DHAKA NEWS
Dhaka, Feb 29 A vigorous campaign by a leading tobacco maker has seen almost two and a half years' efforts to roll out 'tougher' anti-tobacco regulations in Bangladesh go up in smoke.
The health ministry was ready to place the draft amendment of the 2005 law in the Dec 19 cabinet meeting after getting clearance from the finance ministry and other organisations. But it was not placed and the plan was blown away.
A deputy secretary, Azam-e-Sadat, who was assigned with the task, later said the finance ministry eventually recalled the draft.
Digging into the reasons that prompted the finance ministry to recall the draft which they themselves had endorsed in July last year,found that British American Tobacco Bangladesh (BATB) apparently convinced the finance minister just a day before the cabinet meeting to back away.
According to a finance ministry official, a delegation from the multinational tobacco giant met minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith and handed him a letter, a copy of which is available with
The letter argued that the government would lose out on revenue if the law was passed.
The minister in a note over the BATB letter told the National Board of Revenue chairman to look into it at once. Muhith also asked at whose initiative the amendment was being made.
The minister could not be reached immediately for comment.
But anti-tobacco campaigners said pressures from the tobacco companies were not unexpected. "It's a part of our struggle," Taifur Rahman, coordinator of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, told
He said if passed, the draft amendment would have been a 'great one'. "But it would not cut the government's revenue collection immediately. It would take years," he said, arguing that people would not give up on the habit overnight just because of a law.
He urged prime minister's intervention in the affair.
The BATB in the letter claimed they pay over Tk 73.3 billion in revenue every year and also, together with local cigarette producers, employ 'thousands of people'.
But experts say the loss of jobs in the tobacco sector is not being caused by tobacco control measures but by the companies increasing their mechanisation endeavours to make productions go up and save money by enhancing efficiency, and reducing payments to farmers.
Dr Sohel Reza Chowdhury, organising secretary of United Forum Against Tobacco, a doctors' group, said the World Health Organisation in 2004 estimated that Bangladesh spend twice the money it earns from tobacco producers to treat tobacco-related illnesses.
He said such illnesses cause nearly 57,000 annual deaths and 382,000 disabilities in Bangladesh.
"But it's (tobacco-related illnesses) not immediately obvious. It takes time to appear," he said.
The chairman of the forum, national professor Dr Abdul Malik, said 'invisible hands' were always active to thwart the process to put in place a stringent anti-tobacco law.
"We must work together to win over our strong opponents (tobacco companies)," he said and added that the law was 'badly needed' for public health safety.
According to Global Adult Tobacco Survey 2009, the latest figures available, at least 41.3 million people aged above 15 used tobacco either in smoke or smokeless form in Bangladesh. The number was 32.3 million in 2007.
Estimates suggest with 5.4 trillion cigarettes consumed, the developing world constitutes about 70 percent of the total global tobacco use.
According to experts, tobacco usage has decreased in developed world but increased in developing countries due to lax tobacco control laws.
The World Health Organisation says 'very poor' households in countries such as Bangladesh, Indonesia, Mexico and Egypt spend up to 15 per cent of their income on buying tobacco products.
The health ministry was ready to place the draft amendment of the 2005 law in the Dec 19 cabinet meeting after getting clearance from the finance ministry and other organisations. But it was not placed and the plan was blown away.
A deputy secretary, Azam-e-Sadat, who was assigned with the task, later said the finance ministry eventually recalled the draft.
Digging into the reasons that prompted the finance ministry to recall the draft which they themselves had endorsed in July last year,found that British American Tobacco Bangladesh (BATB) apparently convinced the finance minister just a day before the cabinet meeting to back away.
According to a finance ministry official, a delegation from the multinational tobacco giant met minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith and handed him a letter, a copy of which is available with
The letter argued that the government would lose out on revenue if the law was passed.
The minister in a note over the BATB letter told the National Board of Revenue chairman to look into it at once. Muhith also asked at whose initiative the amendment was being made.
The minister could not be reached immediately for comment.
But anti-tobacco campaigners said pressures from the tobacco companies were not unexpected. "It's a part of our struggle," Taifur Rahman, coordinator of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, told
He said if passed, the draft amendment would have been a 'great one'. "But it would not cut the government's revenue collection immediately. It would take years," he said, arguing that people would not give up on the habit overnight just because of a law.
He urged prime minister's intervention in the affair.
The BATB in the letter claimed they pay over Tk 73.3 billion in revenue every year and also, together with local cigarette producers, employ 'thousands of people'.
But experts say the loss of jobs in the tobacco sector is not being caused by tobacco control measures but by the companies increasing their mechanisation endeavours to make productions go up and save money by enhancing efficiency, and reducing payments to farmers.
Dr Sohel Reza Chowdhury, organising secretary of United Forum Against Tobacco, a doctors' group, said the World Health Organisation in 2004 estimated that Bangladesh spend twice the money it earns from tobacco producers to treat tobacco-related illnesses.
He said such illnesses cause nearly 57,000 annual deaths and 382,000 disabilities in Bangladesh.
"But it's (tobacco-related illnesses) not immediately obvious. It takes time to appear," he said.
The chairman of the forum, national professor Dr Abdul Malik, said 'invisible hands' were always active to thwart the process to put in place a stringent anti-tobacco law.
"We must work together to win over our strong opponents (tobacco companies)," he said and added that the law was 'badly needed' for public health safety.
According to Global Adult Tobacco Survey 2009, the latest figures available, at least 41.3 million people aged above 15 used tobacco either in smoke or smokeless form in Bangladesh. The number was 32.3 million in 2007.
Estimates suggest with 5.4 trillion cigarettes consumed, the developing world constitutes about 70 percent of the total global tobacco use.
According to experts, tobacco usage has decreased in developed world but increased in developing countries due to lax tobacco control laws.
The World Health Organisation says 'very poor' households in countries such as Bangladesh, Indonesia, Mexico and Egypt spend up to 15 per cent of their income on buying tobacco products.
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