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 Attempting to Influence Legislation and Treaty Enforcement in Latin America In November 2004, Peru became the 40th country to ratify the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control—the threshold for the global tobacco treaty to enter into force. By May 2005,BAT had sent the Peruvian Health Ministry suggested tobacco control legislation favored by the tobacco industry. The tobacco industry wasted no time in trying to water down the country’s tobacco control legislation. Philip Morris/Altria attempted to interfere similarly in the crafting of tobacco control laws in Guatemala and Ecuador by offering legislators model legislation a year earlier. In April 2006, Peru’s Congress passed legislation to implement the global tobacco treaty—a giant step forward for tobacco control in Peru. Meanwhile, the tobacco industry succeeded in securing a seat for the National Society of Industries on Peru’s newly formed Multisector Commission, which was created to implement and monitor tobacco control efforts. In violation of Article 5.3, which bans interference in public health policy by commercial and other vested interests of the tobacco industry, the National Society of Industries is represented on the Commission by two BAT employees. The Comisión Nacional Permanente de Lucha Antitabaquica del Perú (COLAT), or Permanent National Commission in the Anti-Tobacco Fight, a network of more than 100 governmental and non-governmental organizations in Peru, has denounced the inclusion of the tobacco industry on this regulatory commission and is campaigning to ensure the strongest possible implementation of Peru’s new tobacco control law. In recognition of COLAT’s work and in the interest of keeping the Multisectoral Commission on task, the Minister of Health has named the President of COLAT as the head of the Commission. As this Action Guide is going to print, the Multisectoral Commission has not yet met, in large part, because of the tobacco industry’s presence on the Commission. Corporate Accountability International and NATT will continue to urge Peru to honor its obligations to the global tobacco treaty by upholding Article 5.3 and not allowing the tobacco industry to play a role in creating or implementing health policy.
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Global Tobacco Treaty Action Guide 2008
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