Kuwait News Agency - Arab countries widely ratify the global tobacco treaty

GENEVA - International Policy Director, Corporate Accountability International (CAI) Kathy Mulvey praised Wednesday the Arab region for widely ratifying the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). However, she added at a news conference in Geneva, that the tobacco industry is trying to interfere to obstruct the implementation of the treaty.

Announcing a new report: the 2008 Global Tobacco Treaty Action Guide", she said that in Mexico for example close ties between top health officials and the tobacco industry have historically contributed in weakening of national tobacco control laws.

The Action Guide lists many other countries that suffer from the same interference of Tobacco industry.

CAI is calling for inserting essential elements in article 5.3 of the treaty such as prohibiting government partnership or collaboration with the tobacco industry.

The network of NGOs is calling upon government to adopt the proposed elements at at the third Conference of the Parties to the FCTC in South Africa in November 2008. Latin America Coordinator, Corporate Accountability International Yul Francisco Dorado, praised Uruguay and Mexico City for becoming free smoking land. According to Mulvey there is widespread evidence that tobacco transnationals like Philip Morris/Altria, British American Tobacco (BAT) and Japan Tobacco (JT) have benefited from - and even been complicit in - tobacbacco smuggling.

Mulvey adds that the illicit trade represents approximately 10 percent of global tobacco sales, and costs governments between USD 40 and 50 billion annually in lost revenue, often designated to support public health programs.

She said that NGOs are watch dogging tobacco industry attempts to undermine or derail the negotiations toward a protocol on tobacco smuggling.

"The global tobacco treaty obligates ratifying countries to safeguard their health policies against such interference. Next month at the third enforcement meeting on the treaty, parties will be considering specific guidelines on how to implement this obligation," she added.

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