The launch ceremony was held in Islamabad, attended by Federal Minister for Health Makhdoom Shahabuddin, a World Health Organization (WHO) representative and top officials of the ministry.
The ministry has decided to discourage the increasing smoking trend in the country through pictorial warnings rather than written ones, said Yusuf Khan, director-general Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), while talking exclusively with The Express Tribune.
It may be mentioned here that the ministry had previously announced on May 31, 2009 that it will print pictorial warnings on the cigarette packs from January 1, 2010. However it failed to meet the deadline.
Pakistan along with 168 countries signed the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) agreement which obligates the signatories to print pictorial warnings on cigarette packs. The treaty was drafted under the auspices of World Health Organization (WHO) and Pakistan became its part on November 3, 2004.
The reason behind the delay was cigarette-makers’ insistence that they needed time to modify their design to meet the new stipulations, and to comply with the new standards, Khan said. He added that cigarette manufacturing is a legal industry which currently employs about 3.5 million employees, and pays 30 per cent excise duty on all its sales. But they are bound to follow the new regulations as Pakistan is a signatory to the FCTC covenant.
Under the agreed modifications, 30 per cent surface area of the cigarette pack will be occupied by pictorial warnings, while the written warning will cover a further 10 per cent area, he said. “On the front side, the written warning will be in Urdu, while on the rear it will be in English,” Khan added. “After this launch Pakistan would be the 23rd country implementing the new requirement,” he said.
The World No Tobacco Day is celebrated across the globe to create awareness among the public regarding the hazardous diseases caused by tobacco and ways to reduce its consumption to live a healthy and a happy life. This year’s theme is ‘Gender and Tobacco’.
“It is an acknowledged fact that illustrations are more effective and leave a mark on the mind and heart,” said Khan.
Keeping in hindsight the fact that a large proportion of population in Pakistan cannot even read the written warning, the pictorial sign was being launched, he said, adding that it will create a more profound effect on the smoker.
He said the picture that has been selected to be displayed on the cigarette pack is not the one showing the damage caused by it inside the body but on the outer parts such as mouth.
“We have selected a picture showing a mouth being affected by cancer,” he informed this correspondent.
Published in the Express Tribune, June 1st, 2010.
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