Kretek Community Voices Decent Smoking Areas

Cigarette consumers are actually demanding for open smoking areas with good facilities and located in near places based on Kretek Community’s survey in 12 big cities in Indonesia. As many as 1,200 smokers become respondents in this survey.

As much as 74.9 percent of respondents wanted open smoking areas and 25.1 percent wanted close smoking areas

“ As much as 74.9 percent of respondents wanted open smoking areas and 25.1 percent wanted close smoking areas ,” said Kretek Community coordinator, Abhisam Demosa, Sunday (6/1).

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Kretek Community assessed that the government should also make a balance policy since the government must fulfill the rights of smokers by providing exclusive places for decent smoking areas in public areas.

According to Demosa, cigarettes are legal goods and consuming cigarettes is protected. The demand for decent places is not excessive, exclusively considering the contribution of cigarette to the country that reached Rp 70 trillion per year. He also reminded about the Constitutional Court ruling that mandated the government to provide separated smoking areas.

“The providing of exclusive smoking areas in workplaces, public places and others is the mandate of the Constitutional Court’s decision, as stated in the explanation of Article 115 paragraph 1 of Law Health No. 36/2009. The decision should be run by either government as well as private institutions,” he stated.

Meanwhile, Percik NGO coordinator, Aip Saifulloh, added that his party so far found many indifferences of the government to provide separated places for smokers.

“It is very important to provide exclusive places for smokers. Besides to arrange places for smokers, it can also provide protection for the passive smokers. Due to the absence of exclusive places for smokers, it makes the smokers smoking in any places, so the impacts are on passive smokers,” he uttered.