ˇ@ˇ@The
Tobacco Prevention and Control Act (TPCA) went into effect on
September 19, 1997, in Taiwan. This law clearly defined the guidelines
for cigarette promotion and sale, the sale modality and target,
the legal age and designated area for smoking, the health warning
label that indicates the amount of nicotine and tar, and the smoking
cessation counseling and education. This law put tobacco prevention
and control in Taiwan on the right track.
Taiwan
has applied the same tobacco control and prevention policy
as the rest of the world. (Picture from JTF) |
ˇ@ˇ@After several
years of actual application, it was discovered that there were
a few shortcomings to this law, as well as several obstacles that
needed to be overcome. After hearing the suggestions of experts,
scholars, non-profit organizations, citizens, and local authorities,
the Executive Yuan had drafted the Amendment to Tobacco Prevention
and Control Bill. Although the bill was reviewed by the Legislative
Yuan in the years 2000 and 2002, it has not been made into law.
ˇ@ˇ@In order
to effectively control the global health-related, social, economic,
and environmental problems caused by cigarette smoking, the World
Health Organization (WHO) has passed the first global health treaty
called the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). Based
on the premise of healthy body for all racial, political, and
national backgrounds, the Executive Yuan had drafted a new Tobacco
Prevention and Control Bill based on the areas that did not meet
the standards set forth in the FCTC.
ˇ@ˇ@This
new bill consisted of 8 chapters and 37 paragraphs. The main points
are as follows:
(1) |
Because
tobacco welfare surcharge is not a tariff, this charge should
be used in health promotion as originally intended. |
(2) |
Strengthen
the management of cigarettes, name brands, and packaging.
|
(3) |
Strengthen
the control of tobacco advertisement and sponsorship. |
(4) |
Prohibit
pregnant women from smoking. |
(5) |
Designate
more non-smoking areas. |
(6) |
Draft
the types and amounts of violation penalty. |
(7) |
Create
an interim law that permits the short-term manufacturing,
importation, and sale of certain existing products that do
not meet the guidelines before the law goes into effect. |
ˇ@ˇ@Even though
the promotion of tobacco prevention and control has resulted in
a decrease of smoking rate of 28.2% in 2002 to 26.4% in 2004,
it is only a mild success. The Legislative Yuan finally passed
the Amendment to Tobacco Prevention and Control Bill on November
9, 2005, enabling Taiwan to finally have something to show for
before the one-year anniversary of the FCTC. We are urging the
government to pass this bill and make it into law expeditiously.
|
