Indonesia tobacco bill would pave way for ads aimed at kids: health ministry official

Jakarta

A PROPOSED Indonesian tobacco law will roll back regulations to discourage smoking in a country that already has one of the highest smoking rates in the world and open the floodgates to advertising aimed at teenagers, a health ministry official said.

If the bill initiated by parliament is passed, companies will no longer have to put grim pictures on cigarette packs of lung cancer or other diseases linked to smoking, said Mohammad Subuh, director-general of disease prevention and control at the health ministry.

Under existing regulations, 40 per cent of the front and back of a cigarette pack must contain a "health warning" in the form of pictures and text.

Under the tobacco bill, reviewed by Reuters, cigarette packs would not be required to have a specific portion dedicated to health-related pictures. Cigarette businesses that put up advertisements, either in electronic, printed or outdoor media, do have to include a health warning that is "written with clear alphabets,…