Aiming to be tobacco-free

World No Tobacco Day provided an opportunity to ‘remind ourselves of the epidemic of disease and death that the tobacco industry continues to cause,’ according to Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), which describes itself as ‘America’s oldest anti-tobacco organization’.
In a statement issued yesterday, on the eve of World No Tobacco Day, ASH said the vision of a world without tobacco deaths was purely aspirational to many; few could truly foresee a world without tobacco products commercially sold.
‘While we celebrate progress in reducing the carnage, we always ask ourselves “how many pointless, preventable deaths are acceptable?”,’ it said. ‘The answer must be zero.
‘Some may see this as extreme or naïve. Smoking has been around for centuries, and there are over a billion tobacco consumers around the world. In spite of over 50 years of fighting the tobacco industry, there are more smokers than ever. But this argument misidentifies the problem. We are not fighting smokers – they are the victims, not the perpetrators of this health catastrophe…
‘All the responsibility and guilt lays with the tobacco industry, which continues to aggressively market a product that has been specifically engineered to be as addictive as possible and that they know will kill when used as intended. As the Danish Institute for Human Rights put it, “there can be no doubt that the production and marketing of tobacco is irreconcilable with the human right to health”.
‘The world is starting to wake up. If a new product came on the market tomorrow that was addictive and deadly, there is no doubt that swift action would be taken, including holding those responsible legally liable. We have had a blind spot when it comes to tobacco, but this is changing. In March, the global health community adopted the Cape Town Declaration on Human Rights and a Tobacco-Free World, recognizing that the tobacco industry infringes on human rights. Over 150 organizations – and counting – have endorsed the Declaration.
‘There will come a May 31st we can celebrate being truly tobacco-free. ASH aims to bring that day as soon as possible, saving as many loved ones as possible.’