Last month, the US, UK and Canada announced sanctions targeting individuals and entities understood to be financing Belarussian dictator Alexander Lukashenko. This legislation follows similar action from the EU in June. These sanctions build on reports of police violence against protesters, mass arrests and even torture, with a U.N. official comparing Belarus to a ‘totalitarian’ […]
Category: Illegal trade
Illicit Tobacco Trade not exacerbated by tobacco tax increases in low & middle income countries, research shows
Priscilla Tiigah and Erika Dayle Siu The health and economic consequences of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are well documented. The question of how best to control and prevent NCDs is urgent in low-and-middle income countries (LMICs), where the burden is disproportionately rising compared to high income countries. Tobacco, the only common risk factor for the four […]
South Africa: the complex politics impeding tobacco control progress
Yussuf Saloojee National Council Against Smoking South Africa has long been a front runner in tobacco control in Africa. It was an early adopter of comprehensive legislation, which resulted in a 40% drop in cigarette smoking prevalence, and, in turn, between 1997 and 2010, in declines in mortality from lung and oesophageal cancer, stroke, […]
A missed opportunity: The US Helsinki Commission hearing on the illicit tobacco trade in the OSCE region
Benoît Gomis, Kelley Lee, Ross MacKenzie benoitg@sfu.ca On 19 July 2017, the US Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) – also known as the ‘Helsinki Commission’ – held a hearing on the illicit tobacco trade in the Organization for Security Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) region. The Helsinki Commission, an independent US government […]
Industry-funded International Tax and Investment Center responds to criticism by attempting to muddy the waters
Karen A Evans-Reeves, Anna B Gilmore and Andy Rowell Tobacco Control Research Group, University of Bath, The tobacco industry is under attack. In just two weeks, in May 2016, its tactic of challenging any law that threatens its profits, took a big hit. The arbitration panel, that tobacco giant Philip Morris International (PMI) had hoped […]
Philip Morris agreement with Spanish police: undermining the FCTC?
On 29 October, Philip Morris Spain signed an agreement with the Spanish police to fund equipment including underwater cameras, night vision systems, and scanners for verifying authentication and tracking of tobacco products. The agreement also includes support during inspections and seizures of counterfeit products to assess possible illegal activities regarding the entire production and distribution […]
Big tobacco, Interpol & Codentify: potential problems with industry product tracking systems
In 2013, Tobacco Control published an article which examined Codentify, an industry tracking and tracing standard (click here for open access full text). It traces events from 2011, when Interpol accepted a substantial donation from Philip Morris International. Shortly afterwards, in 2012, Interpol announced the creation of the Interpol Global Register (IGR) to help ensure authenticity […]
China’s investment in Africa: consequences for tobacco control?
Sue Lawrence, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Recently, China’s economic growth recently may have fallen below its expected 6% rate, but it is more of dip than an indication of decline. Its pursuit of new markets is likely to continue undeterred (1) and this may have spillover effects for tobacco control. […]
Tobacco industry-commissioned report: large decline in EU consumption, almost no change in illegal trade
Konstantin Krasovsky Alcohol and Drug Information Center (ADIC-Ukraine), Kiev, Ukraine krasovskyk@gmail.com On April 17, 2013 Philip Morris International (PMI) issued a press release, based on an annual study conducted by KPMG. PMI claimed the most significant finding of the study is that: “For the sixth year in a row, the illegal trade of cigarettes in […]