Philippine civil society groups to President Duterte: Sign smoke-free EO now
29 November 2016: Groups representing different sectors called on Philippine President Duterte to immediately sign the Executive Order (EO) enforcing a nationwide smoking ban during
SEATCA, University of Public Health-Yangon held workshop to develop system to monitor TAPS ban in Myanmar
On 23 November 2016, SEATCA together with the University of Public Health (UPH), Yangon held a capacity building workshop to develop a monitoring system to
Youth training workshop on TAPS ban held in Indonesia
22 November 2016: Indonesia has a new generation of dynamic young people called Young Innovators who are calling upon the Indonesian President and the government
Ordinance prohibiting smoking in public places in San Juan will be implemented strictly
21 November 2016: Smoking in public places in San Juan City will be implemented strictly. The move is in consonance with the existing ordinance that
Foreign firm taps unregulated e-cigarette market
21 November 2016: Multinational firm British American Tobacco (BAT) will start selling this week a branded e-cigarette product that would allow the cigarette firm to
Myanmar ranks last in ASEAN tobacco control study
17 November 2016: With out-of-date policies, cheap access, and ubiquitous usage, Myanmar ranks last in tobacco control, according to a survey of the region released
No need to make anti-smoking warnings bigger
7 November 2016: THE Department of Health (DOH) does not see the need to enlarge the graphic health warning (GHW) in cigarette packs to more
Full compliance with cigarette law pressed
4 November 2016: New Vios Association of the Philippines (NVAP) President Emer Rojas said while legitimate points of sale in Metro Manila have started complying
Every tobacco death is an avoidable tragedy. The epidemic must stop here
6 November 2016: Dr. Margaret Chan As India prepares to host a key global anti-tobacco conference, the world must seize the chance to end a
Smoke free Ph pushed
30 October 2016: A NON-GOVERNMENT organization appealed to President Rodrigo Duterte to make the Philippines smoke-free by enforcing a nationwide smoking ban in public places
Big Tobacco Meddling With Myanmar’s Government – Report
2 November 2016: Tobacco companies have been meddling in government affairs and interfering with policies aimed at reducing smoking in Myanmar, a new report has
Tobacco control: The Philippines experience
28 October 2016: With his tough anti-vice record in his constituency Davao, the Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte is now set to roll out a strict
Malaysia: Offenders fined RM250 each for puffing in smoke-free zone
20 October 2016: TWENTY-FOUR smokers paid a hefty price for lighting up in the George Town Unesco World Heritage Site which is a designated cigarette
Malaysia: 24 smokers fined in Penang heritage zone
19 October 2016: GEORGE TOWN: Twenty four smokers who were caught lighting up in the heritage zone today have until Nov 19 to settle a
Philippines: Duterte to ban smoking inside all buildings nationwide
17 October 2016: President also eyes national firecracker ban, but will study economic impact first In a press briefing Sunday before he left for Brunei,
Fears raised over smoking at home
15 October 2016: Thai smokers are taking to puffing away in the comfort of their own homes as smoking in public places becomes increasingly restrictive,
Duterte to sign tough no-smoking order
13 October 2016: PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte is set to sign a regulation this month banning smoking in public across Southeast Asia’s second-most populous country,
DOH chief sees nationwide smoking ban within year
10 October 2016 Draft EO submitted to Duterte for signature MANILA – The Department of Health (DOH) expects President Rodrigo Duterte to sign an executive
Smoke-free Philippines awaits Duterte signature
10 October 2016 MANILA, Philippines – Good news for anti-smoking advocates: President Duterte is expected to sign this month an order declaring a nationwide smoking
Indonesia: Half-hearted tobacco control
4 October 2016 With the current government aiming high on health development, its decision to raise cigarette excise by an average of 10.54 percent starting
Myanmar: Graphic packaging amnesty granted for cigarettes
4 October 2016 After lobbying from tobacco companies, a six-month reprieve has been granted on a regulation requiring cigarette packages to carry graphic health warnings,
Philippines: Cigarette tax stamp rule compliance drops to 75%
3 October 2016 COMPLIANCE with the rule requiring tax stamps affixed on all cigarette packs dropped to a low of 75.1 percent in September, latest
Indonesia: Anti-tobacco groups slam small cigarette excise hike
3 October 2016 The government’s decision to raise cigarette duties will not deter tobacco consumption in the country, public health experts and activists say, as
Indonesia: UI professor slams tobacco companies over paltry pay
2 October 2016 Low wages paid to workers in the tobacco industry stand in stark contrast to the fortunes made by their employers and earning
Philippines: ‘Health tax’ package readied
30 September 2016 Filipinos would enjoy lower income tax rates by June next year if the Department of Finance (DOF) could immediately get the legislators’
Tobacco lobby scored again
28 September 2016 TWO years after it was ranked high among Southeast Asian countries that reported tobacco industry influence, the Philippines has made significant gains
Brunei leads tobacco control in SE Asia
26 September 2016 BRUNEI was ranked first among ASEAN countries for its strict tobacco control measures, according to the 2016 Tobacco Industry Interference Index. The
Myanmar: Anti-tobacco law to be upgraded with harsher punishments, fines
6 September 2016 One decade after a law to control tobacco use went into effect, the government is finally pledging to give teeth to the
WHO warns of intensified tobacco industry interference
16 September 2016 THE World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday warned member-states against the intensified efforts of the tobacco industry to interfere in the implementation
Philippines, Brunei lead ASEAN in curbing tobacco industry interference
17 September 2016 THE Philippines and Brunei lead their ASEAN peers in efforts to put a check on tobacco industry interference in health governance matters.
