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This author would be the first to admit it out loud. I wish people would stop smoking, especially in public spaces.
Smoking is harmful to the human body in a myriad of ways. At the risk of sounding like a preachy PSA, here are some ways smoking affects the body, according to Medical News Today: lung damage, heart disease, fertility problems, risk of pregnancy complications, risk of type 2 diabetes, weakened immune system, vision problems, risk of cancer, and many more.
Aware of all the cons of smoking, the Malaysian government is looking to gradually ban smoking through the Generational End Game (GEG). The proposed Control of Tobacco Product and Smoking Bill 2022 aimed to prohibit the smoking, buying, or possession of tobacco products or smoking devices for individuals born in 2007 onwards. However, on 2 August 2022, Dewan Rakyat voted to refer the bill to a parliamentary select committee (PSC) for further review.
A good move, if you ask me. The proposed bill, well-meaning as it is, has a few issues that need ironing out.
The shortcomings of the bill aside, I think many of us can agree that smoking is bad. However, passing a law is a sticky business. There are a few things we have to be cautious about.
1) Would the criminalisation of smoking actually reduce smoking in the country?
We don’t know for sure how criminalising smoking would affect actual numbers. It comes down to policy. For example, would the laws criminalise the buying OR selling of cigarettes? They are not the same.
Malaysia’s proposed GEG bill aimed to prohibit youngsters from smoking or possessing tobacco products. In contrast, a similar New Zealand bill prohibits the sales, supply, and delivery of tobacco products to youngsters.
We don’t know which is more effective yet; this has to be studied.
On a similar note, we must be careful that the policies do not disproportionately affect poor, marginalised groups, the way the criminalisation of drugs has.
2) Abuse of power by the authorities
A heavy-handed approach means strict restrictions. The recently proposed bill gave enforcement officers the power to:
- enter a premise
- open baggage, packages, etc
- stop, search, and seize conveyance (vehicles/equipment)
- access computers etc for information
- search and seize without a warrant, including a body search, to break open, seal a place, and seize items
In this harsh scenario, the officers can enter your premise or search your belongings whenever they please. It might be just me, but this looks like an abuse of power waiting to happen.
3) Encourage elicit trade
When you ban smoking, you encourage smuggling. The worst part is that in a black market, you cannot control the quality of the products, and the youngsters might end up smoking something even worse. At the very least, regulated harm is better than uncontrolled, unmitigated harm.
4) Encroachment on freedom of choice
According to Beruas MP, Ngeh Koo Ham, in terms of the law, mala in se are acts that are morally and innately wrong, like rape and killing; those can be banned. Meanwhile, mala prohibita cases are regulated despite not being a crime against others. Smoking falls under the latter category.
When we consider freedom of choice, over-regulating smoking is treading on thin ice. Vices might be negative, but people should have the freedom to dissociate from them on their own, instead of being forced from them.
YB Ngeh went on to say that mala prohibita cases should be about education. Discouraging the act is more effective than criminalising it. And should smoking be criminalised, implementation is everything.
I am glad that a PSC has been put to the task — I have faith that they will come up with effective policies that match the spirit of the initial anti-smoking bill. The intentions are laudable; now for the execution.
Chow Ping Lee is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav.
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