Eighth observatory of the tobacco industry facing the COVID19 pandemic

STOP, is an international monitoring organization that tracks the tobacco industry's interference practices in public policies. The organization has noted a resurgence of activity by this industry in many countries around the world since the start of the pandemic. This resurgence in the presence of the tobacco industry is closely linked to the Covid19 pandemic, which allows it to whitewash its image. This edition covers the months of July and August 2020. Major trends of this monitoring period:

• Spain has banned smoking in public spaces where social distancing is not possible. These measures were initially implemented in Galicia[1] and the Canary Islands, and then applied nationwide. Industry representatives, "Mesa del Tabaco," spoke out against the restrictions, citing a lack of evidence of its effectiveness[2].
• BAT announced that it had filed for FDA approval for its vaccine made by its subsidiary Kentucky BioProcessing COVID-19 in July. Through its subsidiary, BAT is trying to promote a positive image of the company and position itself as a legitimate public health actor while obscuring the reality of its practices.[3].
• Continued efforts by the tobacco industry to obtain favorable measures for it. In Zambia, Japan Tobacco International recently donated US$150,000 and received a public thank you from a leader.

Focus on South Africa[4]. In South Africa, as part of the lockdown associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, the government took the decision on 27 March 2020 to ban the sale of tobacco and alcohol products, considering these products as non-essential. This was followed by threats from BAT and the Fair Trade Independent Tobacco Association (FITA) to challenge this provision in court. FITA stated that there was no rational connection between the cigarette ban and the objective of the state of emergency intended to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Despite an acquittal by the court, FITA appealed to the Supreme Court, despite the lifting of the sales ban on 17 August 2020.[5] with the deconfinement. In the country, BAT, JTI, Imperial and FITA have all attempted to undermine and interfere with the tracking and tracing systems that tackle illicit trade. A University of Cape Town study found that 90% of respondents were still able to purchase cigarettes despite the sales ban. The author of this study indicated that South African tobacco companies supplied “more than 90% of the cigarettes sold during the lockdown.”   Eighth Industry Observatory – STOP (in English)   Keywords: Interference, Tobacco industry, Covid19, STOP ©Generation Without Tobacco

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[1] Spanish region of Galicia bans smoking on the street due to Covid19, Tobacco Free Generation, August 13, 2020 [2] Javier Romera, The tobacco sector and the hostelry, against the prohibition of smoking on the street: "No hay scientific evidence to make this decision, El Economista, August 13, 2020, consulted on August 24, 2020 [3] Simon Foy, BAT says clinical trials of Covid vaccine could begin within weeks, The Telegraph, July 31, 2020, accessed August 24, 2020 [4] https://www.generationsanstabac.org/?s=Afrique+du+Sud [5] South Africa: Tobacco lobby continues legal battle despite lifting of sales ban, Generation Without Tobacco, August 18, 2020, consulted on August 24, 2020 National Committee Against Smoking |