so, health-care professionals need to work together and very hard to oppose policies promoting tobacco smoking and fight against tobacco promotion activities, while promoting anti-smoking measures including tobacco control among youths. All this should be done urgently. Moreover, smoking cessation services are urgently needed in China to help those who want to stop smoking but need professional help to do so. Anti-tobacco lobbyists should work with the Chinese Government to influence policy and to encourage establishment of smoking cessation services in the country, with appropriate training provided to health-care professionals to reduce the burden of tobacco-related disease in the country. Any anti-tobacco policy should also include prohibition of tobacco sales to youths, ban on aggressive advertisement campaigns, and reinforcement of existing laws such as prohibition of smoking in public places. Furthermore, there may also be a need to make an amendment in the tobacco monopoly law, to give farmers a choice in what crops they grow. Abu S M Abdullah ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Department of Community Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong (e-mail: asma@hkucc.hku.hk) 1 Lam TH, He Y, Li LS, He SF, Liang BQ. Mortality attributable to cigarette smoking in China. JAMA 1997; 278: 1505-08 [PubMed]. 2 The World Health Report 1999--combating the tobacco epidemic. World Health Organisation: Geneva, 1999. 3 Staff reporter. Total tobacco policy crushes farmers. The South China Morning Post May 28, 2000; 7. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jul 29 23:19:45 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5F4502A060 for ; Sat, 29 Jul 2000 23:19:45 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA29791 for ; Sat, 29 Jul 2000 23:19:45 -0400 Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 23:19:44 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Mexico Bans Smoking In Most Public Places (fwd) Mexico Bans Smoking In Most Public Places Source: Hispanic Vista, Friday, 7/28/00 MEXICO -- Mexicans have been banned from smoking in most public spaces by a government regulation that takes effect Friday. The ban was issued by the Mexican Health Ministry and sets penalties that range from warnings to $20 fines. Smokers have also been prohibited from smoking in airports, bus and train terminals, the port area, and in educational institutions. Smoking areas have been established at hospitals and health centers. Warnings or symbols that advise of the ban and indicate designated smoking areas are required. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jul 29 23:20:38 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 939442A060 for ; Sat, 29 Jul 2000 23:20:38 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA29811 for ; Sat, 29 Jul 2000 23:20:38 -0400 Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 23:20:38 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] =?X-UNKNOWN?Q?Ottawa_Appeals_Billion-dollar=A0=A0Tobacco_Suit_In?= =?X-UNKNOWN?Q?_U=2ES=2E_Court_=28fwd=29?= Ottawa Appeals Billion-dollar=A0=A0Tobacco Suit In U.S. Court by JIM BROWN Source: Vancouver Sun, Saturday, 7/29/00 OTTAWA (CP) - The federal government is appealing an American court decision that stalled its billion-dollar lawsuit against tobacco companies for allegedly conspiring to smuggle smokes across the U.S.-Canada border. "Canada will not tolerate smuggling schemes that undermine this country's tobacco-control policies and programs," the Justice Department said in a statement Friday. "The government of Canada is determined to pursue this case to a successful conclusion." The notice of appeal, filed with U.S. Federal Court for the northern district of New York, is the first step in challenging a lower-court ruling that dismissed Canada's claim. Judge Thomas McAvoy of U.S. District Court, in a decision a month ago, threw out the suit against Canadian-based RJR-Macdonald Inc., U.S.-based R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc., several related companies and the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers' Council. The judge cited the Revenue Rule, an 18th century common-law principle that allows an American court to decline to enforce another country's tax laws. Ottawa contends it suffered $1 billion in damages from lost tax revenue and money spent trying to combat smuggling. The Justice Department maintains the centuries-old rule cited by McAvoy is outdated and has been superseded by other court decisions. It also argues that, in any event, the United States is not being asked to enforce Canadian tax law. Government lawyers say the key legal question is whether the defendants broke American racketeering laws by scheming to export cigarettes from Canada, then have them smuggled back. Reaction to the appeal was predictably split. "I think they're crazy," said Rob Parker, head of the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers' Council, who maintained the battle will cost taxpayers millions in legal fees. "They're throwing good money after bad for what I think are political reasons . . . There's no wrongdoing by (the council) or by its member companies and we're going to defend ourselves vigorously." Cynthia Callard, of Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, welcomed the government decision. "I'm really glad they're not giving up. It seems that they're committing themselves to really push this through to the end." Callard expressed disappointment, however, that criminal charges have not been laid in Canada along with the U.S. civil suit. The RCMP has been investigating for years but has yet to decide whether to recommend criminal prosecution of tobacco firms. David Sweanor, of the Non-Smokers Rights Association, said the U.S. case will at least serve to publicize alleged wrongdoing by tobacco companies and their senior executives. "This court case has huge potential to educate Canadians on just what these companies were involved in. We think that . . . it's going to radically change attitudes toward this industry." The suit, filed in December 1999 in Syracuse, N.Y., alleges that R.J. Reynolds and affiliated firms conspired with known smugglers and used an elaborate network of shell companies to keep cheap cigarettes flowing into the Canadian market in the early 1990s. The government had doubled cigarette taxes and duties as part of an anti-smoking campaign, and was especially intent on keeping cheap smokes out of the hands of young people. Ottawa was forced by 1994 to slash taxes after smuggling had become epidemic, especially near the Akwesasne Mohawk reserve along the New York-Ontario-Quebec borders where there were violent confrontations. Gordon Bourgard, a Justice Department lawyer, said the suit was filed in New York because most of the firms named as defendants were based in the United States. In addition, U.S. racketeering laws provide for triple damages, raising the prospect of a $3-billion award, much higher than usually granted in Canadian courts. "That wasn't an official factor, but it is a fact," said Bourgard. "We take the law as we find it." Although the appeal notice was filed in northern New York, the case will likely be heard eventually in New York City. It is expected to take eight to 12 months to reach a verdict. At last estimate in May, the government had paid $3.9 million to U.S. lawyers to argue its case, and Bourgard said the money was well spent. "We believe that it's important to show that we intend to defend our borders against smuggling," he said. "That's why the appeal is necessary." R.J. Reynolds has sold its international holdings, including RJR-Macdonald, to Japan Tobacco Inc., but Reynolds remains legally liable in the case. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Jul 29 23:27:51 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D749E2A3A4 for ; Sat, 29 Jul 2000 23:27:51 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA29915 for ; Sat, 29 Jul 2000 23:27:51 -0400 Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 23:27:51 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Italy Said to Back Plan to Sue U.S. Tobacco Firms (fwd) Italy Said to Back Plan to Sue U.S. Tobacco Firms Source: Reuters, Saturday, 7/29/00 ROME (Reuters) - Italian Finance Minister Ottaviano Del Turco threw his weight behind a European Commission plan to sue a number of U.S. tobacco companies over alleged cigarette smuggling into the EU, the daily la Repubblica reported on Saturday. But Del Turco told the newspaper Italy would take legal action only together with other EU countries. No one could be reached for comment at the Italian finance ministry. ``We will be on the front line, but not alone,'' Del Turco was quoted as saying, adding Italy was ready to act ``even legally to safeguard the national interest together with countries who want to make the same commitment.'' The European Union's executive commission said on Thursday it planned to sue the tobacco companies in U.S. courts but did not say where or when the alleged smuggling had taken place or give brands, company names or figures. The commission said cigarette smuggling was the biggest single fraud against the $95 billion EU budget. It said tonnes of branded cigarettes were smuggled into the 15-nation bloc, costing billions of dollars over years in lost revenues. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jul 31 11:11:30 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 731A52A066 for ; Mon, 31 Jul 2000 11:11:30 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA15638 for ; Mon, 31 Jul 2000 11:11:30 -0400 Date: Mon, 31 Jul 2000 11:11:29 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Russia's Prima Cigarette holds it own POEM FOR PRIMA / Foreign competition has made Russia=92s most popular cigar= ette=20 only stronger. by Maya Mitreva Source: Tobacco Reporter, Sunday, 7/30/00 The phenomenon Prima could have been born only in Russia. Its rich history is marked by the country=92s historical and economic changes, and flavored by the Russian character. To many Russians, Prima is a small part of their national treasure. Even today, Prima remains Russia=92s most popular cigarette brand by far. After the 1998 financial crisis, its share jumped from 19 percent to almost 40 percent, while the number of the factories producing the brand almost doubled. Of 270 billion cigarettes produced last year, about 100 billion were Prima. The cigarette has been growing without the aid of advertising budgets, ad campaigns and other promotional stunts such as lotteries with prizes. Its strongest selling point=97price. There are no less-expensive cigarettes in Russia. UPS AND DOWNS. Prima=92s roots can be traced to tsarist times, when smoking became fashionable under Emperor Peter The Great. Its real =93boom=94 start= ed during the 1950s, when it became the =93people=92s=94 cigarette. =93Prima w= as the most popular cigarette during the Soviet era, when there wasn=92t such a variety of brands like there is now,=94 says Roman Timofeev of Eurotabak. =93During the period of shortages, it was the only national brand within th= e means of many smokers. No wonder that so many people remain devoted to the brand.=94 When the Russian market opened to foreign competition in the early 1990s, Prima was =93ousted=94 by a flood of beautifully packed and premium-quality imported cigarettes. Nevertheless, a considerable part of the population remained faithful to the brand. At the end of 1997, Russian enterprises such as Bernson S, Idigov Products, Stolichnaya Tobacco Factory and Kaliningrad BT started producing filter versions of the cigarette with a better quality blend and at a reasonable price. Beyond doubt, Prima reached its zenith after the 1998 August crisis. As consumers saw their disposable incomes dwindle and imports shrank, sales of the inexpensive smoke skyrocketed. Even today, Prima remains an affordable smoke. Registered as a fifth-grade non-filter trademark, the oval variety sells for between rbl1.40 (us$0.05) and rbl1.70 per pack. Its filter versions change hands for between rbl3 and rbl3.50, while the most expensive Ukrainian Prima Lux costs rbl11.20. =93Now everyone who feels like working, produces Prima,=94 concludes Alexan= der Skvortsov of Universal Tabak CIS. Prima accounts for approximately 50 percent of the production of Russia=92s biggest domestic manufacturer, Don Tobacco. The so-called garage workshops=97the illegal factories=97often produce nothing but Prima. CREATIVITY. True, many Western brands boast high sales figures, too. But it would be a mistake to compare Prima to Marlboro, Lucky Strike or any other =93conventional=94 cigarettes. For starters, Prima has no fixed blend= =2E While in the past, Prima producers had to stick to the requirements of state agencies such as GOST/The State Standard, today every manufacturer produces its own version of Prima. Some Primas feature the so-called =93accountant=92s blend,=94 which is determined completely by the price of its ingredients. Other Prima blends are the result of serious work on flavor and quality. Reemtsma, for example, claims it has succeeded in reducing its Prima=92s tar content to 1= 5 mg. The quality of the Samara Prima is consistently improving and the cigarette makers in Volgograd put between 10 and 15 different types of tobacco in their Prima. Many Prima manufacturers are also using better-quality non-tobacco materials. In addition to the classical red-box-white-letters version, the brand now comes in cardboard and soft pack. You can buy plain, oval Prima and filter Prima, and opt for an active filter or even a recessed filter. Reemtsma is developing a whole family. Besides full-flavor and light Prima, there is now even a menthol version available! Because the name Prima alone doesn=92t tell the consumer what blend to expect, manufacturers in Russia print their logo and factory location on the pack. For example, Prima Novosibirskaya is produced at Don Tabak in Novosibirsks. Prima Nizhegorodskaya, of course, is manufactured in the Nizhegorsk region. The name Prima Stolichnaya refers to both Moscow and Stolichnaya Tobacco factory, as Stolichnaya means =93from the capital=94 in Russian? But the drive to differentiation doesn=92t end there. The =93Russian bards= =94 come in and work their magic. The name Prima Classic is fairly straightforward. Nevo Tabak is eager to point out that its Prima Extra has the respective extra qualities. But does that also mean that Prima Export is designated for export only? And what is the difference between Prima Unusual and Prima Unusuals? And what to think about JTI=92s Nasha Prima (=93Our Prima=94), which was launched in May 1999? It=92s a bold claim, but JTI has history on its side. The company is a successor of the famous Laferm factory, which is generally acknowledged to be the =93inventor=94 of Prima. Then there are numerous =93theme=94 Primas. Some, such as Commander=92s Pri= ma and Officer=92s Prima, are geared toward certain professions. Others cater to nostalgia for the Soviet Union. To commemorate Victory Day, the Pogar factory last year launched two versions of Prima Nostalgia=97one with Stalin=92s portrait and the other with Lenin=92s portrait. Prima Zastoinaya= , bearing Breznev=92s image, appeared to remind people of the =93period of stagnation.=94 Exploiting communist relics turned out to make good capitalist business sense for the Pogar factory. In no time, sales jumped from 20 million sticks per month to between 300 million and 400 million sticks per month. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, Liggett-Ducat, a Russian company with majority American participation, acquired the Prima trademark, along with that of 16 other famous Soviet brands. Not surprisingly, this development provoked some indignation in Russia. The tobacco association Tabakprom, for example, argued that Prima had never been associated with one producer in particular. The legal battle that ensued ended last year when both Tabakprom and Liggett-Ducat were granted rights to Prima. Under the new rules, Prima can be manufactured only by factories that are members of Tabakprom. The decision is expected to reduce the production of poor-quality Prima. The Prima argument is only one of many about the former Soviet Union=92s =93all-branch=94 brands. =93Our patent laws are not perfect, and we are wor= king hard on this,=94 says Skvortsov. =93Similar arguments exist in our food and drinks industry.=94 In neighboring Ukraine, meanwhile, the Prima rights wer= e assigned to Reemtsma. Trademark disputes are decided by Rospatent. This patent agency can grant rights on trademarks to all juridical persons, if the application has been filed appropriately. The owner of a trademark has the exclusive right to dispose of it and to forbid its usage. Tabakprom=92s rights to Prima will b= e in effect for 10 years. SWAN SONG. So where does Prima go from here? Was the post-August period its swan song? It depends on who you ask. Some believe that the present boom is only an ad hoc phenomenon. As small producers and low-quality cigarettes are in retreat, Prima will slowly wither away. They contend that the transition from non-filter to filter cigarettes will be =93the sound of bells=94 heralding the end of this brand. However, it=92s too early to dismiss this Russian powerhouse. Consider this= , for example: When Tabakprom acquired the exclusive rights to Prima, JTI and Reemtsma immediately joined the association so that they could continue to manufacture this popular brand. The companies=92 initial resistance to the increased $500,000 entrance fee melted away quickly after they calculated the costs of not producing Prima. When the facts speak, the gods are silent. The transition to high-quality cigarettes will take time, considering Russia=92s continuing economic difficulties. Despite many improvements, non-filter cigarettes still account for more than 50 percent of the market. What=92s more, international companies have enthusiastically embraced the cigarette. Whether it=92s Liggett-Ducat, the first to enter the Russian market; British American Tobacco, whose international strategy relies on developing local brands; or JTI, which has developed a whole array of =93Russian=94 brands=97they all cleverly decided to act as if they were Rus= sian. There is, of course, one exception to the rule=97Philip Morris. A rumor in Russian tobacco circles has it that even this conservative company, which traditionally relies on the power of its international brands to enter markets, is now developing =93something Russian.=94 Wouldn=92t that be a pr= emium cigarette, Primaboro? From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jul 31 11:23:52 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 638212A066 for ; Mon, 31 Jul 2000 11:23:52 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA16035 for ; Mon, 31 Jul 2000 11:23:52 -0400 Date: Mon, 31 Jul 2000 11:23:51 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT at large in Africa - cigarette smuggling is business as usual More devastating documents from our friends at ASH UK. BAT at large in Africa - cigarette smuggling is business as usual Source: ASH London, Monday, 7/31/00 New British American Tobacco internal documents uncovered by ASH and The Guardian newspaper reveal BAT facilitating and controlling widespread cigarette smuggling operations in Africa. This builds on earlier revelations of the company's activities in Asia and Latin America and follows the European Commission's decision last week to take legal action against (as yet unnamed) tobacco companies to recover tax losses due to smuggling. Click here to see the African documents. The documents show that BAT acts through intermediaries to ensure that its cigarettes are sold in the illegal markets; "Our objective now is to preserve the "fa=E7ade" that SOREPEX represents between us and the sensitive markets of Togo, Benin, Niger (Unit I) and Equatorial Africa (Unit II), but at the same time, enable the BAT field force to take over the management of this important business." Letter from BAT to SOREPEX, 1989. [6] DOWNLOAD PDF =85that it invests in illegal markets as normal business channels and finds a way to advertise them in illegal markets BHSF [Benson & Hedges Special Filter] has 80% share of imports which it has dominated for several years and enjoys country-wide distribution. =85Th= e Unit II [Equatorial Africa] market produced a valuable contribution and it is intended to continue investment in order to protect it from further erosion. As there are no legal imports [=85] no local media is used. =20 However, a major campaign on the Africa No 1 Radio programmes transmitted from Gabon is funded from Unit II resources. (emphasis added) BAT (UK and Export) limited, 1990. DOWNLOAD PDF =85that it condones concealment of contraband cigarettes; "Niger: Discussion was held concerning direct imports to Nigeria through Mr. Adji =85 [who] would disguise the cigarette importations by calling th= e shipment something else, e.g. matches. Meeting of BAT and SOREPEX, 1987. DOWNLOAD PDF "For the first time, Bogno will buy 300 cartons: this is the capacity of his truck, taking into account the other merchandise which will 'hide' the cigarettes. (translated from French) SOREPEX to BAT DOWNLOAD PDF =85that it operates through 'umbrella' agreements' - using a small legal market to justify advertising to build up illegal sales When the issue of Unit II [Equatorial Africa] was discussed where BATUKE wish to appoint a domestic importer enabling us the provide cover for advertising and GT business, Sir Patrick [Sheehy] felt that it was perfectly acceptable for BAT Cameroon to recommend a domestic importer for BHS. =09BAT internal memo, 1991 DOWNLOAD PDF In this case GT (General Trade) is euphemistically referring to smuggled cigarettes, which is why =91cover=92 of a legitimate legal market is needed= =2E These documents follow the pattern of hundreds released earlier in year and presented to the Health Select Committee inquiry into the tobacco industry. On the strength of this evidence, the Select Committee recommended that the DTI should investigate BAT [see relevant 1]. In a further development last week, the European Commission announced it was to take legal action against American tobacco companies - see ASH press release [2]. BAT=92s Deputy Chairman, Rt Hon Kenneth Clarke QC MP, has refused to answer any specific allegations put by ASH [3] despite issuing blanket denials. Stephen Byers, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, is currently considering whether to act on the recommendation of the Health Select Committee that he should launch a Companies Act investigation into BAT. =20 In his speech to the WTO in Seattle last year Stephen Byers said: "If it were true that globalisation was about the unregulated power of cynical multinational corporations coercing Governments and playing off one country against another - then I would be the first to call a halt." [4] ASH has called on Byers to act on these words [5]. Clive Bates, Director of ASH said: "Every week that goes by, the evidence is piling up higher. Stephen Byers has to decide if he wants his government to have a supine and sycophantic approach to rogue businesses, however big and bad, or whether he means it when he says he wants to tackle the unregulated power of cynical multinational corporations." ASH believes that an international convention, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control [6] should be used to control tobacco smuggling. Negotiations start in Geneva in October this year. Emma Must, International Campaigner at ASH said: "Cigarette smuggling is a massive global problem, undermining the efforts of many governments to control the disease and addiction that could kill 500 million people alive today. The cynical and completely unacceptable behaviour of the tobacco companies makes the World Health Organisation tobacco treaty essential and urgent. When multi-nationals act like this, we need a multi-lateral response to contain them. Yussuf Saloojee of the National Council Against Smoking, based in South Africa said "We are pressing African governments to launch criminal investigations into BAT and its involvement in cigarette smuggling. The days when they can march in with their colonial arrogance and treat Africa like some lawless frontier are over. Africa has enough problems without multinational corporations undermining the stability of our governments and national policies. [1] See http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm199900/cmselect/cmhe= alth/ 27/2717.htm#a21 [2] ASH press release on EU action on smuggling [3] Letter to Clarke making the case against BAT [4] Byers=92 speech http://www.dti.gov.uk/worldtrade/openspeech.htm [5] Letter to Byers making case for DTI investigation [6] Details of the FTCT Contact: Clive Bates, ASH Director, 020 7739 5902(w) 077 8679 1237(m) 020 8800 1336(h) Emma Must, ASH international Campaigner +44 20 7739 5902 (w) +44 20 7738 6506 Yussuf Saloojee, South Africa +27 11 643 2958 (w) +27 11 726 1555 (h) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Jul 31 17:44:26 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 64B6C2A060 for ; Mon, 31 Jul 2000 17:44:26 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA27405 for ; Mon, 31 Jul 2000 17:44:26 -0400 Date: Mon, 31 Jul 2000 17:44:25 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Taxation Structure Hits Indian Cigarette Market (fwd) Taxation Structure Hits Indian Cigarette Market Source: Tobacco Journal International, Monday, 7/31/00 India=92s tobacco industry has been witnessing a 4 per cent decline in cigarette sales down to 95 billion sticks in 1999. Steep duty hikes and subsequent price increases have contributed to the slowdown. Apart from this, restrictions on smoking in public places and a ban on sales at railway stations have also had an adverse impact on cigarette sales. The sharp increase of smuggled brands has become another area of concern. With around 200 million smokers, India is one of the biggest tobacco markets in the world ranking fourth in total tobacco consumption. However, it differs significantly from the rest of the world in terms of product configuration. India=92s tobacco market is still characterised by a low share of cigarettes, which accounts for only around 18 per cent of total tobacco consumption. The lion=92s share of the country=92s tobacco market still goes to traditional tobacco products, such as bidis, chewing and non-smoking products. In 1999 India=92s cigarette consumption reached 95 billion units, which is = =96 when compared internationally =96 way below China=92s 1,700 billion sticks, the EU=92s 750 billion sticks or the USA=92s 490 billion units. However, cigarettes are India=92s primary generator of excise duty accounting for 87 per cent of total tobacco excise in 1998-1999. As in many other countries, general conditions for the cigarette industry have also worsened in India. With 95 billion units sold in 1999-2000, the country=92s cigarette sector has suffered a 4 per cent decline over the previous year. Industry sources attribute this development mainly to a continued increase in excise duty over the last few budgets. Tax on micro cigarettes, for example, has been increased by 83 per cent since 1997. A luxury tax of 15 to 20 per cent, which was imposed on cigarettes in some states, is also considered to have influenced this development negatively. As a consequence, Indian consumers increasingly changed to lower priced tobacco products such as bidis. Another factor, that might have contributed to the drop in cigarette sales is seen in the high share of smuggled cigarettes, which is estimated to reach 150 million cigarettes every year. Industry sources also cite the growing prevalence of smoke-free offices as a reason for the decline, as well as the ban on the sale of tobacco products at railway stations. A ban on cigarette advertising, which has been introduced in seven states of the country, is considered to have had an impact on cigarette sales too. India=92s cigarette market is still dominated by local brands, although international brands such as Benson and Hedges and State Express 555 have started to be produced and distributed on a larger scale in the country. India's main tobacco manufacturer is the Indian Tobacco Company (ITC) which is partially owned by British American Tobacco and held a 66 per cent market share by volume in 1999. Other main players are Vazir Sultan Tobacco Ltd (VST), in which BAT holds a minority stake, Godfrey Philips, linked to Philip Morris, and GTC. GPI and VST each had close to a 12.5 per cent volume share in 1999 while GTC had 8.1 per cent market share in the same period. Strong brand equity, pricing power and presence across all segments have enabled the country=92s leading tobacco manufacturer ITC to strengthen its position, despite the tenacious market situation. After recovering from a corruption scandal two years ago in which top executives of the company had been involved, the appointment of a new chairman and a restructuring plan seem to have brought back stability. ITC posted a 17 per cent increase in net profits to US$ 130.3 million for the nine-months period ending December 1999. The company has also started to aggressively modernise its factories and bring in faster and better equipment. In addition, it has expanded its production capacity with the latest construction of a brand new factory near Bangalore. The new factory, commonly known as B-II, will be fully operational by the end of 2000 and will have an ultimate production capacity of 200 million sticks per day. ITC also plans to intensify its focus on filter-tipped, upmarket brands rather than so-called "micro" cigarettes, which do not give manufacturers the same profit margin. Filter cigarettes meanwhile account for around 70 per cent of ITC production volume. The company=92s main brands are Scissors, Wills and Gold Flake. In order to further increase the quality of its products, the company has decided to switch some of its brands to acetate filters =96 a move, that could also put other manufacturers under pressure. Diversification has also become a declared goal for the company, which aims at changing its portfolio and reducing the cigarettes related operations from a current 70 per cent to 50 per cent of its revenue by 2005. However, the company is still eager to defend its position on the domestic tobacco market. Fearing destabilisation of domestic companies, ITC had called for a blanket ban on new direct foreign investments after the country=92s government had considered allowing 100 per cent direct foreign investment. The main reason for the concern was the move by US manufacturer Philip Morris, which is waiting for clearance of the company=92s 100 per cent subsidiary FTR Holdings. Philip Morris already own= s a 36 per cent stake in Godfrey Philips India (GPI). The US-based company, however, is expected to make an entry into India via the food business. The new food factory, which was rejected by the government a number of times, will be built in Hyderabad and is 100 per cent PMI-owned. GPI is the country=92s second cigarette manufacturer and especially strong in India=92s Western and Northern markets. During the financial year of 1999, GPI had been able to marginally improve its market share from 12.5 per cent to 12.7 per cent. With the launch of its Four Square Gold brand in the 74 mm mini kings category, GPI has hit ITC=92s highly flourishing Wills Navy Cut brand, which was the only player in this segment before. GPI has announced to further concentrate its activities on new brand launches especially in the premium king-size segment. At present around 90 per cent of the company=92s revenues are generated by Four Square Gold, and the company=92s two other main brands Red&White and Cavender. VST Industry of Hyderabad, the third player on the domestic market, recorded a sharp 8 per cent drop in volumes in the financial year 1999. The main reason for this decline was the company=92s great presence in the micro segment, which =96 as mentioned before =96 had witnessed steep duty hikes in the last two budgets. While the VST=92s volume share in the cigarette business stood at 12.5 per cent in 1999, the company=92s value share, however, was much lower at 7.4 per cent. VST's main brands are Charminar and Charms. The latter brand, which had a market share of 13 per cent in 1999, is according to the company supposed to be being repositioned, targeting a 15 per cent market share by 2002. In contrast to the market leader ITC, who is intensifying its effort in diversification the new management of VST has devised a scheme to divest its loss-making non-tobacco businesses such as natural products and financial services. India=92s cigarette manufacturers are sailing through rough waters. Given the unique product configuration with a comparably small share of cigarette sales, the country=92s cigarette companies have been additionally hit by the current tax structure. General strategies =96 be it diversification or divesting =96 may be different. However, cigarette companies seem to share one common goal, namely the revision of the current tax structure, which is seen as discriminatory to their business. Whether they will succeed is difficult to foresee. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Aug 1 10:39:48 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E62562A316 for ; Tue, 1 Aug 2000 10:39:47 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA06383 for ; Tue, 1 Aug 2000 10:39:47 -0400 Date: Tue, 1 Aug 2000 10:39:47 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco Industry Could Pull Out Of Australia (fwd) Tobacco Industry Could Pull Out Of Australia Source: The Age, Tuesday, 8/1/00 The illegal tobacco industry and increases in government taxes on cigarettes could eventually force tobacco manufacturers to pull out of Australia, the country's largest tobacco group warned today. British American Tobacco Australasia Ltd (BAT) said industry volumes had already dropped by around 10 per cent in the first six months of this year, even before the impact of the GST and another excise rise today. BAT managing director Gary Krelle said four tax rises in the year to July had increased the price of cigarettes by 25 per cent for some consumers. 'If taxes continue to climb at this rate, tobacco manufacturing in Australia will not be a viable option in the long term,' Mr Krelle said. The industry was also suffering at the hands of the illegal tobacco trade with chop-chop, as it is known, estimated to be costing the government as much as $600 million a year in lost revenue and taxes. Mr Krelle warned that in five years' time it would be 'certainly very, very difficult to justify manufacturing in Australia'. 'Unless the chop-chop issue is addressed and unless governments have another look at just how far they think they can continue to ramp up the prices, I'm sure we'll all be forced to have a re-look at where we manufacture,' he said. That could also badly impact Australian tobacco growers, who are mainly based in Victoria and Queensland. Tobacco giant Philip Morris is already reportedly already considering laying off 100 workers in its Victorian manufacturing operation due to the impact of the illegal tobacco trade on sales. The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has employed 40 extra investigators to target the national trade in illegally manufactured loose-leaf tobacco. Mr Krelle welcomed the ATO's move, but described it as 'no silver bullet'. Chop-chop is reportedly sold in more than 75 per cent of independent tobacco retailers and can be bought for almost a third of the cost of regular cigarettes. BAT estimates that the annual volume of chop-chop sold in Australia has doubled in the last three years to around 1,500 tonnes. Cigarette smokers have just faced a 9.6 per cent hike in the price of smokes under the 10 per cent GST, plus another two per cent or around 10 cents per packet today under the latest federal government excise increase. The resultant price increases have caused the industry volume to fall from around 27.5 billion sticks to around 24 billion, BAT said. BAT's Holiday value brand cost $10.30 for a pack of 50 in January last year. The same pack now costs more than $14, after three CPI excise increases, an excise change on November 1 - with the tax now paid on every stick rather than by the weight of a cigarette - and the 10 per cent GST. Bigger excise increases were expected in the next round in February, 2001, when the full impact of the GST flowed through to the inflation rate. Mr Krelle argued that tobacco excises, which currently deliver around $6 billion to the federal government each year, should not be pegged to the consumer price index, resulting in an automatic price increase every six months. 'They need to make up their mind whether they want to be our biggest investor or put us out of business,' he said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Aug 2 13:53:06 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 7E9982A31B for ; Wed, 2 Aug 2000 13:53:06 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA04876 for ; Wed, 2 Aug 2000 13:53:06 -0400 Date: Wed, 2 Aug 2000 13:53:06 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco on Trial: Hungary: The taste of freedom (fwd) Tobacco on Trial: Hungary: The taste of freedom Source: BBC Online, Wednesday, 8/2/00 After the fall of communism over a decade ago the big western tobacco companies moved into Eastern Europe to carve out new markets for their brands. Matthew Chapman reports from Hungary. BAT's Kent cigarettes - one of the most popular brands in Hungary Ask a local person for directions to the theatre in the beautiful medieval town of Pecs in south eastern Hungary and the reply could go something like this: =91Walk past the British American Tobacco Homeless Hostel until you get to the BAT Media Centre at the university. Go on until you arrive at the BAT Health Centre, take a left and the BAT town theatre should be right in front.=92. A sponsorship board outside Pecs theatre Cigarette manufacturing conglomerate British American Tobacco is much more than just another employer in this ancient town. Its presence is everywhere, even in the air. The smell of tobacco wafts around the town on the warm summer breeze. The British owned company is typical of western firms who moved in en masse across Eastern Europe after the end of communism over a decade ago looking for new markets. They were welcomed with open arms by countries desperate for investment and western technical know how. Smoking was always common in Eastern Europe but rarely associated with glamour. Looking to open up new markets the tobacco companies put up advertising boards calling on consumers to "taste the freedom" or "test the west". "=92The taste of freedom=92, this is a standard billboard all over eastern Europe and its in red white and blue, they literally use the colours of the American flag, they use all the images of our patriotism," says former US Ambassador to Hungary Mark Palmer. "I just think this is criminal what they are doing. They have stolen America." Mark Palmer - outspoken critic of the tobacco companies As the years have gone by and consumers become more sophisticated the tobacco firms have developed more sophisticated methods to build their image and their brands. Corporate sponsorship is growing and in Hungary tobacco money flows into schools, student scholarship programmes, the Red Cross, police and fire brigades to name just a few. =2E.if the cash strapped state should decide to crack down on smoking it ma= y find it cannot afford to lose so much funding from the manufacturers. =20 Now critics say the process has gone to far. In Hungary companies like BAT are investing millions of dollars not only in advertising but supporting essential services. The anti smoking lobby worries that if the cash strapped state should decide to crack down on smoking it may find it cannot afford to lose so much funding from the manufacturers. There are real fears that Hungary, where over 40 per cent of all adults smoke cigarettes, is being crippled by the effects of tobacco. Magazines - dozens of ads for cigarette brands Some 36,000 people, that is nearly one person every fifteen minutes, die every year from smoking related illnesses. The government is having difficulty funding a health service which is burdened with a 150 per cent increase in lung cancer cases among men and a 200 per cent increase for women. The result say the World Health Organization is that by 2020 at least 22 per cent of all deaths in the former communist states would be attributable to tobacco. A five per cent rise since 1995. Mindful of this the Hungarian government acted last year and introduced a new law which banned smoking in places such as schools, hospitals and train stations. Soon all restaurants will have to provide no smoking areas. While it is a small step it is nevertheless significant as the country=92s first real attempt to grapple with one of the west=92s more dubious exports to the former Communist countries of Europe. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Aug 2 13:54:01 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id EF9342A31B for ; Wed, 2 Aug 2000 13:54:00 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA04919 for ; Wed, 2 Aug 2000 13:54:00 -0400 Date: Wed, 2 Aug 2000 13:54:00 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco on Trial: India: Mouth cancer epidemic on the way (fwd) Tobacco on Trial: India: Mouth cancer epidemic on the way Source: BBC Online, Wednesday, 8/2/00 Indian doctors are worried about the surging popularity of chewable or smokeless tobacco, particularly among the young. They are already reporting a rise in pre-cancerous lesions in the mouth. But what's the reason for this? Colourful packets of Guthka - targetting children? Tobacco's been chewed for centuries in India - wrapped inside a betel leaf and placed in the side of the mouth - but it's only in the last decade that the tobacco companies have started selling tobacco ready-packaged in small sachets. Street vendor in Mumbai Known as "gutkha", they're very cheap costing from half a rupee - which means you could buy 90 sachets for the price of US$1. In Mumbai they are sold by street vendors virtually everywhere. They're popular with street children. We spoke to teenagers who were going through 15 packets a day. They like gutkha because it's an appetite suppressant. It stops them feeling hungry. Doctors at the Tata Memorial Hospital report a rise in pre-cancerous lesions in the mouth - little white patches - which they're absolutely convinced are caused by chewing tobacco. Mouth cancer has a ten-year incubation period. Children started using gutkha six or seven years ago. Patient with Sub- mucous fibrosis So they fear a huge bout of oral cancer will hit India in a few years time. Another illness is sub-mucous fibrosis - brought on by Areca nut - another substance mixed with the tobacco. People suffering from this disease find it progressively more difficult to open their mouth. In the worst cases patients can no longer eat normal food -they can only drink through a small opening in their mouths. If you want to see some particularly nasty pictures of the effects of chewing tobacco click here. ACTION NOW Voluntary health warnings have started appearing on some packets of gutkha but anti-tobacco campaigners want tougher Government action to control their sale - especially to the young. Already phenomenally popular in the north western states of Maharashta and Gujarat, doctors fear gutkha will penetrate all over the country. This advert for Guthka appeared on Independence Day Health campaigners are appalled that some big names in sport and cinema have promoted these products in TV adverts and that Mumbai's annual film awards (the "Bollywood Oscars") are sponsored by one of the main producers of gutkha. The problem, say campaigners, is that chewing tobacco has always been seen as socially acceptable in India. Whole families - generally unaware of the dangers - will share these products at the end of a meal - regarding them as little more than mouth refreshers. SMOKING Smoking of cigarettes or beedies - the traditional Indian smoked tobacco - is less socially acceptable and women almost never smoke. Men and boys will often tend not to in front of their elders. Eight year old rolling beedies Women might never smoke beedies - the traditional method of smoking tobacco in India - but it's a woman's job to roll them. And there have been confirmed reports that some beedie manufacturers use child labour. Cigarettes - promoting the Western lifestyle Whereas beedies cost about 5 Rupees (11 US cents) for a packet of twenty, cigarettes are much more expensive. A western style brand will cost 65 rupees per packet. On the streets of Mumbai billboards advertising cigarettes jostle for space with those promoting mobile phones and internet start-ups. It's clear that the tobacco companies would like us to believe cigarette smoking is the sophisticated pass-time for the dot.com generation. THE TOUGHEST ANTI-TOBACCO LAWS IN THE WORLD Tobacco was first brought to India by Portuguese merchants 400 years ago. Although there were already some strains of locally-grown tobacco in India these were outclassed by the new imported varieties from Brazil. The trade boomed and tobacco quickly established itself as the most important commodity passing through Goa in the seventeenth century. Virtually every household in the Portuguese colony took up the new fashion of smoking or chewing tobacco. Later on the British introduced modern commercially-produced cigarettes. Tobacco entered India through Goa and it will leave through Goa Dr Sharad Vaidya "Tobacco entered India through Goa and it will leave through Goa," proclaims Dr Sharad Vaidya, a cancer surgeon in Panjim, the capital of Goa state. "It took us 100 years to free ourselves from British colonialism. It has taken us 400 years already to free ourselves from the colonialism that is tobacco". Dr Vaidya has already been remarkably successful. He has persuaded the Goan legislature to pass the toughest anti-tobacco laws in the world. The Goa Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting Act prohibits smoking in public places (including bus stands and beaches). It bans all tobacco advertising in the state and the sale of tobacco products within 100m of a school. After a long-term public education campaign involving the state's school children, the law has generally been well-received although local tourism officials are worried about the impact of the ban on smoking on beaches. They also fear that European tourists who arrive wearing a T-shirt or cap with "Marlboro" written on it could be making themselves liable for arrest. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Aug 2 13:54:38 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B2E392A31B for ; Wed, 2 Aug 2000 13:54:38 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA04938 for ; Wed, 2 Aug 2000 13:54:38 -0400 Date: Wed, 2 Aug 2000 13:54:38 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco on Trial: Malawi: a nation of non-smokers hooked on tobacco Tobacco on Trial: Malawi: a nation of non-smokers hooked on tobacco Source: BBC Online, Wednesday, 8/2/00 In economic terms, Malawi is arguably the most tobacco-dependent nation on earth. It faces a worrying future as the rest of the world looks to negotiate new restrictions on tobacco. Malawian tobacco farmers know they must also face up to the issue of child labour in their industry. Women - a large proportion of the workfarce in Malawi If you've ever smoked a major-brand cigarette the chances are you've smoked Malawian tobacco. Manufacturers value its unique texture which makes it an ideal cigarette filler. As a result virtually every western cigarette uses a bit of the produce of this country in its blend. But if you are a smoker, you're not just getting quality tobacco from Malawi -you're probably also smoking the product of child labour (more photographs). Child workers are a common sight in Malawi The southern African country of Malawi has a population of 9 million and is economically dependent - too dependent many believe - on the annual tobacco crop. 100,000 tonnes are grown, graded, stored and exported by 1.7 million people. Another 5 million - according to the industry - are indirectly employed in support industries or are family members of tobacco workers (more photographs). That means a staggering 75% of the population is dependent on tobacco farming. The Malawian tobacco industry claims to generate 34% of the country's gross domestic product. By contrast few people in the country smoke. ..the eradication of child labour in the industry can only be a long-term goal. Women make up a large population of the workforce (more photographs) but children as young as 11 years old work grading the tobacco leaves. They'll also help out bringing in the crop. The International Tobacco Growers Association opposes any of its members using child labour. Tobacco factory But they admit that the eradication of child labour in the industry can only be a long-term goal. Growers in Malawi are worried about the WHO's Framework Convention on Tobacco which will be introduced from 2003. This will commit governments to move their economies away from growing tobacco. Malawians fear the Framework Convention could affect their way of life The question in people's minds here is: what else will they grow that will sell so well and be so profitable on the international market? From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Aug 3 11:56:59 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BBFC12A061 for ; Thu, 3 Aug 2000 11:56:59 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA26312 for ; Thu, 3 Aug 2000 11:56:59 -0400 Date: Thu, 3 Aug 2000 11:56:59 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] N. Korea Campaigns Against Smoking (fwd) N. Korea Campaigns Against Smoking Source: AP, Thursday, 8/3/00 Thursday, Aug. 3, 2000; 11:15 a.m. EDT SEOUL, South Korea =96=96 North Korea, an isolated communist country known = for its belligerent rhetoric, says it has found a new enemy: cigarettes. The Stalinist regime kicked off a "Week of No Smoking Campaign" on Tuesday, North Korea watchers in Seoul said Thursday. At the opening ceremony in Pyongyang, North Korea's health minister, Kim Su Hak, urged North Koreans to "make the 21st century a century free from smoking," said the North's foreign news outlet, KCNA. In recent months, North Korean TV stations and newspapers have urged people to quit smoking, said Chu Seok-yong, a North Korea watcher at Seoul's Unification Ministry. "Cigarettes are like guns trained on your hearts," Chu quoted an anti-smoking slogan in the North as saying. South Korean media recently reported that the campaign was ordered by Kim Jong Il, who demonstrated his leadership by quitting himself. Officials in Seoul say they don't know how many North Koreans smoke. But many North Korean officials and journalists who have met their South Korean counterparts were chain-smokers with nicotine-stained teeth. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Aug 4 10:40:48 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 033462A061 for ; Fri, 4 Aug 2000 10:40:47 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA12705 for ; Fri, 4 Aug 2000 10:40:47 -0400 Date: Fri, 4 Aug 2000 10:40:47 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Poor Nations Should Raise Taxes on Cigarettes, World Bank Says (fwd) Poor Nations Should Raise Taxes on Cigarettes, World Bank Says by Mark Drajem Source: Bloomberg News, Thursday, 8/3/00 Washington, Aug. 3 (Bloomberg) -- The World Bank and World Health Organization will call on developing nations to raise cigarette taxes to thwart a bid by tobacco companies to win new markets among the poor, the head of the bank's anti-smoking campaign said. The recommendation is contained in a report by the two agencies to be released next week, in what will be the latest broadside against the global tobacco industry. ``Tobacco companies are just looking for new markets,'' Joy de Beyer, the World Bank's tobacco control coordinator who helped write the report, told Bloomberg in an interview. ``Unfortunately, their products cause death.'' With the rise in lawsuits and regulations against Philip Morris Cos., British American Tobacco Plc and other companies in the U.S. and other rich nations, cigarette makers are increasingly looking to developing countries, especially in Asia and the former Soviet Union, as a new revenue source. That's sparked a counterattack from activists and international organizations. Yesterday, a separate World Health Organization report accused tobacco companies of deliberately subverting that agency's work. Since 1998 the health organization has led the charge against smoking in poor countries, and WHO head Gro Harlem Brundtland now wants a new global treaty on smoking to impose tough limits on tobacco advertising and marketing. U.S. companies, which government figures show export $5 billion a year of tobacco products, have agreed to legal settlements totaling $246 billion to help states recoup money spent treating sick smokers. The agreements also banned certain marketing practices, such as using cartoon characters in advertising. No New Taxes Philip Morris, the world's largest tobacco company, and other producers have said they have taken measures to make known the health effects of their products, and shouldn't be hit by new taxes or lawsuits. ``Philip Morris has done almost all of the things, and then some, that people have demanded of them,'' said William Ohlemeyer, general counsel to the company, at a press conference last month. ``The one thing we haven't done is stop selling cigarettes.'' WHO estimates that 4 million people die every year from the effects of smoking, a figure expected to rise to about 10 million within the next 30 years. Seven in 10 of those deaths will occur in poor countries, according to WHO. Research shows that smoking in developing countries of Asia and Africa is increasing, while its popularity wanes in the U.S. and Europe. Four in five of the 1.1 billion smokers live in developing countries. 3-Year Effort The new report, ``Tobacco Control in Developing Countries,'' is the culmination of a joint three-year, research effort by WHO and the World Bank. Many of the conclusions were released in a shorter format last year. The study will conclude that if the cost of smoking is higher, people will consume fewer cigarettes, de Beyer said. ``One thing all economists know is that at high prices, people will buy less,'' de Beyer said. ``It holds true for tobacco as well as for anything else.'' And the best way to raise prices is to raise taxes, she said. The report will show that a 10 percent tax will reduce consumption by high-income smokers by 4 percent, and for low income smokers by as much as 8 percent, she said. ``This is one of the few ways you can fight a health problem while raising revenues, not spending money,'' said John Banzhaf, executive director of the U.S. office of Action on Smoking and Health, an anti-smoking advocacy group. ``People with lower incomes and younger people really tend to be quite price-sensitive,'' de Beyer said. It's those people who are the most hurt by smoking, as well as the hardest to reach by anti-smoking campaigns. Smuggling At the same time, however, higher taxes are an incentive to smuggle, de Beyer acknowledged. Yet higher taxes are just one reason for increased smuggling, far behind a country's tolerance for corruption, she said the report will show. ``The stiffer a country's actions against smuggling, the less it will be a problem,'' she said. Recent reports from activists and others, using information taken from tobacco companies' legal filings, have claimed that tobacco companies themselves have encouraged smuggling and deliberately target poor countries to develop new markets. ``The large multinational tobacco companies are largely responsible for the spread of the smoking habit to developing countries,'' according to an Action on Smoking and Health statement. Yesterday, the WHO said tobacco companies have subverted its tobacco control activities by placing its own experts on panels and attempting to discredit the agency by seeking to convince developing countries that the WHO's anti-smoking campaign was against their economic interests. ``The companies fostered the view that tobacco control was a `First World' concern'' and that curbs on tobacco crops in Third World countries might exact a higher toll through poverty than tobacco use itself, the WHO report said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Aug 4 10:45:02 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0035B2A061 for ; Fri, 4 Aug 2000 10:45:01 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA12864 for ; Fri, 4 Aug 2000 10:45:01 -0400 Date: Fri, 4 Aug 2000 10:45:01 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Jha and Chaloupka: The economics of global tobacco control (fwd) The economics of global tobacco control BMJ 2000;321:358-361 ( 5 August ) by Jha and Chaloupka 321 (7257): 358 Source: British Medical Journal, Friday, 8/4/00 Prabhat Jha, senior scientist a, Frank J Chaloupka, professor of economics b. a Economics Advisory Service, World Health Organization, 20 Avenue Appia, CH-1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland, b University of Illinois at Chicago, USA Correspondence to: P Jha jhap@who.int Few people now dispute that smoking is damaging human health on a global scale.1 However, many governments have avoided taking action to control smoking--such as higher taxes--because of concerns that their interventions might have harmful economic consequences, such as permanent job losses. In 1997 the World Bank, in partnership with the World Health Organization, began a global study on the economics of tobacco control. A team of over 40 economists, epidemiologists, and tobacco control experts critically examined the current state of knowledge about tobacco control. The aim was to provide a sound and comprehensive evidence base for the design of effective tobacco control policies in any country, with an emphasis on the needs of the low income and middle income countries, where most smokers live. A synopsis of this work, including interim results, was published in 1999.2 Final results, including 19 chapters and a statistical appendix, are now available.3 This article presents the key findings from this study. Summary points Tax increases are the single most effective intervention to reduce demand for tobacco (tax increases that raise the real price of cigarettes by 10% would reduce smoking by about 4% in high income countries and by about 8% in low income or middle income countries) Tax comprises about two thirds of retail price of cigarettes in most high income countries but is less than half of the total price on average in lower income countries Improvements in the quality and extent of information, comprehensive bans on tobacco advertising and promotion, prominent warning labels, restrictions on smoking in public places, and increased access to nicotine replacement treatments are effective in reducing smoking Reducing the supply of tobacco is not effective in reducing tobacco consumption Comprehensive tobacco control policies are unlikely to harm economies Methods Each chapter of the study relied on extensive literature searches and contact with experts working in the area. A study database was compiled from various sources: the WHO's tobacco database (www.who.int/toh/Library/whopub.htm); agricultural data on consumption (www.econ.ag.gov/briefing/tobacco/); a commercial tobacco database (www.marketfile.com); a World Bank survey of over 70 countries on consumption, prices, taxes, control policies, and other variables (www.worldbank.org/html/extdr/hnp/health/tobacco.htm); and World Bank macroeconomic and demographic data (www.worldbank.org/data/wdi2000/). This study database was used to estimate smoking prevalence across the seven World Bank regions, price levels across countries, the effectiveness and cost effectiveness of interventions, the impact of bans on advertising and promotion, the estimation of revenues, the impact of trade on consumption, and the impact of tax increases on smuggling. Some analyses, such as for smuggling, were restricted to the set of countries for which complete data were available. Details of specific methodologies are provided in each chapter of the study.3 Anonymous peer reviewers reviewed each chapter. Findings Scale of the problem About 80% of the world's 1.1 billion smokers live in low income and middle income countries.4 Data from high income countries, where the tobacco epidemic is well established among men, suggest that about half of long term regular smokers are killed by tobacco and that, of these, about half die in middle age (35-69 years old). Worldwide, about four million people died of tobacco related disease in 1998.4 This figure is expected to rise to 10 million annual deaths by 2030, with 70% of these deaths occurring in low income countries. Peto and Lopez estimate that about 100 million people were killed by tobacco in the 20th century and that, for the 21st century, the cumulative number could be one billion if current smoking patterns continue.1 Many of these deaths over the next few decades could be prevented if current smokers quit, but in low income and middle income countries quitting is rare. For example, only about 5% of males in Mumbai, India, are former smokers.5 Economic rationale for intervening in the tobacco market Some economists have argued that smokers know all of the risks and bear all the costs of their choice.6 They argue that there is therefore no economic justification for governments to intervene in tobacco markets. There are, however, three "market failures" in the tobacco market: inadequate information about the health risks of tobacco, inadequate information about the risks of addiction, and physical or financial costs imposed on non-smokers. 7 8 General awareness of the risks of smoking is relatively low in low income and middle income countries.9 For example, a representative national survey in China found that 55% of Chinese non-smokers and 69% of smokers believed that cigarettes did "little or no harm."10 While there is more widespread general awareness of the risks of smoking in high income countries, many people underestimate these risks relative to other health risks, and many fail to internalise these risks.11 Similarly, young people seem to underestimate the risks of addiction. Among US students in their final year at high school, fewer than two out of five smokers who believe that they will quit within five years actually do so.12 About seven out of 10 adult smokers in high income countries say they regret starting and would like to stop.13 Recent economic modelling suggests that, even if young people "decide" to risk becoming addicted, imperfect information can result in seemingly rational decisions being later viewed with regret.14 Ideally, interventions that specifically address a market failure should be implemented as the "best" options. In the tobacco market such "best" interventions would include educating young people about the risks of addiction and disease from smoking or restricting their access to tobacco. However, the evidence suggests that these measures are relatively ineffective. 8 15 In contrast, taxation, albeit a blunt instrument and thus a "second best" intervention, is clearly effective at protecting children from taking up smoking. More practically, any tobacco control policy whose sole effect was to deter children from starting smoking would have little impact on numbers of smoking related deaths for many decades, since most of the projected deaths for the first half of the next century are those of current smokers (fig 1).1 Therefore, achieving health gains in the medium term requires encouraging adult smokers to quit. Taxation can also correct for any health costs imposed by smokers on others. However, taxation and various other interventions do impose costs on smokers. View larger version (21K): Fig 1. Cumulative numbers of smoking related deaths according to three scenarios. Only current smokers quitting will substantially reduce the number of deaths in the next 50 years. Adapted from Peto and Lopez1 Measures to reduce demand Higher tobacco taxes Tax increases are the single most effective intervention to reduce demand for tobacco. Our review of numerous studies from high income countries and several studies from low income and middle income countries indicates that higher tobacco prices significantly and consistently reduce tobacco use. A price increase of 10% would reduce smoking by about 4% in high income countries and by about 8% in low income and middle income countries. The evidence indicates that young people, people on low incomes, and those with less education are more responsive to price changes.16 The question of what the right level of tax should be is a complex one.8 The size of the tax depends in subtle ways on empirical facts that may not yet be available. It also depends on societal values, such as the extent to which children should be protected, and on what a society hopes to achieve through the tax, such as an increase in revenues or a reduction in disease. In most high income countries with comprehensive tobacco control policies, tax comprises between two thirds and four fifths of the retail price of cigarettes. In lower income countries taxes are generally less than half of the total price (fig 2). View larger version (21K): Fig 2. Average cigarette price, tax, and percentage of tax share per pack by countries' income for 1996. If tax is to account for four fifths of the retail price, this requires prices to be increased by four times the manufacturer's (untaxed) price per pack. Thus, if the manufacturer's price is $0.50 then the tax rate would be $2 and the retail price $2.50. Depending on retail factors, an increase of this order would raise the population weighted retail price by 80-100% in low income and middle income countries Consumer information Policies to improve the quality and extent of information can reduce smoking, especially in low income and middle income countries, where baseline levels of awareness are low.9 "Information shocks"such as the publication of new evidence on the health consequences of smokingin the United States and Britain in the 1960s and '70s reduced consumption between 4% and 9%, with a cumulative impact between 15% and 30%. Similarly, prominent warning labels on cigarette packs can also reduce consumption. 