In recent months, bad business decisions from tobacco companies have sparked a wave of public outrage in China. And yet, despite encouraging results from Chinese tobacco control groups to inform and protect the public, cigarette companies continue to have the upper hand in the fight to control the growth of tobacco users. Will China eventually develop a strong opposition and social awareness of tobacco, or will society remain complacent and meek in light of the industry's financial power?
The urge to quit
Recently the World Health Organization (WHO) awarded health minister Chen Zhu with a certificate of recognition for his work on combating smoking in China. Despite the praise, Margaret Chan, the WHO Director-General, stated in an interview with China Daily that the government should consider a higher tax on cigarettes as a way to fight smoking, going on to say that, "Evidence shows that higher taxes deter people, especially the young, from smoking."
According to an international study, for every one percent rise in the price of a cigarette pack, the smoking population tends to decrease by 0.4 percent. Although the result may seem insignificant, for China, home to over 1/3 of the world's smokers, the effect could be dramatic. Approximately one million individuals in China die from smoking-related issues annually, and, without further intervention, the figure is expected to rise to two million by 2020. Even though China already taxes cigarettes, at an average of 40%, the percentage is much lower than most other countries worldwide, which is around 60%.
Honoring the not so honorable?
Another recent bit of interesting news pertains to an honor bestowed on the China Tobacco Museum, in Shanghai, for serving the city as an educational base from 2010 to 2011. The museum itself has seven exhibition halls that cover a range of topics, from the history of the tobacco industry to smoking control and tobacco culture. Certain individuals, such as Li Haitao, a Tianjin native who visited the museum, believe that this honor should not have been bestowed upon a museum that promotes tobacco, arguing it was in no way a "patriotic education base".
Cui Xiaobo, a social medicine professor at Capital Medical University, also expressed concern: "I visited the museum last year. It has a wealth of information on tobacco, but most of the materials are about tobacco production technology or the huge economic profits garnered by tobacco sales. The health risks caused by tobacco only account for a very small part…The exhibition of China's tobacco industry primarily emphasizes its great contribution to the country's economy, but it comes at the cost of public health."
Another "ecology" award was recently given to the China national Tobacco Corporation by the China Green Foundation for their contribution to national ecological efforts. The corporation donated five million RMB in 2011 to alleviate ecological damage through reforestation in Gansu, Hebei and Inner Mongolia. A representative from the foundation stated that awards were given regardless of the company's industry sector, and that it would be unfair to ignore the company's contribution to society or the environment based solely on that reason. Suo Chao, of the WHO, disagreed: "This behavior goes totally against the spirit of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. It is essential that the foundation recalls the award and promise not to confer awards to such companies in the future."
Tobacco-related agriculture is especially harmful to the environment. Growing tobacco requires greater doses of harmful chemicals than for ordinary crops, such as potash, phosphatic, and nitrogenous fertilizers to boost the growth rate of tobacco crops. In addition, approximately 70 percent of these chemicals will end up polluting the surrounding soil and ground water. Moreover, China National Tobacco, China's largest tobacco products manufacturer, uses 100,000 tons of paper for cigarettes annually, which is equal to approximately two million trees, and often leads to water loss and soil erosion. As tobacco is one of the largest industries worldwide, these companies' contributions to the economy cannot be ignored; however, the long-term devastation to people's lives and the environment cannot be overlooked.
Culture or a bad habit?
One of the more disturbing trends, however, lies in these tobacco companies selling their products as items positively affecting local culture or society. In Sichuan, a primary school building funded by China Tobacco Company has the following slogan painted across its doors: "Diligence breeds genius, and tobacco helps you grow." The Sichuan Tobacco Hope Elementary School is only one of over 100 schools in China that have been built with funds from China Tobacco.
While tobacco companies may directly help build schools, the slogan that is scrawled across the doors of this particular building cannot be seen as appropriate or legitimate. It undermines the role of the school, the legitimacy of its educational services, and is harmful to the community it is supposed to serve. Unfortunately, as so many of China's impoverished towns and villages don't have the funds to build schools, it makes saying no to tobacco-backed funding increasingly difficult. In time, perhaps anti-smoking organizations will be given the funding needed to fight on (semi-)equal footing. Until then, tobacco companies have the upper hand in China, while those of the people remain tied.
Related links
A Lost Cause? China's Smoking Ban and the Conflicting Interests
Got a Light? The Status of Smoking in China
Choosing the Right Cigarette: 10 Top Brands in China
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Keywords: smoking in China Chinese cigarette industry fight against tobacco in China anti-smoking measures in China
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The argument that tobacco companies contribute greatly to China's economy fails to hold water because any contribution made by this industry is eventually and absolutely wiped out by the billions of dollars it will cost China's healthcare system to treat all of these people dying of heart disease, COPD, stroke, emphysema, etc, etc (the list, it seems, is endless, and the evidence more than overwhelming). And this is before you factor in any of the environmental costs. I agree that it should be taxed much, much more, somewhere in the neighborhood of 100%, because the government can use this money to treat the individual later in his/her life, as is the reasoning behind Canada's high tax on cigarettes. Smoking kills upwards of 50 times the number of people that all of the illegal drugs do (I am not an advocate of legalized drugs, just adding for comparison), yet we still allow this toxic, addictive, deadly, carcinogen-laden coffin nail to be sold in almost every store, and we allow the people to smoke in front of children, the elderly, pregnant women... if people want to kill themselves, let them do it in the privacy of their own homes. How many times have you gone to a restaurant to enjoy a delicious meal, and the jerk at the next table decides to light up? I quit smoking over ten years ago because i want to , um, LIVE. Smoking, if nothing else, needs to be strictly controlled and laws regarding where a person can smoke needs to be incorporated and enforced, with the millions of non-smokers at the head of the table. I come from New York City and, while I do not have very much to say about anything regarding the US, one thing I do commend them for, especially mayor Bloomberg, is the stance they take about smoking: do it in your own home, or in designated smoking areas only. If not, the police WILL cite you.
Hopefully, the Chinese will realize the poisons they are inhaling, and forcing others to inhale, and bring the rest of us some relief. And as for Mr. Malthus, let us have your home address, and we will give it to every smoker we see, so they can go there and know they have someplace safe and secure where they can smoke until their heart seizes up, but they will have you to watch over them.
Aug 16, 2012 16:43 Report Abuse
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