ISLAMABAD: The Press Council of Pakistan (PCP) has accepted the argument of tobacco control advocates that endorsement in an interview of a political figure falls in the category of tobacco promotion.

The interview was published in a magazine in February 2012. PCP has instructed the editor of the magazine to prominently publish an apology.

The decision was taken on the complaint of TheNetwork for Consumer Protection, which had stated that in the said article titled ‘My Favorite Mistake’, former ambassador to the US Syeda Abida Hussain said how she fell in love with Marlboro Man at the age of 16. While sharing her personal experience she (Ms Abida) ignored most of the tobacco control messages such as smokers die early and that tobacco does not cause serious illness.

The PCP commission in its decision, available with Dawn noted, “Reading of its (the article’s) contents gives a misleading picture to the public in general and to adults and teenagers in particular that smoking is not injurious to health when a public figure, a regular smoker recounted her tale of a non-smoker father who died at the age of 55 years due to cancer and smoker mother, surviving longer and smoking her last cigarette six hours before breathing her last.”

Initially the PCP formed an inquiry committee consisting of prominent journalist, member of civil society and academia.

The committee agreed with the allegations and then the commission chaired by retired justice Sardar Mohammad Aslam ratified the inquiry committee’s report.

Executive Coordinator, TheNetwork, Nadeem Iqbal said according to Prohibition of Smoking and Protection of Non Smokers Health Ordinance 2002 any kind of material which promotes the use of tobacco cannot be published. — A Reporter

Published in Dawn, June 26th, 2015

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