Bwanamich - next time you are in Europe - I will have you try a real Tuscan Cigar, full flavoured and hand made; I believe actually rolled on the silk smooth thighs of a young beautiful lady! Or is that in Cuba - ? Anyway worth a try..! I am sure you will want to go direct to the production line -

Smoking ban: Cigarette firms dig in for fight

Story by MIKE MWANIKI
Publication Date: 2007/07/18

Tobacco manufacturers are disappointed with the ban on smoking in public imposed last week by the Nairobi City Council.

British American Tobacco (K) and Mastermind Tobacco Ltd have criticised the move, saying it had been implemented in a “haphazard” manner.

But both the council and Local Government ministry are adamant that the ban “is here to stay”.

Nairobi was the third town after Nakuru and Mombasa to impose the ban.

Says Local Government minister Musikari Kombo: “The banning of smoking in public places within urban centres will soon extend to other municipalities countrywide.”

He said in Kisumu Town last Thursday that local authorities would not stop (effecting the smoking ban) on the grounds that it was violating human rights of smokers as claimed by the companies.

“We are not interfering with anybody’s individual rights but we maintain that smoking in public will not be condoned,” said the minister.

However, the tobacco companies are up in arms.

Mastermind Tobacco Ltd spokesman John Kirimania says: “This all encompassing ban on smoking is unconstitutional and is without due regard to the rights of smokers.

“By approving these by-laws, the Local Government minister and the respective town clerks have misdirected themselves by purporting to impose a blanket ban on smoking, without defining where Kenyans who choose to smoke can enjoy their cigarettes without exposing non-smokers to passive smoke.”

Oppression on smokers

The decision to include streets as public places, Mr Kirimania said, was “callous to the extreme and oppression on smokers.”

“People who have chosen to smoke as a lifestyle also have basic rights which should not be abused by making adults to smoke in public toilets. These local authorities should respect individual constitutional rights,” he added.

His BAT counterpart Keith Gretton says the company supported “sensible and enforceable regulation” whose impacts had been discussed with all affected parties.

On Wednesday, 10 people were arrested and fined a total of Sh20,000 as Nairobi begun enforcing the ban.

Most smokers were arrested by plain clothes council askaris on Landhies Road.

According to the spokesmen of the two companies, the Tobacco Control Bill —which has been tabled in Parliament —should have been left to address the issue of public smoking.

However, medical experts led by Health assistant minister Enock Kibunguchy have welcomed the ban and urged other municipalities to take the cue.

In an exclusive interview with the Nation in his Afya House office in Nairobi, Dr Kibunguchy said an estimated seven billion cigarettes were smoked in Kenya last year. He said that research had shown that “for every smoker who dies, another life of a passive smoker was also lost”.

“More than one million Kenyan minors could be smoking their way to an early death and most of them are tobacco addicts,” Dr Kibunguchy added. He gave an assurance that MPs would soon pass the Tobacco Control Bill. According to experts, someone dies as a result of using tobacco every eight seconds worldwide.

Recent research findings show that seven out of every 10 smokers start the habit when they are teenagers, warning that if they smoke for more than 20 years, the smokers will die 20 to 25 years earlier than those who have never smoked.

Harmful chemicals

“This is because they are over 4,000 harmful chemicals found in cigarette smoke,” the assistant minister said.

Currently, 4.9 million people die as a result of tobacco use globally.

In a separate interview at Nairobi’s Pan Afric Hotel, a leading cardiologist, Prof Elijah Ogolla blamed smoking as a leading cause of death and chronic illnesses such as cancer.

“Most Kenyans, especially the youth, associate smoking with leading a glamorous lifestyle...

“This false perception has been perpetrated by the mass media yet the harmful habit is not only increasing the burden of chronic illnesses but is one of leading causes of death,” Prof Ogolla, who is also a University of Nairobi lecturer, warned.

In a recent survey carried by the Sunday Nation, most Kenyans said they did not approve of smoking in public places, with 84.3 per cent of respondents saying it should be banned.

Some 43.9 per cent of those polled said the practice was a public nuisance while a further 40.2 per cent said it exposed non-smokers to secondhand smoke.

Since the ban was introduced in Nairobi, a spot check by the Nation found that the most smokers avoided lighting up in the streets in spite of the chilly weather that has engulfed the city in the last few days. In a raft of new by-laws approved by Mr Kombo, the City Council can now arrest and prosecute any person found smoking in public in contravention of World Health Organisation guidelines which Kenya has signed.

Mayor Dick Wathika says the council has designated smoking zones in the Central Business District and parks.

“We have not banned smoking per se but smokers will no longer be allowed to indulge in the habit in public areas such as buildings, schools and streets,’’ he said.

