Anti-smoking publicity gathers momentum

By Amal Hewavissenti

May 31 was the day that primarily underlined the need to mount a protest against smoking. The fundamental message is that it is vitally important to cancel out the huge but life threatening publicity campaign outright associated with smoking.

It is suggested that publicity in any form, visual promotion of smoking and the sponsorship offered by tobacco companies for varied projects should be banned downright. This proposal to call a halt to the publicity campaigns for smoking has thus become the basic theme, rather motto for the year 2013. The proposal has become increasingly exceptional and remarkable because the Ministry of Health has insisted on displaying graphic warnings on a larger section of the package of cigarettes.

However, tobacco companies show a negative response to the Ministry's regulation that a packet must display pictorial warnings, pictures which expose serious injuries or damage caused by smoking.

These picture warnings impress themselves hard into the mind of the smoker and do much to prevent serious addiction. Experiments with these 'publicity campaigns against smoking' have showed that pictures on packets showing the harm caused by continued smoking have effectively influenced public attitude.

Psychologically this method is successful. A person smoking a few cigarettes does not usually discard the package until it is emptied. Every time he takes out a cigarette from the packet, his eye may be engaged by the pictures on it and the obsessions of harm may ultimately develop in him an aversion to smoking.

Publicity

The sale of cigarettes invariably depends on direct and indirect propaganda. Usually cigarettes and smoking receive generous publicity through media such as websites, radio, television and newspapers. Owing to the repeated censorship over advertisements and programs related to smoking and tobacco products there is now less scope of popularising the habit.

On the other hand, the manufacturers of tobacco products sometimes involve themselves in social welfare programs and find ways to indirectly popularise tobacco products and smoking.

They exploit the image of popular sportsmen, film stars and men of celebrity who are seen smoking the best brands. When popular figures are seen smoking, the average smoker is forced to compare his image with that of the film stars and sports stars. Thus, the company owners endeavour to convince the youth that "smoking is an in thing" among the superior class of men for instance, beautiful women, sports stars and film stars.

In Sri Lanka, the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol has proposed some sensational pictures with powerful captions to be printed over a larger area on the packet.

These graphics or pictures represent the serious damage and the people severely afflicted with smoking. The pictures appeal to the more emotional.

It is important to note that these graphics have been designed to generate a psychological trend against smoking and tobacco products on the whole.

One such graphic shows a figure of a dead infant under the caption "Your Cigar kills me". The picture issued by the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol further suggests to the viewer that he should avoid smoking for the direct benefit of his own children ("Our own children" to be more specific).

The authority warns that smoking in public places may invite severe punishment which may be a fine or imprisonment or both.

The graphic titled "Smoking causes cancer" shows a dissection of oral cancer and suggests to the viewer that he should avoid smoking for the benefit of his family.

Another pictorial warning suggested for the packet of cigarettes shows the image of a heart patient under treatment with the message "Smoking causes heart diseases". Thus, the Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol has proposed sensational images and photo graphs together with captions of emotive language to be printed on the packets of cigarettes.

The government expectation is to include pictorial warnings to spread over eighty percent of the face of the packet. The Gazette notification regarding this rule was issued on August 8, 2012 but the manufacturers of cigarettes are vehemently against the rule. But it is a good trend on the part of the Ministry of Health.

It is obvious that large and clear warnings against smoking and building up public opinion will pave the way for averting this national catastrophe. The larger does the space of the visual warning appear on the packet, the greater is the trend for nonsmoking.

Sensational

At the same time a verbal warning should accompany sensational pictures or photographs which are naturally capable of impressing powerful feelings on the minds of smokers or even strong addicts.

The Sri Lankan authorities concerned have realised that pictorial warning is much more effective and powerful than a warning that involves words alone. In this regard they have realised that pictures displaying damaged human organs and human suffering are sure to produce a tremendous effect on the smoker or the viewer.

However, it is now discovered that the "warning pictures" on the packet of cigarettes are greatly conducive to a considerable number of people to quit smoking.

The percentage of persons dropping out from smoking is proved to rise up to the degree of the size of the pictorial warning.In whatever way, the world must witness the total destruction not only of the publicity campaign for smoking but also the habit of smoking that gradually preys on the lives of the youth.

The only country in the world which has succeeded in banning tobacco cultivation, import, manufacturing and sale of cigarettes Bhutan.

They have taken a drastic action against smoking because an unprecedented number of people has succumbed to damage caused from cancer and heart disease.

Finally it is sensible to remember that we should burn away a cigarette before the cigarette burns us. And cancelling out any form of publicity for smoking is as important as avoiding smoking. This is the basic theme, the message of 2013.