First tobacco regulation law approved in Cambodia

Cambodia’s Council of Ministers on Friday approved a draft of the country’s first law on tobacco regulation, which includes 49 articles addressing, among other things, taxes, advertising and health warnings.

A statement released by the council said that $100 million was spent on cigarettes annually in Cambodia and that far more than that was spent on treating smoking-related illnesses.

No other details of the law have been released so far.

Friday’s council session was chaired by Prime Minister Hun Sen, who said in September that he had given up smoking after 10 failed attempts over the past 14 years.

The prime minister was said to have admitted to a crowd of university students that he had once decided against signing a sub-decree that would have prevented smoking in public places because he liked to smoke at council meetings. “If I have to leave the meeting room to smoke a cigarette, would there be someone there to listen to me?” the prime minister was reported to have said.