9 17 Bans on advertising and promotion The existing empirical data suggest that tobacco advertising has, at best, a modest impact on consumption.18 However, advertising is at such a high level that it is nearly impossible to measure the incremental impact of additional advertising. Examining advertising bans is a more robust way of determining the impact on consumption. A review of 102 countries and econometric analyses of high income countries concludes that comprehensive bans on tobacco advertising can reduce tobacco consumption. Partial advertising bans have little or no effect, given the opportunities for substitution to other forms of media.18 Regulatory policies Evidence, largely from the United States, suggests that policies designed to prevent smoking in public places, workplaces, and other facilities can significantly reduce cigarette consumption.19 These policies seem to work best when there is a strong social consensus against smoking in public places and, therefore, self enforcement of the restrictions. Nicotine replacement treatments and other pharmacological aids to quitting can roughly double the chances that an individual will successfully quit.20 Nicotine replacement treatments are highly regulated, in contrast to the large and unregulated market for cigarettes.21 The nicotine replacement market is presently limited by several factors, including high retail prices, relatively low global demand for quitting, and complex regulatory issues. Deregulating this market may help to increase demand. Effectiveness of interventions A model of the potential impact of control policies was developed for this study.22 Based on deliberately conservative assumptions, it estimated that tax increases that would raise the real price of cigarettes by 10% worldwide would lead to about 42 million smokers in 1995 quitting and would prevent 10 million premature tobacco related deaths (table). A set of "non-price" measuresincluding information campaigns, comprehensive bans on tobacco advertising and promotion, prominent warning labels, and comprehensive smoking restrictionswould reduce the current number of smokers by 23 million and would avert five million deaths. A third measure, the widely increased use of nicotine replacement treatments, would persuade six million smokers to quit and would avert one million deaths. View this table: Potential impact of a price increase of 10% and a package of non-price measures (advertising and promotion bans, consumer information, clean air laws, and prominent warning labels) on cigarette consumption and tobacco related deaths* Measures to reduce supply of tobacco While interventions to reduce the demand for tobacco are likely to succeed, measures to reduce its supply usually fail. Attempts to impose restrictions on the sale of cigarettes to youths in high income countries have mainly been unsuccessful.15 Moreover, in low income countries it may be difficult to implement and enforce such restrictions. Crop substitution is often proposed as a means to reduce the tobacco supply, but there is little evidence that it reduces consumption, since the incentives for farmers to grow tobacco are currently much greater than for most other crops.23 The evidence suggests that freer trade in tobacco products has led to increases in smoking and other tobacco use. Because trade restrictions impose other costs, a better option is for countries to adopt measures that effectively reduce demand and apply those measures equally to imported and domestically produced cigarettes.24 However, one supply side measure is vitalaction against smuggling. Effective measures include prominent tax stamps and local language warnings on cigarette packs, as well as the aggressive enforcement of anti-smuggling measures and consistent application of tough penalties to deter smugglers.25 Costs and consequences of tobacco control Several concerns are often raised about taking measures to reduce tobacco consumption. The first is that tobacco control will cause permanent job losses. However, falling demand for tobacco does not mean falling employment. Money that smokers once spent on cigarettes would instead be spent on other goods and services, generating other jobs to replace any lost from the tobacco industry.23 Studies show that most countries would see no net job losses, and a few would see net gains, if tobacco consumption fell (see extra tables on BMJ website for details). Even under the most optimistic scenarios, measures to reduce demand would slow the growth in global demand rather than significantly reducing it in the near term. However, a very small number of countries are heavily dependent on tobacco farming. For them, reductions in domestic demand would have little impact, but a global fall in demand would result in job losses. Policies to aid adjustment in these circumstances would be essential. A second concern is that higher tax rates will reduce government revenues. We estimated the revenue generating potential in 70 countries and found that a 10% increase in cigarette taxes in these countries would raise cigarette tax revenues by nearly 7% on average.16 The increase in revenues would be somewhat larger in high income countries, where demand is less elastic and taxes account for a larger share of price. However, even in low income countries the increased revenues, though smaller, would still be considerable. A third concern is that higher taxes would lead to massive increases in smuggling, thereby keeping smoking high but reducing government revenues. Smuggling is a serious problem. Estimates suggest that 6-8% of all cigarettes consumed globally are smuggled, mostly in the form of non-taxed cigarettes exported free of tax and smuggled back into a country. Large tax differentials between countries provide an obvious motive for smuggling. However, corruption within countries is a stronger predictor of smuggling than price. An econometric model that accounts for potential bootlegging (the legal purchase of cigarettes in one country for consumption or resale in another country without paying applicable taxes or duties) in response to tax increases in 23 European countries in 1995 finds that a unilateral tax increase of 10% by one country would lead to an average increase of 7% in revenue. Coordinated tax increases among neighbouring legislatures would increase tax revenues by 8%.26 It is important to note the experience of Canada,27 which reduced its tax rates as an attempt to counter smuggling. The result was that consumption rose, especially among youths, and revenues fell. Thus, rather than forgoing the health benefits of reduced smoking, and increased revenue, the appropriate response for governments is to crack down on smuggling. Smuggling control is a top priority of the World Health Organization's framework convention on tobacco control. Conclusion The threat posed by smoking to global health is unprecedented, but so is the potential for preventing millions of smoking related deaths with highly effective policies. A comprehensive tobacco control policy is not likely to harm economies. Acknowledgments This paper does not represent official views of the World Bank or the World Health Organization. We thank Son Nguyen and Phyllida Brown for helpful comments. Footnotes Competing interests: None declared. Extra tables showing the contribution of tobacco to various countries' economies appear on the BMJ's website References 1. Peto R, Lopez AD. The future worldwide health effects of current smoking patterns. In: Koop CE, Pearson CE, Schwarz MR, eds. Global health in the 21st century. New York: Jossey-Bass (in press). 2. Jha P, Chaloupka FJ. Curbing the epidemic: governments and the economics of tobacco control. Washington, DC: World Bank, 1999. 3. Jha P, Chaloupka FJ, eds. Tobacco control in developing countries. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. 4. World Health Organization. Making a difference, world health report 1999. Geneva: WHO, 1999. 5. Gupta PC. Survey of sociodemographic characteristics of tobacco use among 99,598 individuals in Bombay, India, using handheld computers. Tobacco Control 1996; 5: 114-120[Abstract]. 6. Tobacco and tolerance. Economist 1997 Dec 20:59-61. 7. Jha P, Musgrove P, Chaloupka FJ, Yurekli A. The economic rationale for intervention in the tobacco market. In: Jha P, Chaloupka FJ, eds. Tobacco control in developing countries. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000:153-174. 8. Warner KE, Chaloupka FJ, Cook PJ, Manning WG, Newhouse JP, Novotny TE, et al. Criteria for determining an optimal cigarette tax: the economist's perspective. Tobacco Control 1995; 4: 380-386. 9. Kenkel D, Chen L. Consumer information and tobacco use. In: Jha P, Chaloupka FJ, eds. Tobacco control in developing countries. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000:177-214. 10. Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine. Smoking in China: 1996 national prevalence survey of smoking pattern. Beijing: China Science and Technology Press, 1997. 11. Weinstein ND. Accuracy of smokers' risk perceptions. Ann Behav Med 1998; 20: 135-140[Medline]. 12. US Department of Health and Human Services. Preventing tobacco use among young people. A report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA: US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 1994. 13. US Department of Health and Human Services. Reducing the health consequences of smoking: 25 years of progress. A report of the surgeon general. Rockville, MD: US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 1989. (DHHS Publication No (CDC)89-8411.) 14. Orphanides A, Zervos D. Rational addiction with learning and regret. J Political Econ 1995; 103: 739-758. 15. Siegel M, Biener L, Rigotti NA. The effect of local tobacco sales laws on adolescent smoking initiation. Prev Med 1999; 29: 334-342[Medline]. 16. Chaloupka FJ, Hu T-W, Warner KE, Jacobs R, Yurekli A. The taxation of tobacco products. In: Jha P, Chaloupka FJ, eds. Tobacco control in developing countries. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000:237-272. 17. Townsend JL. Policies to halve smoking deaths. Addiction 1993; 88: 43-52. 18. Saffer H, Chaloupka FJ. Tobacco advertising: economic theory and international evidence. J Health Econ (in press). 19. Yurekli AA, Zhang P. The impact of clean indoor-air laws and cigarette smuggling on demand for cigarettes: an empirical model. Health Econ 2000; 9: 159-170[Medline]. 20. Raw M, McNeill A, West R. Smoking cessation: evidence-based recommendations for the healthcare system. BMJ 1999; 318: 182-185[Full Text]. 21. Warner KE, Slade J, Sweanor DT. The emerging market for long-term nicotine maintenance. JAMA 1997; 278: 1087-1092[Medline]. 22. Ranson K, Jha P, Chaloupka FJ, Yurekli A. Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of price increases and other tobacco control policies. In: Jha P, Chaloupka FJ, eds. Tobacco control in developing countries. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000:427-447. 23. Van der Merwe R. Employment issues in tobacco control. In: Abedian I, van der Merwe R, Wilkins N, Jha P, eds. The economics of tobacco control: towards an optimal policy mix. Cape Town: Applied Fiscal Research Centre, University of Cape Town, 1998:199-209. 24. Taylor AL, Chaloupka FJ, Guindon E, Corbett M. The impact of trade liberalization on tobacco consumption. In: Jha P, Chaloupka FJ, eds. Tobacco control in developing countries. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000:343-364. 25. Joossens L, Raw M. Smuggling and cross-border shopping of tobacco in Europe. BMJ 1995; 310: 1393-1397[Full Text]. 26. Merriman D, Chaloupka FJ, Yurekli A. How big is the worldwide cigarette smuggling problem? In: Jha P, Chaloupka FJ, eds. Tobacco control in developing countries. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000:365-392. 27. Sweanor DT, Martial LR. The smuggling of tobacco products: lessons from Canada. Ottawa: Non-Smokers' Rights Association, Smoking and Health Action Foundation, 1994. (Accepted 5 July 2000) This article has been cited by other articles: Davis, R. M (2000). Moving tobacco control beyond "the tipping point". BMJ 321: 309-310 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Aug 7 10:14:58 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3B6932A05E for ; Mon, 7 Aug 2000 10:14:58 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA07817 for ; Mon, 7 Aug 2000 10:14:57 -0400 Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 10:14:57 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Anti-smoking Forces Gather To Wage Global Battle (fwd) Anti-smoking Forces Gather To Wage Global Battle Source: Reuters, Saturday, 8/5/00 WIRE:08/05/2000 10:27:00 ET CHICAGO (Reuters) - The "huge tragedy" facing developing countries now being targeted as untapped markets by the tobacco industry will be in the spotlight when health experts from around the world gather in Chicago starting Sunday, a conference organizer said. "We"re bringing the world"s tobacco-control community together in one place to see how can we stem this tide of export, promotion and production by the tobacco industry," said Dr. Thomas Houston of the American Medical Association (AMA), co-chairman of the weeklong 11th World Conference on Tobacco or Health. The conference was expected to attract 4,000 scientists, anti-smoking advocates and government health officials from 100 countries and from bodies such as the U.N."s World Health Organization. The World Health Organization has predicted that 70 percent of deaths caused by smoking-related illnesses will take place in the developing world, in part because people in those countries may be unaware of the dangers posed by smoking. The U.N. body is predicting that 500 million people -- almost one in 10 people now on Earth -- eventually will die from tobacco-related illnesses. The annual global death toll from cigarettes is predicted to climb from 3.5 million people currently to 10 million in a little more than two decades. "It will be a huge tragedy for developing countries, and overwhelm their health care systems," Houston said. NEW MARKETS FOR TOBACCO SOUGHT The tobacco industry has responded to legal setbacks in the West by stepping up its decades-old drive to market their product around the world, experts said. Newly built cigarette factories in Russia, for instance, have been touted as an economic benefit, not a risk to that nation"s health, Houston said. In addition, the industry has been attempting to deter developing countries from levying taxes on cigarettes or enacting western-style laws that bar smoking in office buildings and other public places, conference organizers said. The World Health Organization recently charged that the tobacco industry had been waging a secret campaign to subvert its global efforts against smoking -- an allegation that the industry denied. "They"ll have their spies" at the Chicago conference, Houston said, referring to the industry. This will be the 11th such world conference on tobacco since 1967, with the last gathering held three years ago in Beijing, the capital of a country that experts worry is on the brink of a smoking-related health disaster. "There are more smokers in China than people in the United States," said Houston, who heads the Chicago-based AMA"s anti-tobacco campaign. "China is about to reduce tariffs on imported tobacco, which is a disaster in the making." Up to now, cigarette marketing in China largely has been aimed at older men, with few women taking up the habit. By lifting the bar to cigarette imports, China also will open itself to slick western-style marketing campaigns capable of enticing other segments of the population, experts said. A DEADLY STATUS SYMBOL China is not alone among developing countries where smoking -- particularly smoking of western brands of cigarettes -- has become a status symbol and where few warnings are offered about health consequences. "Most people (in the developing world) believe cancer is a communicable disease," Houston said. "There"s terrible misinformation about cancer in general and tobacco specifically. The warnings are nebulous and not particularly clear." Conference sessions are scheduled to cover the scientific basis for nicotine addiction, the lessons learned from anti-smoking campaigns, and analyses of tobacco industry tactics. The findings of several studies are due to be unveiled at the conference by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and academic researchers. Former tobacco company "whistle-blowers" who have exposed the industry"s secrets are scheduled to hold a gathering, and participants were to assess the legal fight against the industry in light of the recent $145 billion Florida jury award in favor of that state"s sick smokers and the $246 billion industry settlement with the states. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Aug 7 10:15:30 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 7020F2A05E for ; Mon, 7 Aug 2000 10:15:30 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA07843 for ; Mon, 7 Aug 2000 10:15:30 -0400 Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 10:15:30 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] One In Four Cigarettes Come From Bootleggers (fwd) One In Four Cigarettes Come From Bootleggers Source: The Mirror, Saturday, 8/5/00 EXCLUSIVE A QUARTER of the cigarettes smoked in Britain are smuggled into the country. The figure has soared from one in six to nearly one in four in just twelve months. And fears are growing that bootleggers will soon have half the market. The growing racket, which is costing the Government hundreds of millions of pounds in tax revenue, was revealed by empty cigarette packets discarded at soccer grounds. At IPSWICH, the number of smuggled smokes shot up from five per cent in 1999 to 21 per cent this year. At LEEDS the total leapt from 18 per cent to 26 per cent and at WEST HAM from 13 per cent to 21 per cent. The Tobacco Manufacturers' Association, which carried out the survey, says Britons now smoke 16.6 billion illegal cigarettes. Spokesman John Carlisle, called the rise "breathtaking." He said: "We're talking about vast numbers, with the middle classes also deciding they've had enough paying so much tax on a packet of cigarettes. "They've decided they're not going to switch from buying smuggled cigarettes because the savings are so big." Fellow TMA spokesman Bob Fenton said the smugglers could be beaten by knocking pounds 1 off the tax. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Aug 8 13:06:22 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 7E71B2A31C for ; Tue, 8 Aug 2000 13:06:22 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA30830 for ; Tue, 8 Aug 2000 13:06:22 -0400 Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 13:06:22 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Study Says Higher Tobacco Taxes Key To Curbing Smoking (fwd) Study Says Higher Tobacco Taxes Key To Curbing Smoking by John Connor / Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-9273; john.connor@dowjones.com Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Tuesday, 8/8/00 WASHINGTON -- The key to cutting cigarette smoking, particularly among the poor, the young, and the relatively uneducated, is to raise taxes on tobacco, according to a new study. Published Tuesday by the World Bank and World Health Organization, the study said a tobacco tax increase has been found to be a very effective tool for lowering tobacco use, especially in developing countries. Researchers for the two organizations estimated that higher taxes leading to a 10% rise in cigarette prices would motivate about 42 million persons to quit smoking and could prevent 10 million tobacco-related deaths, nine million in low- and middle-income countries. What's more, the study said, government revenues would actually rise by 7% on average for a 10% increase in cigarette taxes. "This research shows that the economic measure of a tax increase is the single most important intervention by governments to curb tobacco consumption," said Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, WHO director-general. "Governments wishing to halt the rising toll of tobacco-related deaths should strongly consider a tobacco tax hike as a matter of priority." The 512-page study is being published as a book -"Tobacco Control in Developing Countries." It is the result of a three-year research project involving a team of about 40 economists, social scientists, legal and public policy experts, and epidemiologists from 13 nations. "Tobacco control is a high priority in our efforts to improve global health," said World Bank President James Wolfensohn. The study said efforts to reduce the supply of cigarettes have been largely ineffective. It said prohibition and trade embargoes are unrealistic, and that attempts to restrict cigarette sales to teenage smokers have usually been unsuccessful, even in countries with substantial enforcement capacity. Crop substitution schemes also have failed, largely because of stronger financial incentives to grow tobacco, it said. Saying almost a third of all cigarette exports are smuggled, the study said individual governments that have tried to reduce smuggling by slashing taxes often have suffered an increase in consumption and a fall in revenues. "A more effective response would be to keep taxes high and crack down on smuggling," said Frank Chaloupka, a professor at the University of Illinois and a joint editor of the publication. "Prominent tax stamps, serial numbers, special package markings, health warning labels in local languages and better tracking systems are effective against smuggling." The study said any impact on employment from a slump in tobacco sales would be minimal and gradual. "If tobacco consumption fell, most countries would experience no net job losses and some would even experience net gains, as money once spent on tobacco was diverted to other goods and services, creating new jobs," said Dr. Prabhat Jha, senior scientist at WHO and another joint editor of the publication. "However," he said, "if global demand fell, a few tobacco exporting countries - especially in sub-Saharan Africa - would experience job losses in the longer term and would need some assistance during the adjustment period." URL for this Article: http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=BT-CO-20000808-000010.djml From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Aug 14 10:56:35 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8B7912A061 for ; Mon, 14 Aug 2000 10:56:35 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA29383 for ; Mon, 14 Aug 2000 10:56:35 -0400 Date: Mon, 14 Aug 2000 10:56:35 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Anti-smoking group praises ban on cigarette ads (fwd) Anti-smoking group praises ban on cigarette ads Source: NewsEdge, Saturday, 8/12/00 RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) via NewsEdge Corporation - Anti-smoking advocates praised Brazil's legislature Thursday for taking the first step toward a national ban on cigarette advertising. The lower house of Brazils two-chamber legislature approved a measure late Wednesday that would prohibit tobacco companies from advertising in all print and broadcast media, on billboards and at sporting or cultural events. If passed by the upper house, it will go to President Fernando Henrique Cardoso for approval. Luiz Monaco, a lawyer and spokesman for the Smoker's Health Defense Association, said the vote is ``already a great step.'' ``I am under the impression that an approval by the Senate is underway for sure,'' Monaco added. The bill, drafted by Congressman Jutahy Junior, would impose fines of up to dlrs 56,000 (100,000 reals) on violators. It would also punish radio and television stations that run the ads, taking them off the air 10 minutes for each minute of cigarette advertising they broadcast. Cigarette ads would be permitted only on posters displayed at businesses where tobacco is sold, provided the ads did not feature children or adolescents. Officials at Souza Cruz, the country's largest cigarette manufacturer, would not comment until they had seen a final draft of the bill, said Ludmilla Le Maitre, a company spokeswoman. It is estimated that every year more than 90,000 Brazilians die from illnesses associated with cigarette smoking. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Aug 14 11:01:05 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 657392A320 for ; Mon, 14 Aug 2000 11:01:05 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA29462 for ; Mon, 14 Aug 2000 11:01:05 -0400 Date: Mon, 14 Aug 2000 11:01:05 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Brown & Williamson presses Russia over tobacco taxes (fwd) US cigarette maker presses Russia over tobacco taxes Text of report in English by Russian news agency Interfax by Source: BBC Monitoring Former Soviet Union - Economic / Publication date: 2000-08-12 Moscow, 11th August: Russian Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov and officials from the Philip Morris company met today to discuss the situation on the Russian tobacco market and the import of tobacco into Russia. Attempts by numerous Duma members to impose quotas on the import of cigarettes and increase excise duties levied on tobacco goods worry the company, Klebanov told the press after the meeting. A conference in the Taxes and Duties Ministry today will discuss the situation on the tobacco market, he said. Foreign companies have shares in ten of the 30 largest Russian tobacco factories, Klebanov said. These ten account for 68 per cent of the cigarettes made in the country and, unlike the purely Russian companies, pay taxes faithfully, he said. Philip Morris has invested 350m dollars in a new tobacco factory in Izhora, Leningrad Region, and has created nearly 700 new jobs there. The factory will make 25bn cigarettes a year. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Aug 14 11:03:08 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 06BFB2A320 for ; Mon, 14 Aug 2000 11:03:08 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA29517 for ; Mon, 14 Aug 2000 11:03:07 -0400 Date: Mon, 14 Aug 2000 11:03:07 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] U.S. judge dismisses Ontario tobacco claim (fwd) U.S. judge dismisses Ontario tobacco claim $40-billion suit sought to recover health care costs Source: National Post, Friday, 8/11/00 Cristin Schmitz Southam News OTTAWA - Ontario's US$40-billion lawsuit against major North American tobacco companies for smoking-related health care costs has been turfed out of U.S. federal court, handing Big Tobacco its second major legal victory against Canadian governments in as many months. U.S. District Court Judge Paul Friedman of Washington, D.C., dismissed Ontario's health costs recovery suit, which alleges that Imperial Tobacco, Phillip Morris Companies Inc., R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. and other cigarette makers conspired to misrepresent and hide information about the health risks of smoking and the addictive nature of nicotine, thus injuring smokers and forcing the province to spend billions on otherwise unnecessary medical expenses. A spokesman for the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care declined comment. "Our counsel has received the court's decision. It is currently under review and we have 30 days to determine if there will be an appeal," Geoff Bell said. The province's goal was to recover as much as US$40-billion spent treating smoking-related illness. Quietly released Aug. 7 during the civic holiday in Ontario, Judge Friedman's decision comes barely a month after an unrelated, US$1-billion suit by the federal government against the R.J. Reynolds tobacco empire. That suit, claiming lost taxes due to alleged tobacco smuggling, was tossed out by a different U.S. District Court judge. Canada is appealing. In dismissing Ontario's action, Judge Friedman relied on the same reasoning he used last December when he threw out a similar suit by Guatemala on the basis that the injuries suffered by that government were "too remote" to permit legal recovery against the defendants. The judge suggested that if foreign governments, or their citizens, believe they have a case against the tobacco industry, such claims should be brought by smokers in their home courts. He suggested that to permit such foreign suits to proceed could flood U.S. courts with complex and expensive litigation. "This concern applies with particular weight in this instance, where dozens of foreign governments, as well as other foreign health payers, might attempt to bring similar suits in U.S. courts," Judge Friedman wrote in the Guatemala decision. In dismissing Ontario's case, the judge noted that "to the extent that Ontario's lawsuit may be distinguished from Guatemala's lawsuit . . . none of the distinctions make Ontario's alleged injury any less remote or, as a result, any more viable." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Aug 17 12:35:42 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1550F2A383 for ; Thu, 17 Aug 2000 12:35:42 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA28990 for ; Thu, 17 Aug 2000 12:35:41 -0400 Date: Thu, 17 Aug 2000 12:35:41 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Italy's Antitobacco Campaign Battles Culture of Individualism (fwd) Italy's Antitobacco Campaign Battles Culture of Individualism by DEBORAH BALL / Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL deborah.ball@wsj.com1 Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Thursday, 8/17/00 MILAN -- When Anna Maria Bellantoni came home from boarding school the Christmas after she turned 17, her parents, both heavy smokers, made their usual offering of cigarettes to the family members gathered in their Milan home for the holidays. Ms. Bellantoni, who had secretly started smoking two years earlier, decided to take the plunge and ask for one as well. To her surprise, her parents gave her an approving look as they handed her a cigarette. "They looked at me as if I were more important then, as if I'd made some sort of transition to adulthood," recalls Ms. Bellantoni, who quit after smoking heavily for 15 years and is now 50 years old. She now shows little mercy for her former comrades, decrying what she sees as an arrogant attitude among many smokers in Italy. "When they ask you if they can smoke, what they really expect to hear is yes," she says. "But I ask them to move away from me when they light up." In the land where asking for a light is a basic tool of seduction and where doctors are still seen smoking in hospitals, the plight of nonsmokers in Italy has long seemed a dismal one. But attitudes are shifting, with Italian nonsmokers drawing inspiration from America's cigarette wars and emboldened by a new health minister whose tough antismoking line could make him Italy's own version of former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop. Unenforced Rules While antismoking campaigns have become the norm in many European countries, Italy -- the continent's largest producer of tobacco -- has done remarkably little to break its citizens of the deadly habit. While Italians smoke only slightly more than the European average, the culture has long favored smokers, differing from countries such as Sweden, where determined antismoking campaigns have helped nonsmokers assert their rights and have cut the percentage of adults who smoke to less than 20% from about 35% in 1980. In Italy, a 1975 law banning smoking in schools, public administration buildings and airports is flagrantly ignored and rarely enforced. "As long as I got the cops in the building to help me enforce the ban, I could manage it," recounts Benito Marino, who is in charge of managing Milan's hulking justice building and is responsible for slapping the 4,000 lira ($1.83, 2 euro) fine on perpetrators. Despite a zeal inspired by his deep aversion to tobacco, Mr. Marino levied just 185 fines in two years, before giving up when the police stopped assisting him and colleagues refused to hand over the documents needed to fill out the tickets. Other examples of Italy's pro-cigarette culture abound. Taxi drivers often huff when asked to obey the ban on smoking in their own cabs. Celebrities and politicians routinely smoke during television interviews, with one minister even chomping on his ever-present cigar throughout the nationally broadcast swearing-in ceremony of the last government. Signs of Progress Over the past several years, the antismoking lobby has finally managed to assert itself, while an intolerance toward smokers is steadily spreading. The underlying push comes from the fact that Italians are kicking the habit in increasing numbers, with smokers now representing about 25% of the population, down from 35% in 1980. Sales of Nicorette gum and its sister nicotine-replacement products have risen 35% in each of the past two years, while stop-smoking centers (some offering questionable remedies such as herbal potions) are mushrooming. As a result, nonsmokers are becoming more demanding in their desire for a butt-free environment, with more and more Italians finding the courage to say no when smokers ask whether they can light up. In the wake of legal action, unions are standing up for workers fed up with spending eight hours a day exposed to their colleagues' habit. Some restaurants are finding it profitable to offer nonsmoking areas, while a few major hotels are starting to provide smoke-free rooms for the first time. (Last year's high-profile $35 million -- 38.3 million euros -- renovation of Rome's St. Regis Grand hotel included the installation of nonsmoking rooms.) "I'd spent a lot of time in the U.S., and when I came back to Italy, I thought there would be demand here as well for a nonsmoking section," says Fabio Bongianni, the owner of T-Bone, a popular American-style steakhouse near the Spanish Steps in central Rome. "We saw pretty quickly that our customers liked it." Limits Loom Umberto Veronesi, Italy's new health minister (above), proposed fines up to $3,000 for those who fail to enforce smoking bans. The biggest crack in the wall, however, could come with last month's legislative proposal from Umberto Veronesi, the new health minister, who is also one of the country's foremost oncologists. The law would be the toughest Italy has seen, extending the smoking ban to virtually all closed areas, forcing restaurants to set up nonsmoking areas and even obliging prisons to offer inmates smoke-free cells. And to overcome Italians' infamous aversion to any restrictions on their personal behavior, the new law includes stiff fines -- up to $3,000 -- for those who fail to enforce the bans. However, the Veronesi proposal has raised the hackles of a number of powerful lobbies, reflecting the difficulty the antitobacco campaign will face. Italy's 230,000 cafes and restaurants started howling immediately, claiming they would have to spend a collective 3.5 trillion lire to revamp ventilation systems and create nonsmoking areas. They and other targets of the ban also protest that they have no interest in acting as vigilantes or slapping their own clients with fines under the threat of being fined themselves. Indeed, some already see the cultural limits to the antismoking campaign in Italy. For Italy differs from the U.S. in that Italians lack the American zeal to sanction the personal behavior of their friends and neighbors, instead harboring a deep-rooted tolerance for vices such as littering and madcap parking. "In the U.S., when they take up a cause, everyone goes along," says Ugo Martinet, a right-wing deputy who is infamous in the Parliament for the 60 cigarettes he consumes daily. "But Italy is a free country," he adds as he fingers a cigarette. "We leave these things to people's free choice." ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Key Points of Proposed Italian Antismoking Bill * Ban smoking in workplaces, including ones not open to the public; the ban applies to railway stations, airports, hospitals and schools. * Require bars, restaurants and clubs to set up non-smoking areas or provide adequate ventilation systems. * Require prisons to establish smoke-free cells. * Increase fines for smoking in many public places, setting a range of 50,000 lire to 300,000 lire, up from the current 1,000 lire to 10,000 lire. * Establish fines of up to six million lire for those who fail to enforce the ban, such as restaurant owners. URL for this Article: http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=SB966461027964289652.djm From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Aug 17 12:37:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 350062A05E for ; Thu, 17 Aug 2000 12:37:25 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA29056 for ; Thu, 17 Aug 2000 12:37:25 -0400 Date: Thu, 17 Aug 2000 12:37:24 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] LA Times: Tobacco Foes Hope for Treaty (fwd) Tobacco Foes Hope for Treaty Conference: Global agreement is seen as a way of saving millions of lives from cigarettes. by MYRON LEVIN / Times Staff Writer Source: Los Angeles Times, Sunday, 9/17/00 CHICAGO--To the health officials, researchers and activists attending a global anti-smoking conference here last week, an electronic ticker served as a call to arms: "Tobacco kills eight people around the world every minute," it read. "Look how many have died since the conference began." From Sunday night to Thursday afternoon, the tally had reached 42,000. At the 11th World Conference on Tobacco or Health, which drew anti-smoking leaders from 130 nations, even grimmer numbers were delivered with mantra-like frequency by many speakers: Worldwide, an estimated 4 million people die annually of diseases linked with smoking. If present trends continue, tobacco-related deaths will reach 10 million annually by 2030, most of them in the developing world. "We're looking at something that's absolutely apocalyptic" for public health, said Simon Chapman, a sociologist from Australia who is an expert on tobacco advertising. No magic bullet emerged from the conference. However, participants enthusiastically touted a proposed global treaty--the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control--as the best chance for saving millions of lives. But whether the treaty--proposed by the World Health Organization, an agency of the United Nations, and endorsed, in concept, by 192 countries--will go beyond anti-smoking platitudes sparked emotional debate all week. For more than 4,000 participants in name tags fitted with pouches for collecting business cards, the conference was a giant networking session. Researchers presented some 2,000 abstracts of forthcoming papers on all aspects of tobacco and health. And leading health agencies and advocacy groups used the conference as a springboard for their work. U.S. Surgeon Gen. David Satcher released the 29th in the series of surgeon general's reports on smoking. Unlike the prior 28--all of which concerned problems linked to smoking--this one describes solutions for reducing smoking below the current U.S. rate of 25% of adults. The World Bank and WHO issued a report on tobacco control in developing nations, calling for higher cigarette taxes as a means to cut demand and save millions of lives. The WHO also released a scathing report, based on internal tobacco industry documents, on the industry's clandestine use of front groups and other efforts "to discredit and impede" WHO's attempts to discourage smoking. In that report and in conference proceedings, international tobacco firms, led by Philip Morris Cos. and British-American Tobacco, were bashed like pinatas. But participants acknowledged that their challenge is more complicated than reining in the tobacco multinationals. Even with the liberalization of trade and investment policies, the manufacture and marketing of cigarettes in many countries is controlled by domestic monopolies, some government-owned. Many participants hailed the importance of the damaging internal documents that have been made public through tobacco-related litigation in the United States. The documents have had an important psychological effect, in that fear of Big Tobacco as an "impregnable" force "has really been dissipated," said Judith Mackay, a Hong Kong-based physician who has advised WHO and the government of China on tobacco policy. Whether the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control will be adopted--and whether it will be a feel-good statement of goals or an agreement with teeth--was a major focus of discussions all week. Formal drafting of the convention gets underway in October in Geneva, when public hearings also will be held to take statements from the tobacco industry and anti-smoking groups. The convention could do no more than state a series of general objectives. Or, adopting a tougher stance, it could require ratifying nations to seek bans on tobacco advertising, regulations on secondhand smoke and higher cigarette taxes, among other measures. Tobacco companies have complained of being shut out of the negotiating process. In a statement, Philip Morris said it is "committed to establish a dialogue and cooperate with" nations and groups involved in preparing the accord. But "regrettably, in its treatment of tobacco use as an 'epidemic' that must be 'controlled,' we think the WHO presents a vision of a wholly tobacco-free society that fails to recognize tobacco consumption as a legitimate choice that adults can make, and fails to recognize the right of independent countries to make their own determinations about issues such as taxation and litigation," the company said. For their part, health advocates are particularly concerned about the position of the United States, with its sensitivity to sovereignty concerns and aversion to ratifying international agreements on matters of health, welfare and weapons control. In a letter to the conference, President Clinton last week called for adoption of a "strong, effective, ratifiable agreement." Many here saw "ratifiable" as a code word for a weak treaty that the U.S. Senate might be willing to support. Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala, who attended the conference, responded obliquely to questions about the statement, citing the Clinton administration's "very strong position on tobacco and health." Many participants argued for the toughest possible agreement, even if key nations like the U.S. might be left behind. "A weak convention will be worse than no convention," said Elif Dagli, head of Turkey's National Committee on Tobacco and Health, arguing that tobacco companies and their political allies will use the accord as a reference point to oppose tougher measures by individual nations. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Aug 17 13:38:28 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 53B012A385 for ; Thu, 17 Aug 2000 13:38:28 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA30623 for ; Thu, 17 Aug 2000 13:38:28 -0400 Date: Thu, 17 Aug 2000 13:38:28 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Nader on Framework Convention FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE In the Public Interest Mailed 8/17/00 By Ralph Nader ___________________ For decades, the multinational tobacco companies have known that their future rests in the Third World. All of the growth in global tobacco consumption in coming years is expected in the developing countries, with the world's 1.1 billion smokers expected to rise to 1.64 billion by 2025. The World Health Organization estimates four million people die annually from smoking-related disease; by 2030, that number is expected to climb to 10 million, with 70 percent of the fatalities occurring in the Third World. As one of the most politically vulnerable and therefore most politically engaged industries, Big Tobacco has long kept an eye out for potential threats to its plans that spread death and disease. Philip Morris, BAT and the other tobacco giants have viewed the World Health Organization (WHO) as a particularly grave threat to their interests. The industry's response, a new WHO report shows, has been to attack WHO's credibility, turn other UN agencies against the health organization, seek to undermine its funding base, undertake surveillance of WHO's operations and even seek to infiltrate WHO. Based on a review of internal industry documents made public as a result of U.S. litigation against the tobacco companies, the report documents industry efforts -- in the companies' words -- to "attack WHO," "undertake a long-term initiative to counteract WHO's aggressive global anti-smoking campaign and to introduce a public debate with respect to a redefinition of WHO's mandate," "allocate the resources to stop [WHO] in their tracks" and "work with journalists to question WHO priorities,budget, role in social engineering, etc." Industry tactics throughout the 1980s and 1990s, according to the WHO report, included: * Influencing the UN Food and Agriculture Organization to oppose WHO's tobacco control policies. * Secretly funding "independent" experts to publish papers and comment on WHO research in an effort to manipulate the scientific debate on the health effects of tobacco. * Using a U.S. lawyer with strong ties to the tobacco industry to divert WHO away from focusing on tobacco control. Appointed to the development committee of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO, a health organization for the Americas that serves as a regional office for WHO), the lawyer tried to redirect PAHO away from focusing on tobacco issues. The lawyer, Paul Dietrich, denies his efforts at PAHO were funded by tobacco companies. These dirty trick stratagems, along with weak leadership at WHO, for years succeeded at diverting the World Health Organization from devoting proper attention to the smoking epidemic. Now, finally, things have changed. Under the aggressive leadership of Director General Gro Harlem Brundtland, WHO is pushing a bold Tobacco-Free Initiative with a proposed international treaty on tobacco control as its centerpiece. The WHO's proposed Framework Convention on Tobacco Control would properly frame tobacco control as a global problem requiring a global response -- focusing especially on containing the predatory activities of the multinational tobacco companies. Through their introduction of slick advertising and marketing, promotion of smoother blends and association of smoking with perceived American values of freedom, the multinational companies' lethal contribution is to increase smoking rates among women and young people. The Framework Convention would obligate signatory countries to pursue a wide-range of tobacco control objectives, including preventing tobacco addiction, promoting smoke-free environments, stopping exposure of youth to tobacco promotions and other general measures to reduce the toll of tobacco-related disease and death. Protocols to the Convention would require countries to undertake specific commitments, such as banning all or certain categories of tobacco advertising, or taking identifiable steps to end cigarette smuggling. Such a treaty and the accompanying protocols will surely not put an end to the unconscionable activities of the tobacco merchants, but the treaty and protocols do have the potential to curtail Big Tobacco's activities and to steadily advance a health agenda in meaningful ways. WHO hopes to have completed treaty negotiations as soon as next year. Rapid completion of the negotiations, however, will have to overcome objections from the industry -- albeit an industry with declining credibility, as the WHO report and other searches of the companies' internal documents highlight case after case of deceitful and deceptive industry schemes. Whether WHO can succeed in its efforts to achieve a strong and effective treaty and protocols which include specific commitments will also depend in significant part on the stance of the United States. So far, U.S. delegates have shown a disturbing proclivity to favor watering down the treaty and to exclude public health advocates from the treaty negotiation process (itself a sure means to weaken the final result). There is no excuse for an even partially obstructive negotiating posture by the United States or any other country. The deadlyconsequences of the spread of smoking are now beyond debate; the ability to reduce smoking rates through comprehensive tobacco control policies has been demonstrated by the examples of Singapore, South Africa, California, Massachusetts and other jurisdictions; and the vital need to constrain the activities of the multinational tobacco companies is indisputable. END From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Aug 17 16:33:05 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6DCBB2A3AE for ; Thu, 17 Aug 2000 16:33:05 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA01803 for ; Thu, 17 Aug 2000 16:33:05 -0400 Date: Thu, 17 Aug 2000 16:33:05 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Vietnamese Government Intensifies Anti-Smoking Campaign (fwd) Vietnamese Government Intensifies Anti-Smoking Campaign by XINHUA via NewsEdge Source: NewsEdge, Thursday, 8/17/00 HANOI (Aug. 16) XINHUA via NewsEdge Corporation - The Vietnamese government plans to intensify its anti-smoking campaign with the aim of reducing tobacco supply and demand and the incidence of smoking-related diseases and deaths, Vietnam News Agency reported Wednesday. A resolution on national policies to prevent smoking-related illness for the 2001-2010 period, issued by Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai recently, stipulates policies to reduce tobacco product use and supply, expand international cooperation and ensure enforcement of national policies and programs in the fight against cigarette harm. The targets of the national policies are to lower the number of male smokers to 20 percent from 50 percent, female smokers to under 2 percent and smokers in the 15-24 age bracket from 26 percent to 7 percent to ensure the right of non-smokers to a smoke- free environment and lessen the damage caused by smoking. According to a survey in 1997, 50 percent of men and 3.4 percent of women in the country smoke. Besides the negative health impacts, smoking causes great economic losses to families and the society. The tobacco industry's remittances to Vietnam's state budget represent only one-third of the sum spent on smoking (about 6,000 billion Vietnamese dong or 428.57 million U.S. dollars), according to the government. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Aug 18 12:24:47 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BDEB62A3E4 for ; Fri, 18 Aug 2000 12:24:47 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA13614 for ; Fri, 18 Aug 2000 12:24:47 -0400 Date: Fri, 18 Aug 2000 12:24:47 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Air France to Ban All Smoking, Offers Passengers Help Air France to Ban All Smoking, Offers Passengers Help (Update1) by Andrea Rothman Source: Bloomberg News, Friday, 8/18/00 Paris, Aug. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Air France is moving to ban smoking on all flights, with a twist: it will offer paid counseling on quitting the habit via telephone or in person. The carrier has been gradually phasing out smoking on many long-haul routes, including North American flights, as well as within Europe. Starting Nov. 1, the policy will be extended to all destinations, including Asian and South American routes. The world's major airlines have been shifting to smoke-free flying since the mid-1990s. Delta Air Lines in 1994 became the first U.S. carrier to forbid smoking on all flights and since then most others have followed suit. Air France may be the only one, though, to offer counseling to smokers. ``That sounds like something Virgin Atlantic would do,'' said Keith McMullan, managing director of Aviation Economics, which provides consulting to airlines. ``The French are pretty dedicated smokers,'' so the policy makes sense, he said. The airline said it was taking the extra step to help smokers deal with the difficulties of nicotine deprivation on flights lasting several hours. ``Air France is well aware of the effect on some of its customers of not being able to smoke over long periods of time,'' the airline said. So it is offering sessions, at 200 francs ($28) per meeting, with a doctor specializing in smokers' disorders. The sessions will be available Saturday mornings at the Invalides Air Terminal in Paris starting Sept. 2. The carrier is also providing 24-hour telephone hotline at 98 centimes (14 cents) a minute, not including taxes, for people battling the urge for a cigarette. A nicotine substitute will be available on board all Air France long-haul flights. Air France shares fell 0.16 euro, or 0.8 percent, to 20.65 euros after declining as much as 1.7 percent to 20.45. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Sep 1 12:55:29 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 82C672A060 for ; Fri, 1 Sep 2000 12:55:29 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA23591 for ; Fri, 1 Sep 2000 12:55:29 -0400 Date: Fri, 1 Sep 2000 12:55:29 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT's cooperation offensive BAT urges ``cooperation'' on smoking, health by Paul Bolding Source: Reuters, Wednesday, 8/30/00 LONDON (Reuters) - British American Tobacco (BAT), seeking to stave off global regulation on smoking and health, said on Tuesday it had proposed to the World Health Organisation ``a climate of genuine cooperation.'' The British-based cigarette maker said in a statement WHO proposals on smoking were fundamentally flawed and it urged the organisation, anti-tobacco campaigners and other tobacco firms to support its plan. BAT is one of the world's top cigarette makers and owns US tobacco firm Brown and Williamson, which is one of a number of firms appealing against a Miami state jury's award of a total of $145 billion against the U.S. tobacco industry last month. BAT urged ``a climate of genuine cooperation which will allow tobacco companies to apply their considerable knowledge and resources to assist government and other interested parties.'' WHO is trying to hammer out the world's first international treaty to curb tobacco use and ban its advertising. ``British American Tobacco now calls on WHO to commit to ongoing consultation and dialogue with tobacco companies and governments to develop national solutions--and offers to sign an agreement with the WHO to this effect,'' the company said. It said its proposals would ``mobilise maximum resources and expertise'' and leave governments free to develop their own policies. The gloves came off between the world health body and ``big tobacco'' earlier in August when WHO accused multinational cigarette makers of trying secretly to undermine its efforts to combat smoking. WHO charged in a 240-page report that Philip Morris Co and other cigarette makers engaged in ``systematic efforts'' to ''undermine and subvert'' its anti-tobacco efforts. The sides in the tobacco war have long been shadow-boxing through various initiatives, but now the battle is out in the open ahead of public tobacco hearings WHO will host in October. WHO alleged cigarette makers fought its tobacco campaign by trying to cut its budget, pit other UN agencies against it and distort results of important scientific studies on tobacco. The crusade against the tobacco industry is the initiative of WHO's new director-general, Gro Harlem Brundtland, former Norwegian Prime Minister, who took office in January 1998. British American Tobacco Plc at that time said the WHO did not appear to want ``meaningful'' talks with the industry. BAT's latest proposals listed a series of agenda points, including: -- preventing youth from smoking -- ensuring the public is informed about the risks -- identifying lower-risk tobacco products -- ensuring orderly tobacco markets -- ensuring that appropriate controls are in place to promote these objectives in every country. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Sep 1 13:42:53 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A8D482A060 for ; Fri, 1 Sep 2000 13:42:53 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA24789 for ; Fri, 1 Sep 2000 13:42:53 -0400 Date: Fri, 1 Sep 2000 13:42:53 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris: The "Reasonable" Approach Philip Morris: Could OK Regs by Skip Wollenberg / AP Business Writer Source: AP, Thursday, 8/31/00 NEW YORK =96=96 Philip Morris, the world's biggest tobacco company, is tell= ing the World Health Organization that it could support sensible global regulations on smoking and would like to have a broader role in helping develop them. The company, which makes Marlboro and other cigarette brands, told the U.N. health agency that while it supports measures to keep youngsters from smoking, the regulations should preserve the right of adults to smoke and treat tobacco companies equally. Philip Morris outlined its position in a statement submitted in advance of the health agency's October hearings in Geneva to deal with curbing tobacco use and reducing the number of deaths from smoking worldwide. WHO hopes its member governments can negotiate a global treaty on tobacco control by May 2003. New York-based Philip Morris appeared to be taking a more conciliatory approach to the process than British American Tobacco had earlier this week in its filing when it described the agency's global proposals as "fundamentally flawed" and won't work. British American Tobacco, based in London, is the world's second biggest tobacco company with brands such as Kool and Lucky Strike. Thursday's deadline for comments on tobacco regulation comes only a few weeks after the WHO accused big tobacco companies of waging a covert campaign "well into the 1990s" to subvert its efforts to reduce smoking. Philip Morris, which along with BAT was named in the report, said while it had opposed the WHO in the past, "inferences of improper influence are not accurate," In its filing late Wednesday on the proposed global regulations, Philip Morris conceded it has "at times had an adversarial relationship" with the agency. "We are convinced that we should not allow the past to lock us into an endless cycle of contentiousness and acrimony, or stand in the way of making real progress =96 now =96 on issues that are legitimately of concern= to governments and consumers around the world," the Philip Morris filing said. The company said it shared the agency's "desire to make progress" on many issues that have been proposed for discussion including preventing youth smoking, "reasonable" restrictions on marketing, package labeling and smoking in public places and regulation of the content of tobacco products. "We support national governments' efforts to provide for sensible and effective regulation of cigarettes," it said. But it said it opposed some other elements of WHO's proposal such as an internationally-determined tax rate on cigarettes, using "shock" images in health warnings and failing to allow business owners to provide areas for smoking. It said WHO also regrettably "fails to recognize tobacco consumption as a legitimate choice that adults should be free to make." The company said it intended to appear at the public hearings, but said it would like to be allowed more involvement than the prescribed five-minute presentation and the five-page written statement. It said it would like to invited to the working sessions and be consulted regarding the treaty. David Greenberg, a spokesman for Philip Morris, said the company could find common ground with the WHO on three-quarters of the 20 or so proposed topics. Asked whether Philip Morris would support a treaty with some elements it opposes, he said "We'll have to cross that bridge when we get there." "We are not trying to draw an unalterable line in the sand and say "Step over this and we are out of the process," Greenberg said. =96=96=96 On the Net: Philip Morris site: http://philipmorris.com/tobacco=96bus British American Tobacco site: http://www.bat.com World Health Organization site: http://www.who.int From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Sep 1 14:17:57 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A760D2A060 for ; Fri, 1 Sep 2000 14:17:57 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA25556 for ; Fri, 1 Sep 2000 14:17:57 -0400 Date: Fri, 1 Sep 2000 14:17:57 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] WSJ: Industry views on Framework Convention Philip Morris Supports Regulation Within Range Set by Health Group by GORDON FAIRCLOUGH / Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL gordon.fairclough@wsj.com ; Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Thursday, 8/31/00 NEW YORK -- Philip Morris Cos., which for years fought World Health Organization efforts to curb smoking around the globe, said it would support "sensible and effective" regulation of cigarettes within the framework of an international tobacco-control treaty backed by the agency. The maker of the top-selling Marlboro brand said it remains opposed to measures that would raise taxes, limit free trade or ban advertising by tobacco concerns, but it backs efforts to reduce youth smoking, improve warning labels and expand disclosures about the ingredients in cigarettes. In a submission filed Wednesday with the WHO in Geneva, Philip Morris took a more conciliatory approach than its largest rival, British American Tobacco PLC, which earlier this week said the treaty process is "fundamentally flawed and will not achieve its objectives." The London-based company called instead for regulation at the national level. The WHO, the public-health arm of the United Nations, has been promoting the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control as a way to curb smoking-related diseases, which kill four million people a year, the agency estimates. Government representatives from around the world will gather in mid-October for the start of negotiations on the treaty. The treaty's draft language calls for reducing tobacco use through coordinated, international cigarette-tax increases, an end to duty-free tobacco sales, restrictions on advertising and marketing, and education about health risks. The draft also would regulate the contents of cigarettes and prohibit smoking in public places. Philip Morris said it believes the treaty process should focus on the establishment of minimum-age laws for smoking, the prohibition of marketing to minors, more stringent efforts to combat smuggling and the development of standard methods to measure the ingredients in cigarettes. The company also backs "reasonable" restrictions on smoking in public places. "There is a convention that we could support. We think there's common ground," said David I. Greenberg, a senior vice president of Philip Morris's international tobacco business. But, he said, "the solutions have to be reasonable. They have to preserve the idea that grown-up people can choose" to smoke. Mr. Greenberg criticized draft-treaty language that says "the tobacco industry should be held accountable for past, present and future public health harm caused by its products world-wide." He said "fomenting litigation as a solution to this problem is fundamentally wrong-headed." He also said Philip Morris would oppose measures that "punish tobacco companies and hurt our business without any benefit for consumers and governments." British American Tobacco, in its submission to the WHO, said it wants to work with national governments and others to prevent youth smoking, educate the public about the health risks of cigarettes and develop less-risky tobacco products. "We don't really see that a one-size-fits-all, legally binding treaty is appropriate for a consumer product," said Michael Prideaux, a spokesman for British American Tobacco. Japan Tobacco Inc., which bought the international tobacco operations of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. last year, also criticized the WHO's approach. "We do not believe global regulation is the right way" to deal with tobacco, the Tokyo company said in its submission. The company said the draft-treaty provisions infringed on national sovereignty. "We're clearly seeing a parting of ways among the tobacco companies," said Derek Yach, executive director for noncommunicable diseases and mental health at the WHO who oversees the organization's tobacco-control program. Dr. Yach said Philip Morris's approach was "encouraging." Relations between the WHO and multinational tobacco companies have been extremely adversarial. In August, the WHO released a report by a panel of investigators charging that Philip Morris and other companies "instigated global strategies to discredit and impede" the agency and "undermined effective tobacco-control programs around the world." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Sep 3 15:57:31 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id EB9332A05E for ; Sun, 3 Sep 2000 15:57:30 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA09031 for ; Sun, 3 Sep 2000 15:57:30 -0400 Date: Sun, 3 Sep 2000 15:57:30 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Russian Tobacco Makers Fuming (fwd) Russian Tobacco Makers Fuming by Vyacheslav Kuzmin Source: Russia Today, Wednesday, 8/23/00 MOSCOW, Aug 23, 2000 -- (The Russia Journal) A group of leading tobacco producers blasted the Russian government for what it claims are increasing efforts to control the industry. Vasily Terevtsov, director of Tabakprom, Russia=92s largest association of tobacco producers, led a Moscow press conference to air companies=92 concerns alongside industry heavyweights including Peter Lidov of Philip Morris and Vladimir Aksenov of British American Tobacco. The firms say they are angry about a series of licensing procedures imposed by the Tax Ministry on Aug. 1, only a month after the scheme was first announced. Representatives said they were not given enough time to comply with the new rules. >From the outset, the firms said they would need at least until October to implement the complex new set of licensing requirements, which include more than 50 specific conditions. It was only last week, after federal agents shut down several companies, that an extension was granted =96 but only until September. That was still not enough time, Tabakprom members said. "This month, 25 percent of domestic tobacco factory production remained in the warehouses and did not hit the marketplace," said Terevtsov, adding that the cause was the new requirements, and not a drop in consumption. He said that the government decision to finally grant an extension came from the realization that its measures had so debilitated the industry that it would lose significant revenue in taxes. Twenty percent of the businesses were either unable or unwilling to comply, Terevtsov said. Victor Stefashin, a spokesman for Grandtabak, another tobacco industry association, expressed similar sentiments. "The bureaucracy forced many merchants to shut down," he said. According to members of Tabakprom, two other factors make the pain of these requirements especially acute: First, the industry=92s relative success in an unrestricted environment; second, the fear that, in addition to the licensing requirements, the government plans to increase excise duties on cigarettes, which could price many Russian tobacco producers out of the market. The price of tobacco goods will likely rise over the next several years because the government has a "strong intention" to hike prices for the excise-duty labels that are stuck on cigarette boxes, said British American Tobacco=92s Aksenov. Although many Russian tobacco producers regard the hike in excise duties as inevitable, they have definite ideas about how it should be implemented. According to Aksenov, the current excise duties on tobacco products in Russia are relatively low =96 10-12 percent on a cigarette box as compared to the European 30-40 percent of the selling price. Aksenov said an increase "should be calm and orderly [without huge increases]." Some observers say an abrupt hike in taxation and the new licensing regulations would break the industry=92s steady upward momentum. "Russia=92s tobacco industry has grown steadily for the past 10 years =96 a= nd it would go on if the government carries out fair policies," said Philip Morris=92 Lidov. He added that the federal budget would collect RUR 4 billion (about USD 145 million) in excise duties this year, up from 2.4 billion last year. But Russian authorities argue that swift and strict regulation is required to combat corruption and black-market trafficking of tobacco products. They estimate that up to 50 percent of the tobacco products on the market are sold illegally =96 a figure industry leaders strongly contest. ((c) 200= 0 The Russia Journal) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Sep 4 11:49:42 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id F1C752A05E for ; Mon, 4 Sep 2000 11:49:41 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14183 for ; Mon, 4 Sep 2000 11:49:41 -0400 Date: Mon, 4 Sep 2000 11:49:41 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Health Minister Calls A Crusade Against Smokers (fwd) Health Minister Calls A Crusade Against Smokers Source: Central Europe Online, Monday, 9/4/00 PRAGUE, Sep 4, 2000 -- (Radio Prague) If you like a cigarette with your beer or while waiting for the bus, you might soon have to give that pleasure up. Czech Health Minister Bohumil Fiser intends to declare war on tobacco. The golden age of smokers in the Czech Republic has come to an end. The minister of health has just proposed a new law for the protection against the dangers of tobacco, alcohol and other addictive substances. If this law is passed, smoking will be limited in public places, like bus stops and pubs. Anyone who wants to sell cigarettes will need a license, and only newspaper stands and regular shops will be entitled to get it. Basically, this means there will no longer be any tax-free cigarette selling out in the open air. And for tourists, Prague will no longer be the haven of cheap cigarettes it once was. Selling cigarettes to people under 18 will be punishable and the production and the sale of anything that resembles a cigarette or any other tobacco-related product, for example chocolate cigarettes, cigarette-shaped chewing gum or toys will be strictly prohibited. Indeed, cigarette-shaped chewing gum is considered to influence children to take up smoking. Even giving a cigarette to a minor could cost you a fine of up to CZK 5000 or nearly 150 USD. This should make parents aware that encouraging their children to take their first drag might not be such a good idea. Smoking will also be entirely prohibited in restaurants between 12 and 2 p.m. and between 6 and 8 p.m.. Until now, a vague regulation has been in force that forbids smoking in pubs "at meal times". The problem is that there isn't really any such thing as "meal times", because in Czech pubs and restaurants you can usually eat at any time of the day between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m. Besides, as most restaurants don't have a non-smoking section, it is difficult to restrict smoking in restaurants throughout the whole day. As the main purpose of the new law is to protect young people from damaging their long-term health, specific measures will be taken to discourage youngsters from taking up smoking: it will no longer be possible to buy just one cigarette, which is a cheap way for youngsters to get acquainted with smoking. The financial burden of having to buy a whole pack will certainly act as a strong deterrent. And, in a long run, the few cigarette vending machines which are scattered around Czech towns should also disappear. Minister Fiser also declared that politicians should not be setting a bad example by smoking in public. He even advised Prime Minister Milos Zeman to quit smoking, a suggestion the Czech Prime Minister found very amusing. If the law is eventually passed, it seems likely it could provoke quite a bit of an uproar in a country which has always been cigarette-friendly. But just like other countries, people will need much more than high prices, strict laws and health warnings to break a beloved bad habit. Fighting against smoking is important, about that everybody agrees. But is fighting smokers to protect their health, whether they like it or not, really the best proposition? A Czech journalist wrote in Lidove Noviny: "I don't want to give them [non-smokers] problems I give myself out of my own free will. [But] If I start smoking, I have the right not to feel like a criminal. This is why maybe the time has come to say: Don't take away my bad habit and joy, my bad smell, my cough, my yellowed fingers, and my cancer. Don't take away my freedom." (C) 2000 Radio Prague. