AIMAN INAM

GENEVA: The World Health Organization (WHO) here has claimed that tobacco industry is constantly attempting to impede the government attempts to thwart tobacco-related fatalities.

States with partially state-owned tobacco companies, particularly Japan should firewall their health policy-setting from their money-making interests, said the United Nations agency.

A recent report has revealed that Philip Morris International Inc is grossing a clandestine movement to undermine the WHO’s anti-smoking treaty.

Commenting on this further, head of the WHO tobacco control program Dr. Vinayak Prasad held that the industry hinders the policy-making process. So there are menacing approaches, they intimidate, they use myths regarding the contribution to the economy.

The industry’s interests are in conflicting inconsistency with the interests of public health policy.

In the note, WHO medical officer Dr. Kerstin Schotte maintained that Japan has illustrated cancer as a growing concern and the culprit is soaring tobacco use. Still, strong measures are not implementing to prevent its use.

Tobacco companies exploit domestic and international trade litigation as to obstruct progress on scores of regulatory measures like smoke-free public places, pictorial health warnings, plain packaging and product regulation etc.

However, numerous developing countries have now started picking up warning labels. In this respect Nepal tops the list when it comes to demonstrate health cautions on tobacco packaging and labeling.

It is to be noted that tobacco slays over 7 million people per annum year. Whereas, second-hand smoke exposure kills some 890,000 victims annually.