Following in the footsteps of other major Chinese cities, authorities in Guangzhou stated on May 31 that, in the near future, smoking will no longer be tolerated indoors.
The announcement – which happened to fall on World No Tobacco Day – claims indoor smoking rules will be progressively tightened, before being capped off with an all-out ban.
Guangzhou’s contemporary smoking laws were passed in 2010, before being revised in 2012. These rules state that smoking is allowed indoors provided it is taking place in ‘smoking areas.’
However, while most indoor public places in Guangzhou are classified as ‘non-smoking,’ when it comes to small restaurants, regulations previously only required those with an area over 150 square meters or with more than 75 seats prohibit smoking indoors, according to Southcn.com.
That may change with the new set of tobacco control regulations – which will allegedly be held to “international standards” – that are expected to be included in Guangzhou’s legislative planning next year.
According to reports, between January and April of this year, after a city-wide inspection of tobacco control in roughly 21,600 locations, authorities issued 439 notices of correction and penalized 83 individuals and two office locations for failing to adhere to smoking regulations.
Guangzhou’s Smoking Control Office Director Gaofeng recently stated that nearly 20 percent of the city’s population above the age of 15 smoke cigarettes, according to GRT Radio.
[Image via the New York Times]
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