Gov’t Issues Directive to Implement a Proclamation to Protect Non-Smokers

A directive which will effectively ban smoking in public places within the coming six months and introduce new packaging depicting the harms of smoking in three months has been issued by the Food, Medicine & Health Care Administration & Control Authority (FMHCACA) on December 2, 2014.

The legal department of the Authority has been drafting for the past year the directive which will implement the proclamation ratified a year ago.

The proclamation is intended to protect non-smokers and to decrease the number of cigarette smokers, says Dereje Shimelis, health law advisor. The directive focuses on pre-marketing of tobacco, legitimate expression in works of art, and protecting non-smokers and children at public places.

The pre-marketing forbids the use of any flavours in tobacco to make the cigarette palatable and requires the depiction of the health hazards of smoking graphically. Importers should also get a special market license from the Authority. Tobacco manufacturers and importers cannot also advertise or give sponsorships directly or indirectly.

“This will be applicable in the coming six months until manufactures and the importers finalise selling previously manufactured and imported stocked tobacco,” said AbrehetGidey, director of the legal department at the Authority.

The other focus area of the directive is prohibiting expression of smoking cigarettes in any broadcasting, printing material and billboards unless and otherwise it is an artistic, journalistic and historical movies after writing the harm of cigarette on the medium through which it is transmitted. It also forbids importers and manufacturers of tobacco not to publicise their contribution for corporate social responsibility purpose.

The other main focus area of the directive is forbidding smoking cigarette indoors including recreation places such as hotels, night clubs, restaurants, work places, cinemas, tourist sites, youth centres, metro stations and terminals, hospital and schools. On the above locations, except for schools, health centres, and government institutions, smoking tobacco is allowed at designated smoking areas that will not release smoke into the surrounding environment; the smoking area should have ventilation and should be the quarantine should not be put in a place that people pass, according to the directive.

Furthermore, the directive stresses that owners of the places should put up a notice in the restaurant or in the hotels that shows smoking is forbidden. It also forbids any businesses from selling tobacco to an individual who is under 18 years of age. In addition the directive empowers the regional states and city administrations to take legal and administrative measures on those who violate the laws stated in the directive.


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