Enforcing smoking ban goes up in, well ...

Tantri Yuliandini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A man calmly lit his cigarette without so much as a by-your- leave. It does not matter that he was on a public Kopaja bus, it does not matter that he was setting a bad example for his son sitting next to him, and he probably cares little for the distasteful looks of others bothered by his cigarette smoke.

Welcome to Indonesia, a country where about 70 percent of adults are smokers and cigarette makers make the biggest contribution to excise tax annually -- expected to reach Rp 31.4 trillion (about US$3.14 billion) this year.

With 211 billion cigarettes sold last year and cigarette brands Sampoerna and Djarum being some of the biggest sponsors of sports and entertainment events in the country, it is bit amazing that the government dare to agitate the reign of these cash cow companies in the interest of public health.

But thankfully for non-smokers, it did. And among some of the earnest -- albeit cautious -- efforts to curb the number of smokers, is Jakarta administration's implementation of Bylaw No. 2/2005 on air pollution control in February.

Among other items in the ruling, the bylaw bans smoking in enclosed public places, and requires property management companies to provide special smoking areas.

"We are serious about implementing the ban on smoking in public places. Building managers must immediately establish smoke-free zones," Governor Sutiyoso said during a public awareness campaign in October. The bylaw was endorsed in February.

Sutiyoso has also issued Gubernatorial Regulation No. 75, specifying offices, bus terminals, train stations, shopping malls, airports, hotels and restaurants, as well as schools and places of worship as smoke-free zones.

The list also includes public transportation vehicles such as buses, trains, taxis, buses and public minivans as well as kancil.

Violators can be punished by up to six months in jail and/or a fine of Rp 50 million (about US$5,000).

Public awareness campaigns have been going on all through the year, including news stories, posters and stickers, and beginning in December, through advertisements on television, radio and print media.

Some of the first to say they were ready to implement the new ban were the hotels, restaurants and malls in the capital.

Hotels and restaurants have traditionally provided smoking and non-smoking floors or areas, and malls such as Plaza Semanggi and Plaza Senayan are designed to be smoke-free areas.

"We already distinguish between smoking areas and non-smoking areas. For example, we have a certain number of non-smoking floors or rooms. So we can abide by the new regulation with a slight adjustment," Putu Ayu Aristya Dewi, marketing manager for the Accor Group, which owns several four and five-star hotels in the capital, told The Jakarta Post earlier.

However, a peek in some of the office buildings on Jakarta's main thoroughfares reveals that many have yet to provide smoking areas for tenants.

"Most people put out their cigarettes before entering the building, but office boys and drivers often smoke near the service elevators," an employee at the Deutsche Bank Building on Jl. Imam Bonjol in Central Jakarta said.

The property management company, PT Deutsche Real Estate Indonesia, said that it would begin the construction of a special smoking room in December equipped with exhaust fans and ashtrays as stipulated in the regulation.

"But until then we have asked the building security guards to reprimand people who light up in the emergency staircases," the company's Daniel Pardede said.

The administration said it would take a hard line on property management companies that failed to provide smoking areas by Dec. 31.

The office buildings may become smoke free soon enough, but the most difficult problem for those who agree with the ban could be the people lighting up on public transportation vehicles.

Drivers of buses and minivans are notorious not only for their driving habits, but also for their chain smoking.

"I wouldn't be able to drive without smoking, it's the only way I keep awake," Ucok, a bus driver plying the Bintaro-Blok M route, said, while adding that he did not know how he was going to do without cigarettes when the law comes into force.

The administration is encouraging drivers to warn smoking passengers to put out their cigarettes, while passengers can report smoking drivers to the City Transportation Agency, which has the authority to sanction drivers.

The problem, of course, is law enforcement on passengers and drivers.

"I'm afraid that people will be able to get away from punishment by paying hush money to officers," environmental expert Ahmad Safrudin said.

He said that if the administration seriously wants to enforce the smoking ban in enclosed public places, including public transportation, it must seriously advocate social awareness and encourage people to be aware of their right to a smoke-free environment.

When the bull-headed smoker does not flinch at the angry stares and blatant coughs that his second-hand smoke provokes, the only way may be to directly reprimand the smoker to put out his cigarette.

"Unfortunately not everybody cares enough nor has enough courage to reprimand others for smoking, most prefer to avoid trouble," Ahmad said.