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Sep 4 11:50:30 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8E22B2A05E for ; Mon, 4 Sep 2000 11:50:30 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14204 for ; Mon, 4 Sep 2000 11:50:30 -0400 Date: Mon, 4 Sep 2000 11:50:30 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Smoking Ban Approved by Italian Government (fwd) Smoking Ban Approved by Italian Government Source: NewsEdge, Friday, 9/1/00 ROME (Sept. 1) XINHUA via NewsEdge Corporation - Lighting up in public and private indoor areas throughout Italy could draw hefty fines under a smoking ban that was formally approved Friday by Italy's cabinet. The sweeping ban allows for designated smoking zones in ventilated areas, but calls for stiff fines against those who violate the ban. All publicly and privately owned indoor places open to the public are covered by the bill, including bars, restaurants, prisons and police stations. Owners, managers and designated "smoke-busters" who fail to apply the norms are also subject to fines though the cabinet Friday agreed to reduce the penalty. The proposed fines would range from 100,000-300,000 lire (about 50-150 U.S. dollars) for anyone who lights up. The ban was drafted by Italian Health Minister Umberto Veronesi and previously approved on first reading by the cabinet and by the State-Region Conference, and it will go into effect after being upheld by the parliament. Veronesi, one of Europe's leading cancer specialists, has announced a crusade against smoking, saying that too many Italians still die of lung cancer caused by cigarette smoke. An estimated 1 million people, or 24.5 percent of the population, in Italy smoke cigarettes though figures compiled by the national statistics bureau Istat show that the percentage of smokers nationwide has fallen by nearly 1 percent since 1993. According to Veronesi, the proceeds from the fines will be used to fund anti-smoking campaigns, Veronese said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Sep 4 11:55:47 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id F1D152A05E for ; Mon, 4 Sep 2000 11:55:46 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14245 for ; Mon, 4 Sep 2000 11:55:46 -0400 Date: Mon, 4 Sep 2000 11:55:46 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Japan Tobacco threatens WTO challenge against EU The Japan Times: Sept. 3, 2000 (C) All rights reserved EU rules may shut JT cigarette brands out Japan Tobacco Inc. is concerned over proposed European Union rules against the use of words such as "mild" and "light" on tobacco packaging, which would exclude two of JT's most popular brands, Mild Seven and Mild Seven Lights, from the 15-nation EU market. The former Japanese tobacco monopoly has been in close contact with the Foreign Ministry and the Finance Ministry, which has jurisdiction over the tobacco industry, with a view to trying to block enactment of the new EU rules, according to JT officials. But both ministries are largely trying to distance themselves from involvement in the case for fear that any attempt to protect the tobacco industry could trigger an outcry by antismoking groups, although some have claimed the rules violate those laid down by the World Trade Organization. "The rules would violate WTO rules, so if they are enacted, we should take the case to the WTO," a senior Foreign Ministry official said. JT is gearing up its efforts to expand into the EU market following its acquisition of RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp.'s international tobacco business last year. JT officials said the fate of the proposed EU rules is expected to become clear early next year. "We are watching developments closely," one JT official said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Sep 4 12:01:04 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 250332A05E for ; Mon, 4 Sep 2000 12:01:04 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA14325 for ; Mon, 4 Sep 2000 12:01:04 -0400 Date: Mon, 4 Sep 2000 12:01:03 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Online Tobacco Sales Ignite Fight Over Taxes (fwd) This week old article from the Washington Post focuses on the United States, but it highlights an issue that is going to be increasingly serious on the international front. Robert Weissman Essential Information=09=09=09| Internet:=09rob@essential.org Online Tobacco Sales Ignite Fight Over Taxes by David Streitfeld / Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, August = 29,=20 2000; Page A01=20 Source: The Washington Post, Tuesday, 8/29/00 SAN FRANCISCO =96=96 The ideal product to sell online would be easy to pack and ship, be much cheaper than what's charged at the retail counter, and be craved by tens of millions of people every day. Cigarettes, the Internet was made for you. =20 As tobacco has come under ever-heavier pressure in the off-line world, with massive lawsuits, bans in offices and restaurants, an increasing social stigma, and a spiraling price per pack, the Internet has offered a refuge. Here Marlboros and Camels can be acquired without encountering the surgeon general's warning or a request for an ID. Best of all, the price is about 30 percent lower than in the local supermarket. =20 No wonder hundreds of cigarette Web sites have sprung up in the past year, with some of the proprietors ambitiously estimating that the online world will eventually gain as much as 20 percent of the $50 billion U.S. tobacco business. =20 But tobacco's glory days on the Internet may be ending almost as soon as they began. California and Washington state are using an obscure law to get cigarette sites to hand over the names and addresses of customers, who are then dunned for excise and use taxes. Wisconsin is setting up sting operations against online retailers. And in New York, a new law effectively outlaws Internet sales of cigarettes to individuals. =20 "This is definitely not typical for e-commerce," said Jeff Graham, an entrepreneur who is unfazed enough to be launching Smokestore.com in October. "But if states and the federal government are making it difficult for smokers off-line, which they are, it shouldn't be surprising that they're also making it tough online." =20 Tougher, in fact. The Internet is generally a tax-free zone, where retailers are deliberately shielded by Congress from the task of collecting duty. It's also a place that has been largely self-regulated, where few states have the expertise or the will to get involved. Local merchants might complain that they are at a disadvantage against their Web competitors, but they rarely get official support. =20 Tobacco reverses those dynamics. Part of the impetus for the current regulatory actions comes from sliding sales of cigarettes at bricks-and-mortar retail outlets, usually right after local taxes are raised. =20 California, for instance, boosted its excise tax from 37 cents to 87 cents per pack on Jan. 1, 1999. Over the next three months, sales of cigarettes fell 34.7 percent from the previous year. Some smokers may have quit, but authorities suspected that others started purchasing through unregulated means, buying cigarettes from bootleggers or over the Internet. =20 Another regulatory spark was complaints by parents, who were upset that it was so easy for kids to order cigarettes online. "A lot of people then started looking," said M. Carter Mitchell, the Washington state official in charge of tobacco tax enforcement. "They saw it was not a local problem, a regional problem, but a national issue." =20 Much of the Internet cigarette market is shrouded in vagueness. Many of the sites are run from Indian reservations, which are free to set their own retail regulations, but some are not. Analysts say they have no idea of the size of the total market or even what the biggest companies are. "You get the feeling many of these are fly-by-night," said Preston Dodd, an analyst with Jupiter Communications, a research firm specializing in Internet commerce. =20 Gary Kirschner, the founder of Cigarettesbymail.com, has been the most visible executive in this young industry and possibly one of the most successful. Formerly with Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. and its parent, British American Tobacco PLC, Kirschner told one publication that his site's revenue doubled every week for the first eight weeks. =20 Kirschner professes little concern about the regulatory efforts to snuff out his business. "There are no statutes that regulate what we're doing," he said. "California is using a law that in our opinion doesn't even apply to what's going on today." =20 Before the Internet, smokers who made the voyage to either Indian reservations or stores in tobacco-growing states got a bargain. If they brought back more than two cartons, technically they had to pay an excise tax in their own states. But as Dennis Maciel, chief of the excise tax division of the California Board of Equalization, puts it: "Realistically, how were we going to know?" =20 The Internet changed that. It put tax-free cigarettes within the reach of anyone with a computer, and it also created a record of sales. So the Board of Equalization did a little computer research and fired off a letter to about 100 Web sites, pointing out that under the provisions of a 50-year-old federal law called the Jenkins Act they were legally bound to file monthly reports to the state. =20 Originally designed to stop the shipments of cigarettes to anyone other than a licensed distributor, the Jenkins Act requires shippers to list the name and address of any recipients of cigarettes, as well as the brand and quantity they bought. =20 The Indian sites responded that they were located in sovereign nations and were not subject to the Jenkins Act. Other sites, such as Cigarettesbymail.com, simply refused to provide lists. But a few sites coughed up names and addresses. =20 Last year, the California tax authorities began writing those delinquent citizens, asking for an excise tax payment of $8.70 a carton--even if they had bought as little as one carton. This year the state also started billing for a use tax, which is essentially a replacement for the traditional sales tax the smokers would have paid had they bought the cigarettes in a store. =20 The use tax in California varies by county but averages about 7.5 cents on each dollar. Technically, everyone who buys goods from an out-of-state Internet company should be paying a use tax. In practice, hardly anyone does. =20 The letters caused a good deal of surprise and some consternation. "When we sent out 3,000 tax returns, it's a safe estimate we received 3,000 phone calls asking 'What is this about?' " said tax administrator Maciel. =20 Many of those who were dunned by California readily paid up. Through the first quarter of this year, 4,946 citizens were billed, and more than 78 percent have settled their accounts. =20 "Most people just want to pay and move on," Maciel said. "It's an educational experience for them." More are already being educated: The program more than doubled in size in the second quarter. =20 In Wisconsin, meanwhile, attempts to enforce the Jenkins Act are just getting started. It's a poor weapon--the penalty for lawbreaking businesses is a misdemeanor charge and a maximum fine of $1,000--but it's the only one the state Department of Revenue has. =20 "Until someone at the federal level takes an interest in this, I don't really think we're going to get anywhere," said Jim Jenkins, the state's chief of alcohol and tobacco enforcement. =20 So he's trying to force the issue by ordering from tobacco sites. When the shipments are received, the regulators will file a request for the addresses of all the customers in the state. If they don't receive it, they plan to inform federal prosecutors of the noncompliance. =20 New York has decided on a different approach. On March 1, New York raised its tax on cigarettes from 56 cents a pack to $1.11. Sales fell 22 percent by June. In a law signed by Gov. George E. Pataki (R) earlier this month, shipments of cigarettes in the state must be made to a licensed dealer. Internet, mail and telephone orders sent directly to consumers are banned by the measure, which goes into effect Jan. 1. =20 Enforcement of the law will focus on Web sites and any common carrier such as Federal Express or United Parcel Service that transports tobacco to state residents, said Marc Carey, a spokesman for the state Department of Taxation and Finance. =20 Many of the Indian sites that sell cigarettes to New Yorkers and everyone else are located in upstate New York. "I imagine there's going to be a legal challenge to this," said Duane Ray, president of the Seneca Nation. Even if there isn't, "we don't quite understand how the governor's going to be enforcing this." =20 UPS, too, seems a little unsure. "There is an obligation by New York state to make sure the enforcement of the law is feasible," said Tad Segal, a spokesman for the carrier. At the moment, he added, "it's too early to say" whether it is. =20 One possible scenario is that those shipping cigarettes to New Yorkers start using the U.S. Postal Service, over which the state has no jurisdiction. "That has the potential to be somewhat of a loophole," spokesman Carey conceded. =20 To smoking rights activists, the new law--which officials in other states say will be closely watched and inevitably copied if it is successful--is further evidence of unwarranted persecution. =20 "The Internet is being used to speed up the criminalization of smoking for adults," said one such activist, Wanda Hamilton. "It makes it so much easier to track and identify smokers. I find it all frightening." =20 Serenia Bodie, a 62-year-old retired caretaker in Tumwater, Wash., knows all about how the Internet can get smokers in trouble. After seeing an advertising circular for an Internet cigarette company in her local newspaper early last year, she started ordering. In three months, she bought 530 packs for herself and her children, also smokers. =20 Last August, Bodie received a bill from the state for $437.25 in taxes due. Living on Social Security payments of $649 a month, she couldn't imagine paying it--and, after contacting the cigarette site, was mistakenly told she didn't have to. =20 In November, Bodie got a new bill. This time it had a $10-a-pack penalty. Her bill ballooned to $5,745.38. "I don't know what I'm going to do if I have to pay this," she said. "I keep hoping they've forgotten, but I know better." =20 The demand had another result. "This is the greatest deterrent I've ever had in my life," Bodie said. After 46 years, she's quit smoking. =20 Staff researcher Richard Drezen contributed to this report. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Sep 4 16:22:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DFB192A3CF for ; Mon, 4 Sep 2000 16:22:17 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA16168 for ; Mon, 4 Sep 2000 16:22:17 -0400 Date: Mon, 4 Sep 2000 16:22:16 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Essential Action FCTC testimony Testimony of Robert Weissman Co-Director, Essential Action Washington, D.C., USA August 31, 2000 to the World Health Organization on the Proposed Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Thank you for the opportunity to submit testimony on the vitally important proposal for a Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. I am the co-director of Essential Action, a corporate accountability organization based in Washington, D.C. Essential Action is a project of Essential Information, a non-profit organization, organized under section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. tax code. Essential Action focuses on a wide range of corporate accountability issues, with an emphasis on multinational corporate activities in the developing world. Essential Action is funded by individual and foundation support. We do not accept corporate funding. One of our areas of work is international tobacco control, and working to stem the ongoing migration of smoking-related death and disease from the United States and other industrialized countries to the developing world. We believe achieving this goal above all requires placing limitations on the actions of the multinational tobacco companies -- hence our interest in the Framework Convention. The WHO is well aware of the worldwide carnage inflicted by the tobacco industry, and WHO's projections of future death and disease should be a clarion call for all elements of the global community to join together to support the strongest possible Framework Convention. We applaud the effort to undertake the Framework Convention negotiations, which offers the prospect of dramatically advancing global tobacco control efforts. This testimony focuses not on specific items for inclusion in the Framework Convention, but on the cross-cutting issue of trade and investment agreements and the Framework Convention. First, however, a preliminary matter: a plea for the broadest and deepest possible inclusion of non-governmental organizations (excluding the tobacco industry and its organizational fronts) in the Framework Convention negotiation process. The Framework Convention is an historic public health initiative. To be as efficacious as possible, it must draw on the tobacco control expertise and experience that resides in NGOs around the world. Moreover, the Framework Convention's success will require overcoming the entrenched interests of the tobacco multinationals and their cultivated allies. That will require tapping NGOs' political mobilization skills. But neither NGOs' expertise nor political engagement will be as forthcoming if NGOs are not integrated into the Framework Convention negotiation process. Virtually all environmental and public health treaties and international agreements now involve the extensive involvement of NGOs, and the Framework Convention should be no different. WHO should work with negotiating countries to adopt the most transparent and NGO participatory negotiating process rules. With that stated, I would like to use this opportunity for NGO participation to turn to the trade and investment issue. *Establishing the Principle that Tobacco Control Trumps Trade and Commercial Concerns* Because the Framework Convention will be involved in the regulation of international commerce, it will overlap with, and potentially come into conflict with, a range of international trade and investment agencies and agreements. The most important of these, for now, is the World Trade Organization and the attendant WTO agreements. There are many ways that trade and investment agreements may conflict with sound tobacco control policy. To take a few examples: * The principle of national treatment requires that countries open their markets to foreign cigarettes and that no limitations be placed on the sale of a foreign product absent similar limitations on domestic products. Unfortunately, because the tobacco multinationals are more effective at sales, marketing, advertising and product manipulation than most domestic companies, market openings are associated with a surge in tobacco consumption. * Trademark protections in intellectual property agreements may interfere with efforts to promote plain packaging. * Proposed new rules on electronic commerce may interfere with application of consumer protection statutes and regulations, by giving sellers some choice in choosing the jurisdictional rules to which they will be subject. It is important that the Framework Convention negotiators be cognizant of these and other potential problems from the intersection of trade and investment agreements and tobacco control. One important consideration in drafting language will be to anticipate potential future trade and investment agreements, and to draft Framework Convention and protocol provisions that will not be superseded or effectively undermined -- intentionally or, more likely, unintentionally -- by future trade and investment agreements. Essential Action believes the most sensible means to address these problems is to exclude tobacco altogether from trade and investment agreements. The Framework Convention might establish this as a principle in the development of international law, though ultimate achievement of a tobacco exclusion would require explicit acknowledgement in the trade and investment agreements themselves. At a minimum for effective international law-making, the Convention should explicitly establish the principle that tobacco control takes priority over any competing trade or commercial considerations. *The Hazards of "No Arbitrary or Unjustifiable Discrimination" Language* In this context, we are fearful that the initial trajectory of the Framework Convention is oriented toward seeking compatibility with trade and investment agreements, rather than letting trade and investment agreements find compatibility with tobacco control objectives. Specifically, the provisional text language suggesting that "trade policy measures for tobacco control purposes should not constitute a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination or a disguised restriction on international trade" is very worrisome. In conversational terms, such language is hard to find objectionable. But in the case of the WTO, for example, regulatory measures may be assumed to be "a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination," absent a showing to the contrary. And making such a showing can require meeting a very difficult test -- proving that there is no "less trade restrictive" means to achieve a legitimate public health objective. Exactly how the WTO would respond to a trade challenge to future tobacco control measures is unknown, though liaison and working groups between the WTO and WHO are positive efforts to ensure WTO respect for tobacco control measures. However, a WTO dispute settlement panel, or the dispute settlement authority of other or future trade and investment regimes, may interpret the inclusion of the "arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination" clause to mean that measures not included in the Framework Convention or protocols are presumptively discriminatory. Is such an outcome guaranteed? Certainly not. But it is possible. And there is no reason to risk it. In the case of tobacco above all, there is no reason for a public health treaty to concern itself with alleviating potential trade discrimination. As it happens, there are demonstrable public health benefits from trade discrimination in the case of tobacco. But even if there were not such benefits, there is absolutely no reason for a WHO treaty to concern itself with protecting the commercial interests of the tobacco transnationals. *Framework Convention Standards as a Floor, Not a Ceiling* Another crucial trade consideration is the issue of "ceilings" versus "floors." There is consensus among the NGO community, and hopefully among Framework Convention negotiating countries, that the Framework Convention and protocols should establish regulatory floors -- establishing the least individual countries must do for tobacco control -- not regulatory ceilings -- which would place limits on tobacco control measures. Under the WTO system, however, international standards may be automatically converted into regulatory ceilings. The WTO's Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Agreement establishes international rules relating to how, under what circumstances and with what restrictions countries can establish technical regulations concerning products or processes related to products. Technical regulations may cover such matters as health, safety and environmental regulations. The TBT Agreement specifically permits countries to enact technical regulations for the purpose of protecting human health, but it defines narrow parameters for the establishment of such standards. First, Article 2.2 stipulates that technical regulations must not be more trade restrictive than necessary to achieve a public health or other objective -- the provision that gives rise to the problem with the "arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination" clause. Second, where international standards exist or their adoption is imminent, Article 2.4 specifies that countries must use them, unless they can meet very stringent tests (the exception is if the international standard "would be an ineffective or inappropriate means for the fulfillment of the legitimate objectives pursued, for instance because of fundamental climatic or geographical factors or fundamental technological problems"). Thus Framework Convention standards may inadvertently become de facto ceilings in the WTO context. Perhaps the most promising way to avoid this conundrum is both to include specific overarching language in the Framework Convention and in the protocols specifying that no standard in the treaty instruments should be considered ceilings, and to frame every standard or near-standard explicitly as a floor -- using language such as "at least" or "countries shall, at minimum, do X, but may do more." We are very optimistic about the potential of the Framework Convention to meaningfully advance the cause of global tobacco control, and would like to emphasize again our strong support for the Convention and the WHO's initial preparatory work. There are, however, a series of obstacles that must be overcome for a successful treaty negotiation, including potential problems with trade and investment agreements. To recap our recommendations for dealing with these issues: 1. The Convention should explicitly establish the principle that tobacco control takes priority over competing trade or commercial considerations. It should also help evolve international law so that tobacco is excluded from trade and investment agreements. 2. The language on "arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination" should be removed, and the notion that tobacco control measures must justify themselves in terms of free trade or investment rules should be rejected. 3. There should be explicit language establishing that Framework Convention standards constitute a floor, not a ceiling, and each standard should be framed explicitly as a floor. Thank you very much for the opportunity to submit this testimony. Robert Weissman Essential Action P.O. Box 19405 Washington, D.C. 20036 Telephone: 202-387-8030 Fax: 202-234-5176 E-mail: action@essential.org www.essentialaction.org From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 5 12:43:43 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1B3132A063 for ; Tue, 5 Sep 2000 12:43:43 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA27089 for ; Tue, 5 Sep 2000 12:43:42 -0400 Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 12:43:42 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Stubbing Out Cigarette Addiction (fwd) Stubbing Out Cigarette Addiction by Simeon Kerr / (Tue, 05 Sep 2000 08:07:12) Source: ecountries.com, Tuesday, 9/5/00 Egyptians love to smoke. Which is great for tobacco firms. But a growing anti-smoking campaign could make them have to work just that little bit harder. For the world's tobacco giants, the Middle East - and Egypt in particular - is a bottomless ashtray. Like the rest of the developing world, Egypt's cigarette sales are skyrocketing. Smoking is engrained in Middle Eastern culture, no more so than in Egypt, from the traditional water pipe, the shisha, to the mandatory accessory of every upwardly mobile Cairene, the Marlboro red. But the wind has turned. An anti-smoking campaign, run by the government and various health groups, has stepped up a gear. Egypt is a far cry from bastions of healthy living like San Francisco and Singapore. Wherever you turn, someone is lighting up; smoking is a right, not a privilege. But there has always been one famous refuge from the smoke: the Cairo Metro, an oasis of clean air (and efficiency) in a highly polluted (not to mention chaotic) city. Fines for smoking on the metro are vigorously enforced; at $15, they are the equivalent of two to three days work for the average Egyptian - very effective. Now the trend is spreading. Cairo University has banned smoking on its premises; Cairo Airport has now introduced smoking areas; and the Health Ministry plans to hire and promote non-smokers at the expense of their smoking peers. Modest measures, perhaps, but something of a revolution in Cairo. Tobacco multinationals and their local partners, however, are crying all the way to the bank. The multinationals' strategy, which targets developing countries where smoking is still cool, applies to the Middle East more than most. The market remains huge: smokers will consume 80bn cigarettes this year. Official figures claim that 40% of males and 8% of women smoke. Smoking sales rose throughout the 1990s at a rate of 24% in the Middle East. Compare that with the other hooked continent, Asia, where sales rose around 9%. Moreover, Egypt's economic revival has boosted the ranks of the country's elite, the real spenders, who luckily smoke foreign, "sophisticated" brands. Newly privatized Eastern Tobacco produces such brands locally - principally Marlboro and Merit. And profits are rising: Eastern Tobacco's 1999 profits were up 67% on 1998 levels. With demand rising, and the middle-income groups perhaps upgrading their brand from the lower-class staple, the Cleopatra, to cheaper western smokes like L and M, opportunities for cigarette manufacturing are tempting. But the tobacco firms will have to keep an eye on the growing anti-smoking campaign in Egypt. These firms have faced three terrible years in the United States, facing potentially crippling lawsuits and expensive out-of-court settlements. Now Egyptian health groups want to ban tobacco advertising, which has recently been targeting the key growth area, sales to women. The government may receive 3% of its tax revenue from cigarette sales, but smoking-related deaths are rising rapidly, prompting the health ministry to back the campaign to the hilt. Backing up the official assault, Islamic scholars are coming down on smoking. Islam's ban on alcohol has traditionally fostered smoking - of both legal and illegal varieties - in the Islamic world. But an Islamic consensus against smoking based on the Quranic injunction against acts that are bad for one's health is now consolidating. "Do not kill yourself, Allah is merciful to you," goes one famous verse. The highest Islamic authority in Egypt, the Grand Mufti, has followed Malaysia's lead and ruled that smoking is haram (forbidden), and that women can divorce men who refuse to give up. For a God-fearing people, an act against God is more worrying than a small warning on a pack of Marlboro. Still, as most Egyptians point out, cigarettes and shisha are part of daily life; and the pain of nicotine withdrawal is hard to ignore, even for the most serious Muslim. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 5 15:30:50 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 959482A066 for ; Tue, 5 Sep 2000 15:30:50 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA30835 for ; Tue, 5 Sep 2000 15:30:50 -0400 Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 15:30:50 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco litigation in the UK Marlboro man makes a stand / A British smoker's case against American tobac= co=20 company Philip Morris could signal a rise in litigation against UK companie= s. by Robert Verkaik Source: The Independent, Tuesday, 9/5/00 News that a British smoker is to sue the US makers of Marlboro cigarettes for an estimated =A31m will have sent shivers through the spines of UK tobacco barons. The case, the first UK legal action since the ill-fated attempt by 50 British smokers to win compensation for lung cancer, could re-open the door to further domestic litigation. British lawyers acting for the London father of two, who has been given 18 months to live, are working closely with New York attorneys to prepare a case to go before a US court. But his lawyers have not ruled out beginning proceedings in the UK, too. Last year, litigation against the British tobacco industry was halted when 47 cancer sufferers abandoned their multi-million-pound lawsuit. The claimants' decision to withdraw followed a hearing in the High Court when Mr Justice Wright indicated that the cases were time-barred. Gallaher, makers of Silk Cut and Benson & Hedges cigarettes, and Imperial promised not to pursue the failed litigants for their costs, which totalled =A37m. In return, the solicitors agreed not to take action against any tobacco firm for five years, and not to take any action against Gallaher and Imperial for 10 years. The agreement was a serious set-back for lung cancer sufferers, whose chances of winning compensation from tobacco companies appeared doomed. But now leading UK law firm Russell Jones & Walker believes it can succeed in the US courts against Philip Morris, the makers of Marlboro cigarettes, where others have failed in the UK. In March, a court in Florida awarded a record $97bn in damages against the US tobacco industry. Britain's Marlboro man will rely on public admissions made by Philip Morris and other representatives of the tobacco industry as to the addictive quality of nicotine and the link between smoking and lung cancer. The 46-year-old Londoner began smoking in the late Sixties, before health warnings appeared on cigarette boxes. He later became hooked on Marlboro cigarettes in the Seventies when he identified with what he describes as the then "trendy macho culture" of the Marlboro man advertising campaign. He has since been loyal to the Marlboro brand, because he claims they gave him the "hit" other brands didn't. He found he could always purchase Marlboro, even when travelling abroad on business. He gave up smoking in 1997 after his father died from cancer and his two daughters began begging him to stop. In May this year he was diagnosed as suffering from lung cancer and given 18 months to live. He has had to relinquish ownership of his clothing manufacturing business and his wife has left her job to provide full-time care for him. His lawyers will argue that when in 1971 health warnings began to appear, he was reassured by the industry advertising and media statements as to the health implications of smoking. He noticed that the package warnings became stronger in later years. However, he believed that as he had been smoking for so long "the damage was already done". Alan Care, a senior litigation lawyer at Russell Jones & Walker, said his client and the firm carried a huge financial burden in bringing the case. He added that he expected to face fierce resistance from the tobacco industry. The lawyers are pinning their hopes on a difference in how US courts determine legal costs. It was thisissue which effectively ended the UK action. Mr Care said: "In the US, their 'no win, no fee' deals mean exactly that. If the claimant lawyers withdraw or lose, their client does not have to pay costs." Mr Care said because legal aid was not available for money claims in the UK his client's options were limited to finding a "white knight" to fund the litigation in the UK or to "going to the States to seek justice". However, Mr Care also raised the possibility of funding by the Legal Services Commission. "If ever there was a case 'in the public interest' this must be it. There should be no waste of public funds if the court allows the case to proceed on the real question." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 5 15:40:47 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C284C2A063 for ; Tue, 5 Sep 2000 15:40:47 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA31085 for ; Tue, 5 Sep 2000 15:40:47 -0400 Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 15:40:47 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] India: Smoking in public places to be banned (fwd) Smoking in public places to be banned Source: Rediff on the Net, Tuesday, 9/5/00 Union Health and Family Welfare Minister C P Thakur said Tuesday the government would bring in a legislation by the year end banning smoking in public places all over the country. Addressing a joint press conference with World Health Organisation Director General Dr Harlem Brundtland, Dr Thakur said the move was part of a holistic attempt by the government to fight tobacco-related diseases. He expressed concern at the growing trend of consuming tobacco in various forms. "This needs to be discouraged," he said. To begin with, the government, he said, was contemplating to declare certain buildings as smoking-free zones. Nirman Bhawan, which houses the health ministry, will be among the first to be brought under this category. Dr Brundtland said at least half of the people addicted to tobacco die of its ill-effects. "We need a strong movement against this public health disaster," she said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Sep 6 18:59:33 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 298102A063 for ; Wed, 6 Sep 2000 18:59:33 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA22872 for ; Wed, 6 Sep 2000 18:59:33 -0400 Date: Wed, 6 Sep 2000 18:59:32 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco Finds Friends In Germany / Berlin Hurting Anti-smoking Initiatives, Critics Contend (fwd) Tobacco Finds Friends In Germany / Berlin Hurting Anti-smoking Initiatives, Critics Contend by Ray Moseley / Foreign Correspondent Source: Chicago Tribune, Wednesday, 9/6/00 BERLIN -- While the American tobacco industry is on the defensive, from fire-breathing members of Congress and costly consumer lawsuits, its counterpart in Germany is sitting pretty. Anti-smoking campaigners contend the German industry enjoys a cozy relationship with the government and political parties, funding their party conventions and party newspapers while, in turn, the government defends tobacco interests in Europe. Germany is the only one of the 15 European Union states to challenge a European Commission proposal to ban all forms of cigarette advertising. It has taken the issue to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, and a decision is expected in October. Germany is also one of the few states to oppose parts of a European law to increase the size of health warnings on cigarette packages and to ban the use of words such as light, mild and low tar on packages. But the law has passed the European Parliament and will take effect at the end of this year. "Germany is playing a bad role on these questions," said Martin Koehler, head of the Health Ministry's drugs and addictive substances department. He said the ministry seeks tighter measures to discourage smoking but is regularly overruled in the Cabinet. The Health Ministry is in negotiation with the tobacco industry, seeking its financial participation in a campaign to discourage youths from smoking. "But we are far away from each other," Koehler said. Professor Friedrich Wiebel, chairman of the German Medical Action Group Smoking or Health, said: "There is a cozy relationship between the industry and government, and the industry is very proud of it. The American tobacco industry is envious of the condition of the industry here." European statistics show smoking rates in Germany are average for males and extremely low for females. But Wiebel and other anti-smoking campaigners said there has been an "alarming" increase in smoking among the young, and particularly among young women in the former East Germany. "The government is not taking any legislative measures to curb the tobacco epidemic," Wiebel said. "The present Health Ministry favors action, but it is mainly the Chancellery that blocks it. The government is relying solely on education and information and voluntary codes for the industry that are entirely useless. The industry's advertising is clearly oriented to youth." He said government's anti-smoking efforts are of the "fig leaf" variety, with less than $1 million a year going there compared with more than $300 million a year spent by the tobacco industry on promotion. Ernst Brueckner, general secretary of the Cigarette Industry Association, denied the industry targets young people with its advertising. He said the industry has had a voluntary, far-reaching policy since 1966 of advertising restrictions, such as not using models under 30 or pop stars or sports personalities in ads. "We have a long history on record of being against young people smoking," he said. Brueckner acknowledged that the industry openly sponsors political conventions and other activities but said, "The idea that parties formulate a cigarette-friendly policy because of that is not realistic." German law has long banned tobacco advertising on radio and television but allows it in movie theaters after 6 p.m., in newspapers and magazines, and on billboards. Few restaurants ban smoking or have non-smoking sections. Many government offices restrict smoking, and some businesses do too. Brueckner said the industry believes that the European Commission overstepped its authority in seeking to ban all cigarette advertising and said the industry has opposed attempts to deter smoking by making warnings on packets larger or by suggesting that "smoking kills." The association represents six big tobacco companies operating in Germany--Philip Morris from the U.S. and one company each of German, Austrian, Luxembourg, Japanese and British origin. Wiebel, whose organization is a voluntary group of medical health professionals, said Philip Morris shifted its research program on the effects of nicotine and other tobacco ingredients several years ago from the U.S. to Germany. The aim, he said, was to shield the findings from American lawyers because German law makes it more difficult to access such information. Several sources said the kind of lawsuits that cigarette consumers have brought against tobacco companies in the U.S., the latest resulting in a multibillion-dollar judgment against the companies, are not possible under German law. Officials estimate that 110,000 people in Germany die each year from smoking. They say smoking accounts for 22 percent of all male deaths and one-third of deaths among middle-age men. In monetary terms, the cost of smoking is estimated at $14.5 billion a year, representing health-care spending and loss of working time. Last year the federal government received $10.5 billion from tobacco taxes, 6 percent of its overall tax income. "Because of the tax revenues, the government doesn't have an incentive to lower consumption," said Wolfgang Behrens of the Anti-Smoking Initiative in Berlin. His colleague, Johanna Rutenberg, said campaigners would like to see part of the tax revenue used for prevention campaigns or health care, but the government has not been receptive to that. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Sep 8 11:30:09 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1A9B82A395 for ; Fri, 8 Sep 2000 11:30:09 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA18880 for ; Fri, 8 Sep 2000 11:30:08 -0400 Date: Fri, 8 Sep 2000 11:30:08 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Downing Street blows cold over smoking ban (fwd) Downing Street blows cold over smoking ban by Marie Woolf / Political Correspondent Source: Electronic Telegraph, Friday, 9/8/00 DOWNING Street risks enraging the health lobby after it emerged that Tony Blair's officials intervened to dilute a ban on smoking at work. Ministerial sources said last night that they had been worried that a code of practice prepared by the Government's health and safety watchdog would create red tape and millions of pounds of extra costs for business. They asked the Health and Safety Commission if last minute changes could be made before publication of the anti-smoking code to ease the pressure on pubs, bars and restaurants. Discussions took place as late as Monday, the day before the launch. Government sources said that Downing Street favoured "a more voluntary approach". In the final code, published on Tuesday, pubs, clubs and casinos were given two years to comply with the new anti-smoking regulations for office workers. Ministers across government have been lobbied by the hospitality industry which feared that the measures to cut passive smoking would cost them millions of pounds. News of Downing Street's intervention will infuriate cancer charities and anti-smoking groups who say that the ban follows a commitment from the Government in its White Paper, Smoking Kills. Clive Bates, director of Action on Smoking and Health, said: "If they do a U-turn on this White Paper commitment, the government will be sure to face extreme condemnation from the health and medical organisations they have been consulting on the health effects of passive smoking." A Downing Street spokesman said that a balance had to be achieved between desirable health objectives and being sensitive to the problems of restricting business practice. He said: "The Health and Safety Commission have revised the rules for pubs. It is completely normal for officials here to find out what is happening in government departments and across government." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Sep 10 10:17:01 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0732E2A05E for ; Sun, 10 Sep 2000 10:17:01 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA06588 for ; Sun, 10 Sep 2000 10:16:57 -0400 Date: Sun, 10 Sep 2000 10:16:57 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Production, Sale of Cigarettes to be Liberalized in S Korea Production, Sale of Cigarettes to be Liberalized in S Korea Source: Asia Pulse, Friday, 9/8/00 SEOUL, Sept 8 Asia Pulse - The Ministry of Finance and Economy will submit to the National Assembly this fall a bill to liberalize cigarette production and marketing from early next year, ministry officials said Friday. Under the current law, only Korea Tobacco and Ginseng Corp. can engage in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes under prices set by the government. Prices of cigarettes are likely to skyrocket next year with hefty excise taxes expected to be added onto the relatively low current rates. After the bill passes, anyone can produce cigarettes after securing meeting government requirements on liquidity and production facilities, the ministry said. The measure will effectively end the tobacco monopoly next year. Cigarette manufacturers need only report price increases to the government, presently they needed government approval. The government hopes the liberalization will raise the market value of the Korean Tobacco and Ginseng Corp. and help its privatization efforts. Cigarette taxes are expected to jump to 130 won (US$0.12) per pack, pushing prices much higher than they have been. Under the current pricing scheme, Korea Tobacco and Ginseng Corp. typically loses 13 won per pack on each sale, including its popular "This" brand. (Yonhap) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Sep 11 12:36:14 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 983062A05E for ; Mon, 11 Sep 2000 12:36:14 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA17986 for ; Mon, 11 Sep 2000 12:36:14 -0400 Date: Mon, 11 Sep 2000 12:36:14 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Finns Reduce Tobacco Consumption More Than Other Nordic Nations (fwd) Finns Reduce Tobacco Consumption More Than Other Nordic Nations Smoking goes down 40% from 1970 level Source: Helsingin Sanomat, Monday, 9/11/00 Finland cut back on its consumption of tobacco at the end of the 1900s more than the other Nordic countries. =20 Last year, tobacco consumption was 40% lower in Finland than in 1970. In 1998 25.1% of Finns were daily smokers, and the figure had gone down to 23.3% in 1999. =20 In Sweden, smoking has decreased by 49% since 1970. However, the use of snuff has nearly doubled in the same amount of time. =20 The average Swede over the age of 15 smokes more than half a kilo of tobacco and uses nearly half a kilo of snuff each year, whereas the average Finn smokes about a kilo annually. In 1990, tobacco consumption was about 1.4 kilos a year. =20 The figures are based on a study commissioned by Sweden=92s tobacco industry and conducted by the privat statistical office Veca. The data concerning Finland are from Statistics Finland and the National Public Health Institute. Brian Wicklin, the consultant who drafted the report, studied tobacco consumption already when he worked for Sweden=92s state statistical office. =20 The most ardent smokers in the Nordic region are the Danes and Norwegians. A full 40% of Danes and 32% of Norwegians over 15 smoke daily. =20 Smoking has gone down significantly in these countries as well: in 1980 half of all Danes and more than a third of Norwegians smoked. Smoking in Denmark is as prevalent as in France, and the Norwegians smoke as much as the Spanish. Heading the European statistics is Bosnia, where 53% of the people smoke daily. =20 Sweden was the first to reach the goal of the World Health Organisation, to reduce smoking to one fifth of the adult population. In Sweden, 14.9% are daily smokers; in Finland, the figure is 23.3%. =20 There was a reduction in smoking among all population groups, except Finnish young women: smoking among girls aged 14-18 increased by four percent since 1981. =20 At the end of the 1990s, tobacco cost considerably more than in 1970.=20 =20 The prices followed the consumer price index until the mid-1990s, when they rose sharply. In Norway the price increased tenfold in 30 years. In Finland, the price went up sevenfold. =20 Tobacco prices in Norway are the highest in the Nordic region. In Finland, the price of a package of 20 cigarettes was FIM 22 in December last year, while in Norway, it was the equivalent of about FIM 40. In Sweden and Denmark, tobacco cost slightly more than in Finland. Finland and Sweden have lower tobacco taxes than Norway and Denmark, and Finland has the lowest VAT on tobacco. =20 The yield of the tobacco tax has remained nearly unchanged in Finland for the past 30 years, while it has grown in the other Nordic countries. =20 Finnish customs confiscates more cigarettes than the customs authorities of the other Nordic countries. Of the 62 million cigarettes seized in Finland last year, 44 million were counterfeits of brand name products en route to Russia. If they are excluded, Finnish confiscations are at about the same level as in other Nordic countries. =20 According to Markus Kallio of the Finnish customs service, illegal imports of cigarettes from Russia and Estonia have reached such proportions that they affect consumption and overall sales, at least locally. Household disposable income during the period under study increased the most in Finland. About one percent of income was spent on tobacco, and an equivalent amount was spent on gambling. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Sep 11 19:24:04 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BD72E2A060 for ; Mon, 11 Sep 2000 19:24:04 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA28509 for ; Mon, 11 Sep 2000 19:24:04 -0400 Date: Mon, 11 Sep 2000 19:24:04 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Canada: Tobacco firms want to delay bigger warnings on cigarette packages (fwd) Tobacco firms want to delay bigger warnings on cigarette packages Source: CNEWS, Monday, 9/11/00 MONTREAL (CP) -- Canada's major tobacco companies asked a judge Monday for more time to meet federal requirements for larger health warnings on cigarette packages. =A0Lawyers for the firms told Justice Danielle Grenier of Quebec Superior Court they can't meet a Dec. 23 deadline for the bigger warnings to begin appearing on all major brands. They want the deadline extended to March or April 2001. =A0"It's clear that it costs a lot of money to change all these packages," said Simon Potter, counsel for Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd. =A0The warnings now take up more than one-third of the package. Under the new rules, the bigger warnings will take up about half the package. They will have a more detailed text as well as colour photos of damaged body parts -- a diseased mouth, a cancerous lung or a brain after a stroke. =A0Imperial Tobacco, JTI-Macdonald Corp. and a third firm, Rothmans, Benson and Hedges Inc., say the law infringes on freedom to display their trademark logos and colours. =A0Potter argued the regulations aren't written clearly enough and delaying the changes "will cause no harm" to the public. =A0He asked the judge to postpone the deadline for warnings by three or fou= r months. By that time, Grenier is to start hearing the main case: the tobacco firms' attack on the constitutionality of the law adopted by the House of Commons last June. =A0Once Grenier has begun tackling the complex constitutionality question, further delays would be likely in getting the larger warnings on the packages. =A0The tobacco firms also argue that Ottawa hasn't produced any credible evidence the warnings will reduce smoking. =A0Those arguments are disputed by lawyers for the federal government and for other organizations including the Canadian Cancer Society and the Non-Smokers' Rights Association. =A0Garfield Mahood, executive director of the non-smoking association, said he rejects the tobacco industry's contention that there's no cause and effect between advertising and cigarette sales. =A0Mahood said the industry still refuses to acknowledge its products have ever "caused any death or disease." =A0"The most that they'll concede is that there's a statistical relationship," he said in an interview outside court. =A0Mahood said the cigarette package is the tobacco industry's main marketing tool so the regulations will have "an enormous, positive, public health impact." =A0The Canadian Cancer Society said the bigger warnings have the overwhelming support of Canada's public health community. =A0"Tobacco products are the leading preventable cause of disease, disability and death in Canada," the society said in an affidavit filed in court. =A0The cancer society that every year, an estimated 45,000 Canadians die from tobacco products and the warnings are effective. =A0Potter dismissed a government-commissioned study that claimed such advertising reduces smoking. =A0He argued the study is ill-founded, based on situations in Turkey and Australia that aren't comparable with Canada. Potter said the health warnings that have been displayed on packages in Canada since 1994 have not in fact discouraged young people. =A0"I don't say it's cause and effect, but ever since the government starte= d its warnings and regulations, youth smoking has gone up," Potter said. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 12 12:46:04 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6A3402A334 for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 12:46:04 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA05098 for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 12:46:04 -0400 Date: Tue, 12 Sep 2000 12:46:04 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco Industry Pushes to Influence FCTC Negotiations Tobacco Lights Into WHO Industry Pushes to Influence October Treaty Debate Over Global Curbs on Cigarettes By Sam Loewenberg Legal Times Monday, September 11, 2000 http://www5.law.com/dc-shl/display.cfm?id=3787 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- The world's largest cigarette makers have embarked on a global lobbying campaign to undermine a proposed international treaty that could place tight restrictions on cigarette advertising and smuggling. Negotiations over the treaty, which is being organized by the World Health Organization, are set to begin next month in Geneva and are expected to take at least two years. Like most treaties, it is crafted through a consensus process, and individual countries ultimately decide whether they want to sign or not. Cigarette makers are largely excluded from the talks, so the three major multinational tobacco companies - the Philip Morris Cos., British American Tobacco P.L.C. (BAT), and Japan Tobacco - have taken their case against the treaty directly to most of the 192 countries involved in drafting the document. "We are trying to make sure that the governments locally understand the full scope of what the WHO is trying to sell to them to make sure that they understand that this has the potential of far-reaching consequences," says Axel Gietz of Japan Tobacco, which last year purchased all of the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.'s international operations. "We are not asking WHO for voting status," says Philip Morris Vice President for Corporate Affairs Don Harris. "We are asking for participation in the thing and to [have them] consider our views." >From country to country, the cigarette companies are making the case that the treaty should be considered an economic, not just a public health, issue. The companies are coordinating their activities in nations where more than one company is present. BAT and Japan Tobacco say they are explicitly lobbying to kill the treaty. Philip Morris says it is not necessarily against an international tobacco pact, but prefers regulation on a country-by-country basis. The companies tailor their pitch in approaching individual governments. In China, for example, the companies warn of massive tax losses if the treaty succeeds in cutting down the rate of smoking. In Malawi, where tobacco is the country's main agricultural export, they make dire predictions about the collapse of the local agricultural economy if the pact is adopted. In Lebanon, they predict hundreds of millions in advertising losses. Harris of Philip Morris says that all of his lobbying on the treaty is being done in the most open way possible. "We are not going to dispute the process or be adversarial or confrontational," he says. But public health officials expressed skepticism in the wake of an August report from the WHO that brought to light how multinational tobacco companies had for decades secretly infiltrated the institution through the use of front groups to systematically undermine anti-smoking efforts. "For them to say that they have been excluded from this debate is disingenuous in the extreme when you look at the activities they have undertaken to infiltrate and suborn the processes of WHO," says Judy Wilkenfeld of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Wilkenfeld is the former director of the tobacco advertising section of the Federal Trade Commission. Doug Bettcher, treaty coordinator for the WHO, says the industry has been presenting misleading information to countries about the organization for years. He declines further comment, other than to say he is "quite confident that the negotiations will continue." The industry has already scored a major victory in China that could well affect the outcome of the Geneva talks. While each country gets only one vote in the negotiations, larger countries have significantly more bargaining power. China, with one-third of the world's smokers, will be among the most powerful players. The way in which the tobacco companies were able to influence the Chinese government illustrates the often indirect nature of the lobbying effort in each country. BAT officials convinced the Chinese-owned tobacco company, with which it has a joint venture, that the WHO treaty could present a severe economic threat, given that cigarette taxes account for 10 percent of all tax revenue. In order to protect its interests, BAT pressed state tobacco company representatives to get themselves included in the Chinese delegation, which originally was to include only health officials. BAT even brought in three experts from London to lecture the Chinese on the possible economic effects of the treaty. "BAT persuaded the monopoly to look at it from a national economic perspective," said BAT public affairs director Brenda Chow last May, as she took a break from the briefing her company was giving to Chinese tobacco officials in Beijing. "We are the bridge." The Chinese tobacco company took BAT's advice, lobbied government officials in charge of selecting delegates, and were added to the negotiating team. Judith Mackay, a Hong Kong-based tobacco control expert who advises the WHO and the Chinese government, fears that the addition of the state tobacco company to the delegation could seriously skew the negotiation process because the state tobacco industry's economic power gives it far more sway than the health ministry has with top Chinese decision-makers. Proxies, Pressure, Threats In many cases, it appears that the tobacco companies have attempted to exert their influence through proxies. In Malawi, BAT was successful in getting tobacco growers appointed to the country's WHO delegation, says John Kapito, himself a delegate and the head of a nongovernmental public health group. Nonetheless, Kapito thinks that the Malawian government will favor a strong treaty, as youth smoking is on the rise. BAT currently advertises its brands - called Life and Embassy - near schools, hospitals, and churches, says Kapito. In Lebanon, Philip Morris operated behind the scenes to fight the health ministry's anti-smoking program, says Yousef Bassim, who runs a tobacco control program in that country. "They are trying to put pressure on our activities. But not directly," he says. Bassim says that he was present when the head of a local advertising agency that does work for Philip Morris threatened a television interviewer that he would lose his job if he asked the health minister about tobacco issues. Bassim also cites recent advertising industry warnings that banning tobacco advertising could cost the country $500 million in lost revenue. In Indonesia, BAT and Philip Morris approached a local nongovernmental organization, the National Committee on Smoking Control, to ask for the group's support in getting tobacco representatives on the WHO delegation. The companies made their request in the midst of an offer to aid with youth smoking programs, says Mia Hanafiah, an official with the anti-smoking group. Her group turned the companies down, she says. As of today, the tobacco companies are not on the delegation. In Japan, little lobbying is necessary, as Japan Tobacco is owned by the Ministry of Finance. Japan Tobacco purchased the international operations of R.J. Reynolds last year and is now actively lobbying in all of the countries where it has significant operations, says spokesman Axel Gietz. He says the company has already successfully made its case against the WHO treaty in Russia, Romania, and Turkey, although he declined to elaborate. In Germany, it's still unclear what position the government will take on the WHO treaty. But the tobacco industry's "influence is immense," says Dr. Martina Poetschke-Langer, the head of the Cancer Prevention Unit of the National Cancer Research Center. She cites internal company documents that surfaced in the course of U.S. litigation that reveal that the industry has contacts at the highest levels of the German government. "They are lobbying day and night the members of our parliament," says Poetschke-Langer. The industry's work appears to have paid off in a related matter. The German government is fighting in court the 1998 ban on cigarette advertising passed by the European Parliament. For its part, the negotiating team from the United States will include representatives from an interagency task force that include the departments of Agriculture, Treasury, and Commerce. The White House has consulted, and will continue to consult with, tobacco companies, growers, and public health groups, according to an administration spokeswoman who spoke on condition of anonymity. While WHO officials had expected the cigarette makers to take some action in response to the treaty, says Mackay, the Hong Kong-based tobacco expert, it was not clear how much the companies would impact the process. "It worries me," she says, "that they may be more successful than some people had bargained for." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sam Loewenberg is a reporter at Legal Times. His e-mail address is sloewenberg@legaltimes.com. