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 millions of young people vulnerable to aggressive marketing. While most ASEAN member states ban e-cigarettes, others permit their manufacturing and sale, allowing products to easily flood neighboring markets.
“We still see flavoured vapes being sold and promoted on our way to school. We are also constantly exposed to vape marketing through our phones and social media,” said Syarah Ismahani, youth ambassador from Malaysia. “While we acknowledge the government’s efforts through Akta 852, loopholes remain, with flavoured vape promotions still visible, including around school areas. Stronger action is needed to truly protect our youth. Reintroducing the Generational End Game (GEG) and implementing a total ban would be the most effective way to prevent the next generation from being targeted by these products.”
Enforcement gaps also remain a glaring issue across the region. Cambodia is one of the eight ASEAN member states that have banned e-cigarettes, but Cambodian youth ambassador Va Vireaksa noted that cross-border marketing and sales frequently undermine local laws.
“Protection on paper must become protection in real life,” Vireaksa said. “Although Cambodia has banned these products, sales and marketing in neighboring countries and online allow them to slip into our markets and reach young people.”
“We are facing a shared crisis that demands a shared response,” said Mutiara Mauliza Simbolon, youth ambassador from Indonesia. “Young people in Indonesia deserve to grow up in environments that protect their health rather than expose them to tobacco and nicotine products. While the tobacco industry continues to find new ways to reach young people, our policies must keep pace. Ratifying the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control would be a powerful demonstration of the Indonesian government’s commitment to protecting future generations and prioritizing public health.”
To close these regulatory loopholes, youth advocates are also rallying behind a landmark move by the Republic of Palau. In June 2026, the Pacific island nation requested the United Nations to review nicotine as a scheduled drug under the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances. Regulating nicotine at the molecular level would prevent companies from bypassing bans with new, supposedly “tobacco-free” products.
The youth ambassadors say they’re ready to work alongside governments and communities to close the gaps. What they’re not willing to do is wait or be sidelined.
ASEAN youth have laid out four demands for ASEAN governments:
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Enforce the tobacco control laws that already exist, instead of leaving them on paper.
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Ban e-cigarettes and other non-medicinal nicotine products before they hook a new generation.
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Support Palau’s push for a UN review of nicotine.
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Set clear, time-bound plans to phase out cigarettes.
Without immediate, coordinated action, young leaders warned that Southeast Asia risks locking another generation into a preventable, and devastating, health crisis.
Contact Information:
Ms. Cyresse Ann Achilleos, Media and Communications Officer, SEATCA
Email: cyresse@seatca.org
Mobile: +63 975 701 7130
About SEATCA
SEATCA is a multi-sectoral non-governmental alliance promoting health and saving lives by assisting ASEAN countries to accelerate and effectively implement the tobacco control measures contained in the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). SEATCA is an accredited ASEAN entity and an official Observer to the WHO FCTC Conference of Parties. WHO bestowed on SEATCA the World No Tobacco Day Award in 2004 and the WHO Director-General’s Special Recognition Award in 2014. www.seatca.org