Fifth session of the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) – COP5 took place in Seoul on November 12. Once in every two years delegates from 176 countries that have ratified the FCTC gather to discuss the status of implementation of the Convention, to adopt new guidance and regulations, to discuss the challenges in tobacco control and the next steps.
Clock of death is installed in the huge hall of the conference. At the present day, since the inception of this document, more than 62 million people died prematurely because of tobacco use. Clock is ticking every second.
Ukraine, more than any other country in the world, benefited from the ratification and implementation of the conditions of the Convention, which provides direction in the fight against the tobacco epidemic. Since its ratification in 2006, according to the WHO Third Global Report, we moved from the fourth place in the prevalence of smoking to the 24th. More than two million people quit smoking. At the same time, more than two million smokers died prematurely. Oxford University estimates the direct and indirect costs of tobacco use in Ukraine by 3.5 billion dollars annually.
The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control is the most effective international instrument that has no analogues. Therefore, further development and detailed recommendations of the Convention is extremely important for public health. The main issues that will be discussed and approved during the working week of the conference are the campaign against tobacco trafficking and recommendations regarding excise policy.
During the first plenary session on Monday November 12 all parties have unanimously supported the Protocol on Elimination of Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products, which was developed by experts from 76 countries over the past two years. This document is now a part of the FCTC and imposes certain obligations on Ukraine as well. In particular, the document clearly regulates all areas of control over the trade in cigarettes, documentation requirements, labeling, recording products, illegal trade, responsibility, etc.
For Ukraine, the importance of this protocol can not be overestimated, because for several years now, we ranked first in terms of cigarette smuggling to Europe. But it should be noted that compliance with all the terms and articles of the protocol, as noted by the developers of the document, requires substantial resources and, in the case of Ukraine, the political will. Therefore, we should not expect instant changes in the regulation of the production and sale of tobacco products. But in the next five years, this document will be a powerful tool for combating illicit cigarette trade and smuggling.
It is also interesting that a significant part of the protocol governs the scope and level of participation of the tobacco industry in these processes, because the tobacco industry also has its own interest. Therefore, it is expected that in the near future it will offer its assistance and vision for execution of the protocol. And this imposes a risk of initiating the cooperation with the industry. According to FCTC Article No. 5.3 and in accordance with the Law of Ukraine No. 3778, such cooperation is forbidden because commercial priorities of tobacco companies never coincide with the interests of public health.
It is unfortunate that during the opening session honored guests of the meeting mentioned Ukraine in a negative context because of blocking Australian legislation for introducing stereotype (simple, one-color) packages. Thus, the Director-General of the World Health Organization Margaret Chan expressed her outrage to the fact that Ukraine is actively opposed to Australia and, at the same time, ratified the FCTC and actively fulfills the conditions of this document. On August 31 after six moths of negotiations, Ukraine still filed a lawsuit against Australia to the World Trade Organization.
This time Ukraine is represented by a delegation of three people: two delegates representing the Ministry of Health and one delegate representing the Ministry of Economy, which, at the instigation of the tobacco industry, is suing Australia.
Despite some limitations for official delegates for presenting the position of the state in the plenary meetings of the conference, Ukraine took the floor. Much to everyone’s surprise the person speaking was the representative of the Ministry of Economy. Without the consent of the other members of the delegation she officially announced that Ukraine is unwavering in its claims to Australia. These claims are in no way related to freedom of speech or encroachment on the sovereign right of the Australian government. Ukraine, along with Honduras, opposes intervention of the WHO and the Convention to the rules of the international trade. It is worth mentioning that the level of tobacco products trade between Ukraine and Australia is null.
Was the representative of the Ministry of Economy authorized to represent the position of the Ukrainian delegation the way she did? Besides, it is not a part of the specification, which regulates the position of Ukraine’s official delegates at this Conference. And how does the Ukrainian Ministry of Health look like now with its position that is completely different from what has been said.
Ukraine again demonstrated inability to lead a reasonable and strategic foreign policy. This time, such policy is solely in the interests of transnational tobacco companies, not for the benefit of a positive image and building of strategic partnership. Such actions go in contrast to the statements made by President Viktor Yanukovych from the high tribune of the UN in New York a year ago about the significant progress made by Ukraine in addressing the tobacco epidemic and the anti-smoking policy priority for Ukraine. That is true: in 2012 only three anti-tobacco control laws that continue to reduce the level of smoking take effect. These are the following laws: on total ban on tobacco advertising and sponsorship (from September 16), on the introduction of color graphic warnings on cigarette packs (from October 4), and law limiting smoking in public places (from December 16). But it is what’s happening inside the country.
The conference is also attended by observers from non-governmental organizations united in the Alliance for FCTC Implementation. Every day community activists prepare the newsletter of the Conference. The last page of the newsletter presents the leading and lagging countries in terms of tobacco control, judging from the statements that were made by official delegations during the plenary sessions. Ukraine and Honduras have already received anti-award “Dirty Ashtray.” The Orchid award was given to Australia, Uruguay, and Norway, which have been legally attacked in the recent years by tobacco corporations for effective policies in tobacco control.
