Towards Argentina’s ratification of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control

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BUENOS AIRES. On Thursday, May 18, a day was held to promote the Argentine ratification of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), an international public health treaty with members from 180 countries that Argentina has yet to ratify.

The Convention provides for a series of measures aimed at improving the health of the population by seeking the elimination or reduction of the consumption of these products and exposure to second-hand smoke. These measures include banning all forms of advertising, promotion and sponsorship, increasing the price of cigarettes and tobacco taxes, enacting laws that monitor and evaluate policies aimed at preventing consumption, implementation Of 100% smoke-free environments, offering help to quit smoking and the inclusion of health warnings with images on cigarette labels, among other measures.

In Argentina, about 44 thousand people die each year from diseases related to smoking. The average age at which smoking begins is at 12 and until then people are bombarded by aggressive marketing strategies developed by the tobacco industry. One of the most advanced measures of the FCTC is to eliminate all forms of dissemination with the aim of “protecting present and future generations against the devastating health, social, environmental and economic consequences of smoking and exposure to smoke “.

In the event they spoke Juan Manuel Abal Medina, Senator of the Nation; Marta Santore, President of the Inter-American Heart Foundation of Argentina (FIC) Dr. César Di Giano, President of the Argentine Anti-tobacco Union (UATA); Armando Peruga, Former Manager of the WHO Tobacco Free Initiative; Patricia Sosa, Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids Latin American Programs Director, among other leading personalities.

We were present with the certainty that our country must ratify the Convention to guarantee the effective protection of the Right to Health; And also with the certainty that such ratification would constitute a key tool to address the interests of the tobacco industry.

Author

Federico Piccioni

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