[Intl-tobacco] UAE: Tobacco advertising ban catches companies by surprise (fwd)

[Robert Weissman]

Tobacco advertising ban catches companies by surprise
by Ben Smalley and Anupa Prathap Mathew
Source: Gulf News, Wednesday, 1/24/01

The UAE has banned advertising and promotion of tobacco products
immediately, but cigarette firms are seeking clarification of what the ban
entails.

The decision was taken by the General Secretariat of Municipalities in
January last year following a decision by the Council of Ministers in
1980, but is now being enforced by the Ministry of Information and
Culture.

Undersecretary Saqr Ghabash has notified all newspaper editors, television
and radio station directors and distributors of foreign newspapers,
informing them of the ban on any advertisements, promotions or
competitions which endorse smoking or tobacco products.

He said the ban had been imposed for "the sake of public benefit and the
health of UAE citizens and expatriates." The decision was welcomed by
anti-smoking campaigners yesterday, but cigarette companies warn it will
harm the national economy and called for "reasonable restrictions" on
advertising rather than a blanket ban.

Khalil Sharif, Director of Preventive Medicine at the Ministry of Health
in Dubai, said the ban was in accordance with the ministry's policies and
with resolutions passed by the GCC General Health Secretariat.

"This ban is a good step in the right direction by the government and will
hopefully be followed by other steps," he said. "In December the ministry
submitted the draft for a law banning cigarette sales to youngsters below
the age of 18 to the Cabinet - along with other factors such as
advertisements and promotions - which will hopefully be imposed in a few
months time.

"This ban can be looked upon as the first step towards the enforcement of
that forthcoming law." He said the cost of treating smoking related
diseases far outweighs the income governments receive from tobacco taxes.

"According to studies done in countries such as the U.S and UK, it has
been found that the healthcare cost incurred by the government to treat
patients suffering from diseases related to smoking is four to ten times
more than the revenue received from taxation. So it is more beneficial to
curb smoking."

The tobacco industry, however, called for greater clarification of what
the ban covers, saying they had not been properly informed.  Richard
Reavey, Director of Middle East Corporate Affairs for Philip Morris
Services Inc, which produces Marlboro cigarettes among others, said, "This
ban is based on a 21-year-old Council of Ministers decision which I
haven't seen, so we need to look into it further and find out what it
means in reality before commenting fully.

"But in our view, this kind of legislation is unnecessary as the tobacco
industry has been operating under a voluntary code for a number of years
in the UAE which imposes restrictions on tobacco marketing and marketing
activities specifically aimed at young smokers.

"We have said, and continue to say, that we are happy to work with
governments to work on statutory legislation that reasonably restricts
tobacco advertising."  Philip Morris has embarked on several GCC projects
aimed at discouraging teenage smokers and has welcomed Sharjah's ban on
cigarette sales to anyone under 18, he said.

"Tobacco advertising is not about increasing the size of the pie.  It's
about increasing the manufacturer's slice of the pie, which is why we only
advertise and market our products to adult smokers."

Reavey added that banning advertising will not necessarily result in fewer
smokers. "The theory is that banning tobacco advertising will see a
reduction in tobacco consumption, but if you look around the world at
countries where bans have already been introduced, it hasn't reduced
sales.

"Instead there is a loss to the economy which is felt by the media,
printers, advertising agencies and promotion agencies which trickles down
through the economy.

"A survey conducted by KPMG on behalf of the International Advertising
Association in 1998 found that the loss to the UAE economy caused by a ban
on tobacco advertising would be $275 million over five years."

Zaid Nadhim, Middle East Corporate Affairs Manager for British American
Tobacco, whose brands include Benson and Hedges, also called for further
details about the ban.

"We are trying to obtain clarification from the Ministry of Information
about what it covers and will accordingly adhere to the laws of the
country," he said.  "But we didn't know the ban was coming as we weren't
informed."

Nadhim said he would also prefer to see controls over advertising rather
than a complete ban. "We do believe in applying restrictions to
advertising to ensure the target is only adult smokers, but we believe
that commercial avenues should be maintained with adult consumers to allow
freedom of choice," he said.