Indonesia already has a dozen regulations on tobacco control, from the central to local administrative levels. However, little is seen of their effectiveness.
One regulation, issued by the Jakarta administration in 2005, for instance, is nothing but a paper collection for the National Library. It has become more common than ever to see Jakarta residents walking the streets and roaming shopping malls puffing cigarettes.
Questions abound over how effective the current tobacco control bill promises to be, but anti-tobacco activists remain upbeat it will be a panacea for the Pandora's box of ills that tobacco has unleashed on society.
Several activists argue the bill is needed because existing regulations on tobacco control are subjective by nature and applied within a limited scope at the regional level.
"We need a comprehensive law on tobacco that can be imposed thoroughly across the country," says Tulus Abadi, a member of the National Commission on Tobacco Control.
He adds Indonesia must pass the bill to ratify the World Health Organization's (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), signed along with 175 other countries.
Today, Indonesia and North Korea are the only countries in Asia that have not yet ratified the FCTC.
"The bill is still at the House of Representatives, but this is the only way to control tobacco impacts here," Tulus says.
Soedaryatmo, from the Indonesian Consumer Foundation (YLKI), says there is no single law forcing the government to control tobacco through restrictions on sales, advertising and establishment.
"We need tough and strict laws," he says.
"The existing regulations are already out of date."
Soedaryatmo argues the existing regulations on tobacco control do not threaten severe disciplinary measures against smokers and cigarette producers that violate regulations.
He adds such controls are needed to shield minors from the adverse impacts of tobacco products.
The University of Indonesia's Abdillah Hasan is also calling for the swift passage of the bill, to help protect minors from tobacco's addictive qualities. "The bill is aimed at protecting children and young people from tobacco addiction," he says.
He adds cigarette producers are deliberately targeting teen consumers by sponsoring music concerts, sports events and movies.
Most cigarette ads tend to use young, healthy teen idols.
Based on figures from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), a high incidence of smoking is found in those aged between 15 and 19 years, having increased from 12.9 percent in 2001 to 17 percent in 2004.
The average age of people getting lung cancer is also dropping, from an average of 19 years in 1995 to 17 in 2004, according to the Tobacco Control Support Center.
Based on a recent WHO study, tobacco kills almost 5 million people each year. If current trends continue, an estimated 10 million people will die annually from tobacco-related illnesses by 2020, with 70 percent of the deaths occurring in developing countries.
However, plans and regulations on tobacco control in Indonesia are likely to end up in smoke in the near future, due to the country's high dependency on the industry.
Indonesia, where cigarette prices are the cheapest in the world, has more than 600,000 workers directly employed by 3,000 cigarette producers, and about 10 million in supporting industries.
However, Abdillah argues that a bill on tobacco control will not have as severe an impact on tobacco farmers and producers as feared, pointing out smokers tend to be loyal consumers, making it difficult for them to quit smoking instantly or switch to other brands.
"Tobacco farmers will not be directly affected by the bill, because it's aimed at preventing young people and children from smoking," he adds.
Abdillah points out Thailand, which has had a tobacco control law in place for 30 years, with no significant decline in cigarette production or consumption.
"Farmers have plenty of time to think about crops that can substitute for tobacco," he says.
"And the government has to help them discover new crops that will yield similar profits."
Most tobacco farmers are enraged at anti-tobacco activists, Abdillah goes on, because they have no idea that Indonesia has not imposed any nationwide anti-tobacco laws.
"Sooner or later, we'll have to pass the law, and the farmers will have to be ready for that," he said. (naf)
Regulations on tobacco control
National scale
1. Government Regulation No. 81/1999 on Cigarette Precaution for Health, which was revised to Government Regulation No. 19/2003.
Jakarta
1. Decree No. 2/2005 on Air Pollution.
2. Governor's Regulation No. 2/2005 on
No-Smoking Areas.
Surabaya
1. Decree No. 5 /2008 on No-Smoking Areas.
Source: The Jakarta Post archives.
