From Caijing Online:
China’s state-controlled tobacco industry may be in for a shock following the government’s recent decision to sign a new set of international smoking restrictions.
China was one of 130 countries that agreed to adopt the guidelines, which add teeth to a 2005 global tobacco control treaty, at a meeting held by the World Health Organization (WHO) in Durban, South Africa.
Among the signatories to the guidelines, the Chinese government is the most closely connected to the tobacco industry.
And with more than 350 million smokers – one-third of the world’s total – China is the world’s largest tobacco consumer and producer, according to official data. Every year, more than 1 million Chinese die from sicknesses related to smoking and, at current rates, another 100 million Chinese will die from smoking over the next 40 years.
