Reactions to the adoption of Article 5.3

Dear Ms. Mulvey,

Thank you for your words of encouragement and thoughtfulness. None of these changes would have been possible were it not for your grim determination to make amendments to the original text. You and all those responsible deserve the thanks and appreciation of future generations in ridding us of the tobacco scourge.

I look forward to working with you yet again on still many struggles that need to be fought.

Congratulations and more power.

Sincerely,

Alexander A. Padilla
Undersecretary of Health
Republic of the Philippines

“The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control has created a new legal dimension in international health. Article 5.3 of the treaty, on the protection of public health policy from tobacco industry interference, is  one of the cornerstones of the treaty. Effective implementation of Article 5.3, following the  adoption of the guidelines at the Third session of the Conference of the Parties, is essential to implementing all of the treaty’s lifesaving measures – from bans on advertising, promotion and sponsorship, to smokefree public places, to graphic warning labels, and to elimination of illicit trade in tobacco products. Corporate Accountability International is accredited as observer to the Conference of the Parties and has been an active partner to the treaty Secretariat and Parties not only by providing expert guidance, but also by challenging the tobacco industry directly and making sure that the Article 5.3 guidelines addressed the concerns of people around the world. I look forward to continuing our cooperation.”

Dr. Haik Nikogosian
Head of Convention Secretariat
WHO FCTC
Geneva, Switzerland

"For sure it is such a success that the Parties adopted the much improved guidelines. For some of us (countries) we will succeed even more because we have adopted the guidelines. In our circumstance, the industry is so powerful and has walked the super corridors but we now will just have to make reference to the guidelines and they will be toothless in trying to interfere. If there is anything I was happy about in Durban/COP3 [it] was the adoption of these guidelines. It gives us so much power and ammunition against the industry and we can also refer our colleagues in other government departments to the same."

Dorcas Kiptui
Ministry of Health
Kenya