Life of Guangzhou - Smoking Returns to Guangzhou's Offices?

Public advertisement of banning smoking (file photo by Guangzhou Daily)

Health experts in Guangzhou received very disappointing news recently when the municipal government announced the revised draft of a piece of legislation regulating smoking in public places. In this 2nd draft, offices, conference rooms and auditoriums shall not be included in the list of mandatory non-smoking areas as they are not – supposedly – a public area.

These relaxed regulations have caused much concern amongst responsible health experts and white collar employees. Ms. Chen Shu is a law adviser who believes that "smoking should be forbidden in offices and civil servants should set a good example by abandoning this bad habit in the first place." She also reminded us that "central air-conditioning systems are set-up in most offices; therefore cigarette smoke is sent throughout the entire building."

The Guangzhou Government first published a "Notice about Banning Smoking in Public Places" in 1995 which bans people from smoking in public places such as hospitals and bus stations. These rules, however, are rarely applied as law enforcement personnel have little awareness of the danger of second-hand smoke.

(By Carrot Chan, David Keyton)

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