In a bid to completely curb the high incidence of smoking in public areas, Beijing enforces a comprehensive anti-smoking policy today, June 1. Places like restaurants, offices, schools, and public transportations are now off-limits to smokers. Airports, customarily equipped with designated smoking facilities, are also included in the ban. Lighting cigarettes is prohibited in tourist spots as well, including the historic Great Wall of China and Forbidden City.

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The smoking ban is in light of the law passed by Beijing's Municipal People' Congress in November 2014. According to Bloomberg, the city ordinance is considered as a bench test for a national bill that still seems far from passage.

Under the ban, heavy fines will be levied on violators, including smokers and businesses that refuse to comply. Stores within 100 meters of primary schools and kindergartens are barred from selling cigarettes. Anyone found breaking the law must pay a fine ranging from 50 yuan ($8) to 10,000 yuan ($1,608). Xinhuanet reported that the said amounts are 20 times higher than the existing penalties. Violators who will be caught three times will have their names publicized on a government Web site.

The Beijing Patriotic Health Campaign Committee, under the municipal Health and Family Planning Commission, will deploy thousands of inspectors to carry out the fines. The law also encourages the public to immediately report violators through a hotline or send a photo via WeChat mobile app. A flat-out ban on tobacco advertisements on TV, radio, newspapers, public vehicles, and other forms of outdoor marketing will be strictly executed as well.

Early into the implementation, some restaurant owners have already expressed concern about the possible setback of the policy on their businesses. They fear that the ban will result in a decrease in their customers and may even spark arguments over cigarette use. In an article published by Xinhua, one restaurant owner said, "We'll probably suggest they smoke outside, but not in a tough way, otherwise a quarrel or a fight will probably happen."

China is one of the countries where people are free to openly puff a cig, with more than 300 million smokers according to a report by BBC. Today, the ban is expected to create a bigger impact than the city's earlier attempts at stopping tobacco consumption.

Tagssmoking ban, China Smoking Ban