Less Cigarette Consumption Won’t Affect Filipino Tobacco Farmers, Says Solon

The country’s tobacco industry will not be affected by reduced cigarette consumption, according to Rep. Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel, allaying fears that any move to further strengthen cigarette sale restrictions will displace the country’s tobacco farmers.

In a statement, the Akbayan representative appealed to fellow legislators to push through with the March 11 public hearing on picture-based tobacco warnings as originally scheduled.

She urged Congress to certify as urgent House Bill 3364 which proposes the use of prominent, colored and graphic picture-based health warnings in cigarette packs.

The House Bill is in compliance with World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC), which the Philippines as party to the convention, should adopt and implement by September 2008.

As a signatory to the convention, Hontiveros said all interested parties must be reminded of the country’s commitment to the WHO-FCTC.

“Pro-tobacco groups have been harping on the economic implication of restricting further the sale of cigarettes. But we would like to remind all interested parties that studies done by the World Bank indicate that such fear is baseless,” said.

In a 1999 study, the World Bank said “fears that have deterred policy makers from taking action are largely unfounded. Policies that reduce the demand for tobacco…would not cause long-term job losses in the vast majority of countries. Nor would higher tobacco taxes reduce tax revenues, rather revenues would climb in the medium term. Such policies could, in sum, bring unprecedented health benefits without hurting economies.”

Congress earlier scheduled a hearing on March 11. The hearing, however, has been postponed to no definite date.

In a letter dated Feb. 26, Rep. Rolando “Klarex” A. Uy from the House Committee on Health informed FCAP that the committee decided to move the scheduled hearing to no definite day. Uy said the committee was giving “ample time to stakeholders to come up with their position paper and make themselves available in the meeting.”

In the Feb. 13 hearing, former Rep. Salacnib Baterina, representing the tobacco industry asked for more time to submit his position paper.

Statistics of the Department of Health showed that 10 Filipinos die every hour or 240 Filipinos everyday, due to tobacco-related diseases.

According to the legislator, this public health legislation cannot be compromised by the adverse interests of the tobacco industry which can come in various disguises as defined by WHO to include tobacco manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers, farmers groups, tobacco trade unions and other entities representing any of these interests.

This stems from the legal obligation imposed by Article 5.3 of the FCTC[i] on the parties to ensure that public health is not compromised by the adverse interests of the tobacco industry representing any of these interests.

“Governments should recognize the tobacco industry’s fundamental conflict of interest with health policy, and ensure that public interest is prioritized in policy development. The FCTC clearly states that the tobacco industry and similar vested interest groups should not be allowed to participate in the formulation of a public health policy,” Hontiveros-Baraquel added.

Hontiveros-Baraquel is co-author of the Picture-Based Tobacco Warnings bills, along with Representatives Paul R. Daza, Anna York P. Bondoc, Arthur Pingoy Jr., Lorenzo R. Tañada III and Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva.

“Unlike all legal goods existing in the market, tobacco has no beneficial use. It is the only consumer product in the market that kills half its users[ii] when used as it is intended and causes death and diseases to non-users who are exposed to its toxic emissions,” said Hontiveros-Baraquel.

According to FCAP there are around 30 million Filipino smokers. About 75,000 Filipinos die yearly due to tobacco-related diseases like lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases and heart ailments.

The group said studies in other countries show that picture-based health warnings have effectively curbed the tobacco epidemic. (end)

[i] Article 5.3 of the FCTC urges Member States that “In setting and implementing their public health policies with respect to tobacco control, parties shall act to protect these policies from commercial and other vested interest in trade, agriculture, etc. of the tobacco industry in accordance with national law”

[ii] Curbing the Epidemic Governments & the Economics of Tobacco Control, World Bank, 1999. www.worldbank.org. One in two regular smokers will eventually be killed by tobacco, half of them in middle age, losing 20-25 years of life.

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