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 12 15:43:02 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0B5892A05E for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 15:43:02 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA09685 for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 15:43:01 -0400 Date: Tue, 12 Sep 2000 15:43:01 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] U.S. Tobacco Exports Expected to Get Boost In House of Representatives The Washington Post, 09.12.00 Tobacco Exports Get Aid in Bill Set for House Vote By Marc Kaufman Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday , September 12, 2000 ; A20 The Clinton administration has never been shy about trying to cut smoking in the United States. But in a move that has confounded its usual allies, the administration is backing an export subsidy bill this year that would give American tobacco companies about $100 million in tax breaks yearly for tobacco products they sell abroad. The bill, which is scheduled for a full House vote today, would continue subsidies for many American industries at a cost of between $4 and $6 billion annually. While these tax incentives have generally sparked little opposition in Congress, the willingness to continue export subsidies for tobacco has sparked criticism from public health advocates and other industry critics. "I think it's a very difficult position for the administration to explain," said Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Tex.), who tried unsuccessfully to deny the subsidy to tobacco companies in the Ways and Means Committee. "What we're doing here is promoting and subsidizing the sale of cigarettes to people abroad, and I find it unacceptable for that to be American policy." Doggett said that during the White House lobbying for the China trade bill earlier this year, President Clinton had told him that he generally supported the amendment to remove tobacco from the export subsidy list. But a House Democratic aide familiar with the matter said White House officials did not attempt to dismantle the program's tobacco subsidy for fear of jeopardizing bipartisan accord on the legislation. "The administration is caught a little bit between a rock and a hard place," the aide said. A senior administration official said yesterday that Doggett's amendment was "consistent with our tobacco policy" but said the administration went along with House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Archer (R-Tex.) in the position "that no amendments be added to the legislation to ensure it be passed on a timely basis." Trent Duffy, spokesman for Archer, said Democrats and Republicans alike agreed to preserve the general subsidy program to compensate for European countries' favorable tax treatment of their companies' activities abroad. Duffy said the provisions in the bill "are the only way we can stay competitive with our competitors overseas. . . . Once you start changing who receives the benefit of this regime, then you get into rewriting United States tax law, and that's not what this is about." The export bill deals with a long-standing trade dispute with the European Union. The Europeans have complained that the corporate tax breaks now offered to American exporters constitute an illegal export subsidy, and the World Trade Organization agreed with this position. The bill before the House today would address those concerns, though EU officials say little has changed. When the bill came before the Ways and Means Committee in July, the American Medical Association, the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and other public health organizations lobbied to remove tobacco from the subsidy list, but the bill passed unchanged with little public debate. Democratic Ways and Means Committee members Doggett, John Lewis (Ga.) and Fortney "Pete" Stark (Calif.) published a sharp critique of the bill's handling as part of the committee report on the legislation. They pointed out that both petroleum and unprocessed timber do not qualify for the export tax incentives, although tobacco does. "This legislation constitutes just another way of forcing American taxpayers to be partners in this export of death and disease," they wrote. Critics of the subsidies said they would try to remove them when the bill comes up for consideration in the Senate. Sales of cigarettes have been stable or declining in the U.S. market for some time, but rose dramatically abroad until last year. Tobacco is now a $6 billion export industry. Today's administration support of the export bill with tobacco subsidies contrasts sharply with earlier efforts to reduce government support for tobacco sales abroad. The administration sent cables to all American embassies last year directing them not to promote cigarette sales because of public health concerns. Doggett plans to denounce the tobacco subsidy in today's House debate, and said he may vote against the entire export subsidy bill because of its inclusion. His earlier amendment eliminating the tobacco subsidy had won the support of 96 other representatives, mostly Democrats. But Democrats are unlikely to have a chance to change the bill once it reaches the House floor. It is slated to be brought up under suspension of the rules, which requires a two-thirds vote for approval with no amendments allowed. Staff writer Juliet Eilperin contributed to this report. =A9 2000 The Washington Post Company From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 12 15:45:21 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BE0D22A05E for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 15:45:21 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA09777 for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 15:45:21 -0400 Date: Tue, 12 Sep 2000 15:45:21 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Making a Difference on International Tobacco Control Dear Friends: We are writing to invite you to participate in a new project that Essential Action has launched to help support and strengthen international tobacco control activities at the grassroots level. Loosely modeled on the "sister-city" concept, our project is working to pair groups in the United States with groups in other countries and assist them in initiating meaningful shared activities. It is our goal that over time partner groups will develop close relationships and feel comfortable sharing advice and information, and joining together in effective campaigns. Currently we are recruiting a wide array of groups to participate in the project, including but not limited to: tobacco control advocacy groups, hospitals and medical associations, local government agencies, schools, and faith-based groups. After a recruitment process focused primarily on the recent World Conference on Tobacco Control or Health in Chicago, 240 groups have agreed to enter into partnerships, from 80 countries and nearly 30 states. More non-American groups than American organizations have signed up so far, so we are now making a major push to seek further participation especially from U.S. groups. What will "buddy" organizations actually do? The partners will set their own agenda, so the exact activities will vary. The possibilities are limited only by partner groups' creativity and imagination. We recommend that partners begin by sharing information about their organization and pressing issues they face. After getting to know each other, they might conduct local surveys on tobacco advertising, smoking rates, and anti-tobacco laws to share with each other. They might coordinate activities for World No Tobacco Day, or visit each other's countries and do speaking tours. Specifically, an American anti-tobacco school club and a Senegalese youth group might work together to examine how the tobacco industry targets young people. As follow up, they could develop effective counter-advertising campaigns, get media to report their findings, and encourage politicians to pass legislation banning advertising that targets youth. A medical association in U.S. might partner with a hospital association in Romania to work on passing smoke-free hospital ordinances at the local, regional, and national levels. Or an American tobacco control group might partner with a Vietnamese organization to examine the issue of international tobacco smuggling. The American group could research online industry documents that give insight into smuggling activities in SE Asia, and the Vietnamese group could help interpret names and places mentioned in the documents. The resulting knowledge could be published and used to promote stronger international tobacco control regulations. How might a partnership with a group overseas benefit you and your organization? Benefits will vary depending on the specific groups involved in a particular partnership and the topics they choose to address. In general, the partnerships promise to help American groups frame tobacco control issues in an international context, gain important information on U.S. corporations' overseas activities, and address new issues (e.g. bidis) with which international groups have more extensive experience. Similarly, you will provide your partner group overseas with a reliable source of information, an advocacy partner in the U.S.,a feeling of connectedness to the global tobacco control movement, and hopefully a greater sense of empowerment. Overall, we believe that by developing stronger bonds of solidarity between groups in different countries, the international tobacco control movement will be better able to combat the global tobacco epidemic at the local, national, and international levels. As tobacco corporations increasingly shift their operations overseas, it is imperative that tobacco control advocates similarly strengthen their efforts at this level. We are hopeful that many of the groups that pay attention to international tobacco control issues through intl-tobacco and other means will be interested in joining the partnership program. Once we have received your completed sign up form, we will send you further information about the program. In the meantime, if you have any questions, comments,or suggestions, please don't hesitate to contact Anna White, who will be coordinating our partnership program (awhite@essential.org or 202/387-8030). We look forward to hearing from you! Sincerely, Robert Weissman & Anna White Essential Action *************************************** HEALTH ACROSS BORDERS: GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS FOR TOBACCO CONTROL *************************************** ***SIGN UP FORM*** Please fill out completely and return as soon as possible. Thanks! CONTACT INFORMATION ORGANIZATION:__________________________________________________ Street Address: _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ City:___________________________ State:________________________ Zip Code:_____________________ Country:_______________________________________________________ Telephone:____________________ Fax:____________________________ Email:_________________________________________________________ Website (if applicable):_______________________________________ Time Zone (+/- EST):___________________________________________ PRIMARY CONTACT:_______________________________________________ First Name Last Name Title: __ Mr. __ Ms. __ Dr. Role:__________________________________________________________ Email:_________________________________________________________ Other personal contact info (if different from above): _______________________________________________________________ Languages, other than English, proficient in: _______________________________________________________________ International experience:______________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ SECONDARY CONTACT:_____________________________________________ First Name Last Name Title: __ Mr. __ Ms. __ Dr. Role:__________________________________________________________ Email:_________________________________________________________ Other personal contact info (if different from above: _______________________________________________________________ Languages, other than English, proficient in: _______________________________________________________________ International experience:______________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ THE INFORMATION BELOW WILL HELP US MATCH YOU WITH AN APPROPRIATE PARTNER. Please be as detailed as possible! How large is your organization (staff, core leaders, volunteers, members)? _______________________________________________________________ At which level does your organization focus most of its projects and activities? __ Local __ Regional __ National With whom does your organization primarily work? __ Youth __ Medical professionals __ Teachers __ Government __ General public __ Other: _____________________________________________________ Please briefly list your organization's primary projects and activities and/or your areas of personal experience and expertise: 1._____________________________________________________________ 2._____________________________________________________________ 3._____________________________________________________________ 4._____________________________________________________________ 5._____________________________________________________________ What issues/projects would your organization be most interested in working on with an international partner? __ Local surveys __ Advertising Restrictions __ Counter Advertising __ Tobacco-free Schools __ Smoke-Free Hospitals __ Smoke-free Ordinances __ Trade Issues __ Smuggling __ Taxation __ Tobacco IndustryDocuments __ Religion and Tobacco __ Tobacco in Movies __ Women and Tobacco __ Tobacco Use Cessation __ World No Tobacco Day __ Website Development __ Other. Please Specify: _____________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ What criteria would you prefer we weigh most heavily when choosing an international partner for your organization? Please elaborate below. __ Organization type (e.g. nonprofit, hospital, school, church etc.) __ Past or current activities (Projects you are already working on) __ Issue/Project interests (Projects that you are interested in, but haven't necessarily worked on before) __ Sub-populations work with (e.g. youth, medical, etc.) __ Geographic scope of work (Local, regional, national) __ Other preferences. Please specify:___________________________ ________________________________________________________________ Is there anything else you think we should know about your organization that would help us match you up with an appropriate "buddy"? ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ Please return by email, fax, or mail to: Anna White Essential Action P.O. Box 19405 Washington, DC 20036 Email: awhite@essential.org Fax: 202/234-5176 Please feel free to direct any questions or comments to Anna at 202/387-8030 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 12 16:28:20 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 931832A05E for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:28:20 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA10982 for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:28:20 -0400 Date: Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:28:20 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Delhi bans tobacco sales to children (fwd) Delhi bans tobacco sales to children Source: BBC Online, Tuesday, 9/12/00 Officials in the Indian capital, Delhi, have banned the sale of cigarettes to people under the age of eighteen. The new law is aimed at curbing the rapid rise of smoking among the urban young in India: it prescribes jail terms of up to three months for those who sell tobacco to children. A BBC correspondent in Delhi says that half-a-million people die each year in India from illnesses caused by tobacco. Anti-smoking activists have welcomed the new law; but our correspondent says such legislation is often not enforced by underpaid and overworked police officers. >From the newsroom of the BBC World Service From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 12 16:42:38 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A08CA2A391 for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:42:38 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA11438 for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:42:38 -0400 Date: Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:42:38 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Eyes on the prize: transnational tobacco companies in China 1976-1997 (fwd) Eyes on the prize: transnational tobacco companies in China 1976-1997 Tob Control 2000;9:292-302 (=A0Autumn=A0) by Belinda O'Sullivan, Simon Chapman Source: Tobacco Control, Monday, 9/11/00 Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Sydney, N= ew=20 South Wales, Australia Correspondence to: Simon Chapman, Department of Public Health and Community= =20 Medicine, University of Sydney, Bldg A27, NSW 2006,=A0Australia;=20 simonc@health.usyd.edu.au=20 Received 25 November 1999; Revision received 11 April 2000; Accepted 20 Apr= il=20 2000 =09=A0=A0Abstract Internal tobacco industry documents relevant to China as published on www.tobaccoarchives.com located between 31=A0May and 1=A0August 1999=A0were searched. Documents describing the ambitions and conduct of transnational tobacco companies (TTCs) in China between 1976=A0and 1997=A0were located an= d reviewed in three sections: part=A0A -- early identification of market potential and attempts to enter the market, and improve trade and technology; part=A0B -- marketing and promotion efforts; part=A0C -- effort= s to pre-empt legislation, control the smoking and health debate, and undermine the anti-tobacco lobby. (Tobacco Control 2000;9:292-302) Keywords: China;=A0 transnational tobacco companies;=A0 marketing =09=A0=A0Notes on methods The documents discussed in this paper were located from www.tobaccoarchives.com from the company sites of Philip Morris (PM), RJ Reynolds (RJR), Lorillard, Brown and Williamson (B&W), the Tobacco Institute Inc. and the Council for Tobacco Research, USA. They were found in searches undertaken between May 1=A0and August 31=A01999.=A0A purposive search using 54=A0search terms was undertaken using the simple and advanced searching functions on each site to identify documentation pertaining to China including references to the People's Republic of China (PRC), Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. Documents were excluded that were illegible; in languages other than English; shipping documents; duplicates; newspaper articles; and other documents judged to have little interest to policy analysts in tobacco control. Documents of relevance to the research aims were included and printed. =20 Seemingly important text was highlighted. This text was transcribed and reviewed by the two authors and then sorted into major themes and sub-themes in chronological order in an attempt to construct an historical narrative. We acknowledge the search for documentation is incomplete. The number of documents on the industry internet sites is continually expanding, meaning that the number of documents found on each occasion subsequent to an original search will increase each time. We believe that our search strategy was comprehensive for the given period, but expect that since we "drew the line" many extra relevant documents will have been posted on the sites. =09=A0=A0Historical background The first words uttered by James B Duke (1865-1925), the tobacco tycoon who established the empire now known as British American Tobacco, on hearing of the invention of the cigarette machine, were "Bring me the atlas". When they brought it he turned over the pages. He stopped at the figure "Pop.: 430,000,000". "That," he said, "is where we are going to sell cigarettes." And "that" was China.1 By 1915=A0BAT had established a foundation for a "monopoly that seemed unshakeable".2 At the turn of the century the BAT advertising system "left no region of China untouched".2 China's annual consumption of cigarettes rose from a negligible number in the 1890s to about 100=A0billion in the early 1930s, a rise ascribed to the business practices of the cigarette industry.3 BAT was forced to leave China in 1952,=A0after half a century in which its total profits there had amounted to more than US$380 million.2 As BAT departed, leaving behind an established cigarette smoking habit, it reportedly forecast "We will be back". And so they are. The Chinese population is approximately 1.3=A0billion people,4 constituting 23% of the world's population. Some 63% of adult males and 4% of females smoke, with 75% of males starting before the age of 24.5 Adult per capita consumption of tobacco increased from 890=A0to 1990=A0between 1965=A0and 1999.6=A07 The smoking epidemic in China is now seeing some 50% of male smokers dying from smoking related disease, and causing around a third of all deaths in the 35-69 year age group.8 The government owned Tobacco Corporation (CNTC) dominates the Chinese cigarette market. However, the idea of even a small share in such a huge market has long mesmerised the world's transnational tobacco companies (TTCs) Philip Morris (PM), RJ Reynolds (RJR), Lorillard and British American Tobacco (BAT), and its American subsidiary Brown &=A0Williamson (B&W). Accounts of the activities of TTCs in China have until recently been limited to the observations of tobacco control activists and the industry's own public reports in the trade and financial press. With the publication of millions of pages of tobacco industry documents on the internet in 1998,=A0unprecedented prime source material became available that provides hitherto unreported insights into the involvement of TTCs in China. This paper aims to examine the involvement of the TTCs in China between 1976-1997. Part A examines evidence about the TTC's hopes and plans for gaining entry to the Chinese market. It traces early interactions with the CNTC, action on trade, import licensing and taxation. It includes information on the development of joint ventures and the use of political pressure to lever China open to foreign competition. Part B examines evidence about TTC efforts to advertise and promote their products in China, and how they sought to publicly argue (as in the West) that this advertising is only intended to secure market share from current smokers. It also details industry responses to marketing restrictions and the use of philanthropic activities and other tactics to counter claims against the industry. Part C considers examples of TTC efforts to obfuscate the issue of tobacco caused disease from both active and passive smoking, as well as their appraisal of counteracting forces promoting tobacco control in China. =09=A0=A0Part A: China's potential and early pursuit of the Chinese market China was largely closed to foreign trade from around 1949=A0until 1979.=A0However, the documents indicate that the Chinese were evidently collaborating with the TTCs over trade issues as early as 1977,=A0after the Cultural Revolution (1975) and two years before foreign investment was formerly legalised in 1979.=A0In 1977=A0two officials from the Commercial Office of China, visited PM's offices in Bern, Switzerland. A PM memo records the officials' "express[ing] again their readiness to promote trade between Philip Morris and China".9 The first reports of TTCs visiting China date from 1979.=A0PM's William Campbell, executive vice president for PM Asia, reported to his colleague Helmut Wakeham: "I feel that commencing with our visit to Peking we have shown Philip Morris to be a first class organization of professionals that will truly benefit the Chinese in any trading relationship. I think this most recent visit has allowed the Chinese to really see what Philip Morris is all about and put us that much closer to establishing a meaningful business relationship."10 Approximately 10=A0joint ventures were signed wit= h the CNTC in 1979=A0when China legalised foreign investment.11 As might be expected, the sheer immensity of the Chinese market for tobacco bedazzled the TTCs. Developing nations, and China in particular, were seen as essential to the companies' global ambitions and overall profitability. The young demographic profile of populations in the region presented particular interest. A PM marketing plan for 1981-85=A0noted that= : "major markets such as Japan, the Philippines, Malaysia and Hong Kong all have over 50% of their populations below 35=A0years of age while the 20-35 age group constitutes the primary cigarette consumer group."12 Philip Morris were acutely aware that: "The Chinese cigarette market is already three times the size of the US market, and accounts for over 30% of the world's 5.4=A0trillion units. Since the total international segment amounts to less than 1% of this huge market, we have plenty of room for dramatic growth."13 A PM PRC marketing briefing stated: "The Chinese domestic tobacco industry is a major frontier for international tobacco companies."14 With the growth in spending power in developing nations PM estimated the potential for an "international quality cigarette" market in China of "between 55=A0and 70=A0billion units" in 1994,=A0adding: "As China= is making rapid economic progress at this time, especially in coastal areas, this potential market could exceed 100=A0billion units within ten years."13 In 1993=A0PM's Geoffrey Bible reassured colleagues at a plan presentation that "early development markets" like China were considered "critical for PM to sustain its growth into the next millennium and we are taking steps now to ensure our place in their future."15 Bible expressed his vision thus: "Put another way, 10=A0years ago, one out of every 16=A0cigarettes smoked outside the US was one of our brands. Today it is one out of 12.=A0I= n 10=A0years it will be one out of eight--with potential given the current US level of one out of two and a half." International sales by PM increased 80% between 1990=A0and 1998=A0whereas domestic US growth has been only 5%.1= 6 Constrained by a lack of foreign exchange, around 198417 the Chinese pursued joint ventures as a way to obtain technical assistance from the TTCs,18 shopping around the TTCs for various joint venture possibilities for specific technologies: "A delegation from CNTC and the Shanghai Factory plan to visit the US during the second week of May to see PM's DIET plant and RJR's G-13 facilities for comparison of the two processes.19 In 1985=A0RJR's Dr Cliff Mansfield reiterated the importance o= f the Asian market after the world tobacco exhibition and conference stating that the "CNT is willing to establish trade on two conditions: (1) transfer of technology with trade; (2) combination of import with export. Joint ventures are welcome."20 In 1985=A0the occurrence of "goodwill" gestures from PM to China served to indirectly improve tobacco quality.21 The PM International Business Plan 1989-1993=A0stated: "We will concentrate our efforts on fostering good relations with the .=A0.=A0.(CNTC) .=A0.=A0.=A0through technical assistance projects, and will consider investing in a joint venture if CNTC is willing to pursue one."22 Inter-office correspondence dated 1989=A0describe= d a scheduled visit by the vice president of the CNTC, Jin Maoxian, to PM's New York Headquarters to give: "an overview of PM's participation in China (referencing Diet, Dragon and FML), and the introduction of the cooperative production idea."23 During these overtures, the CNTC sought to safeguard the golden prize of the Chinese cigarette market by restricting TTCs to fixed revenues in the joint venture arrangements. Total fixed capital of the PM-CNTC joint venture Shenzhen factory was limited to $14 million. A frustrated PM source commented that: "Fourteen million dollars is clearly insufficient for a high tech factory or a level of technology likely to satisfy Chinese aspirations .=A0.=A0.The project is a hazard in terms of: quality-time-cost satisfaction of the Chinese and PM partners."18 Clearly mindful of their long range vision of the probable Chinese market "is it better to withdraw than to commit to a possible business failure and a loss of face. If, however, our long range goals in China are of significant importance, then surely the project must be properly funded, conceived and executed."18 TAXATION The TTCs were also frustrated in their export attempts to China by tax barriers. Reducing taxation thus became vital to the TTCs' Chinese agenda while opportunities for internal production capabilities remained frozen. Efforts were made in 1992=A0to develop "an internal capability and expertis= e to address tax issues within the region."24 In 1991=A0Clive Turner, managin= g director of the Asian Tobacco Council, recommended a review of taxation levels across the Asian region to show: "which countries were vulnerable to pressure to raise those levelsand therefore what tactics should be employed to maintain existing levels."25 The TTCs aimed to promote the concept of a flat excise tax so as to reduce price differentials between imported and locally produced cigarettes. Burrell commented: "we prefer a tax adjustment that eliminates or substantially narrows the gap between monopoly and international brands".26 In 1985,=A0Clive Turner sought to demonstrate to Asian governments that taxation across the Asian region in general was "over the top, and needlessly punitive"27 and that excessive taxation would "further reduce the taxable base" for governments leading to "a revenue reduction".28 They sought to "persuade them that, in order to optimise their revenue derived from the cigarette industry" that they should institute a "simple system, a flat excise tax based on per thousand cigarettes".28 The correct interplay of taxation and marketing capabilities was critical to maximising market penetration. In 1990=A0PM's John Dollisson stated: "We need to actively pursue the defence of the value of advertisingby ourselves and in coalitions. Without advertising, retail pricing becomes more important."29 Projecting options for maximising business capacity, a tax and marketing trade-off was discussed by Wendy Burrell of Philip Morris Asia in 1992: "if .=A0.=A0.there is room to negotiate a tax gap narrowing and preserve some marketing freedoms (especially point of sale), that would be a satisfactory outcome."26 SMUGGLING Throughout the protracted market penetration efforts, access to TTC brands was being achieved through significant levels of smuggling. In 1989=A0in th= e context of discussion over a contracting import sector, the suboptimal progress was considered a temporary setback by Bill Webb given that "the widespread importation of consumer goods outside official channels is allowing traders from Hong Kong to satisfy market demand for our products and preserve our business base."30 Black market trading was mentioned again in 1991: "Unofficial imports, competitively priced and available in local currency, will continue to compete with duty-paid imports in the Domestic sector."31 With "some 60% of all smuggles (sic) goods into China [being] cigarettes" rampant smuggling was highlighted as the cause of the Chinese government deciding to liberalise import rules and work to establish a wholesale cigarette market in 1992.32 Evidently smugglingwhether actively supported or passively condoned by the TTCsproved to be a highly useful TTC weapon that precluded future trade restrictions. In 1998,=A0Jerry Liu of BAT was sentenced to jail for conspiring to accept HK$23 million in bribes and a corrupt HK$10 million loan from cigarette distributors in exchange for huge quantities of duty-free cigarettes to be smuggled onto the Chinese market. Mr Justice Wally Yeung Chun-kuen commented that such crime targeted youngsters by providing them with cheap black market cigarettes.33 IMPROVING TRADE CAPACITY The TTCs actively pursued better trading capacity for their cigarettes in China. Activities included negotiating with the US Trade Office, establishing a United States Cigarette Exporter's Association (USCEA) incorporating domestic and Asian representation, and finally, lobbying of foreign and US friendly politicians and media executives. Letters to the US Trade Office frequently critiqued any proposed limitations on trade and defended cigarette exports. In 1990,=A0PM's public relations company, Burson-Marsteller, recommended the creation of a Joint Enterprise for Trade (JET) organisation in an attempt to create a more effective voice on international tobacco issues. In a global tobacco trade document from the USCEA, trade was dissociated from health policy, and premised on the legality of cigarettes, the demand for international quality cigarettes in developing countries, and by embracing notions of unfettered global free trade. A reference was made to former US Trade Representative Clayton Yeutter who suggested that: "trade policy, not morals or health policy, is the fundamental issue involved in the exportation of cigarettes."34 An example of the strategy framing the trade debate away from health was a 1990=A0document: "Huddleston [seemingly part of a contingent of elected officials appointed for Kennedy export hearings] was unflappable and did very well. He never got bogged down in discussions of health or advertising excesses. He successfully linked 301=A0cases with the need to allow for advertising (i.e. competition)."35 Other documents included statements like: "The USTR has respected legitimate, health related measures involving cigarettes and other commodities, but has challenged those that are phony (sic) and designed to afford protection to government monopolies."36 Documents were careful to frame TTC tobacco exports as simply meeting existing demand by smokers. In USCEA tobacco export policy documents PM insisted: "Essential to an understanding of United States cigarette exports is the fact that what is being exported is cigarettes, not smoking."37 RJR stated in another USCEA document on global tobacco trade: "In short, American manufacturers are trying to sell cigarettes to people who already smoke and who will continue to smoke whether or not American cigarettes are available."34 The USCEA framed arguments supporting trade, indicating there was no coercive marketing in the cigarette trade and appealing to the US government to see it as benign: "In trade negotiations, the United States has not insisted, or even requested, that other countries purchase American cigarettes. It should be noted, in any event, that governments do not use cigarettes--smokers do."37 In 1990=A0the JET commented on current Congressional efforts which threatened to preclude future government agency assistance for tobacco exports, arguing: "Without this assistance the industry would not have gained access to the cigarette markets in Japan, Taiwan and South Korea, or made any progress on access to the Thailand market. Lacking a strong, consistent advocate in government, US cigarette exporters have been painted as villains."38 Around 1993=A0with the advent of the Clinton administration and Mickey Kantor as Clinton's first Trade Representative, the USTR (United States Trade Relations) decreasingly placed cigarettes on the trade negotiating table.39=A040 "Our principal political leverage in gaining access to market= s in the region is the backing of US trade negotiators. But the Clinton administration has indicated it is not willing to campaign on behalf of the tobacco industry. This means our power base is weakening."41 The popularity of American cigarettes was assumed to be largely based on the fact that "American cigarettes are a competitively priced product of extremely high quality"34 and to support their claims "even anti-smoking advocates, such as Gregory Connolly, admit that foreign cigarette monopolies produce a darker, less flavourful cigarette than US brands."34 In 1994,=A0Bill Webb of PM mentioned the courting of the Chinese Minister o= f Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation over export rights at a goodwill luncheon: "We hope to impress Minister Wu with our commitment to China =2E=A0.=A0.offering the best quality products, state-of-the-art technology = and world class business expertise."42 Broad objectives were articulated in the briefing materials: "We do not view this as an appropriate time to discuss specific business problems we face. Rather, we want to establish cordial relations and express our enthusiasm for our business interests in China."42 Minister Wu was reminded that: "Philip Morris is a staunch supporter of free trade and is actively working to gain support for MFN [most favoured nation] status for China on a permanent and unconditional basis". Webb cited a letter recently written to President Clinton, and said that the TTCs had contacted "at least 20=A0members of Congress to underscore the importance of this issue."43 IMPACT OF TTCS ON CHINESE TOBACCO INDUSTRY Efforts were made to incorporate China into transnational tobacco circles as a collaborator. Dollisson of PM believed that trade effectiveness may be enhanced by meetings of trade associations and ongoing technological exchanges that may improve the capacity for the industry to influence national policies.44 In 1992,=A0a special Chinese language section of the Tobacco Reporter was sent to some 450=A0CNTC senior officials and factory managers "to raise issues of general concern to the industry and help CNTC officials better understand the broader issues faced by the industry worldwide."24 PM decided to: "Encourage and assist China to take part in CORESTA. Being the largest tobacco producing country in the world, China should not only be interested in sitting on the board, but should actively participate in all basic functions through contributions in work groups, task forces, surveys, and in cooperative studies."45 CORESTA, a cooperative tobacco research network, started in 1955=A0with 24=A0members. = By 1982=A0it had 140=A0members in 57=A0countries.46 The TTC involvement was inspiring to the Chinese tobacco industry which appeared to see it as a chance to develop higher quality blending, casing, and flavouring techniques needed for western style cigarettes, and learn transnational tobacco trade principles, as well as make international contacts.47 In 1990,=A0cooperation with foreign specialists resulted in cigarettes of international flavours being produced by the CNTC.47 The CNTC stated: "We need to learn from our foreign friends the advanced and suitable science and technology as well as management experiences and we are also willing to take part in the competition and development of international markets."47 Domestic and international business opportunities were related to foreign friends by the CNTC at the same symposium: "the huge domestic market gives the tobacco industry the potential and possibility to pursue steady development .=A0.=A0.there is st= ill a big potential for further expansion in the Chinese tobacco market."47 Further: "In recent years the Chinese tobacco export business has been growing. The Chinese tobacco has been exported to more than 20=A0countries and regions around the world. The country's cigarette export is expanding."47 Since TTC involvement in China, tobacco is increasingly consumed in the form of manufactured cigarettes (87%).6 CHOOSING HONG KONG AS A MARKET BASE The TTCs debated several market expansion options pending the decentralisation of Chinese tobacco trade. Timely market entry to Hong Kong was imperative with the changing political powers over Hong Kong in 1997.=A0Because of the monopoly's tight control over trade in China, Hong Kong was viewed as an accessible market base and observation point for TTCs wanting to penetrate China. A 1991=A0document People's Republic of China stated: "Local production seems to be the only means through which we can gain broad access to the total Chinese market. An additional consideration is that we need to establish a manufacturing base in China prior to the Hong Kong market's coming under the jurisdiction of CNTC Bejing (sic) in 1997."31 By 1993,=A0PRC market access was considered to be = a matter of capitalising on opportunities that might arise with changes in government policy: "Under the tight control from the monopoly, it is very difficult to gain access to the PRC market. However, China is changing and the changes can be sudden and unpredictable .=A0.=A0.we must prepare oursel= ves to capitalise on any relaxation of rules and regulation."39 MANUFACTURING ARRANGEMENTS With 10=A0years investment in equipping factories with modern technology between 1983=A0and 1993,=A0seizing a significant portion of the PRC market through innovative manufacturing arrangements was on the agenda. In a 1993=A0document China Vision 2000+, various production arrangements were contemplated ranging from a joint venture cut tobacco factory with brand licensing, a wholly foreign owned licensed PM brand factory or direct licensing.39 "Our recommendation is to lobby for a joint venture cut tobacco factory with a 10=A0billion units capacity as our first try .=A0.= =A0.we may have to settle for a JV cigarette factory with a production ceiling of 2.5=A0billion units, just like RJR and Rothmans."39 Further: "buying out an existing factory with large production capacity" was optional whereby "major reforms .=A0.=A0.may allow us to buy and operate inefficient factories."39 Any variation on the ideal situation was contemplated carefully. The CNTC continued to hold tight import quotas for foreign exchange, favouring foreign manufacturers with local production to equip their factories: "Direct licensing demands minimal investment and is relatively easier to get approval."39 However, profitability to PM was the main concern. Continuing: "once CNTC is granted the license, the other options would be put on the shelf as CNTC has already got what it wants."39 TTC tactics to improve manufacturing arrangements paid off. In 1988=A0RJR established a $21 million plant at Xiamen producing more than 2.5=A0billion cigarettes per year. In 1991=A0the first successful completion of PM's DIET plan came to fruition. In 1992=A0the CNTC promised to keep the transnationals on a short leash. However, after the TTCs instigated a year long investigation under section 301=A0of the US Trade Act combined with formally threatened retaliatory tariffs ($3.9 billion US Chinese exports), all import licensing arrangements for China were dropped. China signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the US in 1992.48 In August 1992=A0the second PM plant was established in Ningbo15 and in the same year Rothmans established themselves at Jinan. Local joint PM-CNTC Marlboro production for the domestic market commenced in 1994=A0and a new export brand Red and White was initiated in 199449 In 1993=A0PM engaged an experienced Chinese consultant Mr Cheung Ching, previously used by Coca-Cola, to lobby for the Project Hope joint venture cut tobacco factory. "Mr Cheung has an impressive track record .=A0.=A0.[he= ] does not come cheap. The deal will include $40,000 monthly expenses and a success fee of $4 million. He will be given two years to get the job done."39 As such expenditure indicates, PM was prepared to spend billions of dollars to realise their prize. In 1993=A0Michael Miles stated: "On the theory that part of our ability to attract attention/support will depend on how much we're willing to spend, we need to decide how much are we willing to spend. We need to look at some numbers before we decide, but we should be willing to at least think big. For example, Bill Webb mentioned while we were there that some thought had been given at some point to offering something in the billions for all or part of the CNTC"50 indicating the pursuit of direct buy-out. Paul Lohr from RJR predicted that the CNTC would roll over in 1996-98: "James Kong envisions the local market loosening over the next 3=A0to 5=A0years with the eventual break up = of CNTC." At the thought of this, RJR talked of a new China business strategy: "to pick up 2-3 billion units from several factories in a number of provinces."51 Other non-tobacco transnationals with their eyes on China inspired the TTCs. In 1993=A0PM's Michael Miles cautioned: "That [News Corporation chief and PM board member Rupert] Murdoch and [General Electric's Jack] Welch both see huge potential in China doesn't "prove" it's there for us, but it certainly indicates that our sense of a truly huge opportunity is shared by some other very savvy international businessmen".50 =09=A0=A0Part B: tobacco advertising in China "We believe that the universal appeal of the Marlboro Man and Marlboro Country transcends all flavor types."52 PM's Bill Webb rehearsed the industry's public position on its motivations regarding advertising, reiterating core statements of earlier documents like The Activities of Philip Morris in the Third World53: "Advertising is critical to our ability to expand the geographical presence of our brands and sustain their premium image."54 Overall, the momentum of "aggressive promotional and merchandising activities"55 were thoroughly contemplated and used to maximise market share. Although publicly PM claimed these "early" markets were unaffected by advertising it was considered essential "to be delivering outstanding, well targeted advertising, primarily to build brand and advertising awareness and to provide the brand with an aspirational value that allows it to command a higher price."56 As in the West, the TTCs ran a public line on their declared position of not targeting non-smokers, particularly women and children: "Although some advertisements appeal to young adults who smoke, American tobacco manufacturers do not target any advertisements towards children =2E=A0.=A0.Moreover, research reveals that smoking initiation is a complex process, and advertising plays only a "miniscule" role"if any"in that process."34 In 1982=A0the TTCs suggested that available evidence showed tha= t their advertising was "not designed to attract new smokers of any age"57 and that they were not seeking "to entice the non-smoking segment of Asian women to initiate smoking".34 It was argued that advertising served to: "introduce smokers to new tobacco products in the market, to encourage smokers to try the advertised product."34 Other comments suggest a different perspective. The IRRC (Investor Responsibility Research Center Inc) report, 1982=A0suggested: "Little is known about the amounts spent by Philip Morris on cigarette ad campaigns or on the target groups these campaigns seek to influence".57 Claims that advertising only targeted existing smokers were weakened by a PM statement alluding to targeting young adult "starters".58 In PM inter-office correspondence, Cathy Leiber mentioned targeting young women with Virginia Slims in 1989=A0at a Pan Asia brand strategy meeting for Hong Kong and Asia= =2E She argued: "we are naturally more interested to learn how you plan to target the emerging young adult female smokers rather than the older female smokers."59 In a five year marketing plan for 1981-85=A0involving China, Tso mentioned targeting segments "which are currently small but which may have long term development potential such as a female brand like Virginia Slims."60 Plainly, the TTCs were well aware of the huge potential to be gained by enticing the largely non-smoking segment of Chinese women into becoming smokers. Their principal tool in this endeavour was advertising: "Demographically, the population explosion in many underdeveloped countries ensures a large potential market for cigarettes. = =20 Culturally, demand may increase with the continuing emancipation of women and the linkage in the minds of many consumers of smoking manufactured cigarettes with modernisation, sophistication, wealth, and successa connection encouraged by much of the advertising of cigarettes throughout the world."58 The targeting of young males and young adult starters was mentioned more frequently. A 1991=A0PM meeting regarding the potential of the brand Parliament in the PRC submitted: "The potential consumers we are targeting at are male within the age bracket of 18=A0to 35,=A0white collar, slightly more intellectual with at least secondary education, and in urban areas. Shanghai is chosen as a marketing base because Shanghainese consumers =2E=A0.=A0.are relatively more sophisticated by Chinese standards."61 "Parliament's imagery appeals to consumers' aspirations for upscale western life styles."31 Finally, developing brands to attract more subgroups, including the health conscious, was evidenced: "position a low numbers brand with appeal to smokers influenced by the smoking and health issue."55 Significantly, in a 1989=A0brand awareness study conducted for PM by Walmsley Limited, 15-60 year olds in 1000=A0households were contacted to evaluate awareness of imported brands (43% named an imported brand first) prompted awareness (85% named Marlboro first), and 85% reported smoking imported brands in the last three months. The receipt of imported cigarettes as gifts was likewise evaluated (53% had received these as gifts in the last three months).62 By including 15-18 year olds in this research, we have explicit evidence of PM's interest in Chinese youth under 18=A0years old. Different Chinese locations were clearly targeted. Depending on an initial manufacturing tie-up with a Chinese factory, in 1991=A0the aim was to position PM geographically in a way that would maximise market coverage and production capacity. "By establishing production facilities in northern, central, southern and western China, we would be positioned to serve the huge Chinese market effectively across all geographic regions."32 In PM's 1994=A0three year plan, six key markets were identified by urban population and income. These included Tianjin and Shanghai as fast growing and prosperous cities. Other potential markets included coastline cities and the industrial city of Chongoing in Sizhuan province.63 KEY MARKETING MESSAGES Documents reveal aims to stimulate aspiration for an upmarket western or international lifestyle. Tailoring the Marlboro brand to fit the key Asian markets, questions were asked about the relevance of "Marlboro's communication" to Asian consumers and the ability of the brand to position itself: "consistent with user attitudes/lifestyles?"64 In 1990=A0younger, clean shaven cowboys were recommended where: "the older, gritty look does not have universal aspirational appeal."52 Marlboro was strongly marketed to Chinese consumers during a specific advertising and promotion strategy to "strengthen the young and modern image of the brand" and "add aspirational value by promoting its international image".64 In Hong Kong in 1983,=A0the Americanisation of Winston television advertising was achieved by dropping the "Men of Hong Kong" campaign for a new campaign emphasising the "positively American" concept of the brand.65 In 1990=A0documents explicitly targeting Asian smokers proposed the use of = a promotion technique called the "targeted group meeting point" (TGMP) by which promotional teams were dispatched to local hot spots with tobacco related samples and games in a brand awareness raising exercise. "TGMP is also an inexpensive way of collecting targeted smoker names for our database."52 In the Philip Morris Super Lights plan "special nightlife activities and shopping mall promotion" were mentioned. Such activities were used to "add fun and entertainment in the form of computer games for our consumers",66 including "touch-screen puzzles". ADVERTISING BANNED After the banning of direct product advertising in the print and electronic media in the PRC in 1992=A0the documents provide evidence of attempts to find loopholes to maintain product exposure. In 1993,=A0PM cunningly employed indirect advertising for exposure using trademark advertising without product connotations "subject to approval governed by respective local rules and regulations of different provinces/cities."67 Exposure was also maintained by "program sponsorships on TV (with entitlements such as program titling, opening/closing sequence, etc)". The TTC abuse of poorly scrutinised advertising restrictions in China has been a longstanding problem with a rise in TV infomercials, billboards, and sponsorship post 1992.6 The diversion of million dollar advertising budgets into loophole practices is a common TTC practice around the world and is particularly exploited in developing countries. SPONSORSHIP Sponsorship and promotional events were generally arranged to enhance the "heroic and import image" of international brands around "the key target group"52 of YAMS (young adult male smokers).68 The Marlboro Superbike Show in Taiwan in 1990=A0had a stated objective: "to strengthen Marlboro's brand image in relation with excitement, vitality and masculinity, especially among young adult consumers."69 In 1990: "The inaugural Marlboro dynasty cup are excellent examples of how we associate Marlboro with Asia's favourite sport and position Marlboro as the principal contributor to football development in Asia."52 A further PM concern was as to move away from "so-called "elitist sports" such as golf and tennis" to choose sports like soccer "supported by most Asian governments".69 Other than political motivations, sponsorship deals included targeted smoker sampling made explicit in 1990: "While sport is by far the best avenue to attract, sample, and influence our core target smokers, it's not the only way. International movies and videos also have tremendous appeal to our young adult consumers in Asia."52 PHILANTHROPIC ACTIVITIES Philanthropic activities in China were well documented as opportunities for PM corporate affairs to link the company with issues of social responsibility. In 1988=A0the development of a paramedical training program to service the handicapped was part of "a contribution to the China Welfare Fund for the Handicapped in the People's Republic of China."53 The explicit motivation behind such programmes was: "to counter attacks on tobacco sponsorship, we will continue to develop a comprehensive regional program of arts and sports sponsorship."70 Particular attention was to be paid to: "cultural projects and community service projects of national significance." Further: "We will utilise third parties .=A0.=A0.to identify and develop sponsorship opportunities and build ties with the sporting and cultural communities."70 It could be suggested that associations with sports and the health industry including ties with the Special Olympics in Hong Kong49 served dually to counter sponsorship attacks as well as form cliques with these groups, enabling a backdoor push for cooperation from health bodies. One document explicitly mentioned gaining access to the Ministry of Health to get a fair hearing "through our continuous support for the paramedical training program".70 VOLUNTARY CODES FAVOURED As in the West, self regulating the marketing of cigarettes was used to avoid legislation as well as to portray industry responsibility. "If done honestly and with the concurrence of government authoritiesand in advance of restrictive government proposalsindustry codes can be accepted instead of legislation."25 RJR considered the utility of a voluntary code, to demonstrate that: "American tobacco manufacturers adhere to the advertising laws and regulations of the countries in which they operate."36 John Dollisson alluded to the perverse motives of the TTCs in Asia: "A code may be beneficial but we must remember that we work in a competitive business environment and we are judged on our ability to increase volume and share. How do we combine/reconcile these two issues?"29 However, Dollisson noted that the codes were useful to "effectively defend ourselves against criticisms based on lies or misconstruals", continuing: "If we could state a PM marketing policy indicating voluntary guidelines, it would be very beneficial. It could include: a clear policy stating we don't market to "minors" or non-smokers."29 The use of the code was again referenced by Matthew Winokur 1993: "The code puts PMI [Philip Morris International] on high ground regarding our marketing practices overseas, especially on the youth issue." The other USCEA members (B&W and RJR) were subsequently encouraged to adopt such a document under the concern that: "Unless all three companies can be held to the same high standard, PMI's image will likely be reduced to that of the lowest common denominator."71 FLAWS IN TTC MARKETING Other counter attacking strategies described in the documents reveal flaws in public statements endorsing the integrity of TTC cooperation and marketing. In anticipation of "a possible onslaught of coverage" at the 7th World Conference on Smoking or Health in Perth in April 1990,=A0PM's Patrick Rekart warned: "please be aware of the following: .=A0.=A0.what is PM's sampling procedure in each market; and what kinds of activities do we do that could filter our products down to adolescents. Alternatively, what do we not do."72 Rekart referenced the "Jump Boy" principle, not applicable to Indonesia, since single stick sales are not allowed. Commenting in 1991=A0on PM's public relations efforts in regard to minors, Clive Turner admitted "Much of what we have done around the world has been desultory and patchy" with the real benefit in "being seen to cooperate on this particular issue" as "positive public relations and public affairs benefits". PM's work in relation to minors was evidently undertaken because it was "inexpensive to mount, and usually very difficult for the opposition effectively to counter without appearing sour and overcritical."25 =09=A0=A0Part C: smoking and health Here, the TTCs' objectives were plain: "Our objective is to limit the introduction and spread of smoking restrictions and maintain the widespread social acceptability of smoking in Asia."70 In a 1989=A0Hong Kon= g Tobacco Institute document it was stated: "Strengthen relations with China National Tobacco Corporation (CNTC)to alert CNTC of the repercussions of anti-smoking sentiments generated under the influence of [Judith] Mackay and WHO" in order "to help the CNTC deal with allegations on smoking and health".73 As PM saw it, strengthening cooperation with the CNTC was a resource and expertise sharing exercise "to counter anti-smoking initiatives".24 The TTC's actions in China on the health debate were similar to those adopted in the West, including contracting Chinese health specialists for health research. In 1989=A0Patrick Rekart wrote of the need for: "A list of information/research needs so that we can "Asianize" our positions on the issues."72 In the same year PM's John Dollisson noted: "On the health issue, we are assessing the literature on Asian populations looking for potential specialists. The comparisons between Asian and Caucasian populations present interesting positive evidence on the smoking and health controversy."44 USE OF INDEPENDENT SCIENTISTS One example of efforts to heighten controversy was the ETS (environmental tobacco smoke) Consultants Project in Hong Kong. Hong Kong was one of the industry's four initial target markets for recruiting, educating, and orientating scientists in Asia. With the TTC promise in 1989=A0"To address the science of ETS and build a foundation of local data which can be used to put ETS in perspective",72 a network of "independent" Asian consultants was formed by US lawyer John Rupp based on an international trend of recruiting scientists who would run the industry line. The consultants were not tobacco experts74 but rather people who the TTCs had predetermined would actively criticise the health lobby, undermine the smoking and health debate in China, and seek to bury ETS as an insignificant element in the wider context of indoor air pollution. Their political connections and personality attributes were paramount. Dr Linda C Koo from the department of community medicine, University of Hong Kong, described as having "an extremely attractive and sparkling personality" and being "utterly Americanized" was an attractive prospect. With her research focus being on oxides of nitrogen and respiratory disease, Dr Koo's expertise was of less importance than her comments on lung cancer in Chinese women: "Dr Koo believes [lung cancer] is principally caused by dietary factor (sic). .=A0.=A0.Dr Koo talked of the "victimization" practis= ed by the health lobby. In this environment, no one wants to stick their neck out, and no scientist will accept money from the tobacco industry." Speaking on the health lobby "Dr Koo informed us that Judith Mackay is now calling passive smoking "respiratory rape". What scientist wants to aid and abet rape?"74 Dr Sarah Liao from EHS Consultants Ltd, a close personal friend of Dr Linda Koo's and a specialist in asbestos, was another promising candidate: = =20 "Interestingly she is married to the postmaster general in Hong Kong and is presumably well connected politically .=A0.=A0.She appears to have great integrity and objectivity as a scientist and criticises the health lobby for its inquisitorial tactics and scientific basis. Judith Mackay is not objective and not credible, according to Dr Liao. She also stated that TH Lam, who co-authored the COSH [Council on Smoking and Health] survey with Stuart Donnan is a "jerk".74 The same document shows that two ETS consultants were also recruited from China: Dr Fengsheng He, director of occupational medicine, Chinese Academy of Preventative Medicine, Beijing, and Dr Guangguan Liu, chairman, department of air pollution control, Institute of Environmental Health and Engineering, Beijing. ASIAN STUDIES TO REFUTE THE WEST The TTCs held high hopes that in the large populations of Asia they would find anomalous data that could be used to cast doubt on claims about smoking causing disease. This was part of a global search for such data that had so far proved futile: PM's Jetson Lincoln, vice president of PM Planning, expressed his disappointment in one document discussing Chinese cancer clusters: "There is a great coincidence of smoking and longevity in a place in Ecuador but it turned out they didn't inhale."75 Lincoln's memo discusses how to best obtain results required to disprove the causality theory: "the first essential is to learn the location of the lung cancer hot spot and the minimum distance one must go away from it to reach areas of average or below average lung cancer incidence."75 He continues: "Neither the Chinese tobacco people or ourselves should be dismayed if the prevalence of cigarette smoking in the high lung cancer areas should turn out to be above average. As a matter of fact I would expect it to be above average. As long as the disparity in lung cancer is greater than the disparity in cigarette consumption, we have a favourable result. An intermediate disparity in smoking rates in the high lung cancer area will merely testify that lung problems "cause" smoking."75 By 1994,=A0the researchers had produced results suggesting other hypotheses about the cause of lung cancer: "Hong Kong researchers say the food Chinese people eat, rather than the cigarette smoke they inhale, is the main cause of lung cancer. Dr Linda Koo and Professor John Ho have spent 14=A0years studying the cause of lung cancer among Chinese, say more vitami= n C in the diet will dramatically reduce the rate of lung cancer."76 Hargrave of RJR gloated that: "The opponents of smoking in developing countries cannot produce anything like as sensational figures as those in developed countries relating to diseases and mortality rates which they allege to be causally connected with smoking. To date, therefore, the industry in developing countries has not been so severely indicted as the major factor in this threat to public health."77 In 1991=A0Clive Turner threw out a further decoy to counter the causal hypothesis and redirect political attention away from children smoking. "The visible dust and generally disgusting airborne pollution must unquestionably be THE prime culprit." Turner continued "It is THIS widespread and real problem to which the government should direct its attention and forget the utterly minor matter of smoking by very young children in Hong Kong."78 By 1993-95=A0there was talk of the great benefit of the growing number of studies conducted in developing and Asian countries, that rebut conclusions from western countries, as well as from Asian scientists citing these findings at conferences and in the media.24 Symposia were held to disseminate these results in Asian countries.24 Further workshops were encouraged by Walk as late as 1996: "to bring together the key epidemiologists on environmental issues in China to discuss quality criteria for research to be used in risk assessment of potential hazards and in particular so-called "weak associations" in China."79 THE OPIUM WAR The TTCs were outraged over tobacco control advocates relating the historical Chinese Opium War with the spread of tobacco in China: "attempts to link cigarette market opening to the Opium War are strained and without historical foundation. The Opium War originated because the British had introduced opium from their colonies into China and continued to force-feed it into China despite the objections of the Chinese imperial government." Charging the Chinese with responsibility: "Over 100=A0years before the Opium War, China was already exporting tobacco to Macao and the Philippines for shipment to Spain, Portugal, and other parts of Europe."34 They also objected to talk of tobacco being a drug: "The equating of tobacco and narcotics trivialises the serious drug problem that society now faces."34 COUNTERACTING THE ANTI-TOBACCO MOVEMENT To ensure that TTC views prevailed in Hong Kong government decision making it was considered vital to develop negotiation points with government, "monitor all aspects of government's legislative programme".80 Such monitoring included development of a "war book" on future and present decision makers. Methods to best direct political messages to the press and electronic media were also recommended.80 After watering down COSH proposals, the Tobacco Institute stated in 1989,=A0that: "PM will develop and implement a legislative "early warning" system throughout the region to provide the earliest possible notice of government action to restrict our business."72 A broad two point TTC strategy was outlined as: "(1) To defend the industry as vigorously as possible. This would include opposing and resisting the government's activity on both principle and for practical purposes. (2) To negotiate and remain available to consult with the government to achieve compromises wherever possible".81 In 1991=A0Ray Donnner (RJR for Asia Pacific office Hong Kong), Clive Turner= , (managing director of the Asian Tobacco Council), and Bob Fletcher (Rothmans), presumably all representing the Asian Tobacco Council, met with CNTC vice president, Mr Jin Maoxian and three of his staff about smoking and health and tobacco control activists in China. The TTCs showed Mr Jin news clippings, largely quoting Dr Judith Mackay, to show "what the anti-smoking activists are saying about China outside China".82 Likewise Mr Jin conveyed the CNTC's opinion on smoking and health to the TTCs: "(1) Smoking is an accepted custom, and although it can have certain effects on health of smokers, it is not agreed that smoking definitely causes lung cancer. According to the HM [Health Ministry], 50% of lung cancer deaths are caused by smoking, but, of 100=A0000 people who smoke, how many actuall= y die from lung cancer? (2) The smoking rate among CNTC employees is quite high, but the percentage of people working in the Shanghai cigarette factory who develop lung cancer is smaller than the percentage who do of Shanghai's total population .=A0.=A0.Smoking is not like taking drugs in te= rms of danger."82 Mr Jin continued: "China is a socialist country .=A0.=A0.there is a certain amount of cooperation between the CNTC and the HM .=A0.=A0.They commented t= hat only in China could tobacco and health people sit down together in harmony and discuss issues."82 "It is CNTC's position to cooperate with the HM and "produce less harmful products". CNTC regards the HM people as doing their duty, but also does not wish them to be excessive or unscientific."82 Evidently, the CNTC, as the world's largest tobacco producer, had an approach to the smoking and health debate that was far more frank than the TTCs', admitting causality and working with the health ministry to minimise harmful components of cigarettes. In seeking to unify the tobacco frontier against the antis and get the CNTC on side through the meeting, Ray Donner and Clive Turner did not want to push too far: "They should be given some time to digest what has already been given them so as not to be given the impression they are being rushed or pressured."82 HONG KONG'S POLITICAL POWER Clive Turner was evidently frustrated in having to deal with the Hong Kong government: "They do have enormous political power in Hong Kong, and can virtually do as they pleaseand they often do .=A0.=A0.There is a degree of arrogance and no small amount of patronising apparent, and I for one find it disagreeable to observe."27 Turner suggested that with 1997=A0approachin= g "the truly heavyweight work with China is done in London by [Douglas] Hurd and his men"27 and called for PM: "to come forth with ideas about how the Tobacco Institute (Hong Kong) could usefully bring some back door pressure to bear through London."27 In 1989=A0the Asian Tobacco Council Charter called for strategic regional collaboration between the TTCs to "monitor regional anti-smoking groups" and "develop and coordinate regional action plans to address anti-smoking initiatives".83 Such collaborative networks enabled the prompt communication of anti-tobacco information for pre-empting or counteracting their action. Focused questioning of the opposition's priorities, targets, and thinking was undertaken to redirect and strengthen the TTC's pro-activity in Asia and "to balance the unremitting and emotionally geared anti-tobacco crusading".25 From there, garnering support for the industry position80 included marketing decided messages "with an intensity and level of emotion that equals that of the other side".84 "We are making every effort to get our story told."85 The TTCs carefully considered tobacco control proposals by the industry regulation they imposed. In Hong Kong in 1976,=A0John Thompson of RJR recommended "a T&N [tar and nicotine] numbers league" which "would upset the government and involve them in setting up controls, laboratories, standards, etc" was contemplated against "a concerted no smoking campaign" possibly causing a "damping down consumption" and "restructuring towards milds".86 In 1980=A0in Hong Kong, Blackmear was discussing how: "local government might be dissuaded from undertaking a T&N reporting program if they are made aware of all the administrative and technical requirements of such a program." RJR then enlisted assistance for: "the development of a comprehensive listing of all these requirements, eg, test equipment requirements, scientific controls, printing costs, etc."87 Ten years later in 1991=A0they were still singing a familiar tune: "Given the difficulties of today's challenges to Customs and Excise for controlling contraband cigarettes which can be identified with a glance, how can the government hope to control excessive "tar" cigarettes which require a sophisticated laboratory to identify?"88 Tobacco control advocates were painted as a highly irrational, emotionally motivated group aiming at easy targets: "tobacco export industry as a whole, and cigarette exporting in particular, is under attack by anti-smoking groups that use their time in public forums to denounce what they call "export of death"."84 In 1989=A0proposals from Hong Kong's COSH were labelled "manipulative" to society, guilty of "over-stressing of government's role in society" and lacking in "balance and accuracy".89 Clive Turner of the Hong Kong Tobacco Council made a particularly florid speech in 1990=A0to colleagues at the sixth world tobacco exhibition and symposium. "I have always hoped that such people, seized as they are with their hatred of tobacco, are occasionally haunted by the fear that somewhere in the world there may lurk a happy and unworried smoker raising the proverbial and graphic two fingers at them."90 His speech argued that tobacco control advocates were engaged in a "ritual of purification". "It is almost as if they are conducting an evangelical crusade, and nothing short of the end of the world will cause a shift in direction."90 He continued: "I call them "shower adjusters". They would enjoy adjusting your shower temperature for you if they could get access, just knowing exactly what is right for youand for all mankind. Interestingly, they seldom create employment or wealth."90 "They were not the sort of folk with whom you would feel at ease having a chat over a drink! Tense, with no sense of humour, wound up, and consumed by their passion."91 "Extremism is part of their way of life, and runs rampant throughout the anti-tobacco movement."90 And to finish: "Our detractors will not allow the use of the word "debate"'. They claim the debate is all over, and that all which remains to be done is to eliminate tobacco across the world."90 =09=A0=A0Postscript Recently, it was discovered that President Clinton's Trade Representatives were secretly pressuring China into accepting American cigarettes and tobacco as a condition of America's support for China's entry into the World Trade Organisation. The agreement, awaiting a congressional vote this summer, would bring millions of dollars to the US tobacco companies, liberalising trade instead of a year by year renewal of trade concessions. For cigarettes, the current tariff of 65% would fall in equal installments to 25% by 2004.=A0Opening the Chinese market to investment would enable Philip Morris to build manufacturing plants using mainly Asian tobacco. The US Trade Representative's office said its mission was to level the playing field, not promote health and social policy.91 =09=A0=A0References 1. Dobson RP. China cycle, 1946. Big business in China: Sino-foreign rivalry in the cigarette industry, 1890-1930. Harvard University Press, 1980. 2. Cochran S. Big business in China: Sino-foreign rivalry in the cigarette industry, 1890-1930. Harvard University Press, 1980. 3. Tennant. Cigarette and tobacco trade in China. Chinese Economic Bulletin 225=A0(June 13,=A01925), p338. SC p 202,=A0ref 3,=A0table on p 234= =2E 4. The World Bank Development Economics Central Database. China at a glance 1997. http://www.worldbank.org/html 5. Chinese Academy of Preventative Medicine, Chinese Academy of Preventative Medicine, Chinese Association of Smoking and Health, Department of Disease Control, Ministry of Health, PR China, Office of the Committee of the National Patriotic Health Campaign. Smoking and health in China 1996.