Tobacco Control Act of Bhutan 2010

The Tobacco Control Act of Bhutan (Dzongkha: འབྲུག་གི་ཏམ་ཁུ་དམ་འཛིན་བཅའ་ཁྲིམས་ཅན་མ་; Wylie: 'Drug-gi tam-khu dam-'dzin bca'-khrims can-ma) was enacted by parliament on 16 June 2010. It regulates tobacco and tobacco products, banning the cultivation, harvesting, production, and sale of tobacco and tobacco products in Bhutan. The act also mandates that the government of Bhutan provide counselling and treatment to facilitate tobacco cessation. Premised on the physical health and well being of the Bhutanese people – important elements of Gross National Happiness – the Tobacco Control Act recognizes the harmful effects of tobacco consumption and exposure to tobacco smoke on both spiritual and social health.

Long before the enactment of the Tobacco Control Act, Bhutan's government had struggled against tobacco use. In 1916, the first King of Bhutan Ugyen Wangchuck promulgated a ban on the "most filthy and noxious herb, called tobacco." The modern Tobacco Control Act, however, led to controversy because of its harsh penalties. In January 2012, Parliament passed urgent amendments with the effect of greatly increasing permissible amounts of tobacco and reducing penalties, although sale and distribution remain prohibited.

The consumption of tobacco is not altogether prohibited in Bhutan, though it is largely banned in places of public accommodation. The act largely targets smoking in particular, though any form of tobacco is subject to the act. The Tobacco Control Act establishes non-smoking areas: commercial centers including markets, hotel lobbies, restaurants, and bars; recreation centers such as discothèques, cinemas, and playing fields; institutions and offices, both public and private; public gatherings and public spaces such as festivals, taxi stands, and the airport; all public transportation; and any other places declared by the Tobacco Control Board. The board also has the authority to designate smoking areas in public. Smoking areas are permitted in non-public areas of hotels (i.e., smoking floors or smoking rooms) at the discretion of the patron.

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