Ada Pertanyaan? Hubungi Kami 
Ada Pertanyaan? Hubungi Kami Lita Paromita, Andin Aditya Rahman
After much anticipation and controversy, significant restrictions on labeling and advertising have been applied to Indonesia’s famously free tobacco industry.
The stipulations were handed down by the recently-released Government Regulation No. 109 of 2012 on Safeguards for Materials Containing Addictive Substances in Form of Tobacco Products for Health.
The new regulation provides technical details for some of the more general provisions of Article 116 of Law No. 36 of 2009 on Health.
The new regulation lays out some significant restrictions for the tobacco industry, and has received mixed responses in many sectors.
Fendi Setiawan, a tobacco farmer advocate, came out strongly against the regulation as a handicap to raw tobacco farmers.
“It’s spirit is great, but it must be admitted that tobacco farmers are disadvantaged indirectly,” he said in an interview with Hukumonline (10/1).
He said that, because of the limitations on promotions and advertisements, the demand for cigarrettes might go down.
According to Fendi, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages in implementing this regulation, as there is no substitute for the cigarette industry’s contribution to government revenues.
Moreover, according to him, the regulation is misleading because it claims to be about promoting the broader health of the population, but the regulation focuses on tobacco promotion, marketing, and distribution.
“...it regulates corporations, but its domain is health,” he complained.
The cigarette industry seemed to take a more cautious approach towards the issuance of the Tobacco Regulation.
Niken Rachmad, the Communications Director of HM Sampoerna, one of Indonesia’s largest tobacco brands, told Hukumonline (9/1) that the company endorsed balanced and effective tobacco regulation, including prohibitions of sales to children.
However, the Communications Team also considered “…the stability and continuance of the cigarette industry, which supports millions of people that depend on this sector for a living.”
Sampoerna declined to comment further, saying that the company is “…in the process of examining provisions in the Government Regulation.”
Images Added to Smoking Warnings
Tulus Abadi, an executive at the Indonesian Consumers Foundation, endorsed the Tobacco Regulation because it obligates cigarette producers to print warnings on cigarette packages – not only in writing, but also with imagery.
“With this regulation, hopefully smokers will get a sharper picture on dangers of smoking,” he told Hukumonline (10/1).
He explained studies performed in various countries consistently showed that written warnings accompanied by an image has greater effectiveness than written warnings alone.
Therefore, he agreed that a health message should be printed on each package of cigarettes in writing, together with an image to increase awareness on the dangers of smoking to health.
The health labeling and packaging rules are laid down in Article 14 of the Tobacco Regulation.
Protecting Children from Smoking
Nafsiah Mboi, the Minister of Health, emphasized that the Tobacco Regulation will decrease the number of underage smokers. Once addicted as a child, said the Minister, the addiction is hard to shake.
“The increase of underage smokers is a serious sin for us all,” she asserted in an interview, Friday (11/1).
Indeed, the Minister seemed more than perturbed about the dramatic increase of underage smokers; a nearly 200% increase over a 7 year measurement period.
Based on data published by Indonesia Statistics, the number of children aged 10 – 14 that smoke regularly has increased from 9.5 percent in 2004 to 17.5 percent in 2010.
Explaining the intensification of restrictions on tobacco industry sponsorship of sporting events and restrictions from full-page magazine ads, the Minister explained that it was partially because teenagers tend to admire the sporting or recreational activities and personalities that are contained in cigarette advertisements.
“It is exceedingly easy to influence the attitudes and lifestyles of Indonesian teenagers,” said Nafsiah.
The Public Oversight Role
The Minister also highlighted the role of public participation in supervising the regulation’s implementations.
Beyond regulation, she said, “the main form of supervision is from the public. If the public cares for the health of people around them, then the people will supervise this [regulation’s implementation,” she said.
The Minister invited the public to welcome the new Tobacco Regulation and begin spreading awareness about tobacco’s negative health impacts.
