Click Here
SINGAPORE (August 1, 1997 12:45 p.m. EDT) -- Singapore stepped up its campaign to make itself a smoke-free nation Friday, banning smoking in colleges, schools, private clubs and air-conditioned shops.
The Ministry of the Environment said the crackdown is designed to protect nonsmokers from the harmful effects of secondhand tobacco smoke.
After the new regulations go into effect Aug. 15, smokers can light up legally only at home, in their cars, a handful of areas without air conditioning and in special smoking rooms. Even smoking outdoors is a no-no in public places where two or more people get in line, such as bus stops.
Schools and junior colleges are to be totally smoke-free. At universities, the ban applies only to covered structures.
An earlier ban applied to air conditioned offices and factories and air conditioned or enclosed common areas of private residential buildings.
Managers of such places are responsible for enforcing the rules. Those who fail to do so face the same fines as smokers -- up to $685 for the first offense and up to $1,370 for repeat violations.
Despite years of government effort in this socially engineered culture, a recent Health Ministry survey showed that 18 percent of the population of 3 million light up every day.
It also showed that smoking among 18- and 19-year-olds tripled from 5 percent in 1987 to 15 percent in 1991.
Paradoxically, 25 years of anti-smoking measures have helped fatten the earnings of tobacco companies.
Because the government has banned most forms of advertising and promotions related to tobacco, manufacturers have saved on these costs. And because the market is supported by diehard smokers, tobacco firms can raise prices without hurting sales substantially.
-- By KENNETH L. WHITING, the Associated Press.