[Intl-tobacco] Kenya Tobacco Bill 'Not Workable' (fwd)

[Robert Weissman]

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.