<strong>China Taiwan: Company Should be Punished for Promoting Smoking: Groups</strong>

Source from:  Focus Taiwan  07/05/2013

Several civic groups called for the government Thursday to punish a local tobacco company for a series of moves aimed at increasing cigarette sales, saying that such actions violate the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act.

The John Tung Foundation, the Consumers' Foundation and the Homemakers United Foundation issued the appeal at a news conference after learning about several cases the previous week in which an unnamed tobacco company held a competition that required tobacco purchases by its staff and allowed them to buy cigarettes at discounted prices in an effort to promote a new tobacco product.

The company also launched a campaign in which staff members can collect aluminum foil papers inside cigarette packages, which can be exchanged for other products sold by the company, the groups said.

Each aluminum foil paper has been given a value of NT$8 (US$0.27) by the company, they said.

Some departments in the company have also purchased the company's own products and distributed them to employees as gifts, as part of efforts to reach their sales targets.

Yau Sea-wain, chief executive officer of the anti-smoking John Tung Foundation, said tobacco companies often attempt to lure teenagers and workers into buying cigarettes.

Yau also criticized the company for offering discount prices to its staff in an effort to increase sales.

Lin Hsin-ho, a professor at the Department of Law of Taipei-based Chinese Culture University, said the company has violated the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act by holding the competition and offering the staff discounts.

The government should name and shame the company, Lin added.

Article 9 of the act stipulates that it is illegal to hold presentations, testing events, concerts, lectures, sports or public interest events, or other similar methods to promote or advertise tobacco products. Enditem