Indonesia: Health costs of smoking may be higher than tobacco profit
6 September 2016 Quitting smoking is hard as cigarettes contain nicotine, an addictive substance in tobacco that fuels cravings. After smoking, the brain becomes dependent
Thailand: Smoking banned in all taxis
31 August 2016 All taxis will be 100% “no smoking” from Thursday, with stiff fines for passengers and drivers who disregard the ban, and all
Malaysia: Teen puffers on the rise
27 August 2016 AN average of 50 to 60 teenagers are picking up the smoking habit daily nationwide and this is worrying, said the Health
Indonesia: Plan to raise price of smokes gets cheers
23 August 2016 Burdened by a persistent deficit in the national health insurance, the government, earlier reluctant to try to stop the country’s addiction to
Myanmar: Cigarette packs to display mandatory warnings
17 August 2016 Cigarette packs sold around the country will display health and addiction warnings beginning September 1. In a move to combat cigarette addiction,
Indonesia: Cigarette price hike may scare smokers: researcher
23 August 2016 Plans to increase cigarette prices to Rp 50,000 (US$4) per pack from currently Rp 15,000, will be effective to reduce the number
Indonesia: House speaker agrees to cigarette price hike
20 August 2016 House of Representative speaker Ade Komarudin has agreed to a plan to hike cigarette prices to Rp 50,000 (US$3.79) per pack, more
Indonesia: Protobacco lobby intensifies
19 August 2016 Protobacco lobbying in Indonesia, dubbed the country of baby smokers because of its alarmingly high smoking rate among children, is endangering the
Tobacco Industry’s Interference in Indonesia Highest in ASEAN
15 August 2016 TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Widyastuti Soerojo, head of the special division for control at the Indonesian Public Health Scholars Association (IAKMI), said that the
Philippines: Anti-smoking group backs ‘cigarette holiday’ bill
13 August 2016 The proposal to prohibit selling tobacco products and smoking cigarettes every 15th day of the month is now backed by an anti-smoking
USA/ASIA: US-BASED THINK-TANK TRIES TO INTIMIDATE REGIONAL TOBACCO CONTROL GROUP
Tobacco control advocates are familiar with the “scream test” – the litmus test for an effective measure that hurts the tobacco industry and causes it
Malaysia: Community service awaits errant smokers in Penang
3 August 2016 GEORGE TOWN: Those caught smoking in the George Town World Heritage Site may have to do community service. State exco member Phee
Malaysia: They can only puff in designated yellow circles in heritage enclave
2 August 2016 GEORGE TOWN: If you are craving for nicotine inside the no-smoking heritage enclave here, look for the yellow semi-circle marked with a
Singapore: Ban on point-of-sale display of tobacco products from Aug 1, 2017
28 July 2016 SINGAPORE – The point-of-sale display ban on tobacco products – approved in Parliament in March – takes effect on August 1, 2017. Retailers
Cambodia: Past Deadline, Most Cigarettes Still Lack Graphic Pictures
27 July 2016 Days after a law went into effect requiring all cigarette packages sold in Cambodia to be plastered with graphic images of the
Cambodia: Government Says it Will Enforce Smoke Ban in September
21 July 2016 Smokers who light up inside bars, restaurants, hotels and other establishment where the public gathers will face fines of 20,000 riel (about
Tobacco control in Thailand means creative approaches to quitting
19 July 2016 Here’s how the Asian nation dramatically curbed tobacco usage and got 91% of smokers to support harsher action against cigarettes. “Can I
Vietnam: Is TPP a public health threat?
20 July 2016 HÀ NỘI — The Government should bar certain industries from exploiting the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) lest they damage public health, health activists
Young campaigners collect antitobacco letters for Jokowi
19 July 2016 No smoking – Members of Indonesian Young Reformers take a picture after a press conference on Monday ahead of the 2016 National
World Bank paper notes sin tax gains, but says more work necessary on health component
18 July 2016 “OPEN and systematic monitoring” will be critical to the success of the Sin Tax Law, a World Bank working paper reported as