Interference of the Tobacco Industry: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

For a long time, the tobacco industry has been interfering in tobacco control policies at the local, regional, and global level by means of varied tactics. These aggressive tactics try to undermine the public health efforts including the WHO FCTC and include, as described by WHO, maneuvering to hijack the political and legislative process; exaggerating the economic importance of the industry; manipulating public opinion to gain the appearance of respectability; fabricating support through front groups; discrediting proven science; and intimidating governments with litigation or the threat of litigation.
Several of these tactics have been used again in La Graciosa, a small island in the Canary Islands (Spain), that was declared as a “smoke-free island” in a campaign sponsored by Philip Morris International. The case of this small island of 11 square miles and with 700 inhabitants has prompted this webinar, aimed at reviewing how the tobacco industry continues to be a threat to public health. An international panel of experts will provide a perspective of tobacco industry interference, review what happened in La Graciosa, the reaction of the tobacco control movement and the implications for local and global tobacco control.

Live translation provided in Spanish & English. You must register in this link