APACT 2013
Symposiums 1 and 5
Statement
To curb the tobacco epidemic, each government should adopt 100% smoke-free policies to protect
the public from exposure to tobacco smoke in public places, and adopt effective enforcement
strategies to ensure compliance.
Explanation
There is now overwhelming scientific evidence that exposure to secondhand smoke is a direct causeof smoking-related illnesses including lung cancers and heart diseases. Article 8 of WHO FCTC has
clearly stated that each Party shall adopt and implement effective legislative, executive,administrative and/or other measures, in protecting people from exposure to tobacco smoke inindoor workplaces, public transport, indoor public places and, as appropriate, other public places.
There is no doubt that smoke-free laws protect the health of people as well as create an enabling
environment for smokers to reduce the daily consumption of cigarettes and leading to the initiationof smoking cessation.
Tourists and residents of world heritage sites should be protected from exposure to tobacco smoke
including the important landmarks within the heritage sites in the Asia-Pacific region.
However, passing smoke-free legislation is not enough. Its proper implementation and adequate
enforcement require relatively small but critical efforts and means, according to WHO.
Full enforcement of smoke-free laws is critical to establishing their credibility.

Enforcement oflegislation and its impact should be regularly monitored.

Symposium 2Statement
We recommend (i) accelerated implementation of the WHO FCTC by States Parties, recognizing its
full range of measures, including those to reduce consumption and availability, and ask countries thatare not yet Parties to consider acceding to the Convention, recognizing that substantially reducing
tobacco consumption is an important contribution to reducing non-communicable diseases such as
COPD, which can have considerable health benefits for individuals and countries; and (ii) recognitionat all levels of government that smoking cessation is the single most effective—andcost-effective—treatment for COPD.
Explanation
According to the WHO estimates, 80 million people in the world have moderate to severe COPD.
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More than 3 million people died of COPD in 2005, which corresponds to 5% of all adult deaths
globally. More than 90% of COPD deaths occur in low-and middle-income countries and it isestimated that by 2020 it will become the third leading cause of death worldwide; this chronic
disease is however, barely even acknowledged in the health statistics of many countries. Manypatients remain undiagnosed, experience high levels of symptoms, their quality of life is often poorand they usually die prematurely of it or its complications.
COPD is preventable. The primary cause of COPD is tobacco smoke and exposure to secondhand
smoke by increasing the lung total burden of inhaled particles and gases. COPD is not curable, but
treatment can slow the progress of the disease. Total deaths from COPD are projected to increase by
more than 30% in next 10 years without interventions to cut risks, particularly exposure to tobaccosmoke. Almost 90% of COPD deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries, where effective
strategies for prevention and control are not always implemented or accessible.
There is now evidence that 50% of smokers eventually develop COPD, as defined according to theGlobal Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) guidelines. The costs of COPD to healthservices and society are substantial. Consultation rates in primary care are high and exacerbations ofCOPD are one of the most common causes of hospital admission. In developed countries,
exacerbations of COPD account for the greatest burden on the health care system. In the EuropeanUnion, the total direct costs of respiratory disease are estimated to be about 6% of the total healthcare budget, with COPD accounting for 56% (€38.6 billion) of this cost. In the United States in 2002,
the direct costs of COPD were $18 billion and the indirect costs totaled $14.1 billion.
The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) was developed in response to theglobal tobacco epidemic, with the aim to protect billions of people from harmful exposure to tobacco.
Immediate action to carry out the FCTC plan will be life-saving.

Symposium 10
Strong leadership at both local and national government is needed in the development andimplementation of smoke-free policies. Regular and recurring evaluation of these policies is neededto strengthen them.

Symposium 11
StatementCountries should implement the simplest tobacco tax system that would make all tobacco products
less affordable over time in order to reduce tobacco consumption and prevalence.
Explanation2

Research shows that regular and substantial increases in tobacco taxes lead to reduction in overall
tobacco use, including both the prevalence and intensity of tobacco use. In addition, tax and priceincreases lead adult tobacco users to quit and prevent young people from taking up tobacco use.
This evidence holds even in countries where some cigarettes avoid the tax.

Recent research on therole of tax and price in reducing the affordability of tobacco products and on tax structure has helped
to identify best practices in tobacco taxation. These include the implementation of a simple tax
structure that favors a uniform specific tax, regular tax increases in order to reduce the affordabilityof tobacco products, and periodic revaluation of tobacco tax levels. An increase of tobacco tax isprogressive, since the low income population benefits the most in terms of better health.

Symposium 14Statement
As stated in FCTC Article 5.3 and 13 and their respective implementing guidelines, the tobacco
industry’s front groups and so-called corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities should be closely
monitored and exposed. Governments should ban all CSR activities of the tobacco industry, divest
from tobacco businesses, and exclude the tobacco industry from any legislation requiring
corporations to conduct CSR.

All United Nations and other multilateral agencies should honor andimplement the FCTC by ending any partnerships with and investments in the tobacco industry.
Explanation
So-called CSR activities by the tobacco industry have increased in Asia to buy public good will, benefit
its own business partners, and secure access to policy makers. In Japan, under the guise of CSR, theyeven own forests, sponsor sports teams, and promote their brand name directly to children.
Furthermore, intergovernmental agencies and multilateral organizations (e.g. UNDP and ILO) haverecognized and awarded tobacco companies for their so-called CSR.
The International Tobacco Growers Association (ITGA), an industry front group that claims torepresent farmers, undermines the FCTC process by mobilizing farmers to oppose any and alleffective national tobacco control legislation.
In order to protect public health policy from tobacco industry interference and influence, the FCTC
and its guidelines call upon governments to denormalize the tobacco industry and ban its so-called
CSR activities.

Symposium 16

1. We are conscious that the tobacco industry constantly exploits international policies on trade3and investment to undermine tobacco control measures
2. We recognize the proliferation of trade and investment agreements and their potential toincrease the tobacco industry’s tools for challenging tobacco control efforts.
3. We are seriously concerned about the rise in investor-state and state-to-state disputes arisingfrom tobacco control policies, the increasing use of trade and investment law related arguments;
and the manner in which these may undermine the political will necessary to implement tobacco
control measures.

We recommend that tobacco products should be explicitly excluded from international, regional andbilateral trade and investment agreements.

Specifically,
We urge all heads of states to review and remove policies that provide trade and investment related
incentives to the tobacco industry

We urge governments negotiating the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) and otherinternational trade and investment agreements, to expressly exclude tobacco from these agreements
by ensuring that these agreements will not apply to any measure that the government deems
appropriate for tobacco control purposes.

We urge health ministries to take action against any trade and investment measures that the tobacco
industry could benefit from or use to subvert tobacco control efforts.

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