Public health advocacy groups have urged the United Nations (UN) to recognise the right of adult smokers to access smoke-free products, in a letter addressed to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk.
Asa Saligupta, director of ENDS Cigarette Smoke Thailand (ECST), one of the signatories of the open letter dated October 16, 2023, said that denying smokers access to less harmful products is a violation of their human rights. The letter comes as the World Health Organisation (WHO) prepares to hold the Tenth Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP10) later this month.
“How will history judge the WHO 20 to 30 years from now? The global agency tasked to look after the health of the world causes millions of deaths because it is ignoring the science that supports tobacco harm reduction,” Saligupta said.
Despite decades of the WHO’s tobacco control program, more than 1 billion smokers still exist around the world. Saligupta said that all citizens have the “Right to Health” as recognised by UN treaties, the WHO constitution, and its Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC).
“Adult smokers should be given assistance and information to quit smoking, such as access to safer alternatives,” Saligupta said. “They should be understood and helped, not stigmatised or alienated.”
Studies have shown that switching from smoking to safer alternatives can reduce the harm caused. The signatories of the open letter said that encouraging harm reduction helps people protect their health without compromising on their freedoms and rights.
A 2022 Cochrane review on vaping for smoking cessation showed that nicotine vaping helps more people quit smoking at six months or longer than nicotine replacement therapy.
Saligupta said it is crucial that adult smokers are offered scientific information to help them decide on their options, including the availability of safer alternative nicotine products compared to combustible cigarettes.
The advocacy groups said that by denying access to safer alternatives, governments are violating the Right to Health and making global public health less equitable.
Saligupta joined the call for the WHO FCTC to recognize harm reduction in relation to smoking as a legitimate and evidence-based strategy. He concluded that the WHO should review its position on safer alternative nicotine products based on the latest scientific and empirical evidence.
ENDS Cigarette Smoke Thailand (ECST) is a consumer advocacy organisation that strives to promote tobacco harm reduction in the face of blanket bans, fines and jail time for consumers who wish to use alternative nicotine consumption products.
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