Jail for misplaced smokers

The firm implementation of Jordan’s Public Health Law is the cornerstone of achieving a reduction in tobacco consumption and, thereby, a healthier society, according to a story in The Jordan Times quoting ‘experts’ who met on Thursday.

Referring to a newly-amended law that bans smoking in public places, the Health Ministry’s spokesperson Hatem Azrui said that more institutions were showing commitment to complying with such regulations and that anti-tobacco efforts were becoming more serious.

Recent amendments to the law have introduced harsher penalties for those who smoke in public places, including imprisonment for one to three months or a fine of JD100-JD200.

The owners of facilities where smoking violations take place, meanwhile, are liable to fines of JD1,000-JD3,000.

The recent amendments to the law have changed, too, the definition of a public place, bringing it into line with that of the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.