Experts' views on smoking ban

Sun Zeng, deputy director of the Beijing Association, said after the announcement of the "government order" that what percentage of the floors of hotels and restaurants should be smoke-free and how much of the business area of restaurants should be smoke-free areas should be refined. In addition, some people think that what conditions smoking areas should meet should also be clearly defined.

Zhu Lin, deputy director of the Anti-smoking Adult Health Department of the Singapore Health Promotion Bureau, also said that the smoking ban should be as detailed as possible so that people will not be confused when implementing it. This can be seen from the smoking ban in entertainment places in Singapore.

Professor Yang Gonghuan, deputy director of China Center for Disease Control and Prevention and vice president of China Tobacco Control Association, believes that the "smoking ban" should be refined to key places and its enforceability must be considered. For example, the details can be concentrated in the following four parts: First, put forward basic requirements, such as how the relevant departments widely mobilize the masses, how to publicize them in place, and what requirements they have for the competent departments. , so that the responsibilities of relevant departments can be clearly defined; The second is to ensure that the smoke-free areas in public places are clearly delineated and clearly marked "where is the smoke-free area"; Third, it is necessary to establish a monitoring mechanism, such as how to conduct regular evaluation and feedback; The fourth is how to carry out the training of the executors.

Chen Jintai, a professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said that the rules of the smoking ban are certainly more detailed, and there is less possibility of disputes in its implementation, but at the same time, it must be considered that it is easy to implement. After all, the key to execution is simplicity and effectiveness. For example, non-smoking areas in restaurants are required to reach at least 50% of the total area. How is this 50% divided? Smoke is flowing, so how to ensure that no-smoking areas are not affected should also be considered. Otherwise, smoking cannot be effectively banned.

Cui Xiaobo said that the purpose of formulating the implementation rules is to strengthen supervision and management, so it should be operable in principle. For example, the implementation details of the "decree" are still the principle that the executive unit is responsible and the unit is fined. Although the fine for individuals will increase, the fine for units will be higher. The purpose is to ask the person in charge of a public place to assume the responsibility of maintaining the hygiene, safety and order of the place. Although the promulgation and implementation of the "decree" in 2008 was quite noisy and the media paid great attention to it, it was not the ultimate goal of the "smoking ban". Cui Xiaobo made it clear that our goal is to achieve indoor smoke-free in public places in 20 10, that is, to achieve indoor 100% smoke-free. However, because it is difficult to ban smoking in one step, this "decree" should be said to be a transition to a comprehensive smoke-free environment. I hope that through the implementation of the "decree", smokers will have a sense that I should be self-disciplined. It is believed that such a transition period of 1-2 years will have positive significance for realizing 100% smoke-free environment.

Zhang Peili, director of the Regulation Department of the Beijing Legislative Affairs Office, said that when law enforcement officers conduct inspections or spot checks on restaurants, they will find out whether restaurants have fulfilled their dissuasion obligations and set up relevant signs. If they fulfill these obligations, they will not be punished. Some experts also suggested that large and medium-sized restaurants can ban smoking in the form of floors, or strengthen the setting of isolation facilities in smoking and non-smoking areas.

Yang Gonghuan, president of China Tobacco Control Association, pointed out that apart from some practical problems, China's smoking ban regulations have no detailed punishment rules, which have little deterrent effect and increase the difficulty of smoking ban in public places. In contrast, the punishment of foreign "smoking bans" is obvious, and the corresponding results are also great. Yang Gonghuan also suggested that public places such as restaurants should be more humanized, and some cigarette substitutes, such as candy and melon seeds, can be prepared for guests, and hospitals can also increase smoking cessation clinics.

According to industry insiders, the number of smokers in China is still very large, so it is not feasible to completely copy foreign models. We should actively guide them on the basis of "prohibition" and "restriction" to avoid negative and contradictory emotions from the public. In addition, banning smoking requires a series of supporting measures to ensure the implementation of laws and regulations, and "punishment" is not the only means, let alone the purpose. The law is not omnipotent, and a "one-size-fits-all" ban on smoking may be counterproductive because it is resisted by too many people. Therefore, in order to achieve the ideal effect of smoking ban, we should not only try to avoid simple and rude law enforcement, but also increase the publicity of smoking ban and gain public support.