[Intl-tobacco] NYT on FCTC (Nov 25)

[Robert Weissman]

Talks, and Accusations, Resume Over a World Tobacco Treaty - New York
Times

Sunday, November 25, 2001

By ELIZABETH OLSON

GENEVA, Nov. 24 — A third round of negotiations for an international
treaty to help stamp out smoking began here this week with wrangling
over proposals for a global ban on advertising and promotion of
cigarettes as well as proposed provisions covering the tobacco
industry's liability.

The World Health Organization and groups that oppose smoking have
revived accusations that the tobacco industry is using its clout behind
the scenes to weaken the treaty's proposed provisions — including
influencing the Bush administration to bring its positions into line
with the industry's.

Tobacco companies are barred from participating in the negotiations. The
world's three biggest tobacco companies — British American Tobacco,
Philip Morris and Japan Tobacco — oppose a global ban on advertising and
promotion, and they have made a public commitment to direct their
marketing at adults, and away from adolescents.

The World Health Organization, which has made curbing smoking a
priority, rejects that approach.

"Our experience has been that a self-regulatory approach does not work,"
said Derek Yach, the W.H.O.'s executive director for noncommunicable
diseases, in an interview on Thursday when the weeklong talks began.

The health organization, pointing out that tobacco kills an estimated
four million people a year, is pressing its 191 member countries to come
up with an outline for the treaty, which it hopes to complete by 2003.
The aim of this round of talks is to assemble a framework, then hammer
out specifics on points of disagreement next year.

Before the talks got into full swing, antismoking groups renewed their
complaints that the tobacco giants had been trying to water down the
treaty's support in a number of countries, including the United States.

"The U.S. delegation is arguing for more general language," said Kathryn
Mulvey of Infact, an antismoking group based in Boston. "They appear to
be trying to slow the process down so the convention is considered piece
by piece, instead of a more effective whole."

Kenneth Bernard, an assistant surgeon general in the United States
Public Health Service who is leading the American delegation, disputes
charges that tobacco companies have shaped the American position. But he
cited the global ban on advertising as among the issues "that are so
contentious that we're unlikely to get universal agreement." He said
such issues should be considered separately so as not to impede progress
toward a strongly worded treaty.

Representative Henry A. Waxman, Democrat of California, sent a letter to
President Bush on Monday accusing the administration of siding with
Philip Morris in opposing certain treaty proposals.

Dr. Bernard said that he "had absolutely no pressure from the White
House or any other officials."

A spokesman for Philip Morris, David Davies, who is monitoring the talks
from London, said that while tobacco companies were willing to rein in
some of their marketing and advertising activities, the industry was
very concerned by proposals that he said amounted to "litigation as a
means of regulation."

Specifically, he said proposals to permit lawsuits not only in a
victim's home country, but in the country where a tobacco company's
headquarters are based would allow litigants to shop around for courts
that require a lower burden of proof.