Tobacco to be carved out of TPPA?

by **Cals** Thu 15 Aug 2013, 05:18

Tobacco to be carved out of TPPA?
Business & Markets 2013
Written by Pathma Subramaniam, fz.com(contributor to theedgemalaysia.com)
Wednesday, 14 August 2013 18:56

KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 14): The Health Ministry is firm on rejecting the inclusion of tobacco in the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA), said the Malaysian Council for Tobacco Control (MCTC).

Its president Dr Molly Cheah told reporters today that the MCTC had brought the matter on liberalising tobacco trade under the TPPA to the ministry's attention at a meeting on Aug 6.

"Tobacco is no normal product. It is one of those products that should not be liberalised in a free trade agreement," said Cheah.

Malaysia is a signatory to the World Health Organisation's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), therefore Kuala Lumpur shouldn't sign the TPPA chapter which is contradictory to what is stated in the treaty, she said at the Badan Bertindak Bantah TPPA Malaysia (Anti-TPPA Action Coalition Malaysia) media conference today.

Under the treaty, member states are required to regulate tobacco, reduce its use and withhold grant incentives to the tobacco industry through tax and price measures as well as ban tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship, among others.

Malaysia has a legal commitment to FCTC, said Cheah, but it was overlooked in the 18th round of negotiations by the International Trade and Industry Ministry (MITI), following which the non-government movement had approached the Health Ministry on the matter.

"Tobacco is one of the red lines for Malaysia. We expect at the cabinet meeting tomorrow for tobacco to be carved out from the provisions," said Cheah.

"We received a message from the (Health) Ministry that they will push for the chapter to be completely carved out," she added, referring to the special cabinet meeting tomorrow.

MCTC is part of the 10 coalitions and 61 non-governmental groups opposing the TPPA.

It hopes to pressure Putrajaya into withdrawing from the negotiations until an impartial and comprehensive cost-benefit analysis and comparative advantage study are carried out.