Swiss voters, who typically vigorously protect the nation ‘s economic interests, agreed on Sunday, at 57%, to ban tobacco advertising that is accessible to children and adolescents.
“People understood that health is more important than economic interests,” Stefanie de Borba, from La Ligue contre le cancer, told AFP.
This vote is “a paradigm shift for the federal authorities, which have long assumed that health prevention policy is overseen by large companies”, revealed its role to AFP Pascal Diethelm, head of the OxyRomandie association, which it aims to prevent and combat smoking.
Switzerland pays a heavy price for smoking, with 9,500 smoking – related deaths per year, for a population of 8.6 million.
But there has been very permissive legislation so far in the area of tobacco advertising in the Alpine country, where about one in four smokers, in particular due to the very strong lobbying of the world’s largest tobacco companies, whose their own site.
At national level, only radio and television advertisements and those specifically targeting minors are currently banned.
And while some cantons had already tightened their rules and a new law was due to come into force in 2023, tobacco control groups felt that much more decisive action was needed to protect young people and launched a popular initiative.
“The dictatorship of political justice”
The text provides for a ban on all tobacco advertising where it can be viewed by children or teenagers, for example in the press, on posters or on the Internet, in the cinema or during exhibitions. The same rules should apply to electronic cigarettes. Advertising targeted at adults only, for example in emails, must be acceptable.
Fighters, including the federal government and parliament, felt the initiative goes too far. Some have criticized the hygiene trend that is invading our society.
“We’re talking about cigarettes today, we’re talking about alcohol, meat. It bothers me to live in a society where we want this dictatorship of political justice where everything has to be settled,” Philippe Bauer, a chamber member, replied Sunday. supreme Switzerland. (liberal-radical party), with Swiss public television RTS.
His concerns are similar to those of Philip Morris International (PMI), the world leader in the sector, headquartered in Switzerland, like British American Tobacco and Japan Tobacco, which helped fund the “no” campaign.
“Personal freedom is on a slippery slope,” a PMI spokesman told AFP on Sunday, urging authorities to ensure that adult – oriented advertising is still allowed.
Health Minister Alain Berset explained that parliament would now draft a law to implement the initiative, which should not, however, come into force this year.
– Primates have no rights –
On the other hand, the animal cause on Sunday turned white: voters swept the Basel-City canton, famous for its zoos and pharmaceutical groups, nearly 75%, a proposal aimed at granting fundamental rights for non – humans. people, and the Swiss voted 79% against an initiative to ban animal and human testing.
They have already rejected three animal testing initiatives, in 1985 (70%), 1992 (56%) and 1993 (72%).
No party supported the ban, which the government says could have serious health and economic consequences, in a country with just over half of exports in the chemical and pharmaceutical sector.
According to the authorities, Swiss legislation is one of the most stringent in the world on animal testing, including a ban on testing for cosmetic products.
At the federal level, Switzerland has also rejected more than 54% of a law providing for additional media support measures, given the fall in advertising revenue.
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