Cambodian activists asked to increase taxes on tobacco World No Tobacco Day

Some 300 Cambodian tobacco-free activists on Monday gathered here to mark the Planet No Tobacco Day and called for the government to raise taxes on tobacco goods as a way to discourage smokers.

"Tax increases for cigarettes is going to be the most effective means to reduce the amount of death caused by tobacco use," Mom Kong, the executive director of the NGO-Cambodia Movement for Wellness, mentioned at the occasion. "Moreover, the improve will produce a lot more tax revenues for the state coffer."

Ho Naun, the National Assembly's chairwoman of the Commission on Public Wellness and Social Welfares, expressed her complete support for the demand.

"I believe that it is a main measure to discourage smokers," she said.

According to the statistics of the planning ministry, presently, nearly 2 million out from the country's 7.5 million Cambodian adults have been consuming smoke or smokeless tobacco (betel quid).

It can be estimated that about 99 million U.S. dollars have already been spent on cigarettes and tobacco annually in Cambodia.

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