World No Tobacco Day 2015: Stop illicit trade of tobacco products

Adi, 34, a chain smoker, died from coronary artery disease four months ago, leaving behind a wife and a small child who still need financial support. The civil servant smoked one pack of cigarettes a day, a habit he had maintained since his marriage 10 years ago.

Another smoker, Sunarto, 48, suffered from a stroke that cost him his job as a farmer and his role as the breadwinner for this family of three.

Both Adi and Sunarto are portraits of victims of tobacco products, who die young and deprive their families of income, increase the cost of healthcare and hinder economic development.

Indonesia has the world's third-largest smoking population with 57 million or 36 percent of its population smoking. This condition has been exacerbated by the illicit trade in tobacco.

The WHO estimates that one in 10 cigarettes in the market is illegal. According to Duke University and South East Asia Tobacco Control Alliance research in 2004, the operation of many small-scale producers, supported by favorable tax rates imposed on their products, had led to the illicit trade of tobacco products.

The WHO dedicates this year's No Tobacco Day to global efforts to stop the illicit trade in tobacco products.

Given that almost all countries in the world are subject to the illicit trade, in November 2012 the international community adopted the Protocol to Eliminate the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products, the first protocol to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which Indonesia has not ratified.

The WHO campaign is aimed at increasing people's alertness to the hazard of illicit tobacco products to health. The world body highlights youth and low-income groups, which are prone to buying illegal cigarettes because of low prices.

The illegal products also misinform buyers by not displaying health warnings. Worse, the sales of illegal cigarettes involve children.

A national survey in 2007 revealed that the number of child smokers had jumped six fold from 426,000 in 1995. It is no wonder that Arist Merdeka Sirait of the National Commission on Children Protection says smoking habits among children have reached an alarming level.

The illicit tobacco trade takes tax revenue away from the state, which could have otherwise been spent on health care. According to the Health Ministry, health expenditure on smoking-associated diseases hit Rp 231 trillion (US$17.77 billion) in 2010 alone, more than four times state revenue from the cigarette tax.

Policymakers must be aware that the illicit tobacco trade elevates the global tobacco epidemic and its related health consequences.

It also has security implications because according to the WHO, some organized crime networks are involved.

The ratification of the Protocol to Eliminate the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products in the FCTC is imperative to respond to the financial, legal and health impacts of the illicit trade of tobacco products.

After a successful breakthrough in 2012, when warnings on the health-related effects of smoking should comprise 40 percent of cigarette box packaging, Indonesia needs a new advanced regulation on tobacco control especially to stop the illegal tobacco trade.

The first step is to ratify the FCTC. The next challenging step is forging collaboration between the Customs Office, the National Police, the Trade Ministry and the Health Ministry to cut illegal tobacco production, distribution and selling chains.

A stricter regulation is needed to provide a deterrent effect. Our regulation usually fails to stipulate any punishment or hefty fine for people or cigarette companies who defy the regulation.

The use of effective tax stamps, effective licensing and monitoring of the production and reduction of tax advantages accorded to small producers can target both illicit consumption and production. The other concrete action should be on a major awareness campaign of tobacco's adverse effects.

Finally, Indonesia's regulation on illegal tobacco control remains lenient and does not protect people. Such a regulation, however, is just a start on a long and winding road to changing Indonesia's reputation as a haven for smokers and the illegal tobacco industry.

The government should honor World No Tobacco Day by taking concrete action on tobacco control.

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