=A0National prevalence survey of smoking patterns. Beijing: Chin= a Science and Technology Press, 1999. 6. World Health Organisation. Tobacco or health: a global status report. = =20 Geneva: WHO, 1997. 7. Sun JP. International consultation on tobacco and youth, Singapore, 28-30 September 1999. 8. Peto R, Chen Z, Boreham J. Tobacco-the growing epidemic in China. JAMA 1996;275:1683-1684[Medline]. 9. Gembler A.=A0Confidential note to the files. Re: China 10=A0November 1977=A0PM1000274344 4.=A0July 1999. 10. Campbell W.=A010=A0September 1979=A0PM1000219807. 11. Frankel G, Mufson S.=A0Big Tobacco's global reach: vast China market key to smoking disputes. The Washington Post, 20=A0November 1996.=A0http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/daily/nov/18/tobacco4.ht= m 12. 1981-1985 Five year plan=A0-=A0marketing planning PM2504011909. 13. Nelson J, Storr H.=A0Remarks by Hans G.=A0Storr at prudential securiti= es consumer conference 8=A0September 1993=A0Boston, Massachusetts (to be follo= wed separately by remarks from Jack Nelson) 8=A0September 1993=A0PM2501109020. 14. PM Asia Incorporated PRC Market briefing April 1994=A0PM204575631. 15. Bible GC. Philip Morris International 1993=A0(Williamsburg) Plan Presentation 28=A0April 1993=A0PM2500065672. 16. Anon. Exporting tobacco addiction. Lancet 1998;351:1571. 17. Minutes of Pasquine's meeting Tuesday 6=A0March 1984=A0(minutes on Chi= na reported by O'Brien P, Vaughan J) 6=A0March 1984=A0PM2000573127. 18. The Shenzhen factory May 1985=A0PM2000510256. 19. Bass L.=A0Inter-office memorandum. Weekly highlights process technolog= y &=A0development 22=A0March 1984=A0RJR502982055. 20. Mansfield CT. Trip report world tobacco exhibition and conference Hong Kong 3-5 December 1985=A0RJR504905036. 21. Report on Hong Kong meeting with Jack Gibson and George Cheung, PM February 1985=A0PM2023799600. 22. PM International business 1989-1993 plan March 1989=A0PM2500103013. 23. Caplis P.=A0CNTC visitors inter-office correspondence 23=A0May 1989=A0PM2500089866. 24. Philip Morris Asia/Pacific 3=A0year plan 1993-1995 December 1992=A0PM20501824318. 25. Turner ADC. November public affairs conference: Hong Kong: 19=A0November (provisional date) 13=A0June 1991=A0PM2504002954. 26. Burrell W.=A0US/ROC trade policy Philip Morris International inter-office correspondence 19=A0October 1992=A0PM2500052526. 27. Turner ADC. 4=A0April 1991=A0PM2504003000. 28. Philip Morris Asia Inc 1985-1988 three year plan preliminary review September 1985=A0PM2504011941. 29. Dollison (sic) J.=A0Minutes from Thursday June 21=A0presentations marketing restrictions 21=A0June 1990=A0PM2043937205. 30. Webb W.=A01989=A0PMI board presentation=A0-=A0Asia/Australia 29=A0Augu= st 1989=A0PM2500089009. 31. People's Republic of China 1991=A0PM2500098237. 32. Notes on international &=A0regulatory issues from a variety of sources [subheading]: China Daily (Business Weekly) 6/12 December 1992=A0PM2025600328. 33. Buddle C.=A0Judge blasts tobacco firms as Jerry Liu sentenced. South China Morning Post, June 25=A01998. 34. USCEA. Global tobacco trade, US policy and American cigarettes. Executive summary 4=A0January 1996=A0RJR507610680. 35. Dyer J.=A0Kennedy export hearings 4=A0May 1990=A0PM2024258710. 36. Washington Jones M.=A0External relations taskforce comments. "Perceive= d Dichotomy" 1992=A0RJR512546390. 37. USCEA. US trade policy regarding tobacco exports May 1994=A0PM2045756222. 38. Burson-Marstellar (sic). Joint enterprise for trade 14=A0March 1990=A0PM2500079292. 39. China=A0-=A0vision 2000=A0+=A01993=A0PM2504033326. 40. Fuller C.=A0China/USTR Inter-office correspondence 9=A0August 1993=A0PM2046988364. 41. Barnes PL, Chan D.=A01994=A0original budget opening remarks, PL Barnes= =2E =20 11=A0October 1993=A0PM2504043190. 42. Webb W.=A0Luncheon briefing materialsMadame Wu Yi, PRC Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation inter-office correspondence 18=A0April 1994=A0PM2046988175. 43. Speaking pointsprivate meeting with Minister Wu, 19=A0April 1994=A0PM2045756321. 44. Dollison (sic) J.=A01989=A02nd revised forecast presentationcorporate affairs 15=A0June 1989=A0PM2500101311. 45. [Sub heading]: Items for consideration relating to PM-CNTC long-term cooperation July 1993=A0PM2053383133. 46. CORESTA. Cooperation Centre for Scientific Research Relative to Tobacco June 1991=A0PM2029172132. 47. Xun X.=A0China national tobacco corporation. The sixth world tobacco exhibition &=A0symposium 22-25 October 1990=A0RJR511970074. 48. Mackay J. Smoking in China: "the limits of space". Tobacco Control 1997;6:77-79[Medline]. 49. Dunbar L.=A0Philip Morris International Inc presentation to PRC journalists, 21=A0August 1995=A0PM2046882750. 50. Miles M.=A0China inter-office correspondence 3=A0November 1993=A0PM2046988206. 51. Lohr P.=A0RJ Reynolds tobacco international inc. research and development Winston-Salem NC 27105=A017=A0December 1993=A0RJR516413378. 52. Marlboro 1990=A0PM2504034844. 53. Philip Morris International. The activities of Philip Morris in the third world April 1988=A0PM2024261707. 54. Webb W.=A01993=A0board presentationclosing 19=A0October 1993=A0PM25001= 57095. 55. Hong Kong mission statement 1980=A0RJR500351839-1863. 56. Marlboro creative brief 1993=A0PM2504000588. 57. IRRC proxy issues report tobacco sales in developing countries 7=A0April 1982=A0RJR503653426. 58. To J.=A0Weekly meeting minutes of April 26,=A01993=A0inter-office correspondence 3=A0May 1993=A0PM2504018515. 59. Leiber C.=A0Philip Morris Asia inter-office correspondence 25=A0Octobe= r 1989=A0PM2504034812 13. 60. Tso D.=A01981-1985 five year planMarketing planning inter-office correspondence 25=A0September 1980=A0PM2504011906. 61. Parliament in the People's Republic of China (Tokyo meeting May 1991) May 1991=A0PM2504053797. 62. Walmsley Limited. China consumer series: 1989=A0cigarette section: Shanghai September 1989=A0PM2504034565. 63. Cheung G.=A0China 3YP 1994-1996 1994=A0PM2504033297. 64. WPP Group Marlboro branding and positioning audit 1991=A0PM2504010284. 65. Knouse P.=A0Winston advertising in Hong Kong 14=A0March 1983=A0RJR503405707. 66. Philip Morris Super lightslooking ahead 1991=A0PM2504018360. 67. Wilson W.=A0F-1 and GP bike evaluation inter-office correspondence 12=A0May 1993=A0PM2504052843. 68. Soccer sponsorship 24=A0February 1994=A0PM2504051355A. 69. da Roza E Inter-office correspondence Marlboro Superbike Show `90 18=A0September 1990=A0PM2504016566. 70. PM Asia Phili APOLOGIES: FINAL CITATIONS ARE MISSING From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 12 16:50:54 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 218622A391 for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:50:54 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA11677 for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:50:53 -0400 Date: Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:50:53 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT: EU directive 'may cost 1,800 jobs' (fwd) Tobacco law 'may cost 1,800 jobs' by John Thornhill, Consumer / Industries Editor Source: Financial Times, Tuesday, 9/12/00 British American Tobacco warned on Monday that it might be forced to shut its Darlington and Southampton factories, with the loss of 1,800 jobs, if the government enacted a draft European Union directive on tobacco control. Workers from both plants presented their case at the TUC conference on Monday, highlighting the broader economic impact of the factories' closure. BAT claimed that an additional 6,000 jobs might be at risk among suppliers if the factories were to close. The EU directive, which could be adopted at its second reading by the European parliament in the next few weeks, calls for tighter labelling restrictions and the lowering of the maximum tar level in cigarettes from 12mg to 10mg - even on cigarettes manufactured for sale outside the EU. Member states would be obliged to implement the directive in national legislation by the end of 2001. Michael Prideaux, corporate affairs director at BAT, said the company's two UK factories mainly manufactured high-tar cigarettes geared for export markets. "Ninety per cent of our UK production is impacted by the directive," he said. "Our factories in Darlington and Southampton would be very likely to close. I do not think that the government has thought this through." The Department of Health said the government was broadly supportive of the EU directive. "Our primary concern is the health impact of smoking and with a product that kills 120,000 people in this country every year. Public health has to take priority over other considerations," it said. "The whole thrust of our policy is to damage cigarette companies' sales and that will come as no surprise to BAT. But it is surely not beyond the company's wit and wisdom to comply with the protocol to manufacture cigarettes with lower tar levels," it said. The threat of 695 job losses in Darlington has particular resonance for Alan Milburn, the health secretary, whose constituency includes the tobacco plant. BAT claimed that the EU directive was also unfairly disadvantaging European manufacturers. Philip Morris, the world's biggest tobacco manufacturer, produces most of its high-tar cigarettes outside the EU. The proposed EU directive will also ban the use of descriptions, such as "light," "low tar", and "mild" and force cigarette companies to cover 25 per cent of their packet space with health warnings. Dave McKee, an MSF union representative at BAT's Southampton factory, said the directive would sacrifice jobs with no improvement in public health. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 12 16:57:27 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 49B982A05E for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:57:27 -0400 (EDT) Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA11887 for ; Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:57:27 -0400 Date: Tue, 12 Sep 2000 16:57:27 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] USA Today: Intl tobacco company circumvention of ad bans Page 1B 12 September 2000 Cigarette logos abound despite ad bans abroad Tobacco companies let other businesses use their brand names By Julie Schmit USA TODAY KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- For seven years, Malaysia has banned most forms of tobacco advertising, including print, TV, radio and billboards. But it sure doesn't look like it: * Billboards with the Salem, Benson & Hedges and Winston names dot the landscape. They're not advertising cigarettes, per the ban. They're advertising their travel, clothing and restaurant businesses. * The music store, Salem Cool Planet, has seven outlets in Malaysia. The store also sponsors concerts, which are then advertised in newspapers and on TV and radio. * On television, consumers see the name Perilly's, a cigarette brand owned by British American Tobacco (BAT), as a movie sponsor. * Shoppers can browse 15 Camel clothing stores, book holidays at two Peter Stuyvesant Travel outlets and dine at four Benson & Hedges Bistros, the first of which opened in 1998. ''The companies have found loopholes in the law, and we have not plugged them,'' says H.J. Sallehudin, an assistant director of Malaysia's Department of Public Health, which enforces Malaysia's tobacco ad bans and recently urged the government to tighten the restrictions. Malaysia isn't unique. Tobacco companies have long licensed their well-known names to sell non-tobacco products throughout the world. Camel shoes and Marlboro Classics clothing are especially popular in Europe. But anti-smoking advocates say Malaysia offers one of the best examples of how bans on the direct advertising of cigarettes can be circumvented with indirect advertising that ties the cigarette names to fashion, lifestyles, sports and music. They also fear that what works in Malaysia could be exported to other countries in Asia, which is home to half of the world's population and is a potentially huge market for tobacco companies. China alone has an estimated 320 million smokers, more than all developed countries combined. ''The indirect advertising has gotten more and more sleek'' in Malaysia, says Mary Assunta, an anti-tobacco activist with the Consumers Association of Penang. The marketing of the Benson & Hedges Bistros provides an excellent example, she says. Located on a busy Malaysian highway, the billboards include only part of the Benson & Hedges name and an accentuated ampersand. The word ''bistro'' is in small letters. As the Nike swoosh has come to identify Nike, the ampersand may someday identify Benson & Hedges, marketers say. ''Give them five years, and red will mean Marlboro and blue will mean Mild Seven,'' says Bill Tye, 30, a Kuala Lumpur marketing executive who was dining one recent evening on an outdoor patio of a Benson & Hedges Bistro. Good business or a come-on? Tobacco companies contend that licensing their names to non-tobacco products simply makes good business sense and that it isn't intended to encourage smoking. ''We are not gaining market share because there are Salem Cool Planet record stores,'' says Axel Gietz, spokesman for Japan Tobacco International, which now owns the international operations of Camel, Salem and Winston cigarettes. ''It is a good way of capitalizing on the image of the brand. This is perfectly legal.'' Most often, the tobacco companies license use of the cigarette name to other companies. The Salem Cool Planet record stores, for instance, exist only in Malaysia and are owned by a company named Ultimate Vista, Gietz says. Japan Tobacco licensed the Winston Eagle name to another company, which has 33 of the men's clothing outlets in Malaysia. Despite fears among consumer groups that Malaysia is a test bed for marketing techniques, Gietz says Japan Tobacco has no plans to export the licensing scheme to other countries. Likewise, the Benson & Hedges Bistros aren't run by BAT, which sells Benson & Hedges cigarettes in Malaysia. They are run by Heritage Network, a management company. When questioned, BAT responded in writing that the ''Benson & Hedges Bistro is managed and operated as a separate business entity.'' Yet BAT pays for the bistro's billboard and newspaper advertising, says Kevin Lai, Heritage's marketing manager. BAT -- whose Malaysian Tobacco unit has about 70% of the Malaysian market -- refused further comment. Industry watchers say much of what is being tried in Asia wouldn't fly in the USA. ''They would get more grief than it would be worth,'' says John Calfee of the American Enterprise Institute in Washington. In Asia, anti-smoking groups are less organized. Lawsuits are less common. Smoking is widespread in some countries. The smoking rates of men in China, Vietnam and Cambodia are 66%, 73% and 65% respectively. As smoking declines in the USA and tobacco companies get slammed with lawsuits, developing countries hold promise. Even young Asian women are lighting up more often. The rate of smoking among teenage girls in Malaysia, for example, is growing at 2% a year. What's more, awareness about the dangers of smoking isn't as high in Asia, says Judith Mackay, director of the Asian Consultancy on Tobacco Control. In China, a 1996 survey found two-thirds of respondents didn't know smoking was linked to lung cancer. Tobacco names have also long been used on non-tobacco products outside the USA. Camel apparel dates to the 1970s. The Marlboro Classics clothing line is 13 years old. Neither has ever been sold in the USA. In 1998, U.S. tobacco companies, as part of a lawsuit settlement with 46 states, agreed not to sell tobacco-branded caps, T-shirts and other merchandise. But Camel and Marlboro Classics are thriving abroad. Worldwide, Camel has 98 stand-alone stores and 451 shops within other shops. Last year, revenue hit $572 million after 10 years of double-digit growth, says Jean-Louis Leppert, spokesman for Worldwide Brands, which owns the Camel brand for non-tobacco products. Philip Morris licenses the Marlboro Classics name to clothing company Marzotto Spa of Italy. Last year, Marlboro Classics raked in revenue of about $250 million. The merchandise is often adorned with a logo of a cowboy in a rain slicker -- just like the Marlboro Man. But Philip Morris, in a written response, says that Marlboro cigarettes and Marlboro Classics are separate trademarks and that the Marlboro Classics trademark communicates ''the quality and value of the clothing, not the quality and value of Marlboro cigarettes.'' Effectiveness of bans debatable Anti-smoking advocates concede that even weak advertising bans reduce exposure to tobacco brands. In Cambodia, where no restrictions exist, 46% of street advertising in the capital city of Phnom Penh is tied to tobacco, says Po Samnang of the Ministry of Health. Whether the bans work to reduce smoking is less clear. A study published in 1993, which analyzed 27 years of data and is often quoted by tobacco companies, concluded that adults in countries with ad bans smoked slightly more than adults in countries without bans. The researchers surmised consumption might have gone up because health warnings disappeared along with the ads. But a recent World Bank report says that comprehensive ad bans reduced smoking by about 7% in high-income countries. ''If the (bans) didn't work, the tobacco companies wouldn't waste their time trying to stop them,'' says Stanton Glantz, professor of medicine at the University of California and a longtime tobacco critic. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 19 15:30:09 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D64932A3ED for ; Tue, 19 Sep 2000 15:30:09 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA20656 for ; Tue, 19 Sep 2000 15:30:09 -0400 Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2000 15:30:09 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Get set to cough up more, puffers - Canada on duty free Get set to cough up more, puffers / Double whammy eyed Double whammy eyed by ANNE DAWSON / OTTAWA BUREAU Source: Toronto Sun, Tuesday, 9/19/00 OTTAWA --=A0 Travelling smokers would lose their duty-free cigarettes under an anti-tobacco strategy being considered by the federal government. The Toronto Sun has learned Finance Minister Paul Martin wants to impose an export tax on all Canadian tobacco products currently sold in duty-free shops. To do this, the federal government is working with the U.S. government to come up with a plan to end the practice of being able to avoid paying tax and duty on smokes in duty-free shops. In conjunction with this measure to curb smoking, the federal government is also preparing to slap a $3-to-$5-a-carton tax on cigarettes this fall. Sources told The Sun the tax hike, which would increase the price of a carton of smokes in Ontario from $32 to a maximum $37, is expected to kick in this fall and would affect Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and P.E.I. -- the same provinces that moved in tandem with Ottawa to slash tobacco taxes in 1994 to stem cigarette smuggling. But they said it will likely take longer for Ottawa to work out a reciprocal export tax deal with Washington -- one that would not only see new taxes slapped on Canadian tobacco products purchased in duty-free shops, but on U.S. tobacco products being purchased by Americans as well. "Our objective is to ensure that there are no tax- and duty-free tobacco products circulating in the North American market, by entering into a bilateral pre-collection agreement with the U.S.," according to a Canadian government source. "The objective is to work out with the Americans a mechanism by which there would be a collection of taxes by both sides." HEALTH CONCERNS Cigarettes can now be purchased tax-free in duty-free shops, providing the traveller has been out of the country for a certain period of time. But for years health groups have pressured the federal government to stop the practice. "We want to eliminate the sale of duty-free cigarettes in Canada and ensure Canadians returning with tobacco products to Canada pay taxes on these products," said Canadian Cancer Society lawyer Rob Cunningham. "There is no justifiable reason for cigarettes to be sold without taxes -- it undermines our health objectives, reduces tax revenue and provides opportunity for tax-free cigarettes to ultimately go into the contraband market." The government source said the upcoming U.S. election is slowing down negotiations because legislative changes that would be required by Congress before the new tax-collection system could be put into operation. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 19 15:31:15 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id AF0202A3ED for ; Tue, 19 Sep 2000 15:31:15 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA20692 for ; Tue, 19 Sep 2000 15:31:15 -0400 Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2000 15:31:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris official: We'll help Israel prevent smoking among minors Philip Morris official: We'll help Israel prevent smoking among minors by Judy Siegel Source: Jerusalem Post, Tuesday, 9/19/00 A senior official of Philip Morris International appeared yesterday before the government-appointed committee to reduce cigarette smoking and declared his company wants to "help Israel" prevent smoking among children and teenagers and to promote legislation here that would bar tobacco sales to minors. However, in an exclusive interview with The Jerusalem Post, David Greenberg said that anyone over the age of 18 is "an adult and has free choice whether to smoke or not." He conceded that the tobacco company - the largest cigarette manufacturer in the world - had no intention of financing public service announcements or information campaigns to discourage smoking among anyone over 18. Greenberg is senior vice president of Philip Morris International. He was a guest of the Gillon Committee, established a year ago by then-health minister Shlomo Benizri to study ways to reduce smoking in Israel. He was the sole witness yesterday, and spoke for more than two hours. Judge Alon Gillon, a former heavy smoker and cancer survivor and now a vociferous tobacco opponent, had invited Philip Morris to send a representative to address the committee. Greenberg pointed out that in Israel, Philip Morris "voluntarily puts labels on our cigarette packs that our products are 'intended for sale to adults only,'" even though there is as yet no law that bars their sale to people over 18. "Philip Morris does not want youth to smoke" because minors are not in a position to choose, Greenberg said. But when asked by The Post about health damage to children (or fetuses) whose parents smoke and who have no say in the matter, Greenberg declared that "parents must show responsibility." Anti-smoking activists told The Post that although Greenberg works for the subsidiary that markets cigarettes outside the US, he has no say in the US company that actually manufactures them and could conceivably change its policies regarding the addition of even more harmful and addictive substances. Greenberg, 46 and a Jewish native of Missouri, told The Post that he started smoking at age 12 but quit, and that he does not want his children to smoke. His father-in-law, a heavy smoker, died of lung cancer. "But an adult is free to decide. Most people oppose a law that would bar the manufacture and sale of cigarettes," he added, pointing to the failure of Prohibition in the US. The Israel Cancer Association, which sent a representative to the hearing, said it was pleased that a senior official from the world's largest tobacco manufacturer finally admits that their product is deadly. But while it is good that the company says it opposes smoking by minors, without a comprehensive campaign there would not be much impact, the ICA said. "Most adult smokers became addicted when they were children, and even adults are unable to withstand advertisements that present smoking as an unadulterated pleasure." Rabbi Yehezkel Ashayek, personal secretary of Rabbi Eliezer Schach of Bnei Brak and board member of Degel Hatorah's newspaper Yated Ne'eman, was present at the meeting and reacted angrily to Greenberg's statements."We don't want money to be accepted from Philip Morris for educational problems. They can be sued for damages, but just as Israel didn't take money from Germany while they were still murdering Jews, we should not take money from tobacco companies while they are still killing people. There is no room for dialogue with them; we must battle against them because their products cause so much suffering and death." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Sep 19 15:33:36 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 168202A408 for ; Tue, 19 Sep 2000 15:33:36 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA20799 for ; Tue, 19 Sep 2000 15:33:35 -0400 Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2000 15:33:35 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris says Russian tobacco suit "absurd" (fwd) Philip Morris says Russian tobacco suit "absurd" Source: Reuters, Tuesday, 9/19/00 Tuesday September 19, 11:41 am Eastern Time MOSCOW, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Philip Morris (NYSE:MO - news), the world's largest cigarette company, said a lawsuit filed by the Russian government in August seeking to recover the cost of caring for Russian smokers was ``absurd.'' ``This lawsuit is without any basis in fact or law,'' Alik Tuigunov, director of Philip Morris corporate affairs in Moscow, said in a statement. ``We do not know if this suit was authorised by the necessary Russian officials. If it was, it is patently absurd. We believe the lawsuit may not reflect the true sentiments of the leadership of this government or (parliament),'' he said. The head of the Kremlin property administration office, Vladimir Kozhin, filed a lawsuit in Miami-Dade County court, Florida, on August 27, charging Philip Morris and other tobacco companies with causing suffering to Russian smokers, hiding the risks of cigarettes, and damaging Russia's economy. ``For decades, Big Tobacco's conduct has caused an incalculable loss of life, disease, disability, pain, suffering, illness and economic loss to the users of Big Tobacco's products, which economic loss was and is ultimately borne by the Federation as the provider of medical assistance,'' the lawsuit said. The suit seeks unspecified cash damages. In July, the Miami-Dade County court awarded Florida smokers $145 billion in damages against tobacco companies in a landmark case. The Russian government lawsuit has been transferred to a U.S. federal government court in recent weeks, according to a court official. Lawyers representing the Russian Federation were expected to contest the transfer. Philip Morris, which operates three factories in Russia, said it was confident the suit would be dismissed as had others from the governments of Guatemala, Ukraine, Nicaragua and the province of Ontario, Canada. It was not clear why Kozhin's office would have filed the suit rather than the government or the prosecutor's office. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Sep 24 16:57:41 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9F9EA2A05E for ; Sun, 24 Sep 2000 16:57:41 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA08509 for ; Sun, 24 Sep 2000 16:57:41 -0400 Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2000 16:57:41 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] UK Tobacco Firm Targets African Youth (fwd) UK Tobacco Firm Targets African Youth Company representatives were giving free cigarettes by James Westhead Source: BBC Online, Wednesday, 9/20/00 Exclusive by the BBC's health correspondent, James Westhead A BBC investigation has found that a British tobacco company is actively targeting young people and teenagers in Africa. Cigarettes are being handed out free at youth events specially organised by tobacco firms during school holidays. The companies insist they only give the samples to adult smokers, but there's evidence their own rules are not being followed. The investigation is a further blow to an industry already dogged by accusations of dirty tricks and dubious marketing techniques, particularly in developing countries. The company involved, British American Tobacco (BAT), has pledged to re-train its staff to stop the practice. The World Health Organisation is backing a radical international tobacco control treaty, which would include a global advertising ban. At a beach volleyball tournament in the Gambia, the organisers told the BBC it was laid on for young people during the school holidays. Here in one of Africa's poorest countries though there was another more sinister purpose; promoting cigarettes. Yellow Benson and Hedges banners were everywhere and so were young women in B&H t-shirts handing out free cigarettes in the crowd. Tobacco companies say they don't give samples to under-eighteens. But as the women helped youngsters light up many appeared under-age and no-one checked their age. One of the cigarette reps said the age limit was only fifteen before quickly correcting herself. She said: "We only give free cigarettes to big boys." 'Encouraging people' One eighteen year old told us, "Coming to the beach and handing out free cigarettes - that is encouraging people to smoke." The operation is run from London by BAT, who produce the main cigarette brands in the Gambia, Piccadilly and Benson and Hedges. The Gambia, a muslim country, used to be one of the few places where cigarette advertising was banned. After a military coup the ban was lifted three years ago and now tobacco sponsorship is everywhere. The result has been a doubling of cigarette sales almost overnight. The World Health Organisation believes it has also led to an increase in smoking among children. A recent survey it conducted across Africa found one in five under fifteen year olds now smoke. The WHO representative in the Gambia, Dr James Mwanzia, said:"It is the height of hypocrisy because, how do you sponsor a health event like a volley ball match and then give out cigarettes?" Football tournaments, music concerts, even parties are also sponsored by cigarette companies as a way of gathering young people together. Youth football teams in the Gambia can't even afford footballs, so tobacco companies hand out free cigarettes at soccer games. Following our investigation BAT say they would re-brief their teams in the Gambia as a precautionary measure to ensure their staff do not hand out free cigarettes to children under eighteeen. They insisted their own rules had not been broken. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Sep 24 18:00:09 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 032DD2A05E for ; Sun, 24 Sep 2000 18:00:09 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA09050 for ; Sun, 24 Sep 2000 18:00:08 -0400 Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2000 18:00:08 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] India bans sale of cigarettes to children (fwd) India bans sale of cigarettes to children by Sanjay Kumar Source: Reuters, Wednesday, 9/20/00 NEW DELHI (Reuters Health) - Intensifying its onslaught against smoking, the Delhi government has banned the sale of cigarettes, rolled leaf beedis used for smoking, and similar substances to persons younger than 18 years. Sales of these items have been barred altogether within 100 meters of educational institutions. The Delhi government was forced to act after a public interest writ petition in the Delhi High Court charged it with nonimplementation of the Smoking and Non-Smoker Health Protection Act, passed in 1997. The petition charged that the government was not implementing the sections of the Act relevant to keeping tobacco products away from children and adolescents. According to Delhi's health minister Dr. A. K. Walia, the ban on tobacco sales to children will come into effect immediately, and the ban on sales near educational institutions will come into effect in January 2001. Police have been given the power to implement these provisions. Violators could be fined between 500 and 1000 rupees and sentenced to up to 3 months' imprisonment. ``Tobacco smoking is increasing significantly among children and is a serious cause of concern,'' Monika Arora, from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi, told Reuters Health. Arora and colleagues studied the smoking behavior of more than 4500 children, ages 11 to 14 years, in Delhi's 30 schools and found that without behavior modification or health education interventions, nearly 8.5% children experimented with smoking. ``We noted the mean age for intervention is 12 years,'' Arora told Reuters Health. ``There is (a) rapid rise in smoking from 15 years onwards,'' she added. The data were presented last month at the 11th World Conference on Tobacco or Health, in Chicago. ``Health education interventions do make a difference, but the tobacco industry's targeting of the youth in the developing world needs to be resisted tooth and nail in the interest of their health,'' Arora said. WHO data indicate that by 2020, tobacco will be solely responsible for 1.5 million deaths in India, or 13.3% of all deaths in the country, said Dr. Harsh Vardhan, former health minister of Delhi and a consultant with the WHO-Southeast Asia Region. Goa and Delhi states have already enacted legislation curbing tobacco. India's health minister Dr. C. P. Thakur stated earlier this month that his government is contemplating legislation to ban smoking in government offices and to control tobacco use nationwide. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sun Sep 24 19:04:53 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BC9472A05E for ; Sun, 24 Sep 2000 19:04:53 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA09530 for ; Sun, 24 Sep 2000 19:04:53 -0400 Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2000 19:04:53 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ireland: Martin planning to impose new anti-tobacco laws (fwd) Martin planning to impose new anti-tobacco laws Miche=E1l Martin hopes to cut the number of people smoking by a third, writ= es=20 Alison O'Connor by Alison O'Connor=20 Source: Irish Times, Thursday, 9/21/00 The new legislation on cigarette sales proposed by the Minister for Health and Children represents a significant victory for anti-tobacco campaigners. The state of California has long been held up as the near perfect example of everything that is anti-smoking. However, Californian legislators only recently did away with billboard advertising for tobacco and it still allows advertising in the print media. Point-of-sale advertising, and cigarettes in shops deliberately placed at the eye level of young children, is still legal. While there is a greater social stigma attached to the dreaded weed in the US, the regulations and controls promised by the Minister would put Ireland to the "head of the class" internationally once they had passed into law. According to the Minister, Irish health statistics dictate a strict regime is necessary. Each year 7,000 people die from smoking-related complications and 2,000 die from lung cancer. The quality of life of thousands more is affected through illness. Mr Martin's aim is to reduce the level of smoking from 31 per cent to 20 per cent in a 10-year period. Smokers have the right to know what is in a tobacco product and the harm it can do to them, he says. The object of the legislation is to make cigarettes invisible, although without interfering with their distribution. If the laws were passed, customers would see a sign on entering a shop, which would inform them that cigarettes are on sale and of the price. However, packs of cigarettes would not be on display where children could see them. The traditional newsagent's backdrop of branded display units would end. Self-service access to cigarette vending machines would be banned. Machines such as those in pubs would have to be placed behind the counter, to ensure children did not have access to them. A system of registration for retailers will be introduced. It will feature a form of licensing, with strict penalties for those selling cigarettes to people under 18 (the age limit will be extended from 16 to 18). Retail outlets could be removed from the register and tobacco firms could be precluded from supplying that retailer. The aim, according to the Minister, is to stop retailers selling cigarettes to children. Surveys have shown 12-year-old children are frequently sold cigarettes by shopkeepers. Introducing specific times of the day when cigarettes may not be sold, such as the hours when local schools finish for the day, are also being examined. A ban on tobacco advertising in the media has been in place for some time and from the beginning of this month foreign newspapers and publications will be subject to a similar ban. According to the Minister, a complete ban on all forms of advertising is necessary because research indicates if only a 50 per cent ban is imposed a 50 per cent reduction in sales is not realised. The tobacco industry simply moves its campaigns to other media. = =20 It also uses indirect advertising and devices such as branded lighters, clothes or sponsorship. A ban on such methods is contemplated. There is concern at the multimillion-pound sponsorship by the tobacco industry of Formula One racing which is shown on RT=C9. The Minister was no= t pleased with the response from the RT=C9 Authority to his suggestion RT=C9 should use the technology available to block out the tobacco logos and that the races should be shown late at night. The Minister believes that as part of its responsibilities as a public service broadcaster the station should not show tobacco advertisements. The station's legal advice is supportive of its stance. The Minister intends to pursue the matter vigorously with the authority. The chairman of ASH Ireland, Dr Fenton Howell, said Ireland has always been progressive in terms of anti-tobacco legislation, but enforcement has traditionally been lax. Few resources have been allocated to public health departments to educate people about the dangers of smoking - in California =A3300 million has been spent in the past decade compared to around =A3500,000 here. The laws would be overseen by an office of tobacco control which would ensure tighter control on existing and new laws. "In the past even when we have had decent legislation we have singularly failed to implement it and put in place the regulations to implement it. Unless the Minister does that and puts in place the manpower the situation will remain the same. However he has given us the commitment and we would have to give him the benefit of the doubt," said Dr Howell. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Sep 25 13:22:37 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 461B42A05E for ; Mon, 25 Sep 2000 13:22:37 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA20080 for ; Mon, 25 Sep 2000 13:22:37 -0400 Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2000 13:22:36 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Gloves off in WHO tobacco campaign Gloves off in WHO tobacco campaign By Warren Giles and John Thornhill Published: September 21 2000 Financial Times As they reel from the soaring cost of lawsuits in the US, big tobacco companies are now about to be hit again, this time by tough measures under consideration by the United Nations and the European Union. Five big US tobacco companies were in July ordered by a court in Florida to pay $145bn in punitive damages to 500,000 smokers. To add to their problems, the EU is now debating a directive that would force tobacco companies to lower the maximum tar levels in cigarettes and print bigger health warnings on their packets. But an even bigger threat to the industry comes from the Geneva-based UN World Health Organisation. Next month the WHO will open hearings intended to lead to the establishment of an international convention to combat tobacco use in the organisation's 191 member states. Gro Harlem Brundtland, WHO's director general, believes that increased awareness at governmental levels of the long-term economic and health costs of smoking is swaying the debate in favour of draconian anti-tobacco measures. Half a billion people alive today are going to die from tobacco, Mrs Brundtland said, adding: "It is the only product which when used as intended, will kill one half of its consumers." She argued the real tragedy was that many people remained ignorant of the health dangers, especially in developing countries, where 70 per cent of the 10m smoking-related deaths forecast annually will occur by 2030. "It is not correct to say that they know the risks and they make a deliberate choice," the former Norwegian prime minister said in an interview. Mrs Brundtland has described smoking as a "communicable disease" - communicable through advertising. She has called for an outright ban on global tobacco advertising and sponsorship. The proposed WHO convention could also call for higher taxes on cigarettes, stricter measures to combat smuggling, and greater efforts to combat underage smoking. However, she is resigned to having to leave the final decision - to ban or simply restrict tobacco advertising and sponsorship - in the hands of the WHO's member governments: "I think there is going to be a considerable restrictive paragraph on this", giving individual governments considerable leeway. The exact form of the convention would be subject to governmental negotiations, she said. Two days of hearings on October 12-13 will offer the tobacco industry the chance to put its case for less stringent measures. While Mrs Brundtland regards the hearings as offering "an open dialogue" with the tobacco companies, the discussions are likely to be dominated by the tension that has grown since a WHO study last month exposed the lengths to which the industry had gone to undermine the WHO's anti-smoking efforts. The tobacco industry complains that the hearings allow too little room for its views, which will be limited to a five-page submission and a five-minute presentation by each company. The big companies assert the WHO is keener on confrontation than co-operation. David Davies, vice-president of Philip Morris Europe, part of the world's biggest cigarette company, says the tobacco industry acknowledges it makes risky products but can play an important role in limiting the impact on public health. It could, for example, share its research findings with public health officials and help combat under-age smoking. "Everywhere we do business we believe it is proper and necessary to have sensible regulation. And we believe there are a number of areas where we can find common ground with the WHO," he said. "The likelihood of making significant progress is greater if we work together rather than separately. "But we obviously would not support a treaty which leads to a ban on tobacco products, or a treaty that makes it impossible to provide adult consumers with affordable cigarettes. We hope it will not be a treaty that continues to foster acrimony," he said. Still, Mrs Brundtland remains unconvinced that tobacco companies can help achieve her goals. To be taken seriously, the industry must reduce the numbers of young smokers, she said. Mrs Brundtland also denied that freedom of choice to use a legal product was a legitimate defence for tobacco marketing. Pointing to a WHO survey that says one in five 13- to 15-year-olds take up smoking in developing countries and transition economies, she said: "Most people get addicted when they are young, long before we can discuss freedom of choice." While the tobacco industry insists that regulation has to be addressed at a national level, Mrs Brundtland said that proposed anti-smoking measures such as increased taxation, smuggling controls and advertising bans, did not make sense without cross-border co-operation. "But the framework convention helps every nation see the bigger picture," she said. The convention is scheduled for October 16-21. A framework convention could then be ready for the first signatories in 2003. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Oct 3 19:00:13 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5ED072A36F for ; Tue, 3 Oct 2000 19:00:13 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA19456 for ; Tue, 3 Oct 2000 19:00:12 -0400 Date: Tue, 3 Oct 2000 19:00:12 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Time Asia: Taking on Tobacco / Asia starts kicking some butts (fwd) Taking on Tobacco / Asia starts kicking some butts OCTOBER 9, 2000 VOL. 156 NO. 14 by DONALD MACINTYRE Source: Time Asia, Monday, 10/2/00 When Thailand's anti-tobacco activists launched their first campaign to ge= t=20 citizens to kick the habit, they targeted the temples. Buddhism forbids cl= ergy=20 from using intoxicants, but monks had never considered nicotine a drug. Th= ey=20 were community leaders, however=97if they could be persuaded to quit, the= =20 activists figured, others might follow. Not all gave up their smokes=97one= =20 prominent monk kept puffing until he suffered a massive heart attack last= =20 year. But attitudes are clearly starting to change. These days when local= =20 cable channels air The Sopranos, a U.S. TV drama about a New Jersey Mafia= =20 family, censors don't block any of the violence or foul language. But ever= y=20 time the characters light up, a mosaic of fuzzy squares blocks their faces= =97and=20 the offending cigarettes=97from view.=20 Although the Japanese are still puffing away madly, the rest of Asia is starting to respond to mounting public concern over the dangers of smoking. Taiwan plans to add more muscle to a 1997 tobacco-control law that includes mandatory health warnings on tobacco products. Malaysia is considering an outright ban on tobacco advertising. From Mongolia to Hong Kong, laws are getting tougher. The view that Asia is the last great open market for Big Tobacco is no longer quite accurate. Singapore and Thailand have some of the toughest smoking-control laws in the world. Even in China, the world's biggest cigarette producer and home to 500 million smokers, the gray pall is starting to clear a little. "There has been a sea change in Asia," says Judith Mackay, senior policy adviser to the World Health Organization. "The message is that developing countries can tackle this epidemic as well as, if not better than, the West." The grassroots push has been most impressive in Thailand. In the late 1980s, Philip Morris and other big U.S. tobacco companies tried to pry open the country's then-closed domestic market, enlisting Washington to threaten sanctions. Local activists quickly banded together with American and other anti-tobacco groups to fight back. In the end, Thailand did open its market but also drafted its tough anti-smoking code to head off an expected blitz of high-powered, American-style advertising. Resistance to foreign cigarettes helped to spur similar movements in Taiwan, Mongolia and many other parts of the region. At the same time, governments have started to wake up to the enormous health costs of tobacco. There are still some Asian laggards. The Philippines doesn't even bar minors from smoking. Manila does ban smoking in public, but President Joseph Estrada regularly violates the rule. In Indonesia, smoking jumped 44% between 1990 and 1997, according to the World Bank. The reason? Lack of government will and powerful cigarette lobbies, both domestic and foreign. It would be premature to count Big Tobacco out. American companies increasingly target Asian women, who smoke in much smaller numbers than men. Underage smoking is still on the rise in many Asian countries. But the tide may be turning. Smoking rates are actually falling in some countries, mostly among adult males. Whether guided by monks or not, more and more Asians are heading for the healthier path. D.M., with reporting by Robert Horn/Bangkok, Wendy Kan/Hong Kong, Ramakrishnan Mageswary/Malaysia, Cybil Chou/Taipei, Nelly Sindayen/Manila and Jason Tedjasukmana/Jakarta Write to TIME at mail@web.timeasia.com From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Oct 4 11:03:48 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 235F42A066 for ; Wed, 4 Oct 2000 11:03:48 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA27864 for ; Wed, 4 Oct 2000 11:03:47 -0400 Date: Wed, 4 Oct 2000 11:03:47 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Cigarette firms block EU ban on advertising (fwd) Cigarette firms block EU ban on advertising by Marie Woolf / Chief Political Correspondent Source: The Independent, Wednesday, 10/4/00 Tobacco firms are expected to win a legal victory tomorrow, blocking EU moves to ban advertising of cigarettes in Europe. The plan is likely to be annulled by the European Court of Justice after a legal challenge by manufacturers. The judgment would be a severe blow to health bodies that have fought for decades to have cigarette advertisements and sponsorship banned. But in Britain, ministers are preparing to trump the tobacco companies' victory by introducing a UK Bill banning tobacco advertising, which will be tougher than the stalled EU ban. The companies, including British American Tobacco, took the EU to court, claiming the directive banning their advertisements had an incorrect legal basis. The firms had thwarted British plans to implement the EU directive last December, ahead of other member states. But Department of Health sources said the legal victory could prove "a serious own goal" in Britain, because ministers are planning a crackdown on the industry. They have been working on a Bill for this year's Queen's Speech that will ban tobacco advertising in Britain and restrict the advertising of cigarette brands on clothing and other products. The ministers are under pressure from health bodies, including the anti-smoking lobby group, Action on Smoking and Health, not to abandon their manifesto commitment to ban the advertising. "The tobacco companies have used every trick in the book to stop an advertising ban but the Government has to carry out its manifesto commitment," said Clive Bates, the director of Action on Smoking and Health. "Lives depend on it." But the Conservatives are expected to oppose any Bill banning tobacco advertising. Industry representatives say they have been personally reassured by William Hague that the Tories will not support government moves to make tobacco advertising and sponsorship illegal, despite earlier indications from Liam Fox, the party's health spokesman, that the Tories may also restrict the actions of the tobacco firms. The Tobacco Manufacturers' Association (TMA), which represents big cigarette companies such as BAT, said they wanted to start a dialogue with the Government after the announcement by the European Court. "The Government has slammed the door in our face since it came to power," said John Carlisle of the TMA. "We would like to recommence the meaningful dialogue we had with the last government." This month, the Government is expected to publish its response to a damning Commons select committee report calling for a clamp on cigarette companies, including a tobacco regulatory authority. The Government will signal its determination to crack down on the industry. Ministers are also considering calls by the Select Committee on Health for a Department of Trade and Industry inquiry into claims that BAT knew its products were being smuggled. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Oct 4 14:51:11 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DBD1E2A31D for ; Wed, 4 Oct 2000 14:51:11 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id OAA00646 for ; Wed, 4 Oct 2000 14:51:11 -0400 Date: Wed, 4 Oct 2000 14:51:11 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] South Africa: Tobacco firms light way underground (fwd) Tobacco firms light way underground Source: Business Day, Tuesday, 10/3/00 TOBACCO companies are turning to guerrilla marketing as tough new anti-smoking legislation forces them to go underground. The legislation, which came into effect on Friday but allows window periods for compliance, puts an end to cigarette advertising and sponsorship. Those falling foul of the law face fines of R200000. If the health department thinks the law will put an end to cigarette marketing altogether, it is in for a surprise. Cigarette companies and advertising agencies are looking for more inventive, legal ways to market, which can broadly be defined as guerrilla marketing advertising through unconventional means: Independent Tobacco Corporation is sponsoring online lifestyle magazine Inhalex as it launches two new cigarette brands, Matrix and Rivas Park; British American Tobacco's (BAT's ) Lucky Strike brand has been bringing out foreign music bands such as Violent Femmes for secret, exclusive concerts; Alternative Johannesburg arts and clubbing venue Carfax in Newtown is redesigning the branding for BAT's Gauloises, moving away from logos and lettering. Guerrilla marketing has proved an effective way for new and marginal businesses to distinguish themselves from competitors. Carfax's proprietor, Sasha Fabris, has been spray-painting its name, logo and symbol on walls in and around Newtown. "I take a strong-looking guy with me," she says, "and the police just drive past." In 1998, about a year after launching, Gauteng youth-orientated radio station Yfm's stickers ended up on Johannesburg and Pretoria street signs, some of them changing names from, for example, Baker Street to Bakery Street. The station said the stickers were intended for fans' cars and it was not responsible for putting them on street signs. Nevertheless, it raised Yfm's profile considerably. The term guerrilla marketing has been around since the '80s, gaining currency through a book by Jay Conrad Levinson, who advised small business owners and entrepreneurs with little or no money for advertising to use their energy and savvy. There are a number of cheeky ideas for guerrilla marketing on Levinson's website. One comes from a Harley-Davidson store in the US, which advertised a "cat shoot". This drew calls from the media and animal welfare groups, which were told to come on the advertised day to find out what was going on. The "cat" turned out to be a cartoon at which one could shoot with a paint-ball gun. Another example comes from a company doing investigative work for law firms. The company put its business cards into law books in the local law library for lawyers to find and assume other lawyers had left them behind. In SA, the tobacco industry and advertising agencies have been rethinking strategies and making plans for a while, says James Robinson, creative director of agency BLGK, which handles Benson & Hedges' account. He says the idea is to find ways "to advertise without advertising" in a "dark market" adspeak for when the ban becomes effective, meaning that the advertising lights will be turned off. Craig Ludwig, design firm Delapse's client services manager for Inhalex and Matrix, believes the ban will produce some innovative marketing ideas. Tamsen de Beer, former Delapse producer for Inhalex and Matrix, says the law is so broad it remains to be seen which guerrilla tactics will be legal. Abrie du Plessis, BAT's legal and corporate affairs director, says his company will comply with the law fully, and will focus on existing consumer and trade relations. Robinson says there are many different theories on finding a different platform for cigarette marketing. Some companies have considered websites and playing with brand names and logos, such as BLGK's using only Benson & Hedges' ampersand, and putting it into phrases such as "jazz & jive". In France cigarette brand names on Formula One cars have been replaced with phrases beginning with the same letters and the same font. Robinson believes that finding loopholes in the law is not an option: once exploited, loopholes will be closed. Others in the advertising industry suggest clever use of clubs and bars, and even bar staff, as a medium for marketing. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Oct 5 11:12:47 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id EFE1F2A05E for ; Thu, 5 Oct 2000 11:12:46 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14177 for ; Thu, 5 Oct 2000 11:12:46 -0400 Date: Thu, 5 Oct 2000 11:12:46 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] New Website on global tobacco issues (fwd) The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids is pleased to announce the launch of an expanded section of its website dealing with global tobacco issues and the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. The website: http://tobaccofreekids.org/campaign/global/ has a number of new features, including: 1) A greatly expanded resources section, with links to content-packed web-sites from around the world: http://tobaccofreekids.org/research/webresources/international.shtml 2) An ad gallery, with images of tobacco advertising from around the world: http://tobaccofreekids.org/adgallery/ 3) Fact Sheets from the World Conference on Tobacco OR Health: http://tobaccofreekids.org/campaign/global/worldconference.shtml 4) Seventeen brief country case studies, courtesy of the Tobacco Free Project of the San Francisco Department of Public Health: http://tobaccofreekids.org/campaign/global/casestudies/ 5) A calendar of international tobacco control events: http://tobaccofreekids.org/campaign/global/calendar.shtml We hope that you find this site useful. We will be continually updating the site and adding new resources, so check back often! If you have comments or suggestions on how to improve the site, please send them to Jenny Foreit:(jforeit@tobaccofreekids.org). From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Oct 5 11:13:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5654A2A417 for ; Thu, 5 Oct 2000 11:13:25 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14196 for ; Thu, 5 Oct 2000 11:13:24 -0400 Date: Thu, 5 Oct 2000 11:13:24 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] European Court to rule on tobacco ban (fwd) European Court to rule on tobacco ban Source: BBC Online, Wednesday, 10/4/00 The European Court of Justice is expected to overturn a ban on tobacco advertising across Europe. The European Commission introduced legislation in 1998 which aimed to phase out all tobacco advertising and sponsorship by 2006. But the move was challenged by tobacco companies and advertisers in Germany who said the Commission had acted illegally. In June, an adviser to the European Court said judges should overturn the law. The judges are expected to follow that advice when they announce their decision on Thursday. Under the plans agreed by the Commission, most forms of tobacco advertising would be banned within three years of the legislation coming into effect. Press advertising would be allowed for a further year while sponsorship of most sports and arts events would be allowed to continue for a further two years. Sponsorship of major international events such as Grand Prix motor racing was allowed to continue until 2006. The Commission introduced the legislation as a way of harmonising different laws across the European Union. It said that the current system, where different member states had different laws, hindered free trade within the EU. But the Advocate General Niall Fennelly, who advises the European Court in Luxembourg, rejected this argument. He said the law should be killed off or watered down, so that it only covered indirect forms of tobacco advertising. A German advertising association ZAW said it expected a ruling against the legislation. A spokesman said: "If the legislation stays, this could cause a domino effect leading to similar measures in other sectors such as alcohol and cars. "The decision is a question of survival for parts of the advertising industry in Germany. The tobacco companies, which include Imperial Tobacco Group, Gallaher Group and British American Tobacco, sought a judicial review of the EU law through the UK courts. That case was referred to the European Court for a decision. 'Advertising kills' Clive Bates, director of the pressure group Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) said a ban on tobacco advertising is important. "People sometimes forget that lives are lost through tobacco advertising. It encourages adults to continue smoking and helps persuade kids to start. "Through a chain of addiction and then disease tobacco advertising ultimately kills people." He added: "We genuinely need European legislation in this area - there are over half a million tobacco deaths in the EU and this is one measure that would help." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Oct 5 11:31:24 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2E5812A061 for ; Thu, 5 Oct 2000 11:31:24 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA14695 for ; Thu, 5 Oct 2000 11:31:23 -0400 Date: Thu, 5 Oct 2000 11:31:23 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Africans Worried By New WHO Tobacco Initiative Africans Worried By New WHO Tobacco Initiative [Source: Africa News Service] 10/2/00 Nairobi - Tobacco kills millions of people annually and about 70 percent of such victims are in developing countries. There are increasing fears that tobacco could kill 10 million people annually by 2030. In Africa where provision of health services is poor, this is a big burden to governments. But, WHO's proposals may have far reaching implications as they involve the survival of millions of people whose livelihood is derived from tobacco farming. African countries are in a dilemma whether to approve the World Health Organisation's WHO proposal calling for a ban on tobacco farming. Naturally, many tobacco growing countries in Africa are up in arms against this "damning" initiative. The governments of Malawi, Zimbabwe and Kenya are fiercely opposed to the proposals arguing that the crop earns their countries millions in taxes and has helped to improve the living standards of their people. The proposals which WHO wants countries to ratify will have far reaching implications as it relates to the survival of millions of people whose livelihood is derived from tobacco farming. The WHO holds the view that cigarette smoking is as harmful a practise as pushing heroine, cocaine or cannabis sativa. It says that tobacco kills 4 million people annually, 70 percent of whom in developing countries and will be killing 10 million annually by 2030. In Africa where provision of health services is poor, this is a big burden to governments. Yet the crop is also a boom to some. In Malawi, tobacco has assumed a cult status that talks of banning it is as irresistible as it is impossible. Nearly 70 percent of Malawi's population of 10 million is dependent on tobacco. Statistics from the country's Ministry of Agriculture rank tobacco as the largest contributor to the country's Gross Domestic Product GDP. Last year, it generated US $200 million from the crop though experts predict that a potential exists to make it earn the country US $600 million. Malawi is one of the world's poorest countries and 70 percent of its revenue, which is mainly from tobacco, goes into paying its foreign debt of US $112 million. WHO's call for them to diversify to other crops from tobacco does not go down well with local farmers who have come to regard tobacco as their only source of living. "We will require some time, probably 20 years, to change from tobacco farming and this is not going to be easy. How do you suddenly tell farmers to stop tobacco farming without giving them high paying alternatives as is happening with tobacco growing now?" asked an official from the Ministry of Agriculture. Many Malawians who consider tobacco as the "green gold" share his predicament. One only needs to visit the country during the harvest season to see how the crop has changed their lives. It is the time when most shopkeepers who are mainly of Asian origin do roaring business selling bicycles, shoes and clothes. Apart from health factors, anti-tobacco lobbyists also cite its ability to render farms infertile as a major reason why banning tobacco is necessary. They also argue that the crop cannot alleviate hunger, which is a bane to many African governments. Tobacco farming is also being bandied as a major cause of deforestation in many countries. Experts say that during the drying season, each farmer cuts down 10 trees a day while it takes 15 years for planted trees to mature. But in spite of their efforts at growing tobacco, many Malawians are non- smokers and are only encouraged by its financial benefits. "Without tobacco, I will not be able to pay school fees and feed my family," says Joseph Phiri who has been growing tobacco during the past 30 years. Children's rights activists also support WHO's initiative arguing that many tobacco farms have been employing children as workers. Children constitute the core of labour force in tobacco plantations, often working without protective clothing and barefoot exposing them to the highly poisonous anti-pesticide chemical Orthene. In Kenya, where tobacco supports nearly 600,000 people, a furious debate is raging in the industry whether cigarette manufacturers are genuinely concerned with the welfare of tobacco farmers. Unlike their counterparts from other countries, the farmers are arguing that tobacco farming, being a labour intensive undertaking needs adequate compensation. Manufacturers on the other hand blame the government for imposing too much taxation on cigarettes - 160 percent- and they have to devise other means to ensure that they survive in the trade. This also explains why the Kenya government is cagey about any legislation that will disorganise the industry where it earns some US $93 million annually. The best quality tobacco fetches no more than US $1.0 a kilogramme - already cured, sorted out and baled ready for the factory. However, the same kilogramme makes 1,000 cigarette sticks. After all the costs have been worked out a kilogramme of tobacco in Kenya fetches US $32.4. Other issues like tax, employment and foreign exchange aside, industry players are asking what justification is there for a farmer to earn US $6.4 a kilogramme from the crop. The situation is markedly different from Zimbabwe where raw tobacco, that is the one that is still dripping with unrefined nicotine, fetches US $2.33. Whoever cures, grades and bales the tobacco makes a profit of at least one dollar. A factory ready kilogramme of tobacco is worth US $4. In Malawi a tobacco farmer earns US $1.6 a kilogramme. Yet in Zimbabwe and Malawi, the working environment for the farmers is far much better than that obtaining in Kenya where they are not provided with gloves, gas masks or overcoats. Despite the WHO's campaign British American Tobacco Company BAT which has a near monopoly in Africa still believes that the potential exists to expand its market reach. Already, the company is exploring venturing into new markets like Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan and Djibouti. But it will have to contend with new strict guidelines on smoking that some countries are putting in place. In Egypt, the country's Ministry of Health recently decreed that only non-smokers were eligible for promotion at work. The country has its 40 percent male and 8 percent women smokers. The number of smokers has been increasing and a 1995 WHO report says the number of smokers increased by 274 percent between 1963 and 1990. (Copyright 2000 African Church Information Service.) Distributed via Africa News Online by Africa News Service. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Oct 5 19:07:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 10B362A427 for ; Thu, 5 Oct 2000 19:07:17 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id TAA24932 for ; Thu, 5 Oct 2000 19:07:16 -0400 Date: Thu, 5 Oct 2000 19:07:16 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] EU court overturns EU tobacco advertising ban law (fwd) EU court overturns EU tobacco advertising ban law Source: Reuters, Thursday, 10/5/00 BRUSSELS, Oct 5 (Reuters) - The European Court of Justice overturned on Thursday legislation banning tobacco advertising in the European Union, dealing a major blow to EU health policy. The European Union adopted laws in July 1998 which would gradually have phased out almost all tobacco advertising and sponsorship by 2006. The move would have stopped most forms of tobacco advertising three years after coming into force. Beyond that, press advertising would have been allowed for a further year. Sponsorship of most sports and arts events would have been possible for a further two years, and of major events, such as Formula One motor racing, until October 2006. But EU powers over health policy were very limited at the time the measure was introduced, and the Commission justified its proposal as a way of harmonising differences in national laws which hindered free trade across the EU's borders. The ban was introduced as a single market measure which did not require unanimous backing from all member states, but the court said this was illegal. ``The court has annulled the directive on the grounds that EU lawmakers had no competence for introducing it on the basis of internal market legislation,'' the court said in a statement. ``It has come to the conclusion that for most of the types of advertising affected by the measure, the general advertising ban does nothing to improve trade in the affected products.'' It added, however, that the EU's governing treaty would have allowed restrictions on certain forms of tobacco advertising. Germany's advertising industry welcomed the ruling on a case originally brought by the German government and a number of tobacco firms. ``It's a huge victory for the advertising industry. The court showed the EU institutions a red card. For legal products there can be advertisements now within the EU. It's a complete success for the advertising industry,'' Volker Nickel, spokesman for German advertising association (ZAW) told Reuters. The European Commission, the author of the law, was upbeat about the result, saying the court had merely clarified what was and was not possible. ``The court has clarified the best way forward in tackling the scourge of smoking,'' Beate Gminder, spokeswoman for EU health commissioner David Byrne, told Reuters. ``(It) has left the door open for restrictions on tobacco promotion, providing the means are more focused,'' she added. It was Germany who challenged the measure in the court while a number of tobacco manufacturers -- including Imperial Tobacco Group (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: IMT.L), Gallaher Group (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: GLH.L) and British American Tobacco (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) -- brought proceedings in Britain for judicial review, a case later referred to the European Court. Tobacco stocks were not materially affected by the ruling. Imperial Tobacco was five pence up at 634 by 0850 GMT, while Gallaher Group was off five pence at 394. British American Tobacco was up three pence at 436. