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Ban on sale of single cigarettes – new Government effort to discourage child smoking

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Jakarta, IO – Starting in 2023, people can no longer buy single cigarettes, from vendors. This ruling is expressed in Presidential Decree Number 25 of 2022 concerning the 2023 Government Regulation Organization Program, signed recently on 23 December 2022. 

What an odd ruling. Why did the President instill it? 

“Naturally, it is for the sake of the citizens’ health. Cigarettes are outlawed in multiple countries, prohibited. We still allow their sale, but not by individual sticks,” declared President Joko Widodo after the inauguration of Sadawarna Dam in the Regency of Sumedang, West Java, on Tuesday (27/12/2022). 

This ruling is expected to dissuade children and teens from buying cigarettes, as most can normally only afford to buy single sticks. We all know that cigarettes are dangerous to health, especially for the young. dr. Siti Nadia Tarmizi, M.Epid., Head of the Ministry of Health’s Communications and Public Service Bureau, reports that the smoking habit starts in citizens as young as 10-18 years old, and that number continues to increase. Currently, 9% of our children in this age group smoke, and this number is expected to rise to 15% by 2024. Data goes on to show that 71% of smoking youths buy their cigarettes as individual sticks, and 60% of sellers do not refuse to sell them smokes. 

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