>> Vietnam’s smoking habit hard to shake
>> Smoking deaths on the rise in Vietnam
Vietnamese agencies have continued to increase efforts to raise public awareness about the negative impact of smoking, but to little avail.
Vietnam has launched a national non-smoking week on May 25-31 in response to the World No Tobacco Day 2011 (May 31).
According to the Ministry of Health, since smoking was banned in public places on January 1, 2010, only the northern province of Lao Cai has enforced the regulation; punishing 10 people for total fines of VND1.5 million (USD72.81).
Up to 23% of Vietnamese people smoke, mostly men. Thirty three million in Vietnam are inhalers of second hand smoke. Up to 40,000 Vietnamese people contract smoking-related diseases every year. The figure is forecast is set to increase to 70,000 by 2030.
Smokers in Hanoi:
It is easy to buy cigarettes in Hanoi streets
Cigarettes and cups of tea for a meeting
Mobile phone and cigarettes; the essential props for modern men?
Smoking in front of the National Obstetrics Hospital
Smoking in front of K Hospital in Quan Su Street
Nicotine stained teeth
Smoking in the car
Restaurant owner in Luong Ngoc Quyen Street
Smoking in front of St Joseph’s Cathedral
A farther buys cigarettes while taking his son to school
Many parents allow their children to play with or make contact with cigarettes, paying little attention to the long-term effects
Baby subject to secondary smoke
Tea stands on Luong Van Can and Hang Hanh streets also sell imported and domestic tobacco
Pipe or Dieu Cay sold as a souvenir for tourists in Hanoi