Bangkok, 6 February: 183 governments are convening at Panama City, Panama from 5-10 February 2024 for the Tenth Session of the Conference of Parties (COP10) to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). The WHO FCTC is a global health treaty to strictly regulate the tobacco industry, whose tobacco pandemic kills 8 million people every year. In the context of COP10, the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) reiterates its call for governments, especially in the ASEAN, to affirm their commitments to the FCTC and protect their populations, especially younger generations from the harms of the tobacco industry and its products.
A recent WHO report highlighted that while progress has been made to reduce tobacco use globally, there is still an urgent need for governments to address tobacco industry interference in public health policies. In ASEAN, SEATCA observed that while governments are equipped with the tools to protect health measures from tobacco industry influence, these measures are not implemented effectively. The 4th ASEAN Tobacco Industry Interference Index reports that ASEAN countries are struggling with tobacco industry interference, several still allowing the industry to participate in developing health policies, accepting tobacco-related charity, giving benefits to the industry, and lacking transparency in their interactions with the industry.
ASEAN nations must also step up their implementation of other tobacco control measures. SEATCA’s latest civil society Scorecard shows that while almost all ASEAN countries (except Malaysia) had improved their scores from 2021, comprehensive tobacco control policies still remain to be established and enforced. For example, all ASEAN countries must continually increase tobacco taxes to ensure that tobacco products become less affordable over time. Also, while the Philippines has advanced in tobacco tax policies, it has regressed in countering tobacco industry interference.
The FCTC Scorecard ranked countries based on implementation of the following tobacco control measures: protecting public health from tobacco industry interference (Art. 5.3), price and tax measures (Art. 6), protection from exposure to tobacco smoke (Art. 8), packaging and labeling (Art. 11), and tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship (Art. 13).
Indonesia is lagging behind ASEAN countries in implementing key articles of WHO FCTC.
Indonesia, which remains a non-Party to the WHO FCTC, needs to improve its scores on smoke-free environments, banning tobacco advertising, requiring large pictorial health warnings, and addressing tobacco industry interference.
Members of the Ramathibodi Medical Student Association urged Thailand Prime Minister Mr Sretha Thavisin to maintain
The urgency to protect people from the tobacco industry and its products is underscored by recent developments including Malaysia’s new law, which excluded a pioneering Generational Endgame component; the further delay to implement Myanmar’s Standardized Packaging regulation; and the calls of Thailand’s youth to their government to strictly implement the ban on electronic smoking devices.
“ASEAN has over 125 million adult smokers, and more than 500,000 people from the region are killed by tobacco use every year. While the tobacco industry continues to profit, society bears the economic and social costs of its deadly business. Governments need to do everything possible to stop the tobacco industry from causing more harm and creating a new generation of nicotine addicts with its electronic smoking devices,” stated Dr Ulysses Dorotheo, Executive Director of SEATCA.
“The world will be watching as governments go to COP10, and civil society expects them to fulfill their commitments under the WHO FCTC to protect present and future generations from the harms of tobacco use and nicotine addiction,” he added.
Contact Information:
Val Bugnot, Media and Communications Manager, SEATCA
Email: val@seatca.org
Mobile: +63917312460
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 FCTC. Acknowledged by governments, academic institutions, and civil society for its advancement of tobacco control in Southeast Asia, the WHO bestowed on SEATCA the World No Tobacco Day Award in 2004 and the WHO Director-General’s Special Recognition Award in 2014.