Sunday, October 10, 2010

Musicians Urged to Boycott Cigarette Sponsors


Most live music concerts in Indonesia are sponsored by cigarette manufacturing companies, for example the Java Rockin' land Music festival held at the Ancol Beach, North Jakarta from 8 until 10 October 2010

Considering this fact, an Asia Pacific summit of anti-smoking campaigners has urged Indonesia to regulate its tobacco industry and urged musicians to boycott events sponsored by cigarette manufacturing companies. Please find an article that I have quoted from AFP/Google.

Anti-smoking summit urges Indonesian action
SYDNEY — An Asia Pacific summit of anti-smoking campaigners Saturday urged Indonesia to regulate its tobacco industry and called for musicians to boycott events sponsored by cigarette companies.

The Asia Pacific Association for the Control of Tobacco (APACT) said Indonesia was creating a "public health disaster" by rejecting the global tobacco treaty and allowing cigarette promotion to thrive.
APACT also condemned international bands including Australia's Wolfmother and The Vines for playing a major music festival this weekend in Jakarta which is sponsored by Gudang Garam, Indonesia's largest tobacco company.

"Tobacco advertising and promotional activities in Indonesia are unmatched anywhere else in Asia," APACT said in a resolution passed Saturday.

"Rock groups from western countries such as USA, UK and Australia, who would not allow tobacco sponsorship of their concerts in their own countries or anywhere else in the world, are performing in Indonesia under tobacco brand names," it added.

"These bands have ignored international protests about their double standards."
The Sydney summit of 700 delegates from 41 countries made an "urgent" appeal that Jakarta sign on to the World Health Organisation's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and ban tobacco advertising and sponsorship.

It called for "all international artists and athletes performing in Indonesia (to) reject tobacco sponsorship of their concerts and events" and refuse to participate in events that promoted smoking.
APACT also asked Wolfmother and The Vines to make a public statement "that they will no longer endorse tobacco sponsorship and do not encourage smoking (and) they condemn the distribution of free cigarettes at concerts."

Wolfmother has responded to the criticism by issuing a statement on its website saying it does not "support or condemn the sponsors" and will play the gig for the fans who have "parted with their very own cold hard cash".

Indonesia earns billions of dollars a year in tax revenues from tobacco companies, which employ millions of people across the country.

APACT said more than 200,000 people died every year from tobacco-related causes in Indonesia, with 60 percent of the country's men estimated to be smokers and a "disturbing" trend of children taking up the habit.

17 comments:

berpikir positif said...

I agree sir, I have stopped too 4 month ago

Mobil Keluarga Ideal Terbaik Indonesia said...

but I think it's very difficult to find sponsors

presidentology said...

Breath Free

I think it's more good...

Unknown said...

@Berpikir Positif,
I am glad to hear that. I have also stopped smoking for more than 15 years.

@Mobil Keluarga Ideal Terbaik Indonesia,
Yeah, you are right. Let's hope that there will be non cigarette sponsor.

@Presidentology,
You are right, if we don't smoke we will be able to breath free thus more healthy.

Setyo-Utomo Said said...

I fully agree with you, Mas. I don't smoke even one cigarette since I was a child.

Anonymous said...

....but Money is Power...

Unknown said...

Pak Utomo,
My parents used to tell me that smoking is like burning money and your lung.

Unknown said...

Anonimous,
I wish that you have mentioned your name and blog so that we can be friend.
Although Money can be used to get power, but it is not the only important factor to get power.
Without strong personal qualities, a person cannot have good and stable power although he/she has lots of money.

sonny said...

very interesting, here in the states tobacco is looked down very much, we're always having more taxes every year on it, many commericials against tobacco, but alcohol is like tobacco in Indonesia, our concerts are sponsored by them and you can't drive 'round town w/o seeing a billboard with liquor/beer, a totally double standard here

Unknown said...

Sonny,
Thank you for sharing with us about the conditions in the US. It seems that it's the same in many countries.

colson said...

Smoking is addictive and seriously jeopardizes one's health. So any initiative to curb the endemic habit is good. We should especially welcome this kind of calls for boycott.

I hope though the anti smoke campaign will not deteriorate in a witch hunt for smokers.

Tikno said...

I do not know whether their faith can continue to restrain to stem money.

Unknown said...

Harry, again sadly for me your article has highlighted where the focus for this country seems to be going in the wrong direction.
However the sheer size of this industry here and the people it employs creates a catch 22 for the government. Raise taxes on cigarettes and companies will shed jobs. Ban tobacco advertising and the government again will lose valuable income (if these companies pay taxes) which will hurt the whole nation and of course the poorest the most.
There should be some kind of even approach to tackling the issues created by the Tobacco industry, but when you read that the government "deliberately" left out important legislation in the last round of legal updating with the tobacco industry, its shows how much power they really have and how reluctant any one is to fix this.

tPnino said...

Bravo to the musicians

Unknown said...

@Colson,
I agree that any action to stop smoking should be done peacefully.

@Tikno,
Let's us hope that people's health would considered more important than getting money from cigarette tax money.

@Luke,
When it comes to cigarettes here the over all condition it is very sad indeed.
About important clause in the cigarette law that's being left out actually it was parliament's fault. This shows that the govt and the parliament are protecting the cigarette industry.

@Tonino,
Many musicians would perhaps would not really mind who their sponsors are I supposed.

colson said...

@ Harry: What I actually meant that warnings to the public ( especially warning youth) and reigning in the aggressive advertising by tobacco industry as well as the protection of non-smokers in in-building parts of the workplace are al-right , but restricting the open public and ( semi-private places where smoking isn't allowed isn't in my opinion.

Unknown said...

Hi Colson,
Thank you for your kind explanation which I agree.