Law and Policy

Tobacco Control Campaigners Celebrate Tobacco Control Law Passage. Please click the below link for More information

Tobacco Control Law 2005 (Bangla), (English)

Tobacco Control Rules 2006 (Bangla), (English)

Goverment Publish Tobacco Control Law, Rules and related Order

Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC)

BATA has held numerous events calling for legislative changes, including various activities to call for a comprehensive law, a signature campaign to provide non-smoking carriages on trains, and protests against tobacco advertising. BATA also organized a series of events to protest BAT’s marketing campaign the “Voyage of Discovery", and was involved in successful court cases against BAT and Imperial Tobacco--in the latter case, succeeding in stopping the company's activities entirely. BATA was active in the successful campaign to urge the government to sign and ratify the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), and is working now to raise taxes on tobacco products.

A historic event occurred on the evening of 13 March, 2005. The Parliament of Bangladesh passed the Tobacco Control Bill. BATA has supported the development and passage of the law for years, and will play a major role in its implementation.

The main components of the Bill are:

• A ban on all forms of tobacco advertisements;
• The making of most public places and transport smoke-free, including hospitals, shopping malls, trains and buses;
• Stronger, clearer, larger warnings on tobacco products, now to occupy 30% of the front and back of packs.

A more detailed overview can be found here .

Voyage of Discovery Judgement

In 1999, British-American Tobacco (BAT) launched an enormous advertising campaign, the Voyage of Discovery. It consisted of a yacht that sailed to 17 countries in 170 days, with the final destination being Chittagong, the second largest city in Bangladesh. A number of promotional activities, including concerts, were planned at the arrival of the yacht.

BATA protested these actions, on the basis of the constitutional right to life, which tobacco companies--and their advertising--violate. The High Court issued a stay order that canceled the promotional activities and, temporarily, newspaper advertising of Voyage. More significantly, the High Court demanded that the government pass a tobacco control law.

Download the PDF file detailing the High Court's Decision

Legal Victory Against Imperial Tobacco Co.

Tobacco control advocates in Bangladesh recently won a significant victory against the tobacco industry.  Advocates filed a writ petition against Imperial Tobacco (Bangladesh) Limited for their advertising campaign for Thames cigarettes, in which people could fill out a coupon to join a lottery for a plane ticket to London. Advertising campaigns using lotteries are illegal in Bangladesh, as they are considered a form of gambling. In response to the writ petition, the High Court Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh issued an order to stay all promotional/advertising campaign by Imperial Tobacco (Bangladesh) Limited to promote its tobacco products, namely Thames cigarettes.
The petition was filed by Advocate Sheikh Rafiqul Islam,  Program Director of Law and Society Trust of Bangladesh (LSTB), and argued by Ms. Tania Amir, Barrister at Law, also of LSTB. In addition to the lottery aspect of the campaign, the main thrust of Barrister Tania's arguments was that Imperial Tobacco (BD) Ltd. has been conducting promotional activities of its product in violation of fundamental rights, e.g. the right to life, and that no action may be taken detrimental to life. The right to life is protected by the constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. The Court called upon the respondents, which included the Government of Bangladesh, Imperial Tobacco, and the publisher of advertisements, to show cause as to why the promotional advertisement activities of Imperial Tobacco (BD) Ltd. should not be declared to be illegal, and why exemplary damages shall not be awarded which shall be used for counter advertisement and awareness programs against the use of tobacco.  The judges also stayed all promotional advertisement activities of Imperial Tobacco (BD) Ltd. for a period of two months.
The advertising campaign was first noted by Rafiqul Islam Milon of Manobik, an anti-drug organization heavily involved in tobacco control and one of the leading organizations of the Bangladesh Anti-Tobacco Alliance.  Mr. Milon carefully documented the campaign, providing the evidence for the case.