Health Ministry: Armenia Running Vigorous Anti-Smoking Campaign
YEREVAN, May 30. /ARKA/. Armenian authorities are running a vigorous
anti-smocking campaign, Suren Krmoyan, the adviser to Armenian Health
Minister, said on Friday.
He told journalists that the campaign has already produced a visible
effect – now advertisers are prohibited from boosting tobacco, and
cigarettes are sold with warning on their packages.
Krmoyan said that the governmental program is intended for 2005 to 2009.
He said that the government will launch another program after
summarizing the results of this one.
Krmoyan also said that the tax law was mended recently. The amendment
drove taxation in tobacco business. The law on sale and consumption
restriction was amended as well.
`The amendments enable us to establish agencies, which will control
compliance with anti-tobacco laws and encourage tobacco consumption
reduction’, he said.
In 1988, World Health Organization declared May 31 the World No-Tobacco
Day.
It is the ninth year Armenia marks this day. This year’s campaign
against smoking is run under `The Youth without Cigarettes’ motto.
The World Health Organization thinks that smocking is a contagious
disease transmitted through advertisement and sponsorship.
Tobacco companies spend millions of dollars every year for supporting
sport events all over the globe. Tobacco advertisement during these
events tempts the youth to smoke.
The WHO points out over 25 smoking-caused diseases. Cancer as well as
heart and lung diseases are among them. -0–