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Ironically, what people know about tobacco in Cambodia is largely dictated by what cigarette companies choose to tell them. "Promotion girls" give away free cigarettes, umbrellas adorned with company logos shade popcorn sellers, TV and radio stations push the merits of smoking, and live concerts are sponsored by local brands.

Inadequate health records in Cambodia mean it is impossible to find precise figures on smoking-related diseases, but a 1997 report from the MoH and WHO, based on international figures, estimated 5,800 smoking-related deaths in Cambodia annually.

"People here always focus on HIV, AIDS and TB and not on the hidden dangers of smoking,"

Cambodia loses 38 million U.S. dollars and over 70,000 lives each year due to cigarette smoking, according to a recent survey jointly conducted by Ministry of Health and World Health Organization. From 1996 to 2006, 82 percent of rural men, 62 percent of urban dwellers, and 82 percent of youth nationwide were cigarette smokers, said the survey. Meanwhile, 54 percent of men and seven percent of women in Cambodia were cigarette smokers, it added. "The danger of cigarette smoking is not as cruel as that of rampant disease like cholera, but it goes into our body slowly, destroys our health and finally leads to death," Lim Thai Pheang, president of the Institute of Public Health of Cambodia, was quoted by local media as saying.

Over 90 percent interviewers supported the government's adoption of a law on tobacco control, according to the survey of a sample of 144 staff members from the ministries of Education, Youth and Sport, Women's Affairs, and Defense across the country.

• Tobacco control policy to receive enormous support in Cambodia Jump to full article: People's Daily (cn), 2007-05-30Author: Source: Xinhua Intro: A recent survey by the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) showed that a tobacco control policy will receive enormous support in Cambodia, local media said on Wednesday. Over 90 percent interviewers supported the government's adoption of a law on tobacco control, according to the survey of a sample of 144 staff members from the ministries of Education, Youth and Sport, Women's Affairs, and Defense across the country. > It also found that more than 96 percent of the respondents wanted a ban on cigarette advertising, reported Cambodian daily newspaper the Koh Santepheap. The survey aimed to encourage the government to push for an immediate adoption of such a law, reported another Cambodian daily newspaper the Kampuchea Thmey.

We have the science to convince. We know that higher excise taxes make economic sense in addition to reduce smoking, in particular among the young and the poor. We know that smuggling is a problem that must be dealt with independently of the price issue. And we know that in the long term, government divestment of tobacco holdings is responsible policy - both economically and health-wise.

n October, Member States will begin the negotiations on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. This will be the first time that the public health community has led treaty negotiations. The process we set in motion has already fostered a global debate and pushed countries as well as tobacco companies to think about their actions from a public health perspective. The success of the FCTC will depend on our ability to link compelling data to robust decisions.

Many countries in this Region have shown a strong and active support for the work towards a Framework Convention. I appreciate this and count on you to continue this support so that the FCTC can become a strong and effective tool for tobacco control.