Allowed to indulge

Added Mr Wathika: “That is why my council will move fast in establishing smoking zones in areas we have already identified.” Some of the designated smoking areas are on Koinange Street, Jeevanje Garden and Uhuru Park.

Five star hotels, pubs and other outlets, the mayor said, would also be expected to identify smoking zones in their premises.

However, he said, bars and restaurants in the estates could be exempted from the ban “due to their small-size and number of clients.”

Addressing a news conference in his parlour, Mr Wathika said those found smoking in public would be liable to a fine not exceeding Sh2,000 or six months imprisonment for first offenders.

“Fines for subsequent offences will not exceed Sh3,000 or nine months imprisonment or both,” he added. Statistics show that about 26 per cent of the population (about 8.5 million) were regular smokers in Kenya, two per cent of them women.

The World Health Organisation, which is championing an international campaign against tobacco use, says about 700 million children, around half the world’s total, breathe air polluted by tobacco smoke, particularly in the home.

The UN agency says that tobacco is the leading cause of preventable deaths worldwide.

good....i am watching out for loopwholes
any nobody will be allowed to sharpen their profiles on my costs and freedom!

gosh - i think i will be amoung the first ones who go to jail for lighting a cigarette outside airobi airport

it's nothing but rediculous.

Pippa:

I'll have you beat. When I get off that plane in Nairobi next week and get through Customs -- GET OUT OF MY WAY!!! The first thing I have to do is light up. Hopefully they won't arrest you for smoking in a vehicle.

It would indeed be intersting to be able to get around 20 - 30 tourist visitors to light up in downtown Nairobi all at once and see if they are all arrested. It wouldn't be long before they realized their tourism business would crash again.

If it gets to be too much of a hassle it will be bye bye Kenya and I'll find another place to go in the winter months.
I'm not being stubborn, just realistic. There are people who haven't been able to give it up and they should have proper places to go in all public places.

i ask myself why governments haven't cigarette companies forced to put just tobacco into the cigarettes instead of 110 ingredients besides tobacco which make you sick and addicted???????????????????

- heavy duties on to cerosine in order to reduce the nowadays heavily booked no-frills flights
- heavy taxation on to fuel in order to reduce traffic
- heavy duty on to tobacco in order to reduce smoking

what next????

the future holds pleasure only fot the wealthy who can afford flying, smoking and driving?????

to me that's detering democracy!

New smoking policy onboard for Royal Caribbean ships
Tuesday, July 24, 2007

In time to help guests set their New Year`s resolutions for a healthier lifestyle, Royal Caribbean International announces a new smoking policy onboard its ships, effective January 2008. To bolster the cruise line`s new Vitality wellness program, recently debuted on Liberty of the Seas - the newest vessel to share the title of the world`s largest cruise ship with sister-ship, Freedom of the Seas - Royal Caribbean is increasing smoke-free zones by designating all staterooms and one lounge on each ship in its fleet as non-smoking areas. The new policy will go into effect aboard 18 of the line`s 21 ships initially, with Legend of the Seas, Rhapsody of the Seas and Splendour of the Seas following suit with the 2008 summer season.

"Feedback from our guests was a driving force behind the new Vitality program and our focus on wellness," said Alice Norsworthy, senior vice president, Marketing, Royal Caribbean International. "Results from online polls as well as input from all of our international offices worldwide, show very strong support of the new smoking policy. These changes reflect a more contemporary approach to healthier lifestyles and will significantly improve the cruise vacation experience for our guests."

Currently, smoking is prohibited in guest hallways and corridors, restaurants, entertainment venues and most of the ship`s interior public spaces except for designated areas in bars and lounges. The new policy will add all guest staterooms and suites, and one bar or lounge on every Royal Caribbean ship onto the roster of smoke-free spaces. Guests wishing to smoke may still do so from starboard outer decks, in designated areas in bars and lounges, and on stateroom and suite balconies. Ashtrays are available in designated smoking areas or by request through stateroom attendants. Violations of the smoking policy will result in cleaning charges to the guest`s onboard account and may also be addressed through the line`s Guest Conduct Policy, details of which are available both online and in all staterooms.

Royal Caribbean`s Vitality wellness program was designed to encourage and introduce ways for guests to achieve a better balance in their lives. The program presents healthier lifestyle choices across every aspect of the cruise experience, including fitness classes and spa treatments, onboard and land- based activities, shore excursions, and healthful drinks and food selections. Guests have the choice to try one or two elements or enjoy the total Vitality wellness experience to begin a more balanced approach to healthier living.

Royal Caribbean International is a global cruise brand with 21 ships currently in service and three under construction. The line also offers unique land-tour vacations in Alaska, Asia, Australia, Canada, Europe and New Zealand through its cruisetour division.

Vicky Karantzavelou - Tuesday, July 24, 2007