Indonesia: Sport and Tobacco

Source from:  The Jakarta Post  06/20/2014

Once upon a time, the sporting and tobacco industries helped each other, although everybody knew the two were strange bedfellows. The former promotes good health, while the latter contributes to serious illnesses and, in many cases, untimely deaths.

But for decades, tobacco has given Indonesian badminton a lifeline and helped the country excel in the sport, as evinced by the high number of cigarette manufacturers that sponsor tournaments or clubs. However ironic it may be, Indonesia has given birth to badminton greats and champions thanks, in part, to the cigarette industry.

With the global campaign against tobacco intensifying, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) decided last year to ban tobacco brands from sponsoring BWF tournaments, starting on Jan. 1, 2014. As a consequence of the new policy, organizers of the ongoing Indonesia Open, currently the most lucrative badminton tournament in the world, have had to cease cooperation with their long-time sponsor, cigarette giant Djarum.

Bank Central Asia (BCA), the country's largest private bank that is partly owned by Djarum, was quick to fill the shoes of the cigarette maker, despite the current monetary squeeze affecting the banking sector. No wonder, then, that the chairman of the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI), Gita Wirjawan, lauded the bank's move to support the annual tournament, which is one of the sport's Super Series events — the equivalent of the Grand Slam tournaments in tennis.

Officially called the BCA Indonesia Open MetLife BWF World Super Series Premier 2014, the June 17-22 tournament is hosting the world's badminton elite, just as in the past.

Gita and the PBSI have no choice but to comply with the ruling by the world badminton body, and we wholeheartedly agree that sporting events, considering their noble goal of promoting health and a quality lifestyle, should avoid funding that raises ethical questions. In other words, the goal does not necessarily justify the means.

BCA's commitment to sponsor the Indonesia Open will hopefully be long-term, for the sake of developing Indonesian badminton in general and to support the country's bid to find and hone new talent in particular. There are many examples of prominent brands that allocate part of their profits to the development of different sports within their corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs.

Admittedly, the badminton world's anti-tobacco campaign was a little late compared to similar campaigns by other international sport-governing bodies. World soccer body FIFA, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and international basketball federation FIBA, for example, each declared their fight against tobacco sponsorship much earlier.

But as the saying goes, "better late than never". If we cannot completely prevent the role of the tobacco industry in sports today, we can do so tomorrow. Most importantly, we have the will and, hopefully, there will be a way. Enditem