No to Free Smokes

Source from:  (SA) Cape Town 05/20/2004

Johannesburg police are probing a contravention of the tobacco laws after three people were allegedly caught handing out free cigarettes at the University of the Witwatersrand, police said on Wednesday. The maximum sentence for a manufacturer who supplies cigarettes for free distribution is R200 000, or a jail sentence. The three, two men and a woman, were confronted on Tuesday after one of them had reportedly given a packet of Lucky Strike to the director of the National Council Against Smoking, Peter Ucko. Johannesburg police spokesperson Inspector Amanda Roestoff said on Wednesday the three were taken to Hillbrow police station, where they were "not very co-operative". "They declined to submit any of their personal details or to identify themselves," she said. "They claimed it is their right not to submit details." They had, however, given the name of the company they worked for, British American Tobacco South Africa (Batsa). The three were not officially charged, but police had opened a case against Batsa, which was being investigated. Police confiscated ten full and two empty Lucky Strike cartons, and two full packets of the cigarettes. Ucko said he was given the free cigarettes last week, and was told to come back this week if he wanted to register for more free cigarettes. 'Hooking a new generation of smokers' He returned with a police captain. He said the person who gave him the cigarettes told him Lucky Strike was perceived as an old person's brand and that the company was trying to reposition it as a young person's brand by promoting it on university campuses. "The cigarette companies have a more sinister purpose than just brand re-positioning - it is to hook a new generation of smokers," said Ucko. "A few free cigarettes given away today will yield huge sales and profits tomorrow." Ucko said the representatives apparently visited different student campuses on a weekly schedule, driving distinctively marked Volkswagen beetle cars, and were chosen for their youth, good looks and style. He said the three were apparently unaware that giving away free cigarettes on behalf of a cigarette manufacturer was illegal. "They were clearly surprised and shocked when the police captain intervened." He said Batsa claimed to be a socially responsible company but its actions gave the lie to this claim. Batsa told Sapa on Wednesday morning it would issue a statement on the matter. Enditem