Lights Out For Georgia?

Georgia's anti-smoking lobby scored a victory earlier in September when parliament passed a new law banning people from lighting up in public. But this is not a country where people stick to the rules - and this is one that smokers are unlikely to observe.

The new law outlaws smoking in offices and hospitals, on public transport, in some cafes, in stairwells, and in any building where young people might be exposed to the sight of people smoking. Georgi Gogiberidze, an official at the justice ministry, told IWPR that his ministry had already prepared the paperwork needed to enforce the law, which will mean that people caught lighting a cigarette in the wrong place will be fined five lari, about 2.50 US dollars. The media are about to launch a series of public-service announcements about the new rules.

The law had a rocky passage through parliament, where some deputies have connections with the tobacco industry.

Another obstacle was that many of the deputies smoke themselves, and parliament would be one of the public buildings affected by the ban. The speaker Nino Burjanadze recently threatened to impose her own prohibition rule after a series of futile attempts to get enough smokers back into the chamber to form a quorum. Human rights campaigner Elena Tevdoradze, who belongs to the same political party as the speaker, retorted that she would have to take her to court or give up her seat in parliament if she stopped her from smoking.

Now that the law is in place, Tevdoradze is taking a softer line, saying, "This legislation could be resisted while it was still in the pipeline. Now every law-abiding citizen must obey. I do think it's the right thing to do in a country with so many smokers."

The Georgians are among the world's heaviest users of tobacco per capita - 40 per cent of the country's 4.5 million people, and about half of all young men, smoke. According to the Georgian Alliance for Tobacco Control, 11,000 people die from tobacco-related diseases every year.

"There is a direct link between the fact that one in three women smokes during pregnancy, and the exponential rise in instances of hereditary pathology in infants. Smoking is a national disaster in Georgia, and we must do something about it," said Koba Amirkhanashvili, a member of the parliamentary health committee who helped draft the law.

The law is only the latest attempt to combat the problem. In April a total ban on tobacco advertising on radio and television came into force. That decision angered local producers and retailers.

The tobacco lobby then did its best to curb the most restrictive aspects of the new law. Teimuraz Mikaberidze, financial manager for the tobacco firm GTM, confirmed that producers had extensive input in the drafting process. "We got some unacceptable points taken out, for example the provision that cigarette outlets must be at least 200 metre away from schools," Mikaberidze told IWPR. The idea of banning sales near schools had come from Georgian president Eduard Shevardnadze himself.

The tobacco companies and importers believe the law, even with the amendments they succeeded in introducing, will do serious harm to their business. "Georgian producers have already suffered from the ban on cigarette commercials on radio and TV," said Mikaberidze. "It doesn't even make sense to launch new products any more, since as consumers will never find out about them."

"Health is far more important than profit," replied Amirkhanishvili. "We have cut the tobacco producers enough slack as it is - but not for much longer."

The average Georgian seems either unaware of the ban, or angry at the new restrictions.

"Don't we have enough real problems in this country?" asked Tbilisi resident Ramaz. "Doesn't our parliament have more important business to attend to?"

Ramaz only learned of the anti-smoking law from IWPR, and has not yet been stopped from smoking anywhere.

A cursory survey conducted by IWPR showed only three establishments in the capital Tbilisi where the new law was being enforced - one café selling vegetarian food and no alcohol, and a two others run by the Orthodox church. But none of them ever allowed smoking.

Similarly, none of the 50 or so staff and visitors whom the Interfax news agency found smoking at parliament and the State Chancellery a few days ago were aware that they were breaking the law.

It's hard to see how the new rules can be made to work in a country like Georgia. "Everyone knows it's wrong to cross the street when a red light is showing, but how many people here will stand and wait patiently for the light to turn green?" said Georgi, a journalist.

"So smokers will keep on smoking just as they've always done, at school and at work. Georgia has a lot of good laws that don't work."

Zaza Baazov is a freelance journalist in Tbilisi.