Regional smokeless tobacco ban sought

Representatives of 10 South and Southeast Asian countries attending an anti-tobacco meeting in Delhi, India, have called for a ban on smokeless forms of tobacco, according to an Indo-Asian News Service story.

The representatives, from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Timor-Leste (East Timor), were attending a regional meeting of the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).

The meeting, organised by India’s health ministry in collaboration with WHO SEAR (Southeast Asian region), reviewed implementation of the FCTC and major developments related to the treaty in the region and internationally.

The meeting was said to have facilitated inter-country exchanges on implementation achievements and challenges, including the identification of best practices and the ways of further promoting their dissemination and use.

It reviewed instruments available for implementation of the convention, particularly the guidelines and reporting system.

Representatives decided to raise awareness of the newly adopted protocol to eliminate the illicit trade in tobacco products and to promote its signature and ratification, an official said.

And they called for the introduction of “strong” legislation banning smokeless tobacco.

It is generally accepted that the harm caused by tobacco is mainly the result of the inhalation of tobacco smoke containing chemicals created during the burning process.