China Bans Public Smoking, Tobacco Advertising

Nov 28, 2014 09:47 AM EST

(Photo : Reuters) A "No Smoking" sign is displayed in a restaurant in central Beijing. The Chinese government passed a sweeping new anti-tobacco law Friday banning smoking in all indoor public places, workplaces and public transportation, and prohibiting tobacco advertising.

China passed a sweeping new anti-tobacco law Friday that bans smoking in all indoor public places, workplaces and public transportation, and prohibits tobacco advertising.

The draft regulation was passed by a vote at a meeting of the Standing Committee of Beijing Municipal People's Congress, reports Chinese state-owned news agency Xinhua. The law will come into effect June 1, 2015.

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Under the new law, smoking will also be prohibited in open-air space areas in kindergartens, schools, child welfare institutions, women and children's hospitals, fitness and sports venues, and cultural relic protection sites that are open to the public.

In addition to the ban on smoking in public places, cigarette and other tobacco advertisements will be prohibited from appearing outdoors, in public places and transport, as well as in media including radio, TV, films, newspapers, books, and internet. All forms of tobacco promotions and title sponsorship are banned.

Teachers will no longer be allowed to smoke in front of students in primary and secondary schools, which are required to help students quit smoking and educate them about the dangers of smoking. The sale of cigarettes to minors through vending machines and the Internet has also been outlawed.

Those who break the new anti-smoking laws will be fined up to 200 yuan ($32.50).

Employees smoke outside an office building in Beijing. This will become an increasingly common site once the new anti-smoking law is passed in China.

(Photo : Reuters) Employees smoke outside an office building in Beijing. This will become an increasingly common site once the new anti-smoking law is passed in China.

According to the legislation, legal representatives and people in charge of government agencies, public institutions and social organizations will be allowed to implement the smoking ban in their workplaces.

Wang Qingbin, an associate law professor at the China University of Political Science and Law, told Xinhua that public opinion helped spur the anti-smoking legislation.

Although the new law covered a lot of terriroty, this may not be the last anti-smoking laws China passes. Health experts say China should also increase tames and the retail prices on tobacco products to help lower the smoking rate.

According to the World Health Organization, increasing the price of a pack of cigarettes by 10 percent helps lower the smoking rate among adults by 3.7 percent and by 9.3% among minors.

Yang Gonghuan, deputy head of China's Association on Tobacco Control told Xinhua that taxes should represent 67 to 80 percent of the retail price of cigarettes, but that in China, the rate is 43.4 percent, which is much lower than world average.

TagsChina Outlaws Public Smoking, Bans Tobacco Advertising, anti-smoking, smoking ban, Standing Committee of Beijing Municipal People's Congress, public places, Wang Qingbin, Yang Gonghuan