“Active participation from the people, for the benefit of the people,” the Minister asserted.
(eli)
Lita Paromita, Andin Aditya Rahman
After much anticipation and controversy, significant restrictions on labeling and advertising have been applied to Indonesia’s famously free tobacco industry.
The stipulations were handed down by the recently-released Government Regulation No. 109 of 2012 on Safeguards for Materials Containing Addictive Substances in Form of Tobacco Products for Health.
The new regulation provides technical details for some of the more general provisions of Article 116 of Law No. 36 of 2009 on Health.
The new regulation lays out some significant restrictions for the tobacco industry, and has received mixed responses in many sectors.
Fendi Setiawan, a tobacco farmer advocate, came out strongly against the regulation as a handicap to raw tobacco farmers.
“It’s spirit is great, but it must be admitted that tobacco farmers are disadvantaged indirectly,” he said in an interview with Hukumonline (10/1).
He said that, because of the limitations on promotions and advertisements, the demand for cigarrettes might go down.
According to Fendi, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages in implementing this regulation, as there is no substitute for the cigarette industry’s contribution to government revenues.
Moreover, according to him, the regulation is misleading because it claims to be about promoting the broader health of the population, but the regulation focuses on tobacco promotion, marketing, and distribution.
“...it regulates corporations, but its domain is health,” he complained.
The cigarette industry seemed to take a more cautious approach towards the issuance of the Tobacco Regulation.
Niken Rachmad, the Communications Director of HM Sampoerna, one of Indonesia’s largest tobacco brands, told Hukumonline (9/1) that the company endorsed balanced and effective tobacco regulation, including prohibitions of sales to children.
However, the Communications Team also considered “…the stability and continuance of the cigarette industry, which supports millions of people that depend on this sector for a living.”
Sampoerna declined to comment further, saying that the company is “…in the process of examining provisions in the Government Regulation.”
Images Added to Smoking Warnings
Tulus Abadi, an executive at the Indonesian Consumers Foundation, endorsed the Tobacco Regulation because it obligates cigarette producers to print warnings on cigarette packages – not only in writing, but also with imagery.
“With this regulation, hopefully smokers will get a sharper picture on dangers of smoking,” he told Hukumonline (10/1).
He explained studies performed in various countries consistently showed that written warnings accompanied by an image has greater effectiveness than written warnings alone.
Therefore, he agreed that a health message should be printed on each package of cigarettes in writing, together with an image to increase awareness on the dangers of smoking to health.
The health labeling and packaging rules are laid down in Article 14 of the Tobacco Regulation.
Protecting Children from Smoking
Nafsiah Mboi, the Minister of Health, emphasized that the Tobacco Regulation will decrease the number of underage smokers. Once addicted as a child, said the Minister, the addiction is hard to shake.
“The increase of underage smokers is a serious sin for us all,” she asserted in an interview, Friday (11/1).
Indeed, the Minister seemed more than perturbed about the dramatic increase of underage smokers; a nearly 200% increase over a 7 year measurement period.
Based on data published by Indonesia Statistics, the number of children aged 10 – 14 that smoke regularly has increased from 9.5 percent in 2004 to 17.5 percent in 2010.
Explaining the intensification of restrictions on tobacco industry sponsorship of sporting events and restrictions from full-page magazine ads, the Minister explained that it was partially because teenagers tend to admire the sporting or recreational activities and personalities that are contained in cigarette advertisements.
“It is exceedingly easy to influence the attitudes and lifestyles of Indonesian teenagers,” said Nafsiah.
The Public Oversight Role
The Minister also highlighted the role of public participation in supervising the regulation’s implementations.
Beyond regulation, she said, “the main form of supervision is from the public. If the public cares for the health of people around them, then the people will supervise this [regulation’s implementation,” she said.
The Minister invited the public to welcome the new Tobacco Regulation and begin spreading awareness about tobacco’s negative health impacts.
“Active participation from the people, for the benefit of the people,” the Minister asserted.
(eli)