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What's the hold up?
<< Press Cuttings Home
WHAT is causing the delay with the legislation to ban
smoking in public places in Barbados?
That is the question being posed by the Project Officer for
Tobacco Control at the Heart and Stroke Foundation, Wayne Hunte. Hunte expressed
disappointment to the Barbados Advocate that after several promises and even the
legislation being drafted, no concrete position had yet been taken on the matter
and he is calling on the authorities to say what is causing the delay and
preventing it from being presented in Parliament.
Hunte said the Government needs to answer these questions,
maintaining that the people are holding them accountable for not yet having a
smoke-free society.
Meanwhile, referring to the findings of the World Health
Organisation (WHO) Expert Committee on the Report on Tobacco Industry Documents,
he noted that traditionally the tobacco industry has operated for years with the
express purpose of undermining the role of governments and by extension the WHO
in the implementation of health policies to combat the tobacco epidemic. These
strategies, he said, have included bribing government legislators and presenting
position papers that defend trade and economic benefits at the expense of public
health.
This issue of interference on the part of the tobacco
industry, the project officer said, was addressed earlier this month at the WHO
conference in Geneva. Hunte, who attended the conference, said that participants
representing non-governmental organisations in their role as ‘watch dogs’ were
able to instigate the closing of the public gallery in order to exclude the
tobacco industry from attending and intruding in the negotiations.
According to him, more than 130 countries voted in favour of
expelling the tobacco industry from attending sessions of the meeting out of
fear that they would try to influence the delegates.
“This action sent a clear message that the tobacco industry
is not welcome at the table to formulate public policy on tobacco.
“This is a principle that the Government of Barbados needs
to adhere to, since Article 5.3 of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control,
obligates governments who ratified the convention to protect public health
policies on tobacco control from the commercial and other vested interests of
the tobacco industry,” he said,
In addition, he said that governments are also required to
take steps to limit interaction with the tobacco industry and if any interaction
should occur, it must be transparent. As a party to the Framework Convention on
Tobacco Control (FCTC), Barbados agrees to be bound by the obligations under the
FCTC, to implement tobacco control measures aimed at protecting present and
future generations from the devastating health, environmental, economic and
consequences of tobacco consumption and exposure.
Earlier this year, officials of the Ministry of Health were
reported as saying that there seemed to be light at the end of the tunnel for
the legislation, which is 10 years in the making. At that time it was stated
that it was hoped the legislation would be passed in Parliament by World No
Tobacco Day, which was celebrated on May 31. (JRT)
Published Barbados Advocate
Tuesday July 27, 2009
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