Whoever or whatever business sells cigarettes to a minor is subject to a fine or up to 15 years in prison.
This includes companies that distribute candies, toys, or other items that imitate or promote the corresponding reduced-risk products.
According to the recently introduced Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill, this is the case.
South Africa is moving forward with planned legislation that includes tough anti-smoking regulations and regulates electronic cigarettes.
The law proposes the first-ever legalization of electronic nicotine and non-nicotine cigarettes, as well as the establishment of 100 percent smoke-free zones, including some public locations, businesses, and automobiles.
It also attempts to alter the packaging of cigarettes and recommends the use of graphic warnings and a complete ban on tobacco product displays and vending machines.
During Wednesday’s webinar on tobacco control, the Health Department’s Dr. Tshimi Lynn Moeng-Mahlangu stated that the proposed bill intends to overturn the present Act of 1993.
According to Moeng-Mahlangu, the new bill also seeks to promote public health and align itself with the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) treaty.
“When revisions were made to the existing Act, we realized that they exceeded fifty percent, meaning that it would be more like a completely new Act. So, we were instructed by legal counsel that we must draft an entirely new measure in order to remove the current Tobacco Act,” she explained.
Electronic nicotine cigarettes
In addition, she informed the audience that the existing Act prohibits the control of electronic cigarettes and vaping items.
“There is currently easy access to all of these new things, which increases children’s and everyone’s exposure to them. “There is no authority,” she added.
Moeng-Mahlangu believes that if the status quo is maintained, e-cigarettes will continue to flood the market and the government will fail to regulate them if they remain unregulated.
“Another alternative that I believe many industry participants would support is to educate the public, conduct further study, and monitor.”
She believes, however, that information alone will not dissuade anyone from utilizing these products.
“Therefore, you must also build an environment that makes these things difficult to obtain. This approach is not exhaustive and will not achieve the desired results of limiting access and demand by itself.”
She believes that the government should regulate the marketing and usage of any inventive new items that have proven to be dangerous.
Children
The official cited the WHO report, which concluded that e-cigarettes are “undeniably dangerous” and contain poisonous compounds, such as highly addictive nicotine.
According to the research, they can cause a heart attack and a stroke and can hinder the development of the brain in adolescents.
“The long-term health repercussions of these products are yet unknown, but if we wait until we see the long-term impacts, it may be too late to stop, and many young people will already be addicted to the substance.”
Moeng-Mahlangu stated that the government is committed to protecting small children, non-users, pregnant women, and non-smoking families.
“The government is required by the Constitution to protect its citizens from the detrimental consequences of secondhand smoke. If you have a crèche where the owner or other individuals smoke, or if you have children in a car where adults are smoking, this poses a problem since it exposes youngsters to secondhand smoke.
Moeng-Mahlangu stated, using data from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) 2021, that 25.8% of South Africans aged 15 and older are tobacco users.
“In some of the stores, you can see that cigarettes are put close to candies, making them accessible to youngsters.”
She also mentioned that cigarette-related illnesses cost the nation approximately R42 billion, but the tobacco industry provides between R12 and R15 billion to the fiscus.