Thai Health Experts Lobby For Laws To Curb Teen Smoking

[webfact]

Thai health experts lobby for laws to curb teen smoking

By Coconuts Bangkok

BANGKOK: -- Thai health experts are lobbying for stricter tobacco control laws to decrease teen smoking in the country.

According to research from the Tobacco Control Research Knowledge and Management Centre (TRC), 9.2% of Thai teens between the ages of 15 to 18 are smokers. An overwhelming 300,000 teenagers also take up the habit each year.

TRC Directir Siriwan Pitayarangsan said a new law is needed to deter underaged Thais from smoking. They are also pushing to raise the age limit for buying tobacco products from 18 to 20.

Srirat Lapyai of Rangsit University’s Communication Art Faculty conducted a separate survey among 2000 secondary students in a target group. 56% of the respondents said they bought cigarettes from underaged individuals as well. 79 % of the students buy cigarettes from stores near the school while 74 percent never showed ID cards to prove their age.

Full story: http://www.coconutsb...b-teen-smoking/

-- COCONUTS Bangkok 2012-10-27

[Schmackos]

Well ... this sign is hardly going to influence young Thai smokers

... IT'S IN ENGLISH

[asiawatcher]

Introducing HEAVY fines (not 1,000 Baht tokens) against vendors will help a lot. Selling to underaged kids is a criminal offence in my ex country and so it should be. Raising the price of cigarettes through taxes even 300% will not stop addicted smokers as with any drugged addict, but it may help stop teens to get started. It's all too easy to get an older person to be given the money to buy for the younger ones so presenting ID is not really that much of a deterrent. What most don't take into account is the huge cost of medical later once illness sets in from smoke related degeneration. Taxing that now is about the only way to pay for it later and possibly deter people starting on a path of self destruction.

[whybother]

I don't know why they would bother with new smoking laws. They won't enforce them anyway.

[SICHONSTEVE]

What does a Thai health expert do during a working day?? They are a bunch of jokers if you ask me.

Do they spend 7 hours a day, 5 days a week, 4 weeks a month and 11 months a year coming to the conclusion that putting the age up from 18 - 20 whereby you can buy cigarettes will deter teenage smokers!!! It won't make the slightest bit of difference as most teenagers get their cigarettes illegaly anyway.

Get rid of these wasters and put the age up to 90 - now that WOULD solve the problem and I've given my advice for free!!!!

[Halion]

Increase from 18 to 20 ! What a total waste of time and effort. In this country I think the have far more pressing issues to deal with than this . No quetion smoking is indeed a cause for concern as is alchol and illegal drugs, however, this University study is purile at best and a total waste of time

If they are having prolems currently with under age smokers what possible good will it do raising the age to by two years to 20.

As someone earlier pointed out it is the enforcement of the laws that need to be looked into. Sadly these so called acedemics in this country do not have a clue. If they, in their exhaulted intelectual positions can not see the utter futility of this then they/we are doomed.

So often in this country the try to legislate against problems rather than trying to fix them. How banal to think that legislation in Thailand will cure anything. When will they stop trying to take the easy way out and pretending to be on the moral high ground. Absolute Idiots.

[koto]

By reeducating the law enforcement officers, raising the price of the coffin nails, imposing fines, do what they are doing in Australia, cover the packs with pictures of the effects of smoking, education, education, education...

[grahamhc]

Remember when they proposed putting up the minimum age for a licence to 20, to cut down the fatalities on the road.

In reality, you stand outside many schools watching the police stopping the traffic, to let the early teenager on bikes out from the school onto the main roads, many without crash helmets.

Remember when the Culture Minister wanted all the drivers to stop at 6:00pm and stand (beside their vehicle) for the national anthem?

None of those two genius ideas case into being, after being announced (in the forum).

Edited October 27, 2012 by grahamhc

[fiercesnake]

I never ceased to be amazed at Thailand's totally inept politicans and public servants. Do they take a special entrance exam for lack of common sense or who can draw the best poster with crayons to make the most useless ideas but that look good for public dissemination?

Will this really stop teenagers smoking? Great strategy guys; you can't even enforce the most basic laws already little own trying to force culture to change by a law that will be ignored like all the other laws that are regularly ignored.

[Keesters]

TRC Directir Siriwan Pitayarangsan said a new law is needed to deter underaged Thais from smoking. They are also pushing to raise the age limit for buying tobacco products from 18 to 20.

New laws that will never be enforced.

Anything BUT educate.

[h90]

Introducing HEAVY fines (not 1,000 Baht tokens) against vendors will help a lot. Selling to underaged kids is a criminal offence in my ex country and so it should be. Raising the price of cigarettes through taxes even 300% will not stop addicted smokers as with any drugged addict, but it may help stop teens to get started. It's all too easy to get an older person to be given the money to buy for the younger ones so presenting ID is not really that much of a deterrent. What most don't take into account is the huge cost of medical later once illness sets in from smoke related degeneration. Taxing that now is about the only way to pay for it later and possibly deter people starting on a path of self destruction.

As more illegal it is, as more interesting it is. When we kids smoked we did it because smoking is so grown up.

It is the job of the parents to teach their children not the governments job.

Price may help....I agree on that.

[mmushr00m]

Just increase the sin tax placed on cigarettes. The higher the price the less people will buy and smoke. Yes the hardcore smokers will still scrounge up the money to smoke, but the higher price will deter alot of people from starting or lessen the quantity smoked.

From my own personal experience, I stopped when the price where I was went up to $8.00 for a small pack.

[h90]

Just increase the sin tax placed on cigarettes. The higher the price the less people will buy and smoke. Yes the hardcore smokers will still scrounge up the money to smoke, but the higher price will deter alot of people from starting or lessen the quantity smoked.

From my own personal experience, I stopped when the price where I was went up to $8.00 for a small pack.

But black imports will increase and a complete new kind of mafia will distribute it. While no doubt smoking is bad for health, who is the government to force people to what they think is good for health?

It should be everyones free decision. (I am not smoking anymore since years)

[OZEMADE]

Just increase the sin tax placed on cigarettes. The higher the price the less people will buy and smoke. Yes the hardcore smokers will still scrounge up the money to smoke, but the higher price will deter alot of people from starting or lessen the quantity smoked.

From my own personal experience, I stopped when the price where I was went up to $8.00 for a small pack.

$8.00 a packet, that was a long time ago. I gave it up cold turkey 2 months ago, have withdrawal symptoms now and again but coping, nearly got it beat. The price of cigs in OZ vary a bit but the average pack is $14.00 a pack up to some I saw at Woolies for $18 to 26 a pack depends on the size of the pack.

If you want to stop it here, price them at $14.00 a pack as well. Thats up around the TB440 a pack mark.That would stop it.

It's not gonna happen, too much cash to be made and they dont really care about the health.

[cup-O-coffee]

So, Thailand is also becoming a "Lobbying" hub?

Since when does any law in the Kingdom...

A. ...deter a Thai from doing what they are going to do?

B. ...deter a Thai from allowing another Thai to do what they are going to do?

C. ...deter a policeman from ignoring or avoiding an immediate (IMMEDIATE) confrontation that stops it?

D. ...get made clear to the Thai that what they are doing or contemplating doing is unlawful?

and so on...

Thai laws are like a nice suit to wear, but with nowhere to go.

Lobby away, boys... you'll earn merit with your invisible friend, but that is all.