Philippines to require graphic warnings

A Philippine legislative committee on Tuesday approved a bill that would compel cigarette manufacturers to include graphic health warnings on their packs,  according to a story in The Gulf Today.

The committee, composed of senators and congressmen, passed the bill directing the Department of Health to issue 12 templates of pictures and illustrations that warn about the dangers of smoking.

The full Senate and House of Representatives are expected to formally pass the bill before it is signed into law by President Benigno Aquino III.

The warnings will occupy the lower half of the front and back panels of cigarette packs.

The current written warning says that smoking is dangerous.

The bill requires also that the Department of Education include information about the hazards of smoking in school curriculums.