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 The advocates and some former government officials involved in
discussions with officials close to the lawmaking process said the
tobacco industry had urged the legislative affairs office of the
State Council, China's cabinet, to keep allowing cigarette
advertisements, and enable workplaces, restaurants and other public
places to create enclaves for smokers.
An earlier version of the law, released for public comment in 2014,
included provisions banning smoking in workplaces and on public
transportation, as well as curbs on tobacco ads and promotion,
according to health groups.
"Because the tobacco industry is a big part of the government, they
don't need to make these arguments publicly," said a healthcare
advocate who has been involved in high level meetings on the
development of the law.
"It's not like big multinational tobacco companies that have to
lobby to influence the process. They are inside the process."
A second public health advocate, also closely involved in developing
the legislation, added: "They are a very strong organization, so
they have really made a major impact. It's because they contribute
so much in tax revenue to the state."
The State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, which oversees China
National Tobacco Corporation, did not respond to requests for
comment.
China National Tobacco Corporation makes hundreds of brands
including the popular Red Pagoda Mountain, while foreign cigarette
makers have a tiny presence in comparison.
A spokesman for China's National Health and Family Planning
Commission, which was involved in developing early drafts of the
law, said the law was under the supervision of the State Council's
Legislative Affairs Office.
The State Council Information Office, the cabinet's public relations
department, did not respond to a request for comment.
HUGE TAX REVENUES
The state monopoly has 98 percent of a market of more than 300
million smokers, making China the world's largest producer and
consumer of cigarettes. It contributes about 7 to 10 percent of
government tax revenues annually.
Anti-smoking advocates had hoped for a complete ban on smoking in
public places nationwide, replicating tougher municipal laws in
cities like Beijing that have been implemented with relative
success.
Not every major city has tighter anti-smoking rules, and most of the
country would abide by the national legislation.
The most recent draft of the national anti-smoking law, circulated
in April among those involved in its development, stops short of
banning tobacco ads.
Ads are currently banned in public places and mass media, but they
still appear widely in convenience stores and kiosks.
The latest draft also allows government offices and other
workplaces, as well as hospital compounds, restaurants and cafes, to
set up smoking rooms, according to several sources who have seen the
draft.
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However, the law would impose fines for those violating these rules
and create more school programs educating children about the dangers
of smoking.
"Of course, as a supporter of public health I ... wish that
hospitals and schools would be completely smoke free," said Wang
Benjin, deputy director of the Beijing Health Inspection Bureau.
The earlier draft contained stronger curbs, said health groups, who
had hoped the national law would completely ban smoking in public
places.
Bernhard Schwartländer, the World Health Organisation (WHO)
representative in China, expressed disappointment in a statement
this week at what he termed "problematic loopholes" for smokers in
the draft law.
"Sadly, it is clear that the vested interests of the tobacco
industry have been able to corrupt the national law discussions with
a series of superficially compelling yet completely false
arguments," he said in the statement.
He added that the industry had argued that being too tough on
cigarettes would hurt the broader Chinese economy and that
enforcement would be too challenging.
Sales of the cheapest cigarettes fell 5.5 percent in the year to
March 2016 from the previous year in China, according to the WHO,
after a major tax hike.
Chinese public health advocates were optimistic last year about
prospects for restricting smoking, a habit that has become a major
burden on the healthcare system.
Tobacco-related illnesses kill more than 1 million people annually
in China, according to the WHO.
Beijing banned smoking in public places on June 1 last year, and
marked the anniversary in a ceremony this week, draping a large
banner bearing a no-smoking sign across its National Stadium.
Recent studies by municipal health authorities show broad support
for bans on smoking in public places, and authorities say
enforcement of the rules has been successful.
(Editing by Mike Collett-White and Martin Howell)
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