[Intl-tobacco] Hong Kong: 7000 protest against restaurant smoking ban (fwd)

[Robert Weissman]

7000 protest against restaurant smoking ban
by PATSY MOY
Source: South China Morning Post, 2001-10-02About 7,000 restaurant

owners and their staff took to the streets on Tuesday to protest against
the controversial government proposal of turning Hong Kong into a
smoke-free city making it one of the largest protests in the territory in
recent years.

A legislator representing the catering industry, Tommy Cheung Yu-yan, who
was also one of the protest organisers, warned a complete ban on smoking
in all public areas including restaurants, bars and karaoke lounges will
be a serious blow to the catering and other service industries already
facing hardship from the poor economy.

Mr Cheung said it was the biggest protest so far organised by the catering
industry in its history. But the Liberal legislator warned an even bigger
one is to come if the government ignores their grievances and gives green
light to the proposed new smoking restrictions.

The last major protest in Hong Kong involved more than 10,000 government
staff who marched in protest against civil service reform in July last
year 2000.

The angry anti-smoke ban protestors marched from the Chater Garden to the
Central Government Office in Central carrying banners and chanting slogans
accusing officials of ignoring their financial woes.

They chanted : ''Senior officials fail to fulfil their duties, they only
carry out bad policies. The government continues to receive tobacco tax,
however, they give the catering industry hardships.''