[Intl-tobacco] Thailand: Back to school for cigarette firms

[Robert Weissman]

Back to school for cigarette firms
The Nation
 November 6, 2003

 Arthit Khwankhom

 Cigarette companies blocked from regular advertising aimed at young
people have turned to sponsorship of events at schools and universities,
says an anti-smoking activist.

 Even the Thailand Tobacco Monopoly has joined the new trend after
government regulations clamped down on advertising
 directed at young people - potential smokers who are vitally necessary
to the survival of the companies - Dr Prakit Vateesatokkij said yesterday.

 Now, the Public Health Ministry has said it will consider recommending
a ban on sponsorships by cigarette firms in educational institutions.
"Such sponsorships are a huge obstacle to anti-smoking campaigns because
they work on the administrators [of educational institutions] to keep
their mouths and eyes shut," said Prakit.

 The doctor is secretary-general of the Action on Smoking and Health
Foundation and dean of the medical college of Ramathibodi Hospital. As
anti-smoking campaigns work to reduce the number of smokers, the tobacco
companies seek to compensate by finding new smokers through sponsorship
of extra-curricular activities in schools and universities such as
sports events, Prakit said.

 The Public Health Ministry's committee on tobacco control will soon
consider asking the Education Ministry to ban sponsorship from cigarette
firms in the same way as it already bans sponsorship from makers and
sellers of alcoholic beverages.

 According to the National Statistics Office's 1999 records, smoking
ranked second only to unsafe sex among risk factors that caused
unnatural deaths among Thais. The office's records for 2001 showed that
there were 10.6 million smokers in the Kingdom.