菸草廣告將“躲”向何方？
Tobacco promotion will be banned by early 2011
China, the world's largest tobacco producer and consumer, will ban all forms of tobacco promotion by January 2011.
China, the world's largest tobacco producer and consumer, will ban all forms of tobacco promotion by January 2011.
A ban on tobacco advertising has been in place since 1996, but firms have managed to sidestep the rules and promote their brands in other more subtle ways such as sponsoring sporting events, or using their logos without mentioning "cigarettes" on television, radio and in newspapers and magazines.
Xu Guihua, vice-president of China Tobacco Control Association, made the landmark announcement on Monday at a seminar in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong Province. She said the country is committed to fulfill its obligations to the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
China formally became a member of the convention last January.
Xu said the nation lags behind other countries in efforts to control the use of tobacco, and the biggest problem is the lack of national regulations banning smoking in public areas.
To date, fewer than half the cities have framed rules on smoking bans in some public spaces. Efforts to ban smoking in other areas such as karaoke parlors and restaurants have been stifled by unwilling owners and managers who fear a loss of business.
Figures from the Ministry of Health show that China has an estimated 350 million smokers, almost a third of the world's 1.1 billion smokers.
Cigarette makers spent more than 1.6 billion yuan to promote their brands last year, according to China Youth Daily.
In 2005 the government collected 240 billion yuan in tobacco taxes.
According to the WHO convention, tobacco products must carry prominent health warnings on the packaging.
This measure needs to be implemented within three years from when China signed the convention.
Within five years, China must fulfill it commitment to comprehensively ban all forms of tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship.
Yang Yan, a researcher with Chinese Center for Disease Prevention and Control, said 12 percent of deaths in China are caused by tobacco related illnesses, and by 2025, that figure will climb to 33 percent.
中國是世界上最大的菸草生產國和消費國，到2011年1月，中國將禁止各種形式的菸草廣告。
儘管禁止菸草廣告的規定從1996年起就已開始實施，但商家們卻設法避開相關規定，以更爲“隱蔽”的方式來宣傳自己的品牌，比如贊助體育賽事，或是在電視、廣播及報紙雜誌上避開“香菸”二字，使用品牌標識語。
週一，中國菸草控制協會副會長許桂華在廣州召開的一個研討會上做了一項重要報告。她說中國一直致力於履行世界衛生組織《菸草控制框架公約》的義務。
中國於去年1月正式成爲公約成員國。
許表示，我國在菸草控制方面落後於其它國家，目前最大的問題是缺乏全國性的公共場所禁菸法規。
到目前爲止，全國只有不到一半的城市制定了在某些公共場合禁菸的規定。而在一些如卡拉OK廳、餐館等其它場所，禁菸卻遭到經營者的抵制，因爲他們擔心生意會受到影響。
據衛生部的相關數據顯示，中國約有3.5億菸民，佔世界菸民總數（11億）的近三分之一。
據《中國青年報》報道，去年，菸草生產商花在品牌宣傳上的資金超過16億人民幣。
2005年，中國政府徵收的菸草稅達到2400億人民幣。
根據世界衛生組織公約的規定，菸草產品必須在外包裝上印有明顯的“吸菸有害健康”的提示。
這項措施必須在中國簽署公約起三年內實行。
五年內，中國必須履行承諾，全面禁止各種形式的菸草廣告、宣傳和贊助。
中國疾病防治中心的研究人員楊燕說，中國有12%的人死於由吸菸引發的疾病，到2025年，這一數字將上升至33%。
