Targeting E-cigarettes, Shenzhen Launches Special Action for World No Tobacco Day

Yesterday was World No Tobacco Day, and this year’s theme was “Protect young people from traditional tobacco products and e-cigarettes.”

Recently, Shenzhen’s tobacco control office launched a special enforcement campaign focused specifically on e-cigarettes. Among the cases, a physical e-cigarette store in Nanshan District was formally investigated on site for failing to display the required signage in accordance with the law, and it may face a fine of 2,000 yuan. This is also reportedly the first case of its kind in China.

In recent years, e-cigarettes have become a new favorite in the cigarette market, especially among many teenagers. Last year, Shenzhen’s tobacco control office organized its first youth tobacco prevalence survey, mainly targeting middle school, high school, and vocational school students in Shenzhen. The results showed that the current e-cigarette use rate among Shenzhen students was 2.5%, already higher than the 2.3% smoking rate for conventional cigarettes. Among non-smoking students, when asked whether they might smoke if a close friend offered them one, the acceptance rate for e-cigarettes was 14.7%, significantly higher than the 5.8% for conventional cigarettes.

Shenzhen’s tobacco control office once released a survey report on tobacco sales around primary and secondary schools in Shenzhen. The results showed that more than 90% of schools had tobacco retail outlets within 100 meters, and fewer than half of merchants displayed signs stating “No sales of tobacco products to minors” and “Smoking is harmful to health.” After that, the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone Smoking Control Regulations stipulated that tobacco products may not be sold within 100 meters of kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, youth palaces, and children’s activity centers. Violators will be ordered to make corrections by the market supervision department and fined 30,000 yuan. It should be said that Shenzhen’s position on protecting young people from tobacco products is clear, and this new type of product — e-cigarettes — should likewise be subject to firm restrictions.

In October last year, the first e-cigarette user in mainland China was fined 50 yuan in Shenzhen. The individual was penalized for using an e-cigarette at a bus stop. Under Shenzhen’s revised smoking control regulations, smoking is completely prohibited at outdoor waiting areas and queueing areas for public transportation, including buses, long-distance coaches, taxis, subways, ships, and civil aircraft — and this includes e-cigarettes. Such strict enforcement and the emergence of multiple “first cases” also reflect Shenzhen’s understanding of and commitment to the rule of law.

The level of rule of law in a city is often reflected in small details. Using an e-cigarette at a bus stop or failing to post required signs at a physical e-cigarette store are not serious violations, but where there is a law, it must be enforced according to the law. The spirit of the rule of law is often demonstrated through exactly these kinds of details.

It is hoped that this commitment to the rule of law will help keep young people away from traditional tobacco products and e-cigarettes, and that this legal spirit will continue to spread into more areas, making the city more orderly and more worthy of respect because of the rule of law.