SEATCA Press Release

12 August 2026; Bangkok, Thailand – Youth advocates across Southeast Asia are celebrating International Youth Day by demanding a unified regional crackdown on nicotine addiction, calling out inconsistent laws that allow the tobacco industry to target young people and normalize the use of their products. They  warned that a patchwork of regulations across borders leaves […]

30 June 2026 YB Datuk Seri Dr Haji Dzulkefly Bin Ahmad Minister of Health Malaysia Aras 13, Blok E7, Kompleks E Pusat Pentadbiran Kerajaan Persekutuan 62590 Putrajaya Malaysia. Re: Ban E-cigarettes Now – Every Delay Puts More Malaysian Youths at Risk of Addiction Dear YB Datuk Seri, The Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) respectfully

12 June 2026, Bangkok — The Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) has called on ASEAN Member States to support the Republic of Palau, which this week made history by submitting the world’s first formal notification to the United Nations (UN) requesting that nicotine – the toxic and highly addictive drug found in cigarettes, e-cigarettes,

BANGKOK, 27 May 2026. As World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) 2026 is observed by the global community, the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) and its public health partners, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) Philippines, ASH Thailand, Cambodia Movement for Health (CMH), HealthBridge Vietnam, HealthJustice Philippines, Indonesian Health Policy Forum (RUKKI), and People’s Health

13 March 2026 Manila, Philippines – Public health advocates are calling for stronger transparency measures in legislative hearings on tobacco and vape taxes after a recent news report revealed that an “independent expert” who testified in the Philippine Senate in 2025 has ties to the tobacco and nicotine industry, raising questions about whether his testimony

23 February 2026; Bangkok, Thailand – Myanmar has officially banned e-cigarettes, electronic shisha, heated smoking devices, and related accessories, becoming the eighth country in Southeast Asia to do so. The decision, issued on 18February 2026 by the Myanmar Ministry of Health under Cabinet authorization, prohibits the import, export, sale, possession, storage, transport, distribution, use, and

6 February 2026, Bangkok – The Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA)  honored six of Asia’s tobacco control leaders today during its 25th anniversary Tobacco Control Legacies celebration, held in Bangkok, Thailand, including Singapore’s Minister for Health and Coordinating Minister for Social Policies, Mr. Ong Ye Kung, who was awarded the inaugural Prakit Vathesatogkit Trailblazer

4 February 2026 Jakarta, Indonesia – Health leaders across Southeast Asia warned that tobacco companies are increasingly exploiting social media and digital platforms to market addictive nicotine products, putting people, particularly youths, at risk. The warning was raised during the Workshop to Protect Digital Spaces from Tobacco: Implementation of Article 13 of the WHO Framework

Geneva, 18 November 2025  – Alongside the 11th session of the Conference of Parties (COP11) to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) released its newest Cigarette Package Health Warnings report, which  counts four ASEAN countries as part of continuing global progress for plain/standardized tobacco packaging and pictorial health

13 November 2025, Bangkok – The Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) has praised some governments for protecting public health against tobacco industry interference but accused many others across the Asia Pacific of still allowing the tobacco industry to call the shots on public health policy.  According to the 2025 Asia-Pacific Tobacco Industry Interference Index