[Intl-tobacco] Thailand: Protests Over Store Ad Ban

[robert weissman]

Bangkok Post
August 22, 2005

TOBACCO TUSSLE

The Public Health Ministry is deaf to protests against a ban on
cigarette displays in stores to take effect next month

Story by SUJINTANA HEMTASILPA

Of all the external threats to a business, one of the most feared and
resisted is a new law or government regulation aimed directly at the
core of the enterprise. Take for example the ministerial order from the
Public Health Ministry to ban the open display of cigarettes in stores,
starting on Sept 24.

The ministry says there will be no delay and no compromise; it is deaf
to any alternatives proposed by major cigarette importers and makers,
and can't hear protests by store owners.

But the ban represents a dilemma for economic policymakers. The public
and anti-smoking organisations generally support anything that might
help to curb a harmful habit while at the same time, tough curbs could
hurt a large group of people employed in one of the country's prosperous
industries.

Tobacco and cigarettes make an industry worth about 75 billion baht in
Thailand, involving more than 150,000 farmers, as well as thousands of
workers in allied fields, including the Thailand Tobacco Monopoly, a
state enterprise that is one of the Finance Ministry's cash cows.

At the same time, authorities must keep in mind the government's rising
health-care expenses for citizens with chronic diseases developed from
smoking.

The ministerial order, when effective, will shut down the only venue
that cigarette distributors have to inform consumers about their
products. This is because the Tobacco Products Control Act has always
forbidden all forms of advertisement of tobacco products.

The display of tobacco on retail shelves is not regarded as a form of
advertisement _ not until Sept 24, that is. Public health authorities
says such displays are, indeed, a form of advertisement, because the
colourful posters on the shelf could induce smoking, particularly by
young people.

Thailand is seen as one of the four strictest countries on tobacco
control, along with Canada, Brazil and Singapore.

Paul Riley, Philip Morris general manager for Thailand and Indochina,
says his company can do little marketing in Thailand because of the
strict control law. If the Public Health Ministry insists on the ban, he
says, Philip Morris can only continue to produce high quality products
and make them available in the market.

He protested that, at least, the company should be able to display its
products to consumers to show them what it is offering.

Mr Riley said Philip Morris had planned to propose an alternative, a
solution already used in Singapore. The island state allows one sample
packet of each cigarette brand variant for display. The showcase should
be in one area near the counter for sale of the cigarettes. Multi-floor
supermarkets can have one such display area per floor.

Chalit Limpanavech, chairman of Abac University's Marketing
Communication Department, says that if the government allows cigarettes
to be sold in this country, it should not close down marketing channels
of cigarette distributors.

At least, the display at the points of sale should be exempted, said Mr
Chalit.

If the ban goes into effect, he said, cigarette distributors could opt
to carry out their marketing activities through direct communications
with customers, instead of via the mass media or any public venue.

Direct communications could include mail, web sites or short messages
via mobile phones. But first of all, distributors should build up their
database of customers through some event marketing activities. For
example, games or draws could convince customers to send in their
contact addresses, Mr Chalit said.

In the meantime, some smokers say the ban will have no impact on their
smoking behaviour, and that the authorities are wasting their time.

A smoker in his 30s said he had been smoking for several years, so he
had already chosen his favourite brand and flavour of cigarettes. Each
smoker tends to be very loyal to a brand and would not easily switch to
new products.

For this reason, whether or not they are informed about new cigarette
types through the product displays at the retail shelf would not make
them change their purchasing decisions, the smoker said.

Asked what will make him quit smoking: ``When I see my lung in the X-ray
film is dark enough. I mean it.''

The ban would not prevent anyone from becoming a first-time smoker,
either, another woman smoker said.

``No first-time smoker goes to a convenience store and buys a pack of
cigarettes to have their first smoking experience,'' she said.
``First-time smokers get their first cigarette from a friend, or other
smokers around them.''

After all, experience in other countries has shown that when tobacco use
is legal but restricted, tobacco use in that country gradually decreases.

According to the Public Health Ministry, 22% of smokers in Thailand are
aged between 11 and 14 years, and another 15% between 15 and 24 years old.

Public Health Minister Suchai Yongarnukul said the ministry focused its
attempt on reducing the number of young smokers. He estimated that
banning cigarette displays could lead to a reduction of 20-40% in the
number of smokers.

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