Cigarettes ads beat anti-smoking campaign

Cigarettes ads beat anti-smoking campaign

JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Heart Foundation says its anti- smoking campaign has been overshadowed by a barrage of advertising launched by cigarette producers through the mass media.

Association chairwoman L.A. Hanifah said smoking is still the chief cause of heart disease, the number one cause of death in Indonesia.

"Smoking, especially among teenagers, is a serious concern for us," Hanifah said at the launching of National Heart Week on Thursday.

"But our campaign against smoking is being beaten by cigarette advertising in the mass media," she added.

Cigarette producers, one of the biggest spenders on advertising, have circumvented a government ban on cigarette advertising using promotional material that does not mention explicitly the product being marketed.

National Heart Week, which ends on Nov. 16, was opened by Minister of Health Sujudi. Among those in attendance at the ceremony was Jakarta Vice Governor for Social Welfare R.S.Museno.

The week, organized by the Indonesian Heart Foundation in cooperation with private companies, will include seminars, social activities and sports events.

Despite the obstacles, Hanifah said the foundation's campaign has not been complete waste, judging from the increasing number of public places that have been declared no-smoking areas, such as government offices and restaurants.

Meanwhile, on the occasion of the National Health Day which falls tomorrow, the government plans to launch a campaign to reduce children and maternal mortality rates.

As part of the campaign, the Ministry of Health next year will start administering vaccines against Hepatitis-B on all newly born children in 10 provinces where the diseases is most prevalent.

President Soeharto today is scheduled to launch the first production of the vaccine at the factory of state-owned Bio Farma in Bandung, West Java. (31)