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Oct 6 12:21:29 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 679F32A060 for ; Fri, 6 Oct 2000 12:21:29 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA02573 for ; Fri, 6 Oct 2000 12:21:28 -0400 Date: Fri, 6 Oct 2000 12:21:28 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] South Africa: R1bn Anti-smoking Suit Filed (fwd) R1bn Anti-smoking Suit Filed by Philip de Bruin / 05/10/2000 20:46 - (SA) Source: News24, Thursday, 10/5/00 Johannesburg - Documents detailing the biggest civil action in South African legal history - a class action of R1 billion - were filed with the registrar of the Pretoria High Court on Thursday. The groundbreaking civil action marks the first time that court papers have officially been issued in a class action suit in South Africa. =20 Cases like these have already been successfully heard in the United States and England. Twenty-eight-year-old Sandton claimant, Howard Joselowitz, alleges in court papers he is instituting action on behalf of all South Africans who smoke and who have been detrimentally affected by tobacco smoke. The defendants are R J Reynolds Tobacco Company and the registrar of patents and trade marks. R J Reynolds is the South African manufacturer of Camel cigarettes, Joselowitz=92s preferred brand of cigarettes. Joselowitz has also, in the notice of motion attached to the papers, asked the court for an edictal citation (a process through which court papers can be served on people outside the country). The citation will allow Joselowitz to serve a summons on R J Reynolds's holding company in North Carolina, United States within 30 days. The R1 billion claim is divided into two categories. Joselowitz (and certain others whose names will be made known) is claiming R500 million in the class action which, if successful, will be paid into the government's Guardian Fund so that the money can be used for all victims of tobacco smoke who require medical help. He is claiming a further R500 million in his personal capacity from R J Reynolds's for violating his constitutional rights. He does not want this money to be paid to him personally, but suggests it also be paid into the Guardian Fund. He submitted that although he had been smoking for several years, he only became aware of the detrimental effect of tobacco on his health about a year ago. He said he had smoked since he was 14. Although he has often tried to break the habit, he has yielded to the "addiction" again and again. Joselowitz submitted that while R J Reynolds had no representative in South Africa, three patents in the company's name have been registered in South Africa. He accordingly asked the court to order that the patents be confiscated until the claim of R1 billion has been settled. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Oct 6 15:00:10 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C10E22A060 for ; Fri, 6 Oct 2000 15:00:10 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA06875 for ; Fri, 6 Oct 2000 15:00:10 -0400 Date: Fri, 6 Oct 2000 15:00:10 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] International Week of Resistance to Tobacco Transnationals Dear Friends, INFACT, Essential Action, American Lung Association, Environmental Rights Action, and other members of the Network for Accountability of Tobacco Transnationals (NATT), are organizing an International Week of Resistance to Tobacco Transnationals, October 9th-13th. This coincides with public hearings sponsored by the World Health Organization in Geneva on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). The events include demonstrations at Philip Morris/Kraft and B.A.T facilities, and screenings of INFACT=92s new documentary "Making a Killing: Philip Morris, Kraft and Global Tobacco Addiction," including for the media, government officials and delegates to the FCTC negotiations. The purpose is to demonstrate support for an effective tobacco control treaty, and provide a forum to discuss our positions with national FCTC delegations. Events are coming up next week, so please let us know if you plan to participate as soon as possible. So far the response has been terrific! Organizations in 43 countries are participating. We are looking forward to a very successful International Week of Resistance to Tobacco Control. The overwhelming response is inspiring and reflects the growing global support for the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. From Turkmenistan to Honduras, organizations are planning events to demand a strong treaty. INFACT has already sent out about 100 copies of "Making a Killing" at no cost to participants in developing countries for the International Week of Resistance. If you would like to order a copy of the film "Making a Killing," or if you would like to organize a demonstration or an event during the International Week of Resistance to Tobacco Transnationals, please call INFACT to let us know how you can be involved. We will post a report on the events next week. Together we can create a loud voice to demand an effective global tobacco treaty. For more information, contact Sangita Nayak or Suren Moodliar at INFACT. The phone number is (01) 617-695-2525, and the fax number is (01) 617-695-2626. Partial List of participating countries: Albania, Algeria, Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Congo (DRC), Croatia, Czech Republic, Ghana, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Latvia, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Mexico, New Zealand, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Romania, Senegal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, Ukraine, Venezuela, Vietnam, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. !# From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 9 15:30:58 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D54C12A30E for ; Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:30:58 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA22117 for ; Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:30:58 -0400 Date: Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:30:58 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Japan Tobacco studies European expansion (fwd) Japan Tobacco studies European expansion by Michiyo Nakamoto / in Tokyo Source: Financial Times, Friday, 10/6/00 Japan Tobacco, the world's third largest tobacco company, which owns the Camel and Winston brands outside the US, is considering ways to strengthen its distribution network in Europe either through partnerships with or acquisitions of local companies. Katsuhiko Honda, president, said it was time for JT to consider how the company might co-operate with local companies in Europe to strengthen its competitiveness in that market. "I think we have to consider not only M&A but alliances as well, in production and distribution," Mr Honda said. "If, in order to compete well in the European market, we can partner with someone we want to consider doing so." JT, which acquired the non-US businesses of RJR Nabisco for $7.79bn last September, is looking to expand outside its home market, which is maturing, and into other business sectors, in order to maintain growth. Mr Honda said the company does not have a specific candidate in mind but that the market environment in Europe made it ripe for consolidation. Many smaller companies were feeling the impact of increasing competition by the large tobacco manufacturers and "that is an opportunity for consolidation. We are always watching (trends) carefully," he said. Globally, JT is focussing on 11 industrialised country markets and 5 developing country markets among the 70 markets where it is represented. In addition to growth in the tobacco sector, JT is looking to expand its more recently developed pharmaceuticals and food and beverage businesses both organically and through partnerships. JT announced on Friday it would pay Y7.46bn ($68m) to acquire a 5 per cent stake in Katokichi, a frozen food maker. The acquisition follows JT's purchase of the Japanese arm of Pillsbury in 1998. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 9 15:32:04 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DA8CF2A30E for ; Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:32:03 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA22181 for ; Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:32:03 -0400 Date: Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:32:03 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Scotland: Dewar promises tobacco ban (fwd) Dewar promises tobacco ban Source: BBC Online, Friday, 10/6/00 Scotland's first minister is promising to ban tobacco advertising, despite a European Court ruling against such a move. The ruling overturned a Europe-wide directive aimed at phasing out all tobacco advertising and sponsorship by 2006. However, while Donald Dewar says the court move will present difficulties, he has told health officials that Labour will stand by its pledge to ban tobacco promotion. He delivered his uncompromising message to the General Assembly of the World Medical Association, in Edinburgh. Mr Dewar said: "Let there be no doubt, tobacco advertising will be banned in Scotland. "It is not a question of if, it is a matter of when. "I know that we will encounter opposition on the way. That is to be expected but it will not deter us. "It is wrong that vast amounts of money are being spent promoting a product that has such a damaging effect on public health." Mr Dewar pointed out that with 13,000 Scots dying from smoking-related illnesses each year, the executive must act decisively. Acted illegally The first minister said: "That is the same as the Edinburgh to Heathrow shuttle crashing, with all lives lost, once a week, every week." The ban was challenged by international tobacco companies and advertisers in Germany. The European Commission was found to have acted "outside its competence" when it introduced a directive in 1998 to phase out all tobacco advertising. The director general of the Cancer Research Campaign, Professor Gordon McVie, said that the ruling would cost "thousands of lives." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 9 15:34:22 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 119652A30E for ; Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:34:22 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA22279 for ; Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:34:21 -0400 Date: Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:34:21 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Foreign tobacco cos. eye China following WTO opening China Has 350 Million Smokers; Foreign=A0=A0Tobacco Firms Eager To Butt In Source: China Online, Saturday, 10/7/00 (6 October 2000) Tobacco companies worldwide are most likely holding their breath in anticipation of China=92s entry into the World Trade Organization= =2E When China joins the WTO, the world=92s last massive tobacco market will be opened to international tobacco makers, according to a recent report by U.S.-based Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Co. investment bank. With 350 million smokers, China is the world=92s largest tobacco market, th= e report said. Chinese smokers outnumber the entire U.S. population, according to the Sept. 20 Zhongguo Huanjing Bao (China Environment News). Based on a survey of private and state-owned enterprises in China, Morgan Stanley concluded that free trade and domestic demand for high-end tobacco products will force open Chinese tobacco markets to foreign products. The surveyed companies produce 45 percent of the global market share. Morgan Stanley predicts that China will forfeit the domestic monopoly of its tobacco market when it joins the WTO, an invitation for transnational tobacco companies to enter the world=92s last major untapped market. Asia consumes half of the world=92s tobacco. However, cigarette sales revenue is relatively low, since most cigarettes sold in Asia are inexpensive products, the article reported. The state-owned China Tobacco Corporation, the largest tobacco producer in the world, currently dominates the Chinese market. The corporation=92s market value is estimated at US$24.5 billion and it posted US$11 billion in sales revenue last year alone, according to the article. Cigarettes made by China Tobacco Corporation account for 92 percent of China=92s consumption, a full one-third of the global total. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 9 15:57:11 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5FE722A30E for ; Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:57:11 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA22820 for ; Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:57:10 -0400 Date: Mon, 9 Oct 2000 15:57:10 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] EC to speed tobacco rules (fwd) EC to speed tobacco rules by Michael Smith in Brussels and Haig Simonian in Berlin Source: Financial Times, Monday, 10/9/00 Published: October 5 2000 18:47GMT * Last Updated: October 9 2000 The European Commission is expected to bring forward new legislation prohibiting tobacco advertising after the European Union's court of justice on Thursday annulled a 1998 directive for a blanket ban. David Byrne, health commissioner, said that in spite of the adverse ruling, the court had expressly recognised the EU's power to legislate restrictions on tobacco promotion. Promising new measures to tackle smoking he said: "We need to ensure that the legislation concerned and the legal base are compatible." Tobacco companies, which successfully mounted the advertisements challenge with the German government, gave notice that they would be viewing the ruling for its implications on another EU measure to cut smoking. John Carlisle, a director of the UK's Tobacco Manufacturing Association, said at least some parts of a directive on tobacco contents and labelling appeared to be illegal and, following Thursday's advertisements ruling, the industry would consider its legal options. The contents and labelling directive is likely to be adopted by the EU soon. Mr Byrne said he did not expect the advertising ruling to affect it. Germany and the tobacco companies challenged the advertising directive on the grounds that it was essentially a health measure rather than one to facilitate the single market, the grounds on which the EU justified it. The court ruled that the general prohibition of numerous types of tobacco advertising "in no way" helped to facilitate trade in the products concerned. Imposition of a wide-ranging ban was "tantamount to limiting the means available for economic operators to enter or remain in the market". But partial bans on certain forms of advertising and sponsorship could be justified on single market grounds. The directive, adopted in July 1998, would have phased out tobacco advertising and sponsorship, such as Formula One racing, in stages until 2006. The FIA world governing body of the motor sport agreed earlier this week to ban tobacco sponsorship in 2006 in spite of Thursday's ruling, which had been expected. Several countries, including France, Finland and Denmark, have already banned various forms of advertising. The UK, whose proposed laws were successfully challenged directly by Thursday's ruling, confirmed yesterday it would bring forward primary legislation to ensure an advertising prohibition. Werner Muller, German economics minister, said the decision marked an important precedent, "otherwise, one could ban everything possible . . . and we want to avoid that". By contrast, German health lobbies called the decision a setback. Philip Morris, cigarette manufacturer, said the court ruling did not resolve the fundamental issue of whether and how advertising should be regulated. It pledged to work with the EU to ensure sensible regulation. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Oct 10 12:10:19 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id CC5492A3B1 for ; Tue, 10 Oct 2000 12:10:13 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA03173 for ; Tue, 10 Oct 2000 12:10:13 -0400 Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 12:10:13 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] ASH UK report on tobac industry youth smoking initiatives DANGER! PR in the Playground: tobacco industry youth smoking initiatives 10 October 2000: Tobacco companies such as BAT and Philip Morris are guilty of a sickening fraud over teenage anti-smoking initiatives. Companies have adopted a public posture of opposition to teenage smoking and even funded anti-smoking initiatives for teenagers. But an investigation by ASH and The Cancer Research Campaign has revealed that this is no more than a sinister and cynical public relations strategy. The purpose is to fend off meaningful restrictions on tobacco advertising and gain PR advantage, while proposing only measures that are unlikely to reduce youth smoking and likely make it more attractive by positioning cigarettes as an adult product and smoking as rebellious. To see the full report and related information, go to http://www.ash.org.uk/html/press/001010.html and follow the links. Robert Weissman Essential Information P.O. Box 19405, Washington, DC 20036, USA Tel: 1-202-387-8030 Fax: 1-202-234-5176 www.essential.org From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 16 23:03:45 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 7D76C2A3E1 for ; Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:03:45 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA06220 for ; Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:03:45 -0400 Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:03:45 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Tobacco companies split over tactics on WHO treaty (fwd) Tobacco groups split over tactics on WHO treaty by Frances Williams / in Geneva Published: October 12 2000 20:14GMT Source: Financial Times, Thursday, 10/12/00 Philip Morris of the US and British American Tobacco, the world's biggest tobacco multinationals, were split on Thursday over tactics in their common effort to dilute the provisions of a World Health Organisation anti-smoking treaty. On the first of two days of public hearings on the WHO's proposed framework convention on tobacco control, both companies acknowledged unequivocally that smoking was addictive and dangerous. Negotiations on the treaty between the WHO's 191 member states begin next week in Geneva. Philip Morris on Thursday claimed to support a "strong" international convention curbing tobacco use worldwide, especially measures to discourage youth smoking. "Sensible regulation of tobacco benefits society and consumers everywhere," David Davies, vice-president for corporate affairs, told a news conference, adding that Philip Morris wanted "a constructive partnership" with WHO. BAT, by contrast, which also says it supports "sensible regulation" such as action on youth smoking, reiterated its view that tobacco control should be left to national governments. Chris Proctor, BAT's head of science and regulation, accused the WHO of an "imperialistic" approach by dictating what measures governments should adopt. Both statements were met with scepticism by anti-smoking campaigners and by the WHO, which in August published a detailed report on past efforts by Philip Morris, BAT and others to subvert its tobacco control programmes. Matthew Myers, of the US-based Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said "facts, evidence and actions" belied Philip Morris's words, noting recent company lawsuits against public health moves to curb smoking in the US. Derek Yach, who heads the WHO's tobacco-free initiative, said the tobacco companies were carefully expressing support for weak measures, for instance on education programmes for children, while opposing those shown to be most effective in deterring youth smoking, such as higher tobacco taxes. Dr Yach said if Philip Morris really believed in a strong convention it should stop trying to persuade governments to oppose higher tobacco taxes by propagating the "economic mythology" that this would produce lower revenues. Philip Morris's support for a strong convention perhaps referred to one "written on metallic paper", he said. The framework convention, due for adoption in 2003, will set out broad objectives for reducing tobacco use. It will be supplemented by legally binding protocols on specific measures such as taxation, advertising and sponsorship, health warnings and reduced subsidies for tobacco growers. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 16 23:05:20 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 729262A3F7 for ; Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:05:20 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA06244 for ; Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:05:20 -0400 Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:05:20 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Authors say don't follow Canadian example when it comes to curbing tobacco smuggling (fwd) Authors say don't follow Canadian example when it comes to curbing tobacco= =20 smuggling Source: CNEWS, Thursday, 10/12/00 TORONTO (CP) --The world needs an arms-control style convention to stop the massive problem of international cigarette smuggling, two European researchers write in this week's British Medical Journal. =A0A key feature of their argument: Do not, under any circumstances, follow the Canadian example and cut tobacco taxes to try to curb smuggling. =A0"I'm afraid that's the message. Don't, for goodness sake do not do what they did in Canada," co-author Martin Raw said Thursday from London. =A0"The results were an absolutely disaster," said Raw, a public health consultant and senior lecturer at the school of medicine at the University of London. =A0His co-author is Luk Joossens, a consultant with the International Union Against Cancer in Brussels. =A0The article, published Friday in the British Medical Journal, was timed to coincide with World Health Organization public hearings -- held Thursday and Friday -- in Geneva on a proposed international framework for tobacco control. =A0Next week, governments from around the world will sit down in Geneva to begin the first phase of negotiations for the framework. A final text is to be written by 2002. =A0The framework must address cigarette smuggling, which is out of control around the world, the article says, noting about six per cent of the world's cigarettes are sold tax-free on the black market. =A0Raw and Joossens aren't talking about small-scale smuggling, where someone drives in a van to a place where cigarettes are cheaper and smuggles them across a border. They call that "cross border bootlegging" and say it's a tiny portion of the smuggling problem. =A0The real issue is what they call "container fraud" -- where tobacco manufacturers export massive supplies of cigarettes from one jurisdiction to another. They sell the cigarettes, on which no taxes were paid in the country of manufacture, to dealers, who in turn sell them to smugglers who bring them back into the country of origin, Raw said. =A0"That's the main smuggling market. A third of global cigarette exports are estimated to disappear into the contraband market." =A0Some governments -- Canada is a prime example -- try to combat smuggling by cutting tobacco taxes, which make up anywhere from a low of 52.9 per cent of the cost of a pack of 25 (in Quebec) to a high of 71.2 per cent (in Newfoundland). =A0Canada and several central provinces slashed tobacco taxes in 1994 in th= e face of widescale cigarette smuggling through Mohawk reserves that straddle the U.S. border in Quebec and Ontario. =A0A study released last year by Physicians For a Smoke-Free Canada looked at the implications, five years on, of the decision. =A0Youth smoking increased. Overall smoking decreased, but more slowly in the provinces with low taxes. Federal coffers lost $5 billion. And cigarette makers, who seized the occasion to raise their prices, ended up with an additional $1 billion in revenues, said executive director Cynthia Callard. =A0Still, Callard doesn't fault Ottawa and the provinces for cutting tobacc= o taxes in 1994, but wonders why nothing has been done in the interim to find another way to deal with the problem. =A0"It was a crisis," she said of 1994. "And decisions reached in a crisis are never optimal. But our major concern now is that it's six years later and there's been no progress." =A0Raw and Joossens noted that Spain had a similar problem with smuggling from Andorra, even though Spain had some of the lowest cigarette prices in the European Union. =A0Instead of following the Canadian example, Spain worked with a number of neighbouring governments to crackdown on smuggling and has made serious inroads. In 1995, contraband cigarettes made up 15 per cent of Spanish cigarette consumption. In mid-1999, the figure had dropped to five per cent. =A0Raw insisted that cigarette makers who want to export should have to jum= p through some of the same types of hoops that gun manufacturers do. =A0"We need an international convention to treat cigarettes a bit like arms -- you must have end-user certificates or end-market certificates. And the onus must be placed on the manufacturers to prove that if they had English health warnings on them, that they went to England via legal routes." =A0Some tobacco manufacturers, such as British American Tobacco, have said they believe in "sensible regulation." But Raw warned tobacco manufacturers should not have a seat at the table when controls are drawn up. =A0"My personal view is that this is not an industry that you negotiate with. Because this is not an industry that is trustworthy. Not remotely. =A0"You regulate. You do not negotiate with them." =A0 From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 16 23:06:22 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B34F02A3FA for ; Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:06:22 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA06256 for ; Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:06:22 -0400 Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:06:22 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Economist: The tobacco war goes global (fwd) The tobacco war goes global The World Health Organisation is trying to organise an international campai= gn=20 against the demon weed Source: The Economist, Friday, 10/13/00 SMOKING has long been a battleground between those who wish to pursue one of life=92s licit pleasures and those who wish to stamp out one of public health=92s major scourges. This month, a new front opens in the tobacco war= s as the World Health Organisation (WHO), in Geneva, gathers those on either side to begin negotiating an international treaty on tobacco regulation=97the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. For the anti-smoking advocates, the convention offers an unprecedented opportunity to get adults around the world to give up, to prevent youths from starting, to clear the air for non-smokers and to make cigarettes safer for those who persist in puffing. For the opposing pro-freedom lobby, it is damning evidence that the WHO is meddling in matters of social and economic policy far beyond its traditional medical remit, and marks a misguided attempt at supranational regulation of a problem far better tackled by countries on their own. The WHO=92s head, Gro Harlem Brundtland, has singled out tobacco as one of the greatest public-health problems of the new century. There are over 1 billion smokers worldwide, four-fifths of them in developing countries and a third in China alone. Tobacco-related illnesses such as lung cancer and heart disease kill 4m people a year, as many as AIDS and tuberculosis combined. By 2020, the toll of premature deaths will rise to 8.4m a year, with more than two-thirds of the victims in poor countries. The WHO reckons that this global ill is spread by means which cross borders=97such as television and Internet advertising (legal) and smuggling (less legal)=97and which therefore require international standards and a concerte= d international effort to combat. In recent years the rich world has made progress in reducing smoking by using a variety of instruments, among them price increases on cigarettes through taxation, and restrictions on tobacco-company advertising and sponsorship. The WHO would like to see the same measures put in place in poor countries which are still in the early phases of the =93tobacco epidemic=94, as the organisation calls it. Derek Yach, head of the WHO=92s communicable-disease programme, says it is hard for many poor countries to fight against the efforts of the tobacco companies that are now making headway in Asia, Africa and Latin America. He hopes that an international convention will give these countries moral, as well as technical, support in their fight against =93big tobacco=94. This is the first time that the WHO has flexed its constitutional muscles and tried to pull together an international treaty on public health. Its mandate to do so comes from a meeting of the World Health Assembly last year. At that meeting health ministers representing 191 member states gave it the green light to assemble working groups to come up with possible measures, or =93draft elements=94, that might go into a framework conventio= n. Next week sees the start of wider-ranging formal discussions on the convention. National representatives come together in an =93inter-governmental negotiating body=94 to start working out the administrative details of how to proceed with such a massive undertaking, and perhaps begin some serious wrangling over which draft elements should find their way into the core framework convention and which should be included in related protocols. The negotiating body has until May 2003 to deliver the goods to the World Health Assembly. If that body approves the convention and protocols, these will head back to national legislatures for ratification; if enough sign on the dotted line, then they will become international law. Pipe dreams At the moment, a long list of draft elements lies on the table. It includes proposals to harmonise taxes on tobacco products at some internationally determined minimum rate, of which a certain percentage would have to be spent on national tobacco-control programmes. (At the moment, more than two-thirds of the price of a packet of cigarettes in rich countries goes to the government in tax, compared with less than half in poor countries.) Tax-free sales might be banned. Governments would be obliged to tackle smuggling through such measures as better monitoring of what is for sale and better information exchange with their neighbours. Ways might have to be found to ease tobacco-growing countries out of their main crop and into something else worth their while. Tobacco sales to children might be prohibited, and non-smokers protected from exposure through smoking bans in schools, restaurants, buses and other public places. International standards might be put in place specifying which toxic ingredients and nasty additives would have to appear on cigarette packets, along with what sort of health warnings. Manufacturers could be obliged to omit terms such as =93light=94 or =93mild= =94 from their packets. Tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship could be outlawed, especially when directed at children. Countries might have to ensure that their legal systems provide recourse for those who wish to sue tobacco companies for injury, and come to some international agreement on laws for liability and compensation. What will end up in the final agreement is anybody=92s guess. Even the wording of the convention=92s main objective=97=93achieving a reduction in tobacco use=94 versus =93putting an end to tobacco use in any form=94=97is = up for grabs. Many national delegations which enthusiastically support a convention, such as Britain and Thailand, and non-governmental organisations such as Action on Smoking and Health, are hoping for a document that is worded strongly enough to galvanise governments into action, but not so detailed that countries refuse to ratify it because of squabbles over technicalities. Snuffed out? Yet many of the draft elements seem neither feasible nor desirable. Blanket prohibition of advertising contravenes some national or supranational regulations on freedom of commercial expression or free trade, as a recent European Court of Justice ruling overturning the European Union=92s directive prohibiting tobacco advertising has shown. Different places also have different ideas about how far smoking should be tolerated. Bans on smoking in restaurants or bars are less likely to be accepted in China, say, than they are in California. And the genuinely cross-border aspects of the issue are actually quite narrow: in the end, it comes down to smuggling. All this suggests that the idea of a wide-ranging international convention is itself misconceived. It remains to be seen whether such objections will be given a proper airing on October 12th and 13th in public hearings involving hundreds of groups, from the Adorers of the Blood of Christ, a women=92s missionary movement, to Philip Morris, regarded by many as the Satan of tobacco. Smokers, the billion or so people who like a cigarette, seem oddly under-represented. However, other voices often forgotten in the wrangling over tobacco in the rich world=97farmers=92 associations from major tobacco-growing countries such as Malawi or cottage-industry producers of traditional tobacco products from India=97have been allocated a few minutes and a few pages on the convention=92s website to express their views. This is not enough for the major cigarette companies, such as British American Tobacco, which complain that the WHO has done its best to exclude them from the preparatory stages of the convention. Unlike non-governmental organisations, which have official observer status at the negotiations, the only way the industry gets a look-in is through representatives who have managed to slip on to national delegations. Chris Proctor, head of regulatory and scientific affairs at British American Tobacco, reckons that the tobacco industry has valuable experience to bring to the table in helping the WHO tackle, say, youth smoking. The WHO, however, is unapologetic about cold-shouldering the tobacco-industry devils. Dr Yach reckons there are some areas where dialogue is possible with tobacco companies, among them the regulation of technical issues such as tobacco product claims, and new developments in lowering tar and nicotine levels. But asking them for help on, say, taxes or advertising is unlikely. =93Would you ask the fox to run a protection programme for the chickens?=94 he asks. Such froideur has no doubt been deepened by recent events. In August, the WHO published the results of an investigation into the tobacco industry=92s dirty-tricks campaign against the organisation. Some of the firms=92 method= s went beyond normal advocacy (discrediting the WHO in the press and plotting to set the body and other UN organisations against each other) and extended to covert surveillance of WHO meetings, subversion of its staff, and attempts to distort the findings of scientific studies showing tobacco=92s ill-effects. Dr Brundtland likens the role of the tobacco industry in creating health problems to that of the mosquito in causing malaria: both are blood-sucking, disease-spreading parasites. Despite the provocation, that kind of language can hardly be conducive to rational debate. But critics of the convention charge that the WHO is not concerned with such debate. Rather, it is latching on to tobacco to foist a western agenda on to developing countries, and to advance a campaign of political self-aggrandisement. It is, they point out, spending its scarce resources on tobacco, which kills in later life people who have chosen to smoke, rather than concentrating on the infectious diseases that kill innocents in the developing world in their youth. They warn of =93mission creep=94, and say that once the WHO has corralled member states into regulating tobacco, then alcohol and fatty foods will be next. The WHO denies these charges but has itself noted: =93The success or failur= e of this approach provides a test case for the more active involvement of the public-health community in international law-making.=94 Would more active involvement of that kind be such a good thing? From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 16 23:13:38 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 116542A427 for ; Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:13:38 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA06362 for ; Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:13:37 -0400 Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:13:37 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] How can cigarette smuggling be reduced? (fwd) How can cigarette smuggling be reduced? Joossens and Raw 321 (7266): 947 BMJ 2000;321:947-950 ( 14 October ) by Luk Joossens, consultant a, Martin Raw, honorary senior lecturer b.=20 Source: British Medical Journal, Friday, 10/13/00 a International Union Against Cancer, EU Liaison Office, rue de Pascale 33,= =20 1040 Brussels, Belgium, b Department of Public Health Science, Guy's King's= and=20 St Thomas's School of Medicine, University of London, London Correspondence to: L Joossens joossens@globalink.org The tobacco industry has argued that tobacco smuggling is caused by market forcesby the price differences between countries, which create an incentive to smuggle cigarettes from "cheaper" countries to "more expensive" ones. The industry has urged governments to solve the problem by reducing taxes, which will also, it says, restore revenue. The facts contradict all these assertions. Smuggling is more prevalent in "cheaper" countries, and where taxes have been reduced, such as in Canada, consumption has risen and revenue fallen. There are, however, countries that have solved the problem by better control, Spain being the most impressive example to date, and the new World Health Organization framework convention may at last promote control of tobacco smuggling at the level at which it must be tackledglobally. Tobacco smuggling has become a critical public health issue because it brings tobacco on to markets cheaply, making cigarettes more affordable and thus stimulating consumption, consequently increasing the burden of ill health caused by its use. Smuggling is not a small phenomenon: we have estimated that, globally, a third of legal cigarette exports disappear into the contraband market.1 This extraordinary proportion results in a second key effect of smugglingthe loss of thousands of millions of dollars of revenue to government treasuries. We also showed in our earlier studies that tobacco smuggling defies apparent economic logic. Common sense might suggest that cigarettes would be smuggled from countries where they are cheap (southern Europe, for example) to expensive countries (such as northern Europe) and that this is due simply to price differences between these countries, as the tobacco industry claims. Although this does happen, it is not the largest type of smuggling, and in Europe there is far more smuggling from north to south rather than the reverse.2 In fact, smuggling occurs in all parts of the world, even in regions where taxes are low. One internal document of BAT (British American Tobacco), the largest European international tobacco company, estimated that 318 billion (nearly 6%) of world cigarette sales of 5300 billion were DNP (duty not paid) cigarettes, an industry term for contraband.3 Eastern Europe and the Asia-Pacific region accounted for most of this, at about 85 billion each, although Western Europe was also important at about 50 billion. In relation to total market sales, volumes of DNP cigarettes are largest in Eastern Europe (about 13%) and in Africa and the Middle East (about 12%) but are also substantial in Latin America (about 9%) and Western Europe (about 7%). Western Europe has the highest prices in the worldin 1996 they were four to five times higher than in Africa, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe4yet, despite these high prices, smuggling is on average lower than in other regions of the world. In other words, cigarette smuggling is not caused principally by "market forces." It is supply driven, caused mainly by fraud through the illegal evasion of taxes. Summary points Cigarette smuggling occurs in all parts of the world, even in regions where taxes and prices are low The solution to combat smuggling is not to decrease taxes, as this will increase consumption and decrease revenue Spain has been successful in combating smuggling by reducing the supply of illegal cigarettes Only action to control cigarette transit at international level will solve the smuggling problem Yet the tobacco industry has lobbied governments to reduce tobacco tax, arguing that this will solve the smuggling problem and increase government revenues. This is not true: when the Canadian government reduced cigarette tax in response to industry pressure the results were disastrous. Tobacco smuggling not only makes tobacco available cheaply but also sabotages national tobacco taxation and tobacco control strategies. Its key characteristic is not cross border shopping and bootlegging but large scale fraud in which millions of cigarettes evade duty and appear on the contraband market. The true beneficiaries are the tobacco companies.2 In this article we suggest solutions to combat smuggling which follow logically from a true understanding of its cause. Methods Smuggling is illegal trade, which means that statistics are often not reliable. Customs and excise authorities in various countries do make estimates but often don't publish them. Apart from figures quoted from published articles, our sources for estimates of smuggled cigarettes have been customs authorities, and for tax revenue tax and health authorities. Often these are based on conversations, exchanges at conferences, or documents unofficially handed to us, but they are rarely "published" or otherwise in the public domain. Countries' responses to smuggling Canada and Sweden Canada and Sweden reduced their taxes on tobacco products because of concern about increased smuggling. In Canada the negative consequences for public health and tax revenue are now well documented. After the Canadian tax reductions in 1994 the real price of cigarettes fell by a third. The prevalence of smoking increased in teenagers from 16% to 20% and also increased in the population as a whole.5 Federal tax revenues fell by $C1200m, more than twice as much as predicted.6 In Sweden the data needed to evaluate the impact of the tax reduction are yet not available. Two substantial tax increases, in December 1996 and August 1997, raised cigarette prices by about 43% to roughly $6 a pack. They increased tax revenue and reduced cigarette smoking in Sweden.7 However, in response to the perception that smuggling was becoming a problem (and to lack of public support for the tax increases) the 1997 tax rise was repealed in August 1998.7 Data on smoking prevalence for 1999 are not yet available, but, as table 1 shows, tax revenue was lower than in the previous two years (Paul Nordgren, National Institute of Public Health, Stockholm, personal communication). View this table: [in this window] [in a new window] Table 1. Swedish tobacco tax revenue (data from National Institute of Public Health, Stockholm) View this table: [in this window] [in a new window] Table 2. Excise revenue from tobacco sales in Spain (data from Spanish Customs and Excise) Canada is important for another reason. The key to the story was the export by Canadian manufacturers of Canadian cigarettes to New York State (where there is no market for them as US smokers mainly smoke US brands), from where they were smuggled back into Canada. At the very least, the tobacco industry could be said to have facilitated the smuggling by supplying the cigarettes. In fact, in 1998, for the first time, a tobacco company was convicted for assisting in a smuggling operation. An affiliate of RJR Nabisco pleaded guilty to charges of helping smugglers illegally re-route export cigarettes into Canada. The affiliate, Northern Brands, agreed to pay US$15m in criminal fines and forfeitures for its involvement in these illegal activities. In 1999 the Canadian federal government launched a US$1bn lawsuit in Syracuse, New York, against R J Reynolds companies and the Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers' Council, alleging that the cigarette makers ran a vast illegal smuggling operation. An employee of Northern Brands, to which the cigarettes were exported, pleaded guilty of being in charge of selling eight billion contraband cigarettes into Canada, but RJ Reynolds denies that it played a role in encouraging this. 8 9 It is clear that more and more governments now feel that the tobacco industry has a case to answer in relation to tobacco smuggling. In recent months Canada, Columbia, and Ecuador have filed lawsuits against US tobacco companies for smuggling. Although the Canadian suit was dismissed in July 2000 on jurisdictional grounds, Canada has now appealed.10 The European Commission announced in July 2000 that it plans a civil suit against US cigarette makers for alleged involvement in smuggling,11 and in Britain the Parliamentary Health Select Committee has called for an investigation by the Department of Trade and Industry into the alleged involvement of BAT in smuggling.12 Spain and Andorra Spain is one of the few countries in the world to have tackled smuggling successfully. It did not do so by reducing tobacco tax. Despite Spanish cigarettes being among the cheapest in the European Union, smuggled cigarettes had a market share of 15% in 1995.2 One of the sources of smuggled cigarettes in Spain and the European Union was Andorra. In 1997 there was concerted action at national and European levels to reduce the supply of contraband cigarettes. Close collaboration between the authorities in Spain, France, Britain, Ireland, and Andorra and the European Anti Fraud Office (OLAF) reduced the supply of smuggled cigarettes from Andorra. Actions included sealing the Andorran border, civil guard brigades patrolling valleys and hills to make smuggling more difficult, and political pressure on the Andorran government by the European Union and its member states that forced it to create new legislation making it illegal to smuggle tobacco into neighbouring countries.13 As a result contraband cigarettes, which had accounted for 12% of the Spanish market in early 1997, held only 5% by mid-1999 (Ignacio Garcia, Customs and Excise, Madrid, personal communication). Sales of legal cigarettes increased from 78 billion in 1997 to 89 billion in 1998, and tax revenue increased by 25% in the same year (Jesus Lauzurica, Customs and Excise, Madrid, personal communication) (see table 2 ). According to the Spanish customs authorities, their success was not due to controlling distribution at street level, which is almost impossible, but to reducing the supply into the country at "container level" through intelligence, customs activity and cooperation, and technology (Ignacio Garcia, Customs and Excise, Madrid, personal communication). (Credit: GERARD JULIEN/AFP) Customs officers checking a container of contraband cigarettes at the port of Marseille Andorra is important because it illustrates the role of the tobacco industry. Andorra was not only supplying illegal cigarettes to the Spanish market but also to Britain. Exports from Britain to Andorra (which has a population of only 63 000) increased from 13 million cigarettes in 1993 to 1520 million in 1997. Since few of these cigarettes were legally re-exported and Andorran smokers do not generally smoke British brands, then either each Andorran (including children and non-smokers) was smoking 60 British cigarettes a day in 1997 or these cigarettes were being smuggled out of Andorra. It seems obvious that the companies would know what was happening to their cigarettes. In a television interview on the BBC's Money Programme of 8 November 1998, a spokesperson for the tobacco company Gallaher said: "We will sell cigarettes legally to our distributors in various countries. If people, if those distributors subsequently sell those products on to other people who are going to illegally bring them back into this country, that is something outside of our control." In response to the interviewer's comment, "I suggest it is within your control, because you could stop supplying them," the spokesperson said: "That would do nothing to influence the degree of smuggling because the smugglers would just bring back somebody else's product." United Kingdom Tobacco smuggling has become a problem in Britain relatively recently and has been driven by the increased price of cigarettes in Britain compared with the rest of Europe (over =A34 or $6 a packet) and the high value of sterling. As with Canada, smuggling became a problem as mainly domestic brands became available to smuggling networks outside Britain which brought them illegally back into the country. British customs and excise authorities have estimated that the contraband market increased from 3% in 1996-7 to 18% in 1999-2000 and that lost revenue increased from =A3680m in 1996 to =A32500m in 1999.14 Again the tobacco industry has argued that this is due to market forces. Again, however, the real problem is not "tourist" cross border shopping and bootlegging but container fraudthat is, the disappearance into the contraband market of container loads of cigarettes exported by the tobacco industry, as illustrated by Andorra. Customs and excise estimate that in 1999 =A350m of revenue was lost from smuggling by air passengers, =A3340m from cross channel bootlegging, but =A31400m from container smuggling.14 This is essentially because a containe= r holds 5-10 million cigarettes, rather than a few thousand, and has a higher profit margin because the cigarettes are exported duty unpaid (rather than duty paid but from a cheaper country). Thus a container of 10 million transit cigarettes (duty not paid) can be bought for $200 000 and sold for about $2m, a very attractive profit margin. The UK government has responded by announcing measures that include a network of scanners for detecting containers, prominent fiscal marks on cigarette packs, increased punishment, more customs officers, and a campaign to increase public awareness. By its own admission, the government hopes to contain rather than eliminate the problem.14 Given the clear incentive of the tobacco industry to make cigarettes available to smugglers, a real crackdown on smuggling will require controls on cigarette transport, something that will require concerted action at international level. Conclusions Andorra shows that tobacco companies view contraband markets as simply one area of market competition. In an extraordinary admission, the deputy chairman of BAT (a former minister for health) recently said: "Where any government is unwilling to act or their efforts are unsuccessful, we act, completely within the law, on the basis that our brands will be available alongside those of our competitors in the smuggled as well as the legitimate market."15 An editorial in the Guardian the following day said that this was an incredible admission: "He has openly admitted that the company supplies cigarettes knowing that they are likely to end up on the black market."16 A generous conclusion would be that the tobacco industry transports containers of a product worth $1-3m with astonishing recklessness. In fact, as we have shown, the real problem is fraud, and the real solution must therefore be to control, through international treaty, the transport of this valuable and dangerous product. One of the problems has been that the manufacturers have been technically within the law, arguing that what dealers do with their (legally sold and bought) cigarettes is not their business. Similar arguments have proved socially and politically unacceptable when the product is arms, and so we recommend that tobacco export and transit should be controlled by mechanisms similar to those for arms control. In October 2000 the World Health Organisation will start negotiations for a framework convention on tobacco control. A specific protocol could deal with tobacco smuggling. It could, for instance, require "chain of custody" markings on all packages of tobacco products, placing the onus on the manufacturers to show that cigarettes arrive legally in their end user markets. Manufacturers might also apply for export licences for cigarettes. Only such action at international level will resolve the problem, but it has now been shown to be soluble. Acknowledgments We thank Teresa Salvador, Joan Villalbi, Paul Nordgren, Clive Bates, and David Sweanor for providing information and for helpful comments on a draft of this paper. Footnotes Funding: This research was supported by the Cancer Research Campaign (UK) and the National Institute for Public Health (Sweden). Competing interests: None declared. References 1. Joossens L, Raw M. Smuggling and cross border shopping of tobacco in Europe. BMJ 1995; 310: 1393-1397[Full Text]. 2. Joossens L, Raw M. Cigarette smuggling in Europe: who really benefits. Tobacco Control 1998; 7: 66-71[Abstract/Full Text]. 3. BATCo Global Five-year Plan 1994-1998 (BB0153/DEP0274/500018206/). In: =20 www.ash.org.uk/smuggling (accessed 21 Sep 2000). 4. Market Tracking International. World tobacco file 1998. London: Market Tracking International, 1998. 5. Health Canada. Survey on smoking in Canada, Cycle 1 fact sheets. Ottawa: Health Canada, 1994. 6. Sweanor D. The smuggling of tobacco products. Ottawa: Smoking and Health Foundation, 1997. 7. Joossens L, Chaloupka FJ, Merriman D, Yurekli A. Issues in the smuggling of tobacco products. In: Jha P, Chaloupka FJ, eds. Tobacco control in developing countries. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000:393-406. 8. Marsden W. Tobacco insider talks major firms were deeply involved in cross-border smuggling, former executive says. Gazette 1999; Dec 18: 1. 9. Attorney General of Canada. Complaint for damages and injunctive and declaratory relief. United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, New York, December 1999. 10. Bourgard G. Government to appeal case against tobacco smuggling. Department of Justice Canada press release, Ottawa 28 July 2000. =20 http://canada.justice.gc.ca/en/news/nr/2000/doc_25476.html (accessed 21 Sep 2000). 11. Reuters. The EU will sue American tobacco companies on smuggling. Brussels: Reuters, 20 July 2000. 12. House of Commons Select Committee on Health. Health Committee second report session 1999-2000. The tobacco industry and the health risks of smoking. London: Stationery Office, 2000. 13. Commission of the European Communities. Protecting the communities' financial interests and the fight against fraudAnnual report 1998. Brussels: European Communities, 1999. (COM (1999) 590 final.), 14. HM Treasury, HM Customs and Excise. Tobacco smugglers toldYour time is up. 22 Mar 2000. www.hmce.gov.uk/notices/hmt-ce1.htm (accessed 21 Sep 2000). 15. Clarke K. Dilemma of a cigarette exporter. Guardian 2000 Feb 3:19. 16. A dirty business. Guardian 2000; Feb 4: 21. (Accepted 10 August 2000) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 16 23:15:29 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9D3002A427 for ; Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:15:29 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id XAA06386 for ; Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:15:29 -0400 Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 23:15:29 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert Weissman To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=X-UNKNOWN Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Brundtland Statement on Hearings (fwd) Statement WHO/6 13 October 2000 WHO DIRECTOR-GENERAL'S RESPONSE TO THE TOBACCO HEARINGS In response to my call for all parties interested in providing their views about the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control ( FCTC), WHO received over 500 written submissions which were immediately made accessible for public scrutiny on WHO's website. Representatives of over 160 organisations are currently providing oral testimony in Geneva. They represent most major tobacco multinationals and state tobacco companies, as well as several tobacco farming groups along with a diverse range of public health agencies, women's groups, community based organisations and academic institutions. All groups with a commitment to public health expressed extreme concern about the impact of tobacco use on the current and future health of populations, especially in developing countries. They urge rapid and decisive action. In contrast, most tobacco companies concentrated on what they believe to be the boundaries of 'reasonable' and 'appropriate' actions. Some questioned the role of WHO and the FCTC process in promoting action and making progress to reduce the public health impact of tobacco. Further, several tobacco companies continued to deny that passive smoking constitutes a threat to health. In general, the tobacco companies have indicated support for policies and measures that are known to have a very limited impact on youth and adult consumption of tobacco. They appear to be against the interventions that WHO, the World Bank and public health experts have identified as having a measurable and sustained impact on tobacco use. These are a combination of=20 =B7 increased excise taxes,=20 =B7 bans on tobacco advertising, sponsorship and marketing,=20 =B7 controls on smoking in public places,=20 =B7 expanded access to effective means of quitting,=20 =B7 tough counter-advertising and =B7 tight controls on smuggling. I hope that Member States will focus on these interventions as they deliberate about the measures to be included both in the FCTC and in their national laws and policies. In much of their testimony, companies that are part of the tobacco industry focus on political, financial and human rights issues. They re-state well known predictions that international action to reduce tobacco use will lead to sudden and massive job losses, people driven further into poverty and threats to the sovereignty of nations. As we heard from other groups, these predictions do lead to genuine concern among decision makers: however, careful research has also shown that in most cases the predictions have no evidence base. It thus seems likely that the companies are trying to confuse the negotiating process that will be taken forward by delegates from WHO's 191 Member States. They seek to do this just before the FCTC Intergovernmental Negotiating Body which starts Monday the 16th of October. A diverse group of organisations from developing countries provided different views of the impact of tobacco on farmers in rural communities. Some groups described the fears of tobacco farmers about the certainty of their future livelihood. While these fears are understandable, there is no evidence to suggest that they are justified. However there is a need for careful study of the way in which long-term reductions in tobacco demand impacts on the supply of tobacco products in the long term. This would help with the identification of communities and countries that may have legitimate concerns about their vulnerability. =20 It would indicate the options that exist to minimise potential hardship over the next few decades. Such work is underway - and being carried out in collaboration between FAO, the World Bank, US Department of Agriculture, Canada's IDRC, Sweden's SIDA and WHO. During the hearings several tobacco companies have indicated that they are shifting their marketing policies - towards a "middle ground". Some spoke of wanting a "reasonable dialogue", and desiring to work towards "practical and realistic solutions". WHO takes the view that Governments must be cautious about what this means in practice. There is one underlying reality which we must all keep in mind - tobacco remains the only legal consumer product that kills half of its regular users. The WHO position, based on available evidence, is that there are four ways to reduce the harm to health caused by tobacco. First, prevent youth and non-smokers from starting. Second, encourage and support smokers to quit. Third, stop non-smokers, including unborn babies, from being exposed to tobacco smoke. And fourth, reduce the levels of harmful constituents in tobacco products. WHO supports comprehensive effective policy measures to tackle all four approaches. Action on the first three ways has already led to health gains in many countries. Product modification and efforts to develop what tobacco companies call "less harmful" products may take some time to have an impact, and - as is publicly acknowledged by major tobacco companies - there is still no safe cigarette. Our analyses suggest that there is a stark contrast in positions of WHO and most Member States on the one hand, and those of the tobacco companies. We in WHO urge the immediate implementation of the measures that are known to have a sustained impact on reducing tobacco use. We would wish that this can be undertaken without interference by tobacco companies. However, it appears that tobacco companies will continue to oppose measures that effectively reduce the number of new smokers and current smokers. Their actions suggest that they will - in the long term - try to reduce the harm caused by their products. Despite our concerns about these clear differences in position, we are committed to hearing how the tobacco companies do propose to reduce the harm that their products cause. Our Scientific Advisory Committee is charged with proposing appropriate national and international tobacco product regulatory frameworks. We have invited tobacco company scientists to provide their views on product modification to this Committee later today. Gro Harlem Brundtland, M.D. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Oct 18 13:19:15 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 62C382A060 for ; Wed, 18 Oct 2000 13:19:15 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA10693 for ; Wed, 18 Oct 2000 13:19:11 -0400 Message-ID: <39EDDB16.8B4569E6@essential.org> Date: Wed, 18 Oct 2000 10:17:10 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Hungary: Under the Influence of Big Tobacco A Taste of the West / Developing Countries Come up Against Big Tobacco Hungarian Town Under the Influence of Big Tobacco by Lucrezia Cuen HUNGARY/GAMBIA; Source: ABC News, Wednesday, 10/18/00 Dobo Square, the main square in the town of Eger, Hungary. Smoking is on the upswing in Eastern Europe and critics charge that American tobacco company marketing is getting people hooked at an alarming rate. (Molnar Istvan Geza) L O N D O N, Oct. 18 — In the Hungarian town of Eger, northeast of Budapest, if you asked directions to its 13th century castle or its famous therapeutic baths the answer might go something like this: “Head down past the Philip Morris symphonic orchestra, take a left when you see the Philip Morris sponsored county hospital, a few blocks further you should pass the Philip Morris AIDS prevention program, and when you see the Philip Morris homeless shelter you are almost there.” “This situation is not unique,” says Tibor Szilagyi, Secretary of Health 21 Hungarian Foundation, which raises money for health projects. “It’s happening in many Hungarian cities. Tobacco companies are entering every segment of Hungarian society.” When Eastern Europe opened up, Western cigarette manufacturers moved swiftly to capture the market. They not only open new plants but also poured money into local communities. Governments have become dependent on tobacco money, which now flows into schools, student scholarship programs, police and fire brigades, the Red Cross, even anti-smoking programs. Tobacco companies say this is simply good corporate citizenship. Critics say at best it’s an attempt to buy influence and at worst it is veiled marketing to the most vulnerable in society. When Philip Morris sponsored an anti-smoking campaign in Hungarian schools in 1996 it used the slogan, “We don’t want our children to smoke. Smoking is an adult habit.” The campaign was a spectacular failure. On the streets of Mexico City a young smoker. Anti-smoking activists charge tobacco companies are targeting children in the developing world. (Tobacco Free Kids) “Cigarette smoking among secondary-school pupils shot up 20 percent,” says Szilagyi, “It was just a trick, they knew what they were doing.” In Hungary today more than 40 percent of adults smoke cigarettes. The government is now struggling to fund health services burdened with a 150 percent increase in lung cancer cases among men and a 200 percent increase for women. Exporting an American Problem Over the past decade the Western tobacco market has continued to decline. Big American tobacco companies responded by increasing marketing efforts in Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa. More and more of those efforts are coming under fire. Tobacco companies have sponsored disco nights from Moscow to Beijing and Sri Lanka where free cigarettes are handed out at the door. In Gambia, the British American Tobacco recently sponsored beach volleyball games during a school break where young women on the sidelines hand out free cigarettes. In struggling countries where people dream of the opportunities in America, billboards offer them, “The Taste of Freedom,” in cigarettes sold in red, white and blue packs. Tobacco companies have even tried getting sponsorships of zoos in India. Anti-smoking groups claim the companies are focusing special attention on the “untapped markets” of women and children in the developing world. “This is the worst single thing we do to the rest of the world,” says former US Ambassador to Hungary, Mark Palmer an outspoken critic of the tobacco companies. The World Health Organization maintains tobacco use is killing four million people a year globally. If left unchecked, WHO claims the death toll will climb to 10 million annually by the year 2030 and 70 percent of those deaths will be in developing countries. “There is one underlying reality we must all keep in mind,” said WHO chief Gro Harlem Brundtland, ex-premier of Norway and a medical doctor, “Tobacco remains the only legal consumer product that kills half its regular users.” Bitter Battle In what is bound to be a long, difficult fight, the World Health Organization is taking on Big Tobacco, seeking a global treaty to ban tobacco advertising, sponsorship and marketing worldwide. Officials from 191 governments have been meeting in Geneva to begin negotiating the treaty that would not only target advertising but could raise cigarette taxes, cut output, ban vending machines and control under-age smoking. Big Tobacco, which wants to avoid a global avalanche of litigation, is trying to convince WHO it’s serious about reducing the harm caused by cigarettes. “We agree that smoking is addictive,” David Davies, vice president of corporate affairs for Philip Morris Europe admitted to a World Health Organization panel. He even acknowledged that smoking causes lung cancer and heart disease but said it would be wrong to expose tobacco companies to U.S.-style lawsuits in the rest of the world. Tobacco companies say they will support “sensible regulation,” but defend their right to sell and advertise cigarettes. Analysts say the draft treaty, which is being negotiated this week, is a noble effort but unlikely to have teeth because many countries may vote against the tough proposals. Tobacco firms are lobbying governments vulnerable to their influence — governments like Hungary’s — torn between needing the money tobacco firms provide and desperate to curb smoking and its crippling health costs. