News & Events
Aug /20/2010
Aug /17/2010
Statement: Corporate Accountability International and NATT Commend the Phillipines for Protecting Against Tobacco Industry Interference
Statement of Gigi Kellett
Director, Campaign Challenging Big Tobacco
2 July 2010
Corporate Accountability International and the Network for Accountability of Tobacco Transnationals (NATT) commend and support the Philippines’ Civil Service Commission and the Department of Health for the June 2010 Joint Order to Protect the Bureaucracy against Tobacco Industry Interference.
Philippines is one of 169 Parties to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) and this recent action sets important precedence for other Parties as they too implement the treaty and its Article 5.3 that protects against industry interference. In 2008, the Conference of the Parties to the FCTC unanimously adopted the Article 5.3 Guidelines that have as a guiding principle that “[t]here is a fundamental and irreconcilable conflict between the tobacco industry’s interests and public health policy interests.” This Order is an important action that sets a precedent for other jurisdictions around the world to prevent tobacco industry interference in public policy.
Key features of the order that affirm the principles of the Article 5.3 Guidelines – and that set a strong precedent for other jurisdictions around the world – include:
- Prohibition of all government personnel from interacting with the tobacco industry unless strictly necessary for its regulation, supervision or control. Any such interaction must be done in a transparent manner;
- Additional requirements for government personnel involved in setting and implementing public health policies to inform their respective agencies if they have plans to work for the tobacco industry after leaving their posts;
- Requirements for all government agencies to report any interaction or offer of donation from the tobacco industry. The order also requires that agencies amend their Codes of Conduct according to prescribed provisions in the Order; and
- Any violation of the order is a ground for administrative disciplinary action.
Tobacco remains the leading cause of preventable death, killing more than five million people each year – rising to more than eight million people a year over the next several decades, with 80% of these deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. However, full implementation of the treaty would save hundreds of millions of lives over the next twenty years. Unfortunately, tobacco industry interference poses the single greatest threat to realizing the full potential of the treaty's lifesaving measures.
We congratulate these critical and important actions that safeguard the development and implementation of public health policies from interference by the tobacco industry. We strongly support this Joint Order to Protect the Bureaucracy against Tobacco Industry Interference. We look forward to supporting its advancement, as well as the full implementation of the FCTC in the Philippines.
Corporate Accountability International, formerly Infact, is a membership organization that, for more than 30 years has protected people by waging and winning campaigns challenging irresponsible and dangerous corporate actions around the world. Corporate Accountability International is an NGO in official relations with the World Health Organization (WHO), is an accredited observer to the Conference of the Parties to the FCTC and Special Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (UN ECOSOC).
The Network for Accountability of Tobacco Transnationals (NATT) includes more than 100 NGOs from over 50 countries working for implementation of the FCTC.
