UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies Strongly Criticizes WHO Report (Photos)

The World Health Organization's "Framework Convention on Tobacco Control" has faced criticism for openly supporting Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's "bloody" anti-drug campaign, and a recent hostile report on e-cigarettes has sparked further controversy.

The publication of this report serves as a warm-up for next month's seventh Conference of the Parties in India, indicating that the WHO intends to push its more controversial anti-vaping policies. Currently, a UK anti-tobacco organization has launched a strong attack on the WHO's report.

The UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies (UKCTAS), a staunch anti-drug group that can hardly be accused of supporting the tobacco industry, has compiled a substantial list of complaints regarding the WHO report. These include: failure to quantify risks, failure to compare vaping with smoking, lack of research support for policy proposals, and most seriously, distortion of the risks of secondhand vapor and the role of tobacco companies.

The condemnation from the UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies is a significant blow to the scientific credibility of the WHO report, but health experts are concerned that the lack of transparency in the "Framework Convention on Tobacco Control" will keep them away from public scrutiny as they advance proposals. Many advocates are calling for proper oversight of the seventh Conference of the Parties, but so far, the WHO seems intent on maintaining its lockdown policy.