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Oct 18 18:03:38 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id AC70C2A060 for ; Wed, 18 Oct 2000 18:03:38 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA19070 for ; Wed, 18 Oct 2000 18:03:38 -0400 Message-ID: <39EE1DC1.66FC5C6B@essential.org> Date: Wed, 18 Oct 2000 15:01:37 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] British American Tobacco Invests N1.6 billion In Nigeria >British American Tobacco Invests N1.6 billion In Nigeria > >By Sulaiman Abubakar > >LAGOS, October 10 (NENO) - After nearly 40 years of existence as a quoted >company, the Nigerian Tobacco Company (NTC) will next month be swallowed up >by British tobacco giant, British American Tobacco (BAT), which is putting >up a N1.6 billion cigarette manufacturing factory in Lagos, industry >sources told NENO. > >Public notice of the BAT move came up in newspaper advertisements last week >and outlined the rites of passage into oblivion of NTC and the process of >emergence of BAT which owns nearly 60% of the Nigerian company. > >First, BAT would acquire the 40% shares of NTC, which are held by local >Nigerian investors, making the shareholders, in the words of industry >sources, "an offer they cannot refuse". This is thought to be at least two >and half times the current nominal value of 50 kobo per share. > >The merger proposal will be formally tabled before an extraordinary general >meeting of the shareholders of NTC on October 27. Approval, according to >industry sources, is as good as given since NTC has been performing rather >poorly in the market in recent years. > >Investors who have received no returns from cigarette sales in the last 5 >years would, in BAT's calculations, jump at the opportunity to go home with >far more than the current market value of their shares. > >All the existing staffers of NTC are also being offered "very generous" >severance benefits though it is thought that a good number would be >retained by the new company. > >NTC has seen its turnover decline from 2.286 billion naira in 1996 to only >1.602 billion naira in 1996. A pretax profit of 143.68 million naira in >1999 contrasts with the 280.4 million naira earned in 1996. > >The company has been a victim of a sophisticated, highly connected >syndicate of local and international smugglers which swamp the market with >cheap foreign imports, ironically including BAT manufactured cigarettes. >Paying no excise or other taxes, said one former senior employee of NTC, >such imports largely smothered the market for local cigarette manufacture. >Smuggled imports account for 9 billion of the 11 billion sticks of >cigarette smoked in Nigeria annually. > >Over the last two decades, NTC has had to progressively cut back its >operations closing its Ibadan factory and concentrating on cigarette >manufacturing at its factory in Zaria, northern Nigeria. It is not yet >known what would be the fate of the Zaria factory when BAT starts >manufacturing in Lagos. > >NENO > >_______________________________________________________________________ > >Copyright 2000 Online Media Ltd. All rights reserved. Nigeria Economy News >Online (NENO) is published by Online Media Ltd, 67 Norman Williams Street, >S.W. Ikoyi, Lagos. Tel/fax: 234-13205140 CompanyEmail: >onlinemedia@hyperia.com Enquiries: infoneno@metrong.com Letters to the >editor: lettersneno@metrong.com Editors: Sully Abu, Dulue Mbachu, Inatimi >Spiff. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Oct 19 11:18:40 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B00612A060 for ; Thu, 19 Oct 2000 11:18:40 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA02374 for ; Thu, 19 Oct 2000 11:18:40 -0400 Message-ID: <39EF1056.67921E60@essential.org> Date: Thu, 19 Oct 2000 08:16:38 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Danish smoker sues tobacco company Danish smoker sues tobacco company by CNN Denmark DENMARK; Source: CNN, Thursday, 10/19/00 COPENHAGEN, Denmark -- A 53-year-old man from Denmark is suing Scandinavia's biggest tobacco company on charges that it failed to warn him about the dangers of smoking. The man has been smoking cigarettes made by the Danish Scandinavian Tobacco Company -- which operates in more than 15 countries -- for nearly 35 years. Speaking on behalf of his client, lawyer Anker Laden-Andersen said the plaintiff had failed to kick the habit even though he tried everything possible to quit smoking, including nicotine patches, hypnosis and other therapies. "We want to know, what has been added to the tobacco, and if any hidden substances have been added to get smokers addicted," the lawyer said. The man and Laden-Andersen have also called for the state to formally begin legal proceedings against the tobacco company. It is not known whether the man is suffering from any smoking-related illnesses. In a similar court case in Norway, Scandinavian Tobacco Company is being sued by a man who has been smoking for over 50 years and now suffers from cancer. The man says the tobacco company failed to warn customers about the dangers of smoking. Scandinavian Tobacco Company has expressed confidence that it will be acquitted in both cases. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 23 12:51:41 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4265F29AE8 for ; Mon, 23 Oct 2000 12:51:41 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA16577 for ; Mon, 23 Oct 2000 12:51:41 -0400 Message-ID: <39F46C21.B144D68B@essential.org> Date: Mon, 23 Oct 2000 09:49:37 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Indian smokers now taking tobacco firms to court Indian smokers now taking tobacco firms to court by Dhiman Chattopadhyay Source: The Times of India, Monday, 10/23/00 CALCUTTA: More and more smokers in India are taking tobacco companies to court for "not warning them early enough and strongly enough" about the ill-effects of smoking and chewing tobacco. Their logic is simple: Most school or college students, they argue, buy loose cigarettes and not a whole packet when starting off. Therefore, carrying a statutory warning on each packet is clearly not enough, they argue. Moreover, with cigarette advertisements banned on television, potential smokers are getting access to the killer puff without being told, each time they open the TV set, that consuming tobacco can kill. Thirty-three-year-old Ashish Banerjee for instance, (not his real name) was addicted to cigarettes. He smoked more than three packets a day and was known among friends as a 'chain smoker.' Today, cancer has eaten away the insides of his mouth. Part of his tongue and the inside of his cheek has been sliced off to prevent the disease from spreading. The sales officer in a Calcutta-based firm admits he made a 'grave error in judgment' as a college students, when he took up smoking to impress his friends. And he is determined to ensure that others do not follow in his footsteps. He has filed a petition in a local court, seeking a complete ban on the sale of cigarettes, pan masala and tobacco inside college premises and within 100 metres of schools. "I was inspired by a man in Ahmedabad who took a well-known tobacco company to court after being diagnosed with cancer of the mouth. He can barely speak, but has been raising his voice against the sale of tobacco and pan masala in the market," he said. "The government should compensate those suffering from cancer caused by tobacco. The statutory warning on tobacco pouches does not serve any purpose," he said, adding that the warning should clearly state that tobacco causes cancer instead of "beating around the bush". But unlike in Gujarat where the court has admitted Vishrolia's petition and issued notices to the health, revenue and finance departments of the state government, The West Bengal government seems the least bothered. Nowhere in the Writers' Buildings - the centre of state power - is smoking banned. From corridors to air-conditioned rooms, smokers abound every corridor. "It is difficult to impose a law banning smoking when so many ministers themselves are chain smokers", a state government employee working in the Writers' Buildings said on Sunday. According to health minister Partha De, government offices should ban smoking within the complex to set an example. "We have already prohibited the sale of cigarettes in public places like railway stations, public vehicles, hospitals and schools. We also plan to impose a ban on selling tobacco in cultural complexes," he said. A survey conducted by an international tobacco control network says 92 per cent of children in India consume tobacco. An estimated 600,000 people die every year in India because of cancer-related diseases, it adds. "Indians are learning the hard way that whoever told them they needed a cigarette in their hand to feel like a man, was lying," the survey report noted. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 23 13:30:20 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id AC84229AE8 for ; Mon, 23 Oct 2000 13:30:20 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA17461 for ; Mon, 23 Oct 2000 13:30:16 -0400 Message-ID: <39F4752C.DD967162@essential.org> Date: Mon, 23 Oct 2000 10:28:11 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Africa: Tobacco Groups Target Women Tobacco Groups Target Women by Khadija Magardie / Mail and Guardian (Johannesburg) ; Source: All-Africa.com, Friday, 10/20/00 Johannesburg Health activists are concerned about a vigorous advertising campaign to recruit more women smokers, particularly in developing countries. Latest statistics from the World Health Organisation (WHO) indicate there are about a billion smokers worldwide - less than 12% of which are women. But, women's health activists say, this figure is expected to mushroom rapidly in the next 10 years, due to what they call a deliberate, vigorous campaign by tobacco advertisers to "recruit" women smokers. What is more worrying, they say, is that the adverts appear more inclined towards women in previously untapped markets - in developing countries. At public hearings held by the WHO last week, the growing number of women who smoke and are addicted to nicotine was one of the issues highlighted. The South African-based Health-e News Service reported that delegates appealed to the WHO to "support measures to protect women from the persuasive images used in cigarette advertising". South Africa, particularly, has seen a proliferation of tobacco adverts featuring women - which appear to be following a carefully planned strategy. Nearly all the billboards and glossy magazine adverts (tobacco may not be advertised on television) associate a smoking woman with youth, sophistication, femininity, glamour and, most significantly, independence. The Johannesburg-based Women's Health Project (WHP) has done extensive research on tobacco advertising campaigns and women in developing countries, particularly in Africa, and recently published an academic paper entitled: How to make tobacco control policies more gender sensitive. Using data collected in South Africa, the United Kingdom, Sweden and China, the WHP found that tobacco advertisers constantly promote the idea that smoking equals "emancipation" or "liberation" for women. One well-known billboard advertisement for a popular cigarette brand, which can be found on nearly every Johannesburg highway, features a young blond woman sitting on a park bench, with a lit cigarette in her hand. "Do I look like I'd cook you breakfast?" reads the caption. Another, for the same brand, has a young, big-busted woman stepping out of a shower, her body glistening and a faint smile on her lips. The caption: "Do I look shy?" According to freelance writer Ginger Otis, who has published work on the subject of women and tobacco advertising on the Internet newsgroup, Women's Wire, it would be easy to dismiss the adverts as "typical", were it not for the fact that the idea of equating women's liberation and freedom with lighting a cigarette is still a new, potentially damaging image being flighted in countries unaccustomed to it. The adverts, she says, appear to be "frighteningly effective at convincing young women that it is cool to smoke". The main problem of marketing cigarettes to developing countries is one of resources. With many countries in Africa devoting most of their health resources to fighting infectious diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and, now, HIV, such countries often have what Otis calls "limited medical capacity and little infra- structure for early cancer detection, or other programmes to limit the harm of smoking". According to the United States-based advocacy group, Tobacco Free, smoking poses various health risks to women that often prove more dangerous than to men. Women who smoke and use oral contraceptives, for instance, have an increased risk of strokes and cancer, as well as high risks of osteoporosis and cervical cancer. In addition, tobacco companies tend to market "light" brands to women - which have been proven to be associated with rare and potentially fatal tumors in lung tissue. Nicola Christofides, a researcher at the WHP, says it is becoming increasingly evident that tobacco adverts are "gendered" in nature, and it is necessary for health workers to "disconnect concepts of gender equality and cigarette smoking". She quotes the journal, Tobacco Reporter, which has reported that women smokers are likely to increase as the percentage of the total number of smokers. The journal attributes this to the fact that "women are adopting more dominant roles in society, and have increased their spending power". All this, says Christofides, has made women a prime target for tobacco advertisers. The image of "smoking equals freedom", says Christofides, is aided by the fact that the advertising depicts sophisticated or trendy women smoking with men - a sign of "gender equality". The new tobacco legislation, which comes into effect next April, aims to regulate not only smoking habits, but tobacco advertising as well. Among other things it will affect tobacco sponsorships for sports and music concerts. Advertising will also be stringently regulated. According to Christofides, the new laws are a welcome step towards decreasing the numbers of young people, especially women, from smoking. "It is clear from tobacco industry documents that women are specifically being targeted. A complete ban of advertising is therefore recommended as an integral part of a comprehensive, gender- sensitive tobacco control policy." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Oct 24 12:47:35 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6362229AE8 for ; Tue, 24 Oct 2000 12:47:35 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA16032 for ; Tue, 24 Oct 2000 12:47:35 -0400 Message-ID: <39F5BCAA.957CFBC6@essential.org> Date: Tue, 24 Oct 2000 09:45:31 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Moldova, caving to IMF pressure, to privatize tobacco industry Moldova Agrees To Privatize Wine and Tobacco Enterprises 16 - 22 October 2000 by Maria Diaour-Antonenko MOLDAVA; Source: Transitions Online, Sunday, 10/22/00 PRAGUE--The Moldovan parliament on 19 October passed legislation privatizing wineries and tobacco enterprises by a vote of 55 to 36, with only the Communist Party voting against. The bills' previous delay caused the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank to suspend financial and other assistance programs to the country in 1999. With the Moldovan economy largely dependent on these two industries "the decision of the parliament is one that has no other alternative," INTERLIC news agency quoted President Petru Lucinschi as saying. Carlos Elbirt, resident representative of the World Bank in Moldova, remarked that the legislature's action is "a good step toward the recovery of the Moldovan national economy." The passage of the bills should free up more than $50 million in aid that had been on hold--$35 million from the second tranche of World Bank structural adjustment funding and $15 million from the Dutch government, according to the news agency. The IMF and World Bank had insisted on the privatization of these two largest sectors of the Moldovan economy as the only way to economic reform. Given corruption in past privatizations, the majority of the Moldovan population is believed to hold negative views of the process. With this in mind, the president advised government that "The privatization of these enterprises should be transparent and serious investors should be attracted to it. The government should proceed from the priority interests of the country, its economic recovery, creating new job opportunities and raising the population['s] living standard." Communist Party leader, Vladimir Voronin, however, is far from optimistic: "Only the blind do not see that from the outset of the so-called reforms, which made Moldova one of the poorest countries in Europe and the CIS, it has been this predatory privatization that has served as a well-thought-out and well-adjusted mechanism for the monstrous, unsurpassable plunder of the people for the fabulous enrichment of a narrow group of swindlers and rogues. ... Today you have hammered the last nail in the coffin of the national economy, but your joy at this privatization is premature." The following day, the leaders of the Communist Party voted to suspend participation in the parliament's plenary sittings. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Oct 24 12:50:58 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 935E929B2C for ; Tue, 24 Oct 2000 12:50:58 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA16111 for ; Tue, 24 Oct 2000 12:50:58 -0400 Message-ID: <39F5BD75.E3BD58FE@essential.org> Date: Tue, 24 Oct 2000 09:48:54 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Smoking - Africa's lurking killer Smoking - Africa's lurking killer Source: News24, Monday, 10/23/00 Nairobi, Kenya - Saturation advertising by international tobacco companies is in large part responsible for the steady increase in smoking in Africa over the past decade, a policy planning group said on Monday. Statistics indicate that the incidence of smoking in African countries ranges from an estimated low of 15 percent of the adult population to a high of 67 percent, according to the group, which includes legislators from English-speaking African countries, representatives of the World Health Organisation, the US-based Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Bank, the Organisation of African Unity and non-governmental organisations. The rate of the annual increase in smoking in Africa is estimated to be 2.5 percent higher than the rate of increase in other developing countries, the group said in a statement. "Tobacco is itself a disease, an epidemic and communicable," said Lardja Sanwougu, of the World Health Organisation's Tobacco-Free Initiative for the region. "Unlike other diseases that are transmitted by virus ... the vector transmitting it is advertising." Sanwougu spoke at the opening of a five-day meeting on tobacco control policy and programming in the region. The Geneva-based WHO is planning a global convention to draw up a treaty on tobacco regulation through which signatory nations would agree to enact stringent legislation. Participants addressing the meeting said cigarette sales in developing countries have increased by 80 percent since 1990. Sanwougu said although there are no figures available on tobacco-related deaths in Africa, in 1998 at least 4 million people world-wide died from tobacco-related ailments. CDC official Lawrence Green said tobacco-related diseases are projected to become the biggest killer in Africa in the next 20 years, causing more deaths than Aids, malaria, tuberculosis, maternal mortality, automobile crashes, homicides and suicides combined. In a faxed statement, British American Tobacco, one of the main multinational tobacco companies operating in the region, expressed concern that the tobacco industry and governments were being excluded from the policy-making process on how tobacco use would be regulated. BAT proposed that the convention: come up with a series of recommendations or guidelines, not a legally binding regulation; give all stakeholders, including government departments and the private sector "a proper chance to input their views"; and "recognise that those sovereign governments, not Swiss bureaucrats, are best placed to regulate on tobacco". The statement said the WHO convention "would appear to be an attack on Kenyan sovereignty". In a statement, WHO Regional Director for Africa Ebrahim M Samba said countries need to develop comprehensive tobacco control programmes to protect the health of their populations. "It takes the entire community - youth, educators, health workers, clergies, general public and doctors to fight the deadly epidemic," Samba said. "You, as representatives of NGOs, ministries of health and the World Health Organisation play an important role in developing these programmes." He said the tobacco control programmes should include legislative actions, public awareness programmes, increased taxes on tobacco products, bans on advertising and promotion and restricting smoking in the workplace and public places. Parliament in Kenya is expected to debate a draft bill on tobacco regulation during its current session. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Oct 24 16:27:46 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2DFC629AEE for ; Tue, 24 Oct 2000 16:27:46 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA22613 for ; Tue, 24 Oct 2000 16:27:46 -0400 Message-ID: <39F5F045.DBD0D076@essential.org> Date: Tue, 24 Oct 2000 13:25:42 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Washington Post on FCTC Tobacco's Smoke and Mirrors The Washington Post Monday, October 23, 2000; Page A22 THE TOBACCO industry, which sells products that kill millions of people each year, is doing its best to sound reasonable. Earlier this month David Davies, a senior official at Philip Morris, admitted that smoking is addictive and causes disease. That represented an advance: Until quite recently, Philip Morris only conceded that tobacco was addictive "as that term is commonly understood"; and the firm used to cite evidence for tobacco's links to illness without saying whether or not it agreed with it. Admittedly, Philip Morris still maintains it is proud of its death-dealing products. But it professes itself eager to work with an international effort to regulate tobacco that got underway last week at the World Health Organization in Geneva. How eager? For the moment, the industry seems to be pushing the least effective type of reform: It wants new regulations that would allow it to market supposedly safer cigarettes. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a safe cigarette. In the United States, R.J. Reynolds has begun advertising what it claims is a "reduced-risk" cigarette, but this month a study commissioned by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health suggested that this product is no safer than "ultralight" brands already on the market. Besides, even if a genuinely safer cigarette could be found, people might smoke more, so "safer" might turn out to be more dangerous. The goal should be to encourage smokers to quit and to prevent the tobacco firms from hooking new smokers. Higher cigarette taxes are a start. A recent study by the World Bank found that a 10 percent rise in cigarette prices might induce 40 million people to quit smoking and deter others from acquiring the habit, so preventing about 10 million premature deaths. Marketing restrictions can help too, especially in the developing world--where current restrictions are lax and smoking is spreading quickly. The World Health Organization is pushing both responses at its Geneva meeting. If tobacco firms were to support these, it would be time to take their new image seriously. © 2000 The Washington Post Company From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Oct 24 16:35:50 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0ED2C29AEE for ; Tue, 24 Oct 2000 16:35:50 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA22899 for ; Tue, 24 Oct 2000 16:35:49 -0400 Message-ID: <39F5F229.C7F3D761@essential.org> Date: Tue, 24 Oct 2000 13:33:46 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] WHO Pushes for Tough Anti-Tobacco Rules in Africa, OAU Wary WHO Pushes for Tough Anti-Tobacco Rules in Africa by David Mageria AFRICA; Source: Reuters, Tuesday, 10/24/00 NAIROBI, Kenya (Reuters) - The World Health Organization Tuesday urged tougher anti-tobacco policies in Africa, but the OAU is worried the drive could undermine political and economic stability if farmers are not given alternatives. Parliamentarians and health experts from 21 African English-speaking countries are meeting in Nairobi as the WHO whips up support for its tobacco control campaign. The organization is calling for higher taxes, bans on tobacco advertising, restrictions on smoking in work and public places and active enforcement of the policies. ''Action must be taken to stop this preventable epidemic, and you Honorable Parliamentarians play an important role,'' WHO's regional director for Africa, Dr. Ebrahim Samba, said in a message circulated at the meeting. But faced with declining economic growth, political uncertainties and a host of other deadly diseases, African governments are calling for caution. ''To curtail the production of tobacco without sustainable and viable choices may create political instability when African economies are either fragile or stagnant,'' the Organization of African Unity's (OAU) Dr. Laban Masimba told the meeting. Cigarette smoking in Africa has increased steadily in the last decade and is estimated to be 2.5 percent higher than the rate of increase in other developing countries. Tobacco firms have invested heavily in Africa and contribute huge sums to the coffers of cash-strapped governments which have hesitated to take on the big tobacco firms. Thousands of people are employed by these companies and the crop itself is grown by millions of peasant farmers. Tobacco is a key foreign exchange earner for countries like Zimbabwe and Malawi and is also an important cash crop in Tanzania, South Africa, Egypt and Kenya. Who Says Tobacco To Become Leading Killer But WHO hopes to make governments understand that cigarette smoking undermines the health of their populations and dealing with its effects eats substantially into their budgets. ``The goal is not to pressure countries to stop tobacco production but rather work together to develop strategies to assist them in becoming less dependent on tobacco,'' Samba said. WHO says worldwide, tobacco will soon kill more people than the combined toll from HIV, malaria, tuberculosis and automobile crashes and suicides. Although WHO has promised to help countries develop alternatives to tobacco growing, the OAU says the problem is far more complex than that. It cites losses that African countries would run if they reduced tobacco output at a time when the World Trade Organization (news - web sites) is urging global tariff cuts which would result in an expansion of the tobacco market. The problem of health should be looked at in the context of overall human development, said Masimba, a senior policy officer in the OAU's public health section. ``Factors which impact negatively on human health should be treated as a package rather than in a fragmented manner, he said.'' From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Oct 25 15:24:49 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 902A429AE8 for ; Wed, 25 Oct 2000 15:24:49 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id PAA18244 for ; Wed, 25 Oct 2000 15:24:49 -0400 Message-ID: <39F73304.5098CB78@essential.org> Date: Wed, 25 Oct 2000 12:22:44 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] bulgarian tobacco privatization planned October 24, 2000 Dow Jones Newswires Bulgarian PM: Privatization Rules Change For Transparency Dow Jones Newswires SOFIA -- Bulgaria's government is planning to amend privatization regulations in a bid to increase transparency and "regain (the public's) trust in the process," Prime Minister Ivan Kostov said Monday. Kostov briefed reporters about a new privatization strategy the government drafted for the forthcoming sales of key public utilities including state-owned telecommunications, water, sewage and electric companies, as well as the state railways and tobacco monopoly Bulgartabac. Bulgaria's privatization has been marred by complaints of lack of transparency and allegations of corruption. The new strategy calls for unified rules for negotiations with potential buyers to replace the current different procedures used by the privatization agency, different ministries and municipal authorities. The government will handle the largest privatization deals, which will need parliamentary approval, Kostov said. He added that each of the five biggest parliamentary parties will have up to three representatives in the privatization agency, so that they share the responsibility for the key sales. The privatization agency is presently in charge of sales of assets worth more than 75 million leva ($32.6 million), while smaller assets are sold by the ministries and local government. -By David McFegan, Dow Jones Newswires; 361-267-0623; david.mcfegan@dowjones.com From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Oct 25 17:59:08 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 13FEA29AE8 for ; Wed, 25 Oct 2000 17:59:08 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA22508 for ; Wed, 25 Oct 2000 17:59:07 -0400 Message-ID: <39F7572F.1BF56CA1@essential.org> Date: Wed, 25 Oct 2000 14:57:03 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Supreme Court Annuls Privatization Of Romanian Tobacco Company SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE: Supreme Court Annuls Privatization Of Romanian Tobacco Company by ROMANIA; Source: Radio Free Europe, Wednesday, 10/25/00 The Romanian Supreme Court on 24 October annulled the privatization of the Romanian Tobacco company, Romanian media reported. An Agriculture Ministry decision last May awarded the company to Interagro, but a loser in the tender, Leaf Tobacco A Michailidis, appealed that decision, claiming procedural irregularities. The ministry will now have to restart the privatization process of the company, which has a 42 percent market share in Romania. ZsM From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Oct 27 13:21:43 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4C6A429AF2 for ; Fri, 27 Oct 2000 13:21:43 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA06302 for ; Fri, 27 Oct 2000 13:21:43 -0400 Message-ID: <39F9B929.BC45154F@essential.org> Date: Fri, 27 Oct 2000 10:19:37 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] 'Light' Tobacco Ads Found Deceptive, European Parliament to Vote on Ban 'Light' Tobacco Ads Found Deceptive, European Parliament to Vote on Ban by GEOFF WINESTOCK / Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL EUROPE; Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Friday, 10/27/00 Billboards across Germany recently carried a cigarette advertisement with a bizarre slogan. Next to a large embossed silver packet of Benson & Hedges Lights cigarettes ran the words "Imagine Life Without Silver." Why stress the color? The antismoking lobby and cigarette companies agree that this style of ad, linking low-tar cigarettes to specific soft colors or images, is no coincidence. It is a pre-emptive strike in response to a regulatory experiment that looks set to hit the 15 countries of the European Union, the world's biggest cigarette market by volume. The European Parliament is expected to vote Dec. 11 on the second reading of a draft directive that would ban terms such as "mild," "light" and "low tar" from cigarette packaging, starting in 2003. At one stroke, that would kill scores of premium brand names, accounting for 30% of sales in Europe. Tobacco companies elsewhere in the world have long faced advertising bans, health warnings and a host of other restrictions. But in the face of this possible EU directive, cigarette companies are already looking for new ways to communicate the "light" and "mild" message, and that's where silver comes in. Even after the ban, Benson & Hedges Lights will be recognizable by their silver color, contrasting with the gold of the regular packs. White-and-gold Marlboro Lights will still suggest "lightness" just by the stark contrast to the red, full-strength Marlboros. The powder-blue Camel Lights with their pastel camel will still look milder than the ornery desert-ocher animal on the regular "Filters" pack. Ian Birks, spokesman for Gallaher Group PLC, which markets the Benson & Hedges brand in Germany, declines to comment specifically on the "silver" ad campaign but agrees that this is the general strategy: "Some brands already have very strong color relationships." If the industry's marketing strategy is already clear, the same cannot be said for the effect of the likely EU directive on public health and the prevalence of smoking. The directive, which would also quadruple the size of health warnings on packets, is expected to pass. Member governments may then require another look at the bill, if major amendments are introduced. The ban on the words "light" and "mild" isn't expected to be amended, but debate remains open on the size of mandatory health warnings and on whether European cigarette companies will be allowed to export products that don't meet EU tar and nicotine standards. For its part, the cigarette industry intends to challenge the EU's right to legislate on this issue. But even if Big Tobacco loses in court, it has a track record of weathering similar regulatory storms. Analysts are not predicting a major effect on sales or margins. It's not just the trick with colors. Most cigarette companies already have brands, such as Gallaher's Silk Cut or Merit by Philip Morris Cos., that are specifically pitched at smokers favoring low-tar cigarettes and don't exist in full-strength versions. Cigarette companies themselves mostly complain that the ban will freeze competition between low-tar brands. "It could cement the position of dominant players," says Jodie Humble, spokesman for British American Tobacco PLC, which wants to gain on the dominant Marlboro Lights brand made by Philip Morris. What makes the outcome so hard to predict, however, is that the ban is the first step in a change in the tobacco debate about what it is that makes cigarettes dangerous and what, if anything, consumers should be told about it. With other forms of tobacco advertising shrinking rapidly, the appearance of the packet is becoming the crucial marketing tool. The fundamental issue is whether words like "light" and "mild" and statements of tar and nicotine yields are a monumental case of false advertising. Public-health authorities, including the World Health Organization, say it amounts to a misleading claim that some cigarettes are less toxic than others. Surveys suggest that this advertising influences smokers, especially women, to switch to lower-tar cigarettes instead of quitting; it also prompts young women to take up "light" brands, thinking they are safer. But a body of research, built up over the last decade, indicates they aren't safer. Indeed, the definition of low tar is arbitrary. Many cigarettes described as "low tar" in the U.S. can't be sold in the EU, which already sets a 12-milligram ceiling on tar delivery. "Low tar cigarettes aren't healthier and in some ways the type of cancers they cause are uglier," says Jules Maaten, a Dutch member of the European parliament who is in charge of debate on the directive. In their defense, cigarette companies say the words refer to taste and lifestyle -- not health -- and point out that it was public-health authorities that started the trend to low-tar cigarettes in the first place. "It's the result of forces outside the tobacco industry. Since the '60s, the scientific and medical communities have felt that a general reduction in tar and nicotine yields in cigarettes must be a good thing," says Axel Gietz, spokesman for Japan Tobacco International, which bought the cigarette brands of RJ Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. last year. As the 1981 U.S. Surgeon General's report put it, quitting is the only safe option but "smokers who are unable or unwilling to quit are well advised to switch to cigarettes yielding less "tar" and nicotine." The EU even legislated maximum yields of tar and nicotine in cigarettes using the same logic. Thanks to research over the past decade, public-health officials now admit that was probably a mistake. Part of the problem is that tar yields from cigarettes are measured using machines developed by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, which regulates cigarette advertising in the U.S., that suck a regular number of standard puffs per minute. This has allowed cigarette companies to design cigarettes that score well on the machines but not necessarily with people. More subtle tests using cotton swabs in human mouths show that actual smokers compensate for the filters and oxygen holes in light cigarettes by inhaling harder and deeper or by covering the holes. The FTC concedes the tests are flawed and is now waiting for a report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services before proposing something better. Under an agreement with the FTC, however, cigarette manufacturers are still required to report these results in their advertising. Recent research using more detailed death records from the past 30 years in Switzerland and the U.S. has also shown a dramatic increase in a form of lung cancer in the smaller peripheral bronchi, known as adenocarcinoma. Results published in the journal Cancer in 1997 describe this as an epidemic and attribute it to the increase in low-tar smokers who suck lighter cigarettes deeper into their lungs. The end result of all this, most cancer researchers now say, is that despite a massive shift of smokers into lower-tar cigarettes, the risk of death by cancer that smokers face has stayed static or even increased. But what stung EU legislators into action was the U.S. tobacco trials that yielded detailed evidence suggesting that cigarette companies had all along been aware that the terms "light" and "mild" were misleading. Anti-tobacco lobbyists bombarded EU legislators with documents taken from the trial records showing that cigarette companies knew both that smokers chose light brands for health reasons and that the health arguments were dubious. One Philip Morris document from 1975 says, for example, "Marlboro Lights were not smoked like regular Marlboros. In effect, the Marlboro 85 [a full-strength brand] smokers in this study did not achieve any reduction in smoke intake by smoking a [Marlboro Light] cigarette." And a document from U.S. cigarette maker Lorillard Tobacco Co. from 1976 says, "Those who smoke low-tar and nicotine cigarettes generally do so because they believe such cigarettes are 'better for you.'" The EU directive on tobacco products and packaging is a rare lead in anti-tobacco legislation for a continent that has not been known for its anti-smoking ethos. Public-health lobbyists in Europe admit they are a little confused about what exactly they want to do. One issue is the threat from tobacco companies who say the ban on the words "light" and "mild" amounts to a breach of trademark. Brands like Marlboro Light can play the colors trick, but what about Japan Tobacco's "Mild 7," or BAT's "Mildessorte" (or Mild Sort in German)? Some legislators propose grandfathering them to avoid unnecessary conflict. But the more general question is whether it makes sense to support any moves to reduce toxicity for existing smokers. The current draft of the EU legislation would lower the existing limits for tar and nicotine yields and impose a new yield limit on carbon monoxide, a major cause of heart disease. But health officials admit that doesn't jibe with all the evidence suggesting that this will do nothing to reduce health risk. The cut in nicotine yields is particularly controversial. Some argue that higher nicotine is actually better since it allows addicts to satisfy their craving while sucking in less smoke and residue. And then there's the question of what to tell consumers. Cigarette companies complain that for all its detailed prescriptions for safe levels of smoke ingredients, the directive would prevent any mention of them on cigarette packets. Instead, all packets, regardless of actual yield, would just state the legal limits contained in the directive. Public health officials say that any information would be misleading; cigarette companies say consumers have a right to know. Health officials admit the approach is controversial and plan to modify the rules as new research comes to light. "The directive is not ideal, but it's the best we can do based on the available information," says Martin Jarvis of the Imperial Cancer Research Foundation in Britain. "We are in the middle of an epidemic and we have to do something." The debate will have ramifications all over the world, including the U.S., where the same issues are coming up. Neither the EU nor the U.S. has worked out what to do about specially designed "safer" cigarettes such as Eclipse, produced by RJ Reynolds, and Accord by Phillip Morris, which purportedly reduce tar yields by relying on heating rather than burning tobacco. Star Scientific Inc., a small cigarette company, has developed a cigarette that reduces delivery of nitrosamines, another known carcinogen. Public health officials say, with much hesitation, that these cigarettes may be safer; cigarette companies say they cannot market them unless they get the green light to publicize their benefits, which is currently banned in Europe. In Europe, tobacco companies recognize they have a weak lobbying position, both because of the U.S. tobacco trials and political changes, especially in Britain, which have shifted the balance against Big Tobacco. The industry now says it wants to cooperate with the EU in defining acceptable ingredients and outputs in cigarettes. David Davies, spokesman for Philip Morris, says, "We think that it's proper that the EU should debate regulation in relation to how we produce our goods." Public-health lobbyists are suspicious of the industry but admit that most of the expertise on the subject lies with the cigarette companies themselves. Some of these lobbyists say that the most important aspect of the EU directive, similar to a measure in Canada, is that it would force cigarette companies to disclose what they put into their cigarettes. The only certainty, however, is that many of these issues will end up in court. The European Court of Justice this month struck down an EU ban on all forms of tobacco advertising slated to take effect in 2001, on technical grounds. Health officials believe they are on firmer ground with the latest production and packaging directive, where the EU has been regulating for the past decade. Still, both sides are bracing for a long fight. Says Dr. Lynn Kozlowski of the Pennsylvania State University's College of Health and Human Development: "The cigarette industry is talking about selling death 'light.'" From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Oct 27 13:28:06 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2C63229AF2 for ; Fri, 27 Oct 2000 13:28:06 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA06452 for ; Fri, 27 Oct 2000 13:28:05 -0400 Message-ID: <39F9BAA8.13124402@essential.org> Date: Fri, 27 Oct 2000 10:26:00 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Graphic pictures to be placed on Thai cig packs Graphic pictures to frighten Thai smokers by THAILAND; Source: BBC Online, Friday, 10/27/00 Health officials in Thailand say cigarette packets will soon bear colour pictures of diseased lungs and clogged arteries in a bid to encourage smokers to kick the habit. The director of the agency charged with controlling tobacco consumption, Varabhorn Bhumisawasdi, said pictures told a thousand words, and would be particularly useful for illiterate smokers. He said suitably graphic colour photographs were being obtained from hospitals. But he said it would be at least a year before they appeared because cigarette producers first had to clear old stock. Thai cigarette packets have carried written health warnings since 1992, and earlier this year, the government banned film and television from showing characters smoking in a bid to stub out the habit among young people. >From the newsroom of the BBC World Service From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Oct 28 11:21:42 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D0FC929AF2 for ; Sat, 28 Oct 2000 11:21:42 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA23338 for ; Sat, 28 Oct 2000 11:21:42 -0400 Message-ID: <39FAEE84.5A5306F0@essential.org> Date: Sat, 28 Oct 2000 08:19:33 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Bangladesh: BAT Code of Conduct announced BAT Code of Conduct announced by Star Business Report BANGLADESH; Source: (Dhaka, Bangladesh) Daily Star, Friday, 10/27/00 British American Tobacco, Bangladesh, the largest cigarettes manufacturing company of the country henceforth will discourage smoking by non-adults and refrain from displaying advertisements at places like schools, hospitals and places of worships. It will also display health warnings on the front and back of all cigarette packs in contrasting colours. This was stated by Paul Kirtham, Managing Director of British American Tobacco, while announcing the Code of Conduct of the company at a press conference in a city hotel on Wednesday. The Code of Conduct among others include proof of age (minimum 18) for participation in all BAT sponsored social, cultural, musical and sporting events have been mandatory and publicised. Paul Kirtham said the company had introduced the Code of Conduct as a strategy for far marketing, advertisements and promotion. He said the company firmly believed that smoking was the choice of the adults and those under the age of 18 should not smoke. "British American Tobacco, Bangladesh does not want to attract non-adults to smoking and does not want to mislead the consumers about its products through advertisements and promotion," the BAT Managing Director told the press conference. According to the Code of Conduct the health warning clause would be on the front and back panel of the pack. There would be two health warning clauses for any tobacco advertising in television or radio. Both the warnings would be in Bangla. Tobacco advertisement on television and radio would be shown/broadcast only between 10 pm and 6 am when programming is primarily directed at adults. There would not be any tobacco advertisement during movies at cinema hall. The size of health warning clause on all tobacco communication would be 10 per cent of the total communication area, in the media. The BAT Conduct includes that no advertising would be displayed through any media primarily meant for schools, hospitals, place of worship or on the compound walls. No billboard or hoarding advertising tobacco products would be placed adjacent to those places. BAT Managing Director said, as a controversial industry, they had introduced the code. Deputy Managing Director Golam Mainuddin, Head of Corporate Affairs Mahmudur Rahman were present at the press conference. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Oct 28 11:22:36 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D5A1C29AF2 for ; Sat, 28 Oct 2000 11:22:36 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id LAA23364 for ; Sat, 28 Oct 2000 11:22:36 -0400 Message-ID: <39FAEEBA.C77BA381@essential.org> Date: Sat, 28 Oct 2000 08:20:27 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Japan: Adult smokers at record-low 32.9% Adult smokers at record-low 32.9% Source: Japan Times, Saturday, 10/28/00 The proportion of Japanese adults who smoke has fallen to a record low for the fifth consecutive year, dropping to 32.9 percent from 33.6 percent last year, according to the latest survey by Japan Tobacco Inc. The smoking rate among adult men dropped 0.5 point to 53.5 percent, marking a record low for the ninth consecutive year. The proportion of women smoking dropped to 13.7 percent from 14.5 percent. The decline was attributed largely to an increasing number of old people kicking the habit due to their growing interest in health, said JT, the national tobacco monopoly. JT conducted this year's survey -- the 36th -- in May, sending questionnaires to 16,000 adults, of whom 11,059 provided valid replies. The number of smokers is estimated at 33.13 million, down 440,000 from a year earlier, consisting of 26 million men and 7.13 million women, according to JT. For men, the proportion of smokers was highest in the 30s age group, at 63.4 percent. For women, it was highest among those in their 20s, at 21.9 percent. For both men and women, the proportion of smokers declined at a faster rate at higher age brackets. By region, Hokkaido has the highest proportion of smokers, at 58.2 percent for men and 18.2 percent for women. The prefecture has now had the highest proportion of female smokers for 28 years in a row. For the entire nation, male smokers smoked an average of 24.2 cigarettes per day, while their female counterparts smoked 17.3. The prevalence of smoking among adults peaked at 49.4 percent in 1966. That year, 83.7 percent of men and 18 percent of women were smokers. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Sat Oct 28 17:00:21 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 113CD29B14 for ; Sat, 28 Oct 2000 17:00:20 -0400 (EDT) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id RAA29064 for ; Sat, 28 Oct 2000 17:00:19 -0400 Message-ID: <39FB3DE1.3ADAEAC0@essential.org> Date: Sat, 28 Oct 2000 13:58:09 -0700 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT planning theme stores in Europe Smoking campaigners' fury over BAT theme stores by GRAEME BEATON Source: The [London, UK] Express, Saturday, 10/28/00 Tobacco company BAT is set to open a chain of stores in Europe featuring Americana stamped with the famous bull's eye logo of its Lucky Strike cigarettes. It said yesterday it was seeking outside financing and an operator for Trans Urban Trading Co, a retail chain expected to open its first outlets next year. The stores, featuring "futuristic" fixtures and aimed at twentysomethings, are BAT's latest attempt to buck sluggish cigarette sales. They will stock leather jackets, Fifties-style radios and food mixers, and food items such as Hershey's chocolate and maple syrup. The shops will be an extension of the Lucky Strike Catalogue, a BAT mail order business successful in Europe for the past five years. Anti-smoking activists claimed the Trans Urban stores would be another attempt to market cigarettes to young people. Derek Yach of the World Trade Organisation's Tobacco-Free Initiative said: "There's no protection for children and teens with this kind of brand stretching, whether it's a cafe or a store." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 30 14:47:36 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E2EF529AEE for ; Mon, 30 Oct 2000 14:47:36 -0500 (EST) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C9F1F18185 for ; Mon, 30 Oct 2000 14:47:36 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <39FDCFDA.4EDB33B5@essential.org> Date: Mon, 30 Oct 2000 11:45:29 -0800 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] British to Probe BAT Smuggling Claims British to Probe BAT Smuggling Claims FOR BACKGROUND ON AND A RESPONSE TO THIS BREAKING STORY, SEE WWW.ASH.UK Source: Reuters, Monday, 10/30/00 LONDON (Reuters) - Britain launched an official investigation on Monday into claims that British American Tobacco Plc was implicated in cigarette smuggling in Asia and Latin America in the early 1990s. UK Trade and Industry Minister Stephen Byers said he had appointed investigators to look at claims that the world's second largest cigarette company was involved heavily in orchestrating, managing and controlling smuggling. These claims were examined by a British House of Commons Health Select Committee over the last 12 months, and Byers said the probe was part of the government's response to this committee's report on the tobacco industry. ``I have given careful consideration to the unanimous recommendation of the Select Committee that the DTI should investigate the allegations of BAT's involvement in smuggling,'' Byers said in a Department of Trade and Industry statement. ``I have decided to appoint investigators to look into this and to report back to me as soon as possible. I will then decide what further steps I must take and whether the facts support a reference to other authorities,'' he added. BAT said it was ``naturally disappointed'' about the investigation. The group would ``co-operate fully with the investigators but will be making no further comments during the course of their work,'' it said in a statement. The smuggling claims come from anti-smoking group Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) and investigative journalist Duncan Campbell who accused BAT of an elaborate cigarette smuggling conspiracy in Colombia and laundering drug money. BAT has always said smuggling may have taken place, but insists that it happened without its permission and backing. BAT shares were unchanged at 482p by 1205 GMT in the lower London stock market. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 30 14:48:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 932F229B27 for ; Mon, 30 Oct 2000 14:48:17 -0500 (EST) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8184318185 for ; Mon, 30 Oct 2000 14:48:17 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <39FDD002.CF5AF555@essential.org> Date: Mon, 30 Oct 2000 11:46:10 -0800 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Korea to open up tobacco industry to foreign interest Asia Business Brief: Korea to open up tobacco industry to foreign interest by BridgeNews Source: NewsEdge, Monday, 10/30/00 Seoul--Oct. 27--South Korea is proposing to deregulate its tobacco industry, currently monopolized by the state-run Korea Tobacco and Ginseng Corporation, to allow foreign companies to produce tobacco products in Korea, the Ministry of Finance and Economy said Friday. The ministry submitted the proposal to the ruling Millenium Democratic Party during a policy meeting held Friday. Once the proposal gains approval by the party, the ministry will submit a new bill to the National Assembly for ratification within this year. In line with its deregulation of the industry, it will also allow tobacco companies to decide on consumer prices of cigarettes independently. "We hope the measures will contribute to strengthening competitiveness of the domestic tobacco industry as the monopoly by the state-run corporation is ineffective in boosting competition," said the ministry. At the same time, the ministry ruled out financial assistance for domestic tobacco growers despite increased competition as such subsidies go against World Trade Organization regulations. It is, however, expected to take a few years for foreign tobacco companies to actively participate in the market as it will take time to build a manufacturing base here, according to an official in charge of privatization of Korea Tobacco and Ginseng Corporation at the ministry. End From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Oct 30 14:49:47 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C19C329B0E for ; Mon, 30 Oct 2000 14:49:47 -0500 (EST) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B0DB018185 for ; Mon, 30 Oct 2000 14:49:47 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <39FDD05D.17891E41@essential.org> Date: Mon, 30 Oct 2000 11:47:40 -0800 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Australia: Tobacco sponsorship of political fundraisers banned Tobacco sponsorship of political fundraisers banned Source: AAP (Australian Associated Press), Monday, 10/30/00 AAP -- Tobacco companies would be banned from sponsoring political fundraising events under Labor amendments passed today in the Senate. The government warned the move could spark a legal challenge. The Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Amendment Bill phases out tobacco sponsorship of sporting and cultural events by 2006. Chris Evans (ALP, WA) said the amendment closed a loophole which had allowed tobacco company Philip Morris to sponsor a Liberal Party national conference dinner. "Although Philip Morris manufactures other products I think all Australians know their name is synonymous with cigarette products and this arrangement is publicly seen to be tobacco sponsorship," Senator Evans said. But Parliamentary Health Secretary Grant Tambling warned the amendments could enable tobacco companies to form a commercial alliance for a High Court challenge to the constitutional validity of the bill. "The Labor Party amendment would jeopardise the entire intent of this legislation," Senator Tambling said. He said Australian Government Solicitor advice had already warned the amendments would severely limit free speech by tobacco companies. "There is a significant risk that those amendments would not satisfy the test for the validity of the law on the grounds of freedom of political communications," Senator Tambling said. "Therefore we consider it is highly likely that the High Court could consider the ALP amendments to the bill to be beyond constitutional power." But Senator Evans denied the amendments would invite legal challenge as what was being prohibited was advertising that was actually paid for by tobacco companies. Tobacco companies could still contribute to debate on illegal tobacco sales or sales to minors through advertising, provided they did not encourage smoking. "We believe it retains the free-speech rights of tobacco manufacturers without permitting advertising by third parties," he said. Lyn Allison (AD, Vic) said the Australian Democrats hoped the major parties would go further and reject any donations from tobacco companies. "We all remember that Philip Morris sponsored the Liberal Party's national conference dinner two years ago and in that year donated an additional $86,400 to the party," Senator Allison said. "We believe that accepting financial support from an industry that is responsible for millions of deaths worldwide is morally reprehensible." The bill passed the Senate with an additional amendment requiring the publication of an annual report of any breaches. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Oct 31 15:40:17 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D541029AE8 for ; Tue, 31 Oct 2000 15:40:17 -0500 (EST) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BA28818187 for ; Tue, 31 Oct 2000 15:40:17 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <39FF2DB6.FD0E5333@essential.org> Date: Tue, 31 Oct 2000 12:38:14 -0800 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] BAT Korea Launches Website Against Smoking BAT Korea Launches Website Against Smoking by kdh@koreatimes.co.kr SOUTH KOREA; Source: Korea Daily (Hankook Ilbo), Tuesday, 10/31/00 It seems ironic that tobacco companies launch campaigns advising people to quit smoking in view of their conventional business strategy, which has mainly centered on persuading people to smoke. As a matter of fact, they have thrived in raising their revenues through costly and attractive advertisements on television and radio as well as in newspapers and many other media forms. However, the world's most influential tobacco group is now preparing to launch a website aimed at curbing under-age smoking dealing with smoking-related issues in society. John Taylor, president of British American Tobacco (BAT) Korea Co., said yesterday that the website (www.batkorea.com) will contain a wide range of information ranging from how to quit smoking to their business strategy for adult consumers. The company's press release said that the service includes various consumer-oriented information such as how to give up smoking, why a smoking is dangerous and how to get objective medical information on nicotine, tar and other ingredients of tobacco. ``The primary purpose of the site is to offer precise information for our consumers' health,'' it said. Amid the current social trend of many people trying to quit smoking, the site advises that smokers can quit as long as they have belief in themselves and motivation. BAT is a multinational tobacco conglomerate and markets best-selling cigarette brands such as Dunhill, Kool, Kent and Lucky Strike. The website also offers online discussions in an effort to share detailed and scientific information with customers. Though a number of anti-smoking websites by consumers or civic organizations, in addition to health warning printed on every pack of cigarettes, it is the first time a tobacco company has publicly spoken out on the issue of smoking-related health problems in Korea. For instance, the site is planning to offer a wide range of statistical information on smoking-related diseases. In addition, the company will also explain its stance on smoking and cigarette marketing as well as smoking-related laws or provisions and the company's long-term contributions to national coffer. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Nov 2 19:03:39 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1862C29AE8 for ; Thu, 2 Nov 2000 19:03:39 -0500 (EST) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C3D6A181BD for ; Thu, 2 Nov 2000 19:03:38 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <3A02005E.20C148@essential.org> Date: Thu, 02 Nov 2000 16:01:35 -0800 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] 21 African Nations Back Tobacco-Free Continent 21 African Nations Back Tobacco-Free Continent by Staff Reporter / Financial Gazette (Harare) Source: All-Africa.com, Thursday, 11/2/00 Harare Twenty-one African countries have pledged to work for a tobacco-free continent and urged tobacco-producing nations to replace the crop with other alternatives, but Zimbabwean producers fear that this will spell disaster to an already ailing economy. The declaration was made last week at a meeting in Nairobi by African parliamentarians and health practitioners under the auspices of the World Health Organisation (WHO), which is whipping up support for tough tobacco control measures. "African countries should draft and enact comprehensive tobacco control legislation and help tobacco farmers to plant alternative crops," said the declaration issued at the end of the six-day meeting. Phasing out tobacco and replacing it with alternative crops is advocated by the WHO's proposed Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which is due to come into effect in 2003 and is the first worldwide tobacco control treaty. The WHO is calling for higher taxes to reduce production and consumption; bans on advertising, especially that targeting young people; as well as restrictions on smoking in work and public places. The aim is to reverse current smoking trends in the world, which has over one billion adult smokers and four million smoking-related deaths every year, almost two million of them in Africa where smoking prevalence is estimated to be 2,5 percentage points higher than in other developing countries. The WHO says that if current trends are not reversed, tobacco-related deaths will rise to 10 million a year by 2030, with the Third World accounting for over 70 percent of them. "Ultimately, the WHO would like to control everything from production, consumption to marketing," Zimbabwe Tobacco Association (ZTA) public relations executive Ray Mawerera told the Financial Gazette this week. "They are saying: 'yes, we're aware of the impact FTCT will have on developing countries and those concerns will be taken into account when we do the final treaty'. "But there's a lot of scepticism about that. Turning to alternative crops has been suggested, but how these will be found and if they are feasible at all are questions that have not been answered." Some of the problems faced by tobacco growers attempting to switch to alternative crops include the fact that tobacco is often grown on poor soils that might not support other crops. Alternatives might also not generate as much income and require investment that might be beyond the means of tobacco growers. Leaf buyers give logistical, technical and financial support to tobacco growers that they might not be willing to provide for other produce and there is also a danger that prices might plummet if tobacco producers turn to alternative crops en masse. "For the above reasons, among others, all attempts to diversify into alternative cash crops have met with little financial success and consequently farmers continue to grow tobacco out of necessity," the Air Cured Tobacco Association of Zimbabwe said in a submission to the WHO public hearings held in Geneva last month. The WHO and the World Bank have indicated that they might give "transitional assistance" to farmers who are affected by a global tobacco control treaty, but this has not met with much enthusiasm. In its presentation to the WHO public hearings, the ZTA said indication of support was "couched in vague, non-specific terms that suggest a preoccupation with merely wishing to pacify critics and give the impression that the issue (is) being addressed". The ZTA would like to see the WHO coming up with a detailed diversification fund to support the switch to alternative crops. The fund should consider problems faced by tobacco growers in turning to alternatives and guarantee growers against future losses. In its presentation at last week's Nairobi conference, the Organisation of African Unity said: "To curtail the production of tobacco without sustainable and viable choices may create political instability when Africa's economies are fragile and stagnant." In Zimbabwe, whose economy is under stress and which will for several years feel the effects of commercial farm invasions and the resultant disruption to farming, the impact could be devastating. At least 5 500 small and large-scale tobacco farmers as well as about 116 667 workers supporting 584 000 people could be adversely affected by tobacco controls, as would other sectors of the economy. Tobacco exports comprise about 30 percent of total national revenue and sustain Zimbabwe's commercial, industrial and banking sectors as well as the maintenance of schools, housing and other social services. "If you consider that tobacco is the largest foreign currency earner, the largest employer of labour and supports many downstream industries, then the impact of the convention is huge," Mawerera said. The ZTA and transnational tobacco corporations have called for the protection of all stakeholders in the FCTC treaty. The WHO took a small step by holding last month's public hearings, where submissions were invited from tobacco firms, producer countries and anti-smoking organisations. However, the tobacco industry fears that the international health organisation might be paying lip service to transparency and the inclusion of all stakeholders. The ZTA said it hoped "the call for submissions and the public hearings themselves are not mere public posturing to give the appearance of fairness and that consideration will be given to the special circumstances and concerns raised by those who may be negatively affected by a too-restrictive and prescriptive convention". Cigarette manufacturer British American Tobacco (BAT) added: "What we seek is sensible regulations, an end to pointless mud-slinging and recognition that it makes no sense to exclude companies such as ours who know the product and its science, who know the customer and who are working hard to operate responsibly." BAT offered to help governments in preventing smoking by people under 18, ensuring that the public is informed about smoking risks, helping smokers to quit and identifying lower risk tobacco products. "We agree that there is an important need to reduce the health impact of tobacco use. We openly acknowledge the health risks associated with smoking and we want to play our part in doing something about them," the company said. The ZTA added: "We agree that the tobacco industry must be involved in widespread awareness initiatives to increase knowledge of the risks of tobacco use. "We would support reasonable regulatory frameworks for tobacco and tobacco products in so far as they target the preservation of the health of the individual without impinging on other fundamental freedoms and rights of either individual adults or body corporates." Copyright © 2000 Financial Gazette. Distributed by allAfrica.com. