TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Widyastuti Soerojo, the chairperson of the Tobacco Control Special Agency and the Association of Indonesian Health Experts (IAKMI), has questioned President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s commitment to tobacco control in Indonesia.

“I can say that the tobacco control efforts will be harder in Jokowi’s tenure,” Widyastuti said in a workshop on tobacco control in Jakarta on Tuesday, June 9, 2015.

Data from the Industry Ministry revealed that cigarette production in 2014 soared from 16 billion cigarettes to 362 billion. Widyastuti viewed that the government had been non-supportive to the public’s health and focused on profits from the cigarette industry.

Hakim Sorimuda Pohan, an executive at the National Commission for Tobacco Control, said that Jokowi had showed his support for the cigarette industry since the latter took office. A week after being inaugurated by Jokowi, Industry Minister Saleh Husin visited Djarum, one of the largest cigarette producers in the country, to convince the company that the government would not ratify the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).

“The reason was that [the FCTC] would threaten the cigarette industry and tobacco farmers,” Hakim said.

The FCTC is an international legal basis on global tobacco control. Indonesia was involved in drafting the FCTC but yet to ratify it to date. Hakim added that the Youth and Sports Minister had called cigarette companies to sponsor sport events in Indonesia.

MOYANG KASIH DEWIMERDEKA