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Nov 2 19:04:59 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5424229AE8 for ; Thu, 2 Nov 2000 19:04:59 -0500 (EST) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1D095181BD for ; Thu, 2 Nov 2000 19:04:59 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <3A0200AE.EE718E42@essential.org> Date: Thu, 02 Nov 2000 16:02:55 -0800 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Nigeria: PR is central to corporate brand positioning PR is central to corporate brand positioning - Quadrant GM by Clifford Amuzuo / Vanguard Daily INTERVIEW NIGERIA; Source: All-Africa.com, Monday, 9/11/00 MISS Ben Upaa Ayede is the General Manager of The Quadrant Company a leading public relations professional outfit in the Troyka Holdings and an affiliate member of worldwide PR conglomerate, the GCI group. With an excellent career in the Advertising and Public Relations field spanning over two decades she has held forth in many public relations departments in the private and public sector organisations. At MC & A where she worked several years, she rose to the position of client services director before heading the PR department at Minaj Communications Limited. In this interview with vanguard's Clifford Amuzuo she speaks on the numerous challenges to PR practice in Nigeria's ever dynamic marketing communications industry. She sees public relations as central not only in corporate brand positioning but also in the creation of a total package that would contribute to the bottom line of the profession. Excerpts: EXCERPT Vanguard:Benson & Hedges and Samsung are two major brands on the Quadrant's stable today. To what extent have you tried to re-position market outlooks of these major brands especially in the Nigerian content? Ayede: EXCERPT And the Quadrant had done so well for Benson & Hedges being one of the oldest accounts that the agency has had. We've been with Benson & Hedges through thick and thin so to say, thick when the days were good, thin when we had to suffer issues like the anti-tobacco sentiments that are now prevalent. So it has not always been rosy trying to address these issues. Having to come from the days when we never had these anti-tobacco sentiments, I would say that the challenge has been in trying to bring out the fact that vis-a-vis the anti-tobacco sentiments, there is some good Benson & Hedges is doing for instance, Benson & Hedges have been strong in promoting the development of music in this environment as you can see recently in the sponsorship of the Nigerian musical award starting with the PMAN's patrons dinner and activities leading up to the NMA awards in October. We are taking up into the direction of the fact that Benson & Hedges is basically a socially responsive organisation and music is one the vehicles through which they show that care about these environments. So, our relationship is one that has lasted overtime and we hope to continue to nurture its development into the future. END EXCERPT From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Nov 6 12:08:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6B58B29B0E for ; Mon, 6 Nov 2000 12:08:25 -0500 (EST) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3F45918186 for ; Mon, 6 Nov 2000 12:08:25 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <3A06E50A.5D54019D@essential.org> Date: Mon, 06 Nov 2000 09:06:19 -0800 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] EU files RICO case against Philip Morris and RJR Brussels, 6 November 2000 Statement by Commissioner Michaele Schreyer on civil action against two U.S. Tobacco companies "Four months ago the European Commission decided on a legal action against a number of U.S tobacco companies in relation to cigarette smuggling. Since then, the President and I have been actively working with our legal experts. The time has come to proceed. The Commission has now filed a civil action in New York against the Philip Morris and RJ Reynolds corporations for their alleged involvement in smuggling cigarettes into the E.U. This civil action alleges breaches by these corporations of the U.S. Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act (RICO). The Commission seeks compensation for financial losses the E.U. has suffered and injunctive relief in order to prevent further smuggling. The protection of the financial interests of the European Union is a high priority of the European Commission. The present case is a new step in our strategy to fight against fraud and financial irregularities." P.S. No further comment will be made on the content of the claim by any offical, agent or counsel of the European Commission outside the Court proceedings. However, under the rules of US civil procedure, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York will make copies of the complaint available to persons who request it. -------------------------------- ASH UK response (www.ash.org.uk/?press) 6th November 2000 ? immediate release European Union takes US tobacco companies to court over smuggling The EU has filed a RICO action (Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organisations) against Philip Morris and RJ Reynolds in the US courts - see European Commission press release. The civil RICO action will attempt to recover excise duties, which the EU will allege were lost as a result of the involvement in smuggling of the two companies. If proven, the case could cost the companies billions - civil RICO allows punitive damages of three times the actual loss and losses over four years to be assessed. There are now cases arising from Canada, Colombia, Ecuador and EU. Clive Bates, Director of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) in London said: "The evidence suggests tobacco companies have played a controlling and orchestrating role in the global tobacco smuggling racket, and it is important that the authorities use whatever legal routes that are available to stop them in their tracks. Now they are beginning to see the tobacco industry as underlying commercial drivers of cigarette smuggling, we are one step closer to defining responses that will work. "Why try to tackle thousands of small traders and petty criminals when there are legal actions available against the tobacco companies, which are the prime movers and the real Mr. Bigs in tobacco smuggling." The action does not yet include British American Tobacco. However, it would be a mistake to assume that BAT is off the hook. The EU action is using the same New York law firm (Speiser, Krause, Nolan and Granito) as the US-based racketeering action over Colombian cigarette smuggling. In this case, BAT was added several months after the initial case was launched against Philip Morris. This could easily happen again. On Monday 30th October the UK Department of Trade and Industry launched an investigation into BAT's involvement in smuggling. "The DTI should make its report on BAT available to the EU anti-fraud unit with a view to assisting with the RICO case and assessing whether BAT should be joined to the action. "This will give a real boost to the international efforts to tackle smuggling through the World Health Organisation tobacco treaty and its smuggling protocol. If governments understand the role of the tobacco industry and work together to restrain it, they can tackle the problem without rolling back their policies on taxing tobacco. Some 350 billion sticks are smuggled annually - about one third of all internationally traded cigarettes. Contacts: Clive Bates (ASH): +44 (0)20 7739 5902 (office) +44 (0)468 791237 (mobile) From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Nov 8 16:24:02 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6EB5729AF3 for ; Wed, 8 Nov 2000 16:24:02 -0500 (EST) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 543451821A for ; Wed, 8 Nov 2000 16:23:58 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <3A09C3F0.C12A041F@essential.org> Date: Wed, 08 Nov 2000 13:21:52 -0800 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Saudi hospital says to sue tobacco firms for $5bln Saudi hospital says to sue tobacco firms for $5bln by SAUDI ARABIA;BANS Source: Reuters, Monday, 11/6/00 RIYADH, Nov 6 (Reuters) - A Saudi hospital said on Monday it would sue international tobacco firms and their local agents for $5 billion to compensate for the cost of treating lung disease including cancer, the Saudi Press Agency reported. It quoted Anwar Abdul-Majid Jabarti, executive general manager at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre in Riyadh, as saying the hospital had a legal right to sue the unidentified tobacco firms and their local agents. He said the state-run hospital had appointed a lawyer to handle the case and urged local and Arab hospitals to follow suit. "The kingdom spends vast amounts of money on cancer and heart patients," the agency quoted Jabarti as saying. He accused tobacco firms of "hiding the fact that they add substances when they manufacture cigarettes that promote addiction and therefore had harmed people's health." Saudi Arabia is the largest tobacco market in the Gulf Arab region. Tobacco giants admitted at U.N. hearings on an anti-smoking treaty in Geneva last month that cigarettes were deadly and addictive, but defended their right to sell and advertise them freely. After denying health risks associated with smoking for many years, beleaguered tobacco companies have been stung into action by lawsuits at home from injured smokers, class-action cases and government-backed suits by dozens of states seeking to win back taxpayer money spent caring for sick and dying smokers. Gulf Arab states have gradually raised customs duties on tobacco to 100 percent as of 2000 from below 30 percent in the 1980s to curb tobacco consumption and boost revenues. In 1998, the six Gulf Arab states imported 25 billion cigarettes worth some $500 million. Saudi Arabia, with a population of some 18 million, imported 15 billion cigarettes. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Fri Nov 10 10:56:19 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id EB7BC29B09 for ; Fri, 10 Nov 2000 10:56:19 -0500 (EST) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D4311181EC for ; Fri, 10 Nov 2000 10:56:19 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <3A0C1A20.96740171@essential.org> Date: Fri, 10 Nov 2000 07:54:07 -0800 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] JT, Korea Tobacco in joint development pact JT, Korea Tobacco in joint development pact Source: Reuters, Thursday, 11/9/00 TOKYO, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Japan Tobacco Inc (JT) , the world's third-largest tobacco group, announced on Friday it had agreed to jointly develop a new product with Korea Tobacco & Ginseng Co of South Korea Under the alliance, aimed at appealing particularly to Asian tobacco consumers' tastes, the two firms plan to share their expertise to launch the new cigarettes under a common brand name from early 2002, JT said. Production and marketing of the new product will be carried out independently by JT in Japan and Korea Tobacco in South Korea. A JT spokesman said the firms have not decided whether and when to sell the new product elsewhere in Asia, and that it was too early to give any sales estimates. JT, a former state monopoly, controls around 75 percent of Japan's tobacco market -- the world's third-largest after China and the United States -- and has a powerful presence in Asia with its flagship Mild Seven cigarettes. Last year, it purchased the international business of RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp, known for its Camel and Winston brands. The $7.8 billion takeover -- the largest ever by a Japanese corporation -- made it the world's third-largest tobacco group behind Philip Morris (NYSE:MO - news) of the United States and UK-based British American Tobacco Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BATS.L) (BAT). Shares in JT, widely viewed as a core defensive stock in Japan, were up 4.06 percent at 743,000 yen as of 0226 GMT. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Tue Nov 14 11:48:34 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from genoa.essential.org (genoa.essential.org [216.0.124.11]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A940729AEE for ; Tue, 14 Nov 2000 11:48:34 -0500 (EST) Received: from essential.org (pictus.essential.org [216.0.124.29]) by genoa.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9A3D418228 for ; Tue, 14 Nov 2000 11:48:34 -0500 (EST) Message-ID: <3A11977E.1B4FC3FD@essential.org> Date: Tue, 14 Nov 2000 11:50:22 -0800 From: Robert Weissman X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; I; PPC) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: intltobacco Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Russia: Western Tobacco Hits Jackpot With Patriotism Western Tobacco Hits Jackpot With Patriotism by Elizabeth LeBras / Staff Writer Source: Moscow Times, Tuesday, 11/14/00 The Russian tobacco market is the world's fourth-largest. The lines separating foreign and domestic cigarettes blur on closer inspection. The most popular Russian labels are actually produced by Western companies. At the same time, most foreign brands sold on the domestic market were made locally. The confusion over cigarettes’ nationality is intentional. Western tobacco manufacturers have purposely taken on Russian trademarks whose names appeal to consumers’ patriotism and low prices to their wallets. The nation’s leading cigarette brands in the second quarter of 2000 were Prima, Pyotr I and Yava Zolotaya. COMCON market research agency puts their market shares at 25 percent, 21.4 percent and 21 percent, respectively. All three Russian-sounding brands are owned by Western tobacco companies. Thirty-year-old Prima is produced at the Liggett-Ducat cigarette factory, which British company Gallaher Group PLC purchased last August. U.S. tobacco giant RJ Reynolds produces Pyotr I. Yava Zolotaya, named after the old Soviet brand Yava, has been produced by British-American Tobacco since 1997. U.S. tobacco corporations have invested a total of $2.5 billion dollars in domestic production, Expert magazine reported last month. The heavy investment is not surprising given that Russia’s tobacco market is the fourth-largest in the world. Masha Vakatova, public relations director of market research firm COMCON, said Russian name brands moved to market dominance following the 1998 financial crisis. "One of the trends [that emerged from the crisis] was the switch to local brands or brands with Russian names," she said. "The companies that picked up on this trend of awakening national pride and exploited it succeeded in occupying whole segments of the market." Immediately before the crisis, American brands L&M and Marlboro led the market with respective shares of 35.5 percent and 29.8 percent, according to surveys conducted by COMCON. But after August 1998, the popularity of American brands plummeted, and in the first quarter of 1999, Prima lead the market with 29.91 percent, followed by Pyotr I with 25 percent. Marlboro’s market share fell steadily, from 17 percent in the first quarter of 1999 to 11 percent in the second quarter of 2000. An ad for Prima cigarettes, a line bought by Britain's Gallaher Group in 1999. A survey conducted by independent research center Romir in December 1999 suggests that price was also a strong motivating factor for Russian smokers to change their brands after the 1998 crisis. Cigarette brands with Russian names cost several times less than the best-known Western brands. Prima sells for only 2.5 rubles a pack, which is much less than Western brands — Marlboros cost from 21 rubles to 30 rubles a pack. RJ Reynolds and BAT were able to begin producing cheaper brands, like Pyotr I and Yava Zolotaya, because they launched operating factories in the Russian cities of Krasnodar and St. Petersburg. The range of Western cigarette brands offered in Russia will likely increase as more companies move their production to Russia. Expert magazine reported that American tobacco giants have moved their production facilities to Russia and other countries in reaction to mounting costs from U.S. lawsuits brought on by sick smokers’ demands for compensation. Diminishing profitability has compelled Philip Morris, RJ Reynolds and Brown & Williamson to build factories in countries where taxes and production costs are considerably lower than in the United States. In 1999, Philip Morris established Marlboro production facilities in the Leningrad region. According to Philip Morris, 95 percent of the Marlboros sold in Russia are produced by plants in this country. Data from Business Analytica indicates that Marlboros produced in Russia cost 10 percent less than imported Marlboros. There is some question whether the quality of Russian-made and American-made Marlboros is the same. Many smokers, who have sampled both Russian and U.S.-produced Marlboros, say the Russian variant is considerably stronger. Samantha Davis, a British student studying in Russia, said Russian-produced Marlboros "give you more of a cough especially when you smoke too many. The taste can also vary depending on where you bought them from." However, Pyotr Lidov, the Moscow spokesperson for Philip Morris, denied in an interview with the radio station Ekho Moskvy that Marlboros produced in Russia are inferior to those made in America. He claims that in taste tests conducted in the United States, Marlboro smokers were unable to distinguish between those cigarettes produced in the United States and those in Russia. Western companies look set to continue their dominance over the domestic market. Kommersant’s Dengi magazine reported in October that light cigarettes represent the biggest fad to come to Russia in recent years. Western tobacco makers monopolize the national market for light cigarettes, simply because local producers lack the technology to sufficiently lower the nicotine and tar content in their cigarettes. According to international classification, light cigarettes contain no more than 0.85 milligrams of nicotine and no more than 10 milligrams of tar. Light cigarettes’ share of the Russian market is expected to rise to 40 percent in 2000 from 5.8 percent in 1999, according to Business Analytica. A total of 16 billion to 17 billion light cigarettes were sold in Russia in 1999. That figure is expected to rise to 29 billion cigarettes in 2000. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Mon Nov 27 06:19:37 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6C9E029B31 for ; Mon, 27 Nov 2000 06:19:37 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id GAA26784 for ; Mon, 27 Nov 2000 06:19:37 -0500 Date: Mon, 27 Nov 2000 06:19:37 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Colombia Sues Philip Morris for $21 Mln in Imports, Paper Say (fwd) Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Colombia Sues Philip Morris for $21 Mln in Imports, Paper Say by Robert Willis Source: Bloomberg News, Friday, 11/24/00 Bogota, Nov. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Colombia is suing Philip Morris Inc., the world's No. 1 tobacco company, for 44.6 billion pesos ($21 million) for allegedly not declaring the value of cigarettes it brought into Colombia, newspapers reported. Philip Morris declared the value of the imports between July 1997 and June 1998 at 13.2 billion pesos, but customs calculates the value at 57.8 billion pesos, the daily El Tiempo reported. Customs director Ricardo Ramirez said the company is being accused of exchange-rate infractions, the daily reported. The company's vice president for the Andean region, Armando Sobalvarro, said the company was preparing arguments to defend itself from the accusations. Colombia and Philip Morris in August reached an accord by which the cigarette maker would use security-seals to make it easier for consumers to detect smuggled cigarettes after Philip Morris was fined for allegedly not declaring its imports. Cigarette smuggling costs the country about $25 million a year in lost tax revenue, according to government estimates. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Nov 30 12:33:27 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id AA81229BA1 for ; Thu, 30 Nov 2000 12:33:27 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA18539 for ; Thu, 30 Nov 2000 12:33:27 -0500 Date: Thu, 30 Nov 2000 12:33:27 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Special Multinational Monitor offer Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: ** SPECIAL MULTINATIONAL MONITOR OFFER ** - Please forward - Multinational Monitor, a magazine edited by Robert Weissman, is offering one-year subscriptions in the United States to new subscribers, or for gifts, for $15 -- a $10 discount from the normal one-year subscription rate. Multinational Monitor appears 10 times a year (monthly, with two double issues). Founded by Ralph Nader, it is the leading source of critical reporting on the activities of multinational corporations. If you want to get a sense of the magazine, older issues are archived at http://www.essential.org/monitor. You can rush right now and take advantage of this offer by clicking on http://www.essential.org/monitor/subscribe.html and ordering on-line through our secure server. You can also call in credit card purchases. Contact Katie Auerbach at 202-387-8030. Or, send a check or credit card information to: Multinational Monitor PO Box 19405 Washington, DC 20036 USA If you are paying by credit card through regular mail, make sure to indicate whether you are paying by Visa or Mastercard, the card number and its expiration date. Also, for those subscribing through regular mail, please provide us with your address. Or, if you are giving the Monitor as a gift, provide us with the address of the recipient(s). This offer is available only for U.S. residents. A comparable discount is available for Canadian and Mexican residents. We regret that we cannot extend the offer for those living in other countries. The offer expires December 31, 2000. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 12:43:38 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A245B29AF2 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:43:38 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32180 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:43:38 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:43:38 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] list update Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Friends: I've been away for much of the past three weeks, which accounts for the list being so quiet. There have been a series of interesting international tobacco developments during that period. I am about to send out a series of clips relating to those developments -- sorry to burden your in boxes, but I'm actually being more selective than usual in what to pass on. I'm sure you'll find at least some of the following set of clips useful and important. After this flurry, the list should return to normal levels of traffic. -- Robert Weissman Essential Information P.O. Box 19405, Washington, DC 20036, USA Tel: 1-202-387-8030 Fax: 1-202-234-5176 www.essential.org From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 12:44:41 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6F17E29B20 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:44:41 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32213 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:44:41 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:44:41 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Hong Kong: Charity defends using tobacco industry cash Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Charity defends using tobacco industry cash by YENNI KWOK Source: South China Morning Post, Monday, 12/4/00 Charity group Caritas has been criticised for taking money from the tobacco industry to pay for its youth anti-smoking campaigns. The Tobacco Institute of Hong Kong, the industry's trade association, donated $452,000 this year to Caritas Integrated Service for Young People in Wong Tai Sin. The money is intended for 20 anti-smoking programmes running until March, ranging from workshops in schools to schemes targeting recent immigrants from the mainland. Similar schemes may be launched next year in Caritas' Lam Tin division. The institute has spent nearly $2 million on youth anti-smoking schemes this year. It sponsored Commercial Radio's anti-smoking programmes this year to the tune of $500,000, including backing a two-day youth camp for 100 teenagers. However, the chairman of the Hong Kong Council on Smoking and Health, Professor Anthony Hedley, attacked the decision to accept tobacco money. "It is a serious matter to give money to Commercial Radio or non-governmental organisations like Caritas," said Professor Hedley. "There is no place whatsoever for the tobacco industry in health-care. It is only part of the industry's repositioning of itself as 'responsible citizens'." He said the sponsorships were an attempt to get public support for loosening control of the industry. Charles Chan Chi-kwong, supervisor of the Integrated Service in Wong Tai Sin admitted the decision to accept the money had created controversy. "It was difficult to convince concerned bodies within Caritas to accept money from tobacco companies," he said. "Some said it was like whitewashing the companies." Mr Chan agreed to accept the industry's donation because "we have common interest to prevent juvenile smoking". The Tobacco Institute's executive director Albert Chan Yu-chung also defended the donation. "One should look at the programme itself," he said. "What it contains is more important than who sponsors it." A study of SAR teenagers last year found that 20 per cent of boys and 13 per cent of girls aged 12 to 16 were smoking. It was an increase of five to six percentage points on a similar survey in 1994. Anti-smoking campaigners have blamed cigarette companies for targeting young people. The tobacco industry in Hong Kong has estimated gross revenues of $2 billion a year. The Institute's four main members, Philip Morris, British American Tobacco, Japan Tobacco International and Nanyang Brothers, are the leading suppliers of cigarettes in Hong Kong. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 12:45:35 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A249929B25 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:45:35 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32245 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:45:35 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:45:35 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Kenyan Cabinet Approves Anti-Tobacco Bill Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Kenyan Cabinet Approves Anti-Tobacco Bill Source: Xinhua Newswire, Monday, 12/4/00 NAIROBI, December 4 (Xinhuanet) -- Kenya's Cabinet has at last approved a stringent anti-tobacco bill to regulate the country's multi-billion-shilling tobacco industry, the East African weekly reported Monday. The approval was granted on November 23 during a routine cabinet meeting and will be published in the Kenya Gazette next January after the bill will be taken to the parliament for debate. The approval of the bill, the weekly said, is a major setback for Kenya's tobacco industry which is dominated by British American Tobacco (BAT). According to the draft bill, new regulations governing the industry will ban the sale of single stick cigarettes, and henceforth, cigarettes will be sold only in packets of 20 sticks. The draft also seeks to outlaw all electronic advertising of cigarettes, as well as the use of free promotional materials such as branded caps and T-shirts in marketing of cigarettes. Proponents of the bill contend that though profits for the industry may plummet, regulations of the tobacco industry is essential if Kenya is to avoid the high number of cigarette- associated deaths. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 12:47:06 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 57D6B29B29 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:47:06 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32301 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:47:06 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:47:06 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8BIT Subject: [Intl-tobacco] UK: Nottingham University dons furious over tobacco cash Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Nottingham University dons furious over tobacco cash by Kevin Maguire Source: The Guardian, Wednesday, 12/6/00 Nottingham University last night faced an internal revolt over the decision to accept £3.8m from British American Tobacco to open a school of business ethics. Staff in the medical school, including academics involved in cancer research, oppose the acceptance of cash from a multinational accused of exploiting smuggling. John Britton, a consultant chest physician and professor of epidemiology at Nottingham, said: "I think this is an error. If BAT had any social responsibility in their corporate body, they would stop making and selling cigarettes." Professor Britton, who is also chairman of the Royal College of Physicians' tobacco advisory group, added: "It seems something of a contradiction for what is widely perceived to be a not terribly socially responsible organisation to be funding a centre for corporate social responsibility." University authorities are understood to have decided the creation of the international centre for corporate social responsibility outweighed what they hope will be a short-term "PR hit". An academic who declined to be named, however, predicted the relationship with BAT could undermine the university's reputation. "We have sold our good name for £3.8m. The business school gets a new centre, BAT gets a veneer of respectability and we could all end up paying for this." Nottingham's students were said to be split. Union president Alain de Sales said some thought it would improve the university's prestige while others feared it would undermine the institution's reputation. Nottingham showed no sign of backing down and talks were continuing with BAT over whether the posts should carry BAT's name to acknowledge the financial support. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 12:48:15 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2F9C429B2B for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:48:15 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32345 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:48:14 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:48:14 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8BIT Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Canada: Newfoundland set to snuff out public smoking Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Newfoundland set to snuff out public smoking Source: Canadian Press, Wednesday, 12/6/00 ST. JOHN'S, Nfld. --Ê The Newfoundland government plans to introduce a new law that would make it the first province to ban smoking in restaurants, malls and other public places where children gather. The proposed ban would go into effect Jan. 1, 2002, provincial Health Minister Roger Grimes said yesterday when he introduced several measures aimed at reducing smoking. "We have a responsibility to protect our citizens from the health risks associated with second-hand smoke and to discourage our young people from acquiring this dangerous habit," Grimes said. At least 45 municipalities across Canada, including Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa, have already introduced bylaws that prohibit smoking in restaurants. A similar law in British Columbia was struck down by the courts in March after a protracted public battle. In the United States, California, Vermont, Maine and Utah all have statewide bans on smoking in restaurants. Still, Newfoundland deserves credit for doing what B.C. failed to do, said Rob Cunningham, senior policy analyst with the Canadian Cancer Society in Ottawa. "This is excellent from a health perspective," he said. "Second-hand smoke is harmful, especially to children, and there's no need for them to be exposed to the poisons and the toxins." Predictably, the new ban has infuriated restaurant owners whose industry association has already warned of slower business and layoffs. Yvonne Power, executive director of Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador, said the industry needs more time to adjust to the ban, which won't apply to bars and bingo halls. Still, the provincial government is pushing ahead with other amendments to existing anti-tobacco laws, including a clause that would ban the sale of tobacco in pharmacies. Four other provinces - Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia - already have such a ban in place. Meanwhile, Newfoundland's justice minister said the Liberal government would join Ontario and B.C. in seeking compensation from the tobacco industry for health costs associated with smoking-related illnesses. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 12:50:12 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id F005C29B2F for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:50:12 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32435 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:50:12 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:50:12 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Philip Morris , BAT sniff at Egypt's Eastern Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Philip Morris , BAT sniff at Egypt's Eastern Source: Reuters, Wednesday, 12/6/00 CAIRO, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Tobacco giants Philip Morris and British American Tobacco have each voiced interest in becoming a strategic investor in Egypt's Eastern Co , an official close to privatisation efforts said on Wednesday. ``Philip Morris and BAT informed us several months ago that they would be interested in becoming an anchor investor, but they were waiting for details about how large a stake would be privatised this time,'' an official at the Holding Company for Chemical Industries, which includes Eastern, told Reuters. The Egyptian government has a majority stake in Eastern, which is in the process of being privatised. The official said neither company had made a formal bid since the government announced last month that it would sell a new 15 percent tranche in the Egyptian tobacco group, rather than 11 percent as originally planned. ``We have not had an official approach from these two companies since the news was announced,'' the official said, declining to give further details. Asked to confirm BAT's interest in Eastern, a spokesperson said the company had no comment. Officials at Philip Morris could not be reached immediately for comment. Egypt has already sold a 34 percent stake in Eastern for some 549 million Egyptian pounds ($143 million) as part of a broader privatisation programme, Egyptian stock exchange statistics show. According to ING Barings, Eastern holds a ``monopolistic position'' in Egypt's cigarette trade with a market share of 85 percent. In the year to end-June 2000, Eastern increased net profit to 266.07 million Egyptian pounds from 243.24 million a year earlier on sales of 2.0 billion pounds versus 1.9 billion. At 1055 GMT, Eastern was trading 0.09 percent higher at 64 pounds in an overall firmer Egyptian market. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 12:56:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8D70F29B35 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:56:25 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32624 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:56:25 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:56:25 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8BIT Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Canada: Province plans vast ban on smoking Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Province plans vast ban on smoking by WILL HILLIARD / The Telegram Source: St. John's (Newfoundland) Telegram, Wednesday, 12/6/00 Newfoundland would be the first province to impose a provincewide ban on smoking in restaurants and other public places frequented by children under legislative changes proposed to come into effect Jan. 1, 2002. Health Minister Roger Grimes tabled amendments in the House of Assembly Tuesday to the existing Tobacco Control Act and the Smoke-Free Environment Act, which would further limit young peopleÕs access to tobacco products, broaden the restrictions on smoking in public places, and better enforce anti-tobacco laws. But Grimes steered clear of mentioning bars, lounges and gaming rooms, such as bingo halls, in his smoke-free bill. Under the changes to the Tobacco Control Act there would be an eventual ban on the sale of tobacco products and accessories at pharmacies; 19-year-olds would be required to apply for and produce a government-issue photo identification for purchases of tobacco; convictions under the federal Tobacco Act would be considered prior convictions under the provincial version; and sections of the act would be clarified. In addition to banning smoking in restaurants, changes to the Smoke-Free Environment Act would empower inspectors to issue provincial offence tickets, fine violators outright and remove a tobacco licence from businesses where the licence has been suspended or revoked. ÒThese legislative amendments are part of an aggressive agenda being undertaken by this government to reduce the harmful effects of smoking on our population Ñ now and into the future,Ó Grimes told reporters. ÒWe have a responsibility to protect our citizens from the health risks associated with second-hand smoke and to discourage our young people from acquiring this dangerous habit.Ó The proposed changes were welcomed by the anti-smoking lobby Alliance for the Control of Tobacco (ACT) Ñ which is funded by GrimesÕ department Ñ even though they fell far short of their ideals. Last month, ACT had called for a provincewide ban on smoking in restaurants by May 2001 and a phased-in, three-year prohibition of smoking at all other public places Ñ including bars and lounges Ñ within three years. ÒWe would like to see things move faster, but itÕs a good start,Ó said Brent Smith, ACT director. ÒWeÕre moving in the right direction. É One of the things we have to do now is to educate people who work in the bar industry what smoking does to their health.Ó He said a stack of studies has now shown that smoke-free environment laws have actually improved business, particularly those related to tourism traffic, or have had little effect on business revenues of restaurants and bars. Armed with his own facts and figures on how smoking bans can hurt business, Marcel Etheridge, president of the provincial Beverage Industry Association, said bar owners would have shut down their establishments in protest and severed governmentÕs cash-cow video lottery terminal machines if the ban had included them. ÒThe ultimatum was this É thereÕs nothing we wouldnÕt do to stop this from going in and that would include everything from total, outright shutting our bars down, to not obeying the law,Ó he said. ÒI would assume that if we had closed the bars totally youÕd be looking at between $50 million and $60 millionÓ in lost gaming revenues to government. Etheridge said smoking should be allowed in bars and lounges until such a time that the marketplace determines Ñ through people quitting smoking Ñ that thereÕs no longer a need. Bar owners are up against so much competition from private charitable groups and service groups using bar licences to generate revenues, a ban would drive many out of business, he said. He said about 90 per cent of the 500 bars and lounge owners in the province would have rallied against a government ban. Grimes said there was no pressure to exempt bars and lounges because they house the provinceÕs VLTs. He said they were excluded because minors donÕt have access to them. He didnÕt address the issue of non-smokers who might wish to patronize bars, but donÕt because of the smoke. Yvonne Power, spokeswoman with Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador, which also represents the beverage industry, said based on studies sheÕs seen out of British Columbia on a ban on smoking in restaurants in some jurisdictions there, sheÕs concerned the ban would have an adverse affect on the provinceÕs much smaller hospitality industry here. Moreover, she said many establishments that are both bars and restaurants could be facing expensive renovations. ÒThe one year is just not long enough. We wanted at least three years to phase it in,Ó she said. ÒNo one is doubting thereÕs a health issue here, but we canÕt afford to take any chances.Ó Several cities and towns across Canada, among them Toronto, have imposed smoke-free laws for restaurants, but no province has imposed an all-out ban on smoking. Meanwhile, the effects of the anti-smoking lobby are obvious. More and more restaurants offer smoke-free sections. Many shopping complexes, such as the Village and Avalon Mall, are entirely smoke-free by choice. Dr. Ronan OÕShea, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association, one of the 50 organizations that comprise ACT, said heÕs happy government is expanding anti-smoking laws, but he said the proposed amendments donÕt go far enough. ÒWe support the governmentÕs initiatives and anything that theyÕre doing to try and protect young people from smoking, and non-smokers from secondary smoke,Ó OÕShea said. ÒBut it is clearly a conflict that pharmaceutical companies, whose main role is to promote health and sell products which promote health care, that they should be selling tobacco products is almost hypocritical and goes against their fundamental reason for being there. ÒEvery doctor sees the effects of smoking in all ages.Ó OÕShea said secondhand smoke has been shown to be linked to a variety of health problems, including lung cancer, heart disease and other cardiovascular illnesses. According to the National Clearinghouse on Tobacco and Health, smoking kills nearly 1,000 people in Newfoundland and Labrador every year. Another figure estimated 8,000 cases of childhood illness occur every year as a result of exposure to secondhand smoke. Don Rowe, spokesman for the provincial pharmaceutical association, said pharmacy owners across the province agree that smoking has to go. ÒIt is the position of our association that pharmacies should be out of it,Ó he said. ÒAnd within the next few years it will be out of all pharmacies. Any new pharmacies that open Jan. 1, 2001 would automatically be tobacco-free and any change of ownership would be tobacco-free. ÒA task force we set up showed that on average over the 140 stores that sell tobacco now, there was a figure of $30,000 in gross margin (that) would be involved in the sale of tobacco. É ItÕs an economic issue that we are trying to work around.Ó From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 12:58:08 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5C68829B3A for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:58:08 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32669 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:58:08 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:58:07 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8BIT Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Ghana: BAT Donates To Education Trust Fund Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: BAT Donates To Education Trust Fund by Ghanaian Chronicle Source: All-Africa.com, Wednesday, 12/6/00 Accra - British American Tobacco (BAT), the leading manufacturer of cigarettes in Ghana, on Monday donated ¢20 million to the Ghana Education Trust Fund as its contribution to the strengthening of the education sector. In a speech Mr. Kofi Selby, corporate and regulatory affairs director of BAT stressed the role of education in the country's developmental process. 'Unfortunately, for some Ghanaians the increasing high cost of living continues to deprive them of this right to good education' said Selby pointing out that the education trust fund is meant to complement government's funding of the sector. The BAT director stressed that though a certain percentage of the VAT proceeds is being channelled into education it is obvious it cannot sustain the educational sector in the long run. According to him, it is this realisation that has made the company to contribute to the fund. He announced that beginning from next year BAT's educational support programme will amount to ¢300 million covering scholarships for employees children, tobacco farmers at the SSS level in addition to that of brilliant undergraduates. Selby also announced that the establishment of a research chair at the Faculty of Natural and Renewable Resources at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and other needy faculties to the universities. He announced that the company will by 2004 sponsor 87 students at the tertiary and SSS levels. Chairperson of the function Mrs Sylvia Boi, also a member of the board of trustees of the fund expressed the board's appreciation for the kind gesture of BAT. The company's scholarship schemes include the BAT Ghana SSS scholarship for employees and tobacco farmers' children under which 15 scholarships are awarded on competitive basis to 13 children of its employees and two for registered tobacco farmers tenable at the SSS level. In the undergraduate scheme, 10 undergraduates in the country's universities are given a ¢1.5 million per student while fellowships are also given for graduate studies among others. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 12:59:32 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3BA2A29B3A for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:59:32 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id MAA32717 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:59:31 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 12:59:31 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] EU Lawmakers To Discuss Laws On Tobacco Mktg, Sales Mon Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: EU Lawmakers To Discuss Laws On Tobacco Mktg, Sales Mon by Eric R. Drosin / Dow Jones Newswires; 32-478-324-585; eric.drosin@dowjones.com Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Friday, 12/8/00 BRUSSELS -- European Union lawmakers will Monday begin debating measures to cut the marketing and sales of cigarettes across the Union. But some of the measures include industry-friendly proposals, following Dutch liberal Jules Maaten's report that amended the E.U. Commission's original proposals. With a final vote on the measures expected Wednesday, Maaten said he was "confident a qualified majority can be reached" to push the package through. The amended proposals include an increase in the size of health warnings on cigarette packs. The warnings would cover 30% of the front surface area and 40% of the back, an increase over the Commission's original proposal of 25% of the surface area. The proposed directive would also allow member states to ban substances that increase addiction, such as ammonia, and allow member states to use taxation as a form of "tobacco control." "We had good co-operation with tobacco firms," which led to the inclusion of several industry-friendly proposals in the report, Maaten said. These include increased harmonization of rules, such as an E.U.-wide recognition of tobacco test results, and ensuring that toxicological data tests aren't obligatory, which would protect small- and medium-sized tobacco enterprises "for whom these tests are unaffordable," said Maaten. Perhaps most importantly, the report recommends an extension of the deadline to implement the measures to 2006, "allowing the tobacco industry the (necessary) time," Maaten added. But Wilfried Dembach, chairman of CECCM, which represents cigarette manufacturers, said that the proposals on export restrictions "weren't operable," and that greater harmonization was needed. He added that while the tobacco industry had worked closely with the Commission and Parliament on the issue, there was only "limited success" in applying technically workable rules on tobacco sales and marketing. The tobacco product directive would replace previous directives, and reduce the maximum permissible amount of tar per cigarette to 10 mg from 12 mg, and cut the maximum amount of nicotine to 1 mg and the amount of carbon monoxide to 10 mg. Cigarette makers will also be banned from using terms such as "mild" and "light" on cigarette packs. The Commission's directives on curbing tobacco sales have met with limited success. The European Court of Justice Oct. 5 overturned an E.U. ban on tobacco advertising on legal grounds. The court found against the Commission's argument that it banned tobacco advertising and sponsorship in order to harmonize rules within the single market. The court ruled in cases brought by Germany and by tobacco producers including Imperial Tobacco Ltd. (ITY), which claimed that the legislation was designed to protect public health and that the Commission was not allowed to do this. Following the parliament's vote on Wednesday, the resulting proposals will then be sent to E.U. health ministers for approval. URL for this Article: http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=DI-CO-20001208-004630.djml From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 13:01:12 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E358329B44 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:01:12 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA00020 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:01:12 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:01:12 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Australia: Tobacco giant targets women through fashion Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Tobacco giant targets women through fashion by KEITH MOOR and EMILY RICE Source: Adelaide Advertiser, Monday, 12/11/00 CIGARETTE giant Philip Morris is promoting its tobacco products at fashion parades and rave parties aimed at young women. Internet company wavesnet, which is linked to Philip Morris, is running a national fashion competition in which a state contest was held in Adelaide last night. At similar events in other states, staff of anti-smoking group Quit say Alpine cigarettes have also been on unattended display at the nightclub bar for patrons to sample. Women dressed in Alpine colors have been selling discounted cigarettes during the events, attended mainly by young women. Philip Morris has also been providing Alpine packs for sale with promotional items that appeal to young women, particularly rave partygoers. The tobacco company is also providing dance parties and nightclubs with free go-go dancers in corporate colors. Among the entrants at the Fashion's Future Designer Awards show at Heaven nightclub in Adelaide last night was Nathan Rudd, 25, who also is a leading model. A third-year Marleston TAFE student and assistant with designers George Gross and Harry Watt, Rudd said he was inspired to forge a career in design after modelling for about two years. "I love the industry and I'm prepared to work hard," he said. >From SA, one winner will be chosen to attend the national final in Melbourne on Thursday. From the national final, three entrants will win a trip to Europe. But, interstate, some angry sponsors have pulled out of the awards after being warned about the cigarette company's involvement. Chief operating officer of Sanity music stores Daniel Agostinelli is among them. "Obviously it was a youth-driven thing and being Sanity music stores we thought it could be good for us to get involved, but we had no idea about Philip Morris," he said. "That's very, very tricky and we are quite upset about it. "If they had mentioned the words Philip Morris and cigarettes we would just have said forget it, we are not interested." Two of wavesnet's three directors are also directors of Philip Morris's advertising agent Mojo. The third is a former Mojo director. The wavesnet company secretary Robert Davies holds the same position at Mojo. Mojo markets the Alpine brand for Philip Morris, which has annual supermarket sales of more than $100 million in Australia. The wavesnet domain name was registered in September this year, with the same street address as Mojo's listed as the contact point. Philip Morris spokeswoman Nerida White denied the company was doing anything illegal or unethical in its marketing strategies. She said only those aged over 18 were admitted to wavesnet events. "And it is legal to sell cigarettes to people aged 18 and over," she said. "We take fairly strenuous steps to ensure that all of our activities comply with the law." On the wavesnet website, users are enticed with free offers to become members and attend events. To go online shopping users must supply personal details. The wavesnet general manager Dean McBeth confirmed building up a database on clients was one of the reasons for the web site. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 13:02:14 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A73F829B45 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:02:14 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA00048 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:02:13 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:02:13 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Australia: Tobacco giant under scrutiny for website Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Tobacco giant under scrutiny for website Source: AAP (Australian Associated Press), Tuesday, 12/12/00 MELBOURNE - International tobacco giant Philip Morris has dismissed claims that it was using a trendy Internet company as a means to recruit teenage smokers in Australia. A Herald Sun report yesterday revealed that Philip Morris was behind the Wavesnet website, an Internet company set up to run fashion parades and rave parties where cigarettes are sold at a discount. The site, well-designed and aimed at the fashion-conscious, offers access to events in Adelaide, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne and advertises a selection of fashionable gifts and cosmetics to websurfers who sign up with personal details. The anti-smoking Quit campaign hit out at the site, calling it an "insidious" attempt to lure young smokers. Meanwhile, Victorian Health Minister John Thwaites said he would write to the company and ask them to guarantee they were not doing anything to promote smoking among young people. Philip Morris acknowledged its links to the Wavesnet site and its associated events but denied that it was using its connection for irresponsible marketing. A spokeswoman said the company had not operated illegally or unethically, and stressed that all events were restricted to over 18s and all venues carried out ID checks to ensure under 18s did not gain entry. The company said in a statement that its participation in the site was "transparent" and all promotional material clearly stated this. However, it went on to say that the Wavesnet site did not identify or refer to the company or any of its cigarette brands. "This was done intentionally and at Philip Morris' request because access to the Internet is unrestricted," the company said. "Philip Morris markets its cigarettes responsibly and has gone to great lengths to ensure its activities are directed to adults and its participation at events is open and transparent. "To suggest otherwise is sensationalist, misleading and plainly wrong." The company also denied that it used, or intended to use, information gained by the website to market its products. Mr Thwaites said cigarette companies had a responsibility not to do anything that might promote smoking among the young. "We are doing everything as a government to stop the selling of cigarettes to young people but if cigarette companies are advertising on the Internet or using promotional measures to get at young people then that is going to lead to more young people smoking, not less," he said. "I will be writing to Philip Morris and asking them to ensure that they are not doing anything to promote smoking among young people." Mr Thwaites said the Victorian government would also review the issue of selling products with cigarettes. "If people want to buy cigarettes that's one thing but if companies are then selling or giving away free products with cigarettes, that's another. "It looks like its designed to attract young people." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 13:04:00 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 06D5E29B45 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:04:00 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA00131 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:03:59 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:03:59 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Industry Continues EU Tobacco Package Attack; Vote Looms Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Industry Continues EU Tobacco Package Attack; Vote Looms by Eric R. Drosin / Dow Jones Newswires; 32-2-285-0135;eric.drosin@dowjones.com Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Tuesday, 12/12/00 BRUSSELS -- Tobacco firms are absolutely fuming ahead of a vote by European Union lawmakers Wednesday on a package of measures to cut the marketing and sales of cigarettes across the union. While several proposals within the package are industry-friendly, tobacco companies insist not only does the package stand on questionable legal ground, but it will force cigarette manufacturing outside the E.U., leading to losses of thousands of jobs and millions in revenue. But the E.U. is confident of the package's legality. "The (tobacco) industry as a whole has problems with various aspects of this proposal," said Tom Roberts, a spokesman for British American Tobacco PLC (U.BRT). Roberts says the tobacco industry is primarily concerned with a proposal which would impose cigarette export restrictions - an area he claims the E.U. has no legal competence in - by 2006, and possibly sooner. The export restriction would oblige manufacturers to reduce the level of tar in cigarettes, be they for internal use or export, to 10mg tar, down from the current 12mg ceiling. "This alone would affect 85% of the production from BAT's two cigarette plants in the U.K., which are for export outside the E.U." says Roberts, adding it would also lead to the loss of millions of pounds in revenue and 10,000 jobs. "It will result in the export from the E.U. of jobs and revenues," according to David Davies, vice-president of Corporate affairs for Philip Morris Europe, the European branch of Philip Morris Cos. (MO). "We will simply manufacture cigarettes outside the E.U." The amended proposals include an increase in the size of health warnings on cigarette packs. The warnings would cover 30% of the front surface area and 40% of the back, an increase over the commission's original proposal of 25% of the surface area. While Roberts acknowledges the need for warnings on cigarette packs, Davies says that any increase has to be a "proportionate balance between promotional and public health information." He believes a warning covering 25% of the pack would be sufficient. Cigarette makers will also be banned from using terms such as "mild" and "light" on cigarette packs, another thorn in the side of tobacco companies. Roberts said "it seems contrary that the E.U. wants to lower tar levels across in Europe in the belief there will be public health benefits, but doesn't want to use descriptives to tell people there are 'lighter' tobacco products." The proposed directive would also allow member states to ban substances that increase addiction, such as ammonia, and allow member states to use taxation as a form of "tobacco control." Also included are several industry-friendly proposals that include the increased harmonization of rules, such as an E.U.-wide recognition of tobacco test results, and ensuring that toxicological data tests aren't obligatory, which would protect small- and medium-sized tobacco enterprises for whom these tests are unaffordable. Roberts of BAT maintains that the legal basis for the tobacco directive - Article 95, which regulates internal market decisions - is fundamentally flawed. He points to the European Court of Justice's decision on Oct. 5 to overturn an E.U. ban on tobacco advertising - also based on Article 95 - on legal grounds. The court found against the commission's argument that it banned tobacco advertising and sponsorship in order to harmonize rules within the single market. Jules Maaten, the Dutch liberal who compiled the report that amended the E.U. Commission's original proposals, responds that "the tobacco advertising ban proposal was a new untested directive, while the current package is drafted out of three existing directives." He remains confident that the legality of the tobacco package cannot be called into question, given the inclusion of Article 133 - which governs E.U. commercial policy - as yet another legal basis for the tobacco package. URL for this Article: http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=DI-CO-20001212-005147.djml From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 13:38:59 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3710229B96 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:38:59 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA01159 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:38:59 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:38:58 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] EU: Tough tobacco warnings approved (fwd) Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Tough tobacco warnings approved Source: BBC Online, Wednesday, 12/13/00 The European Parliament has approved controversial legislation to force the tobacco industry to print graphic health warnings on Europe's cigarette packs. The warnings would cover at least 30% of the front of each pack and 40% of the back. In addition, national governments would be given the power to order the inclusion of shocking colour photographs showing the possible consequences of smoking, like rotting teeth and diseased lungs. The proposals will now be put before European health ministers, who will consider them at talks in Brussels on Thursday. Ministers have already rejected the use of graphic pictures of the effects of smoking as going a step too far. However, the tobacco industry has campaigned intensively against the plans. It has already overturned a proposal to ban advertising and promotion of tobacco products across the European Union by successfully arguing in the European Court that such a move was illegal. Euro MP Catherine Stihler, Labour's Health Spokeswoman, said: "If the size of the health warning directly reflected the risk to health, the label would cover the whole cigarette pack. "Half of all long term smokers will eventually be killed by tobacco and of these, half will die during middle age losing 20 to 25 years of life. Blackened lungs "We must go the extra mile to show people what they do to themselves when they smoke. "If vivid pictures of rotting teeth and blackened lungs bring home the true cost of smoking, print them on packs in the UK in full colour." Ms Stihler said existing health warnings were obscured by clever colour combinations, striking packaging and tucked behind careful displays. A third of the packets would be covered She said: "Most smokers neither know the full risks nor bear the full costs of their choice." The new legislation would also outlaw the use of phrases such as "light", "mild" and "low tar". Ms Stihler said: "Europe's consumers have been sold the idea that 'light', 'mild' and 'low tar' cigarettes are healthier, but they have been taken for a ride. "Low tar cigarettes inflict the same damage as conventional cigarettes - smokers just draw harder to get the same kick." Current rules Current EU legislation requires cigarette health warnings to cover a minimum of four per cent of the pack. Member states have the option to go further and the UK opted for six per cent. As well as hugely increasing the size of these warnings, the new proposals would compel tobacco companies to print them in black on a white background - as opposed to the current system which requires only "contrasting colours." Another proposal is to reduce the tar content in cigarettes from 12mg to a maximum of 10mg per cigarette and introduce an EU ceiling for nicotine of 1mg and of carbon monoxide of 10mg. MEPs also want the new standards to apply from 2006 to cigarettes exported from the EU as well as those for European consumption. Dr Vivienne Nathanson, of the British Medical Association, welcomed the European Parliament move. She said: "Making the health warnings more visible and more informative will encourage existing smokers to give up and discourage some young people from taking up this deadly habit in the first place." However, Juliette Torres, of the UK smokers' rights organisation FOREST, accused the European Parliament of "gesture politics". She said: "If smokers want to give up, and graphic images encourage them to do so, then fine. "However, I don't think this kind of thing will have much impact as most smokers are well aware of the health risks." From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 13:39:25 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 443F729B96 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:39:25 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id NAA01176 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:39:24 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 13:39:24 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Hungary Bans Cigarette Ads; Grand Prix May Be In Jeopardy Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Hungary Bans Cigarette Ads; Grand Prix May Be In Jeopardy by Dow Jones Newswires Source: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, Wednesday, 12/13/00 BUDAPEST (AP)--The future of Hungary's Formula One grand prix is in jeopardy after the Hungarian parliament banned cigarette advertisements, an executive of the race organizers said Wednesday. On Tuesday, parliament voted to ban cigarette advertisements in the print media starting July 1, and in all public places starting Jan. 1, 2002. "The very name of the race is the Marlboro Hungarian Grand Prix," said Ferenc Studnitzky, chief executive officer of Hungaroring Sports Co. "I hope we can come to an agreement with the authorities and get an exemption for the race, like Belgium and France did." The law banning cigarette advertisements does allow the economics minister to make an exception for a specified period in cases such as international sporting events. Studnitzky refused to say how much the cigarette manufacturer provides for the race but "it is large enough to jeopardize the future of the race being held in Hungary if we do not get such an exemption." URL for this Article: http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=DI-CO-20001213-002396.djml From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Wed Dec 13 16:10:13 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C4FF729AF1 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 16:10:13 -0500 (EST) Received: from localhost (rob@localhost) by milan.essential.org (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA05798 for ; Wed, 13 Dec 2000 16:10:13 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 16:10:13 -0500 (EST) From: Robert Weissman To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-ID: Subject: [Intl-tobacco] Canada: Tobacco exec proposes making kid smoking a crime Sender: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org Errors-To: intl-tobacco-admin@lists.essential.org X-BeenThere: intl-tobacco@lists.essential.org Precedence: bulk List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: intl-tobacco is a post-only list covering international tobacco issues List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Health groups scorn tobacco exec by Jack Keating / The Province Source: Vancouver (BC) Province, Wednesday, 12/13/00 Anti-smoking groups are skeptical of a call by the head of Canada's largest cigarette company to make smoking by teens a crime. Robert Bexon, president and chief executive officers of Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd., says it should be illegal for anyone under 18 to possess or use tobacco, suggesting offenders should lose their "driving privileges." But B.C. health ministry spokeswoman Liz Robbin called Bexon's comments hypocritical since the industry targets young people in their advertising. "The industry is trying to deflect criticism away from themselves and on to the youth," Robbin said yesterday. "We don't want to punish people for smoking and we feel a comprehensive package of education is a better approach." Making teen smokers criminals could backfire, said Diane Gillis of the B.C. Lung Association. "Sometimes there's the attraction of the forbidden fruit, and with youth there's that temptation of 'what we're not allowed to do we'll try to do,'" she said. "I would really question [the tobacco industry's] motive." B.C. already has some of the country's toughest anti-smoking laws, aimed at retailers who sell to anyone under 19. "Prosecuting kids for smoking would be incredibly hard to enforce," said Robbin. "Right now we're making a conscious decision to focus on retailers who sell to underage teens." The B.C. government's anti-smoking advertising campaign has had some impact: Just 24 per cent of B.C. teens 15 to 19 smoke -- the lowest proportion in Canada, according to a Statistics Canada survey. "The fact is tobacco companies make an extraordinary sum of money off kids getting addicted," said David Sweanor of the Non-Smokers Rights Association. From owner-intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Thu Dec 14 10:38:12 2000 Return-Path: Delivered-To: intl-tobacco@venice.essential.org Received: from milan.essential.org (milan.essential.org [216.0.124.12]) by venice.essential.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0FFB629AF1 for ; Thu, 14 Dec 2000 10:38:12 -0500 (ES