Displaying publications 1 - 20 of 33 in total

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  1. Malaysia: racing round the hurdles
    Simpson D
    Tob Control, 2004 Jun;13(2):106-7.
    PMID: 15175520
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry*
  2. The Malaysian tobacco industry, globalisation and public health: New opportunities for tobacco control
    Barraclough S
    Public policy, culture and the impact of globalisation in Malaysia, 2004.
    Barraclough S. The Malaysian tobacco industry, globalisation and public health: New opportunities for tobacco control. Public policy, culture and the impact of globalisation in Malaysia. Selangor, Malaysia: Malaysian Social Science Association; 2004. p. 112-27
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry
  3. Malaysia: Standing firm on trade and tobacco
    Nordin AS, Bullen C
    Tob Control, 2014 Jan;23(1):4-5.
    PMID: 24479154
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry*
  4. Malaysia: camel tourism trick
    Simpson D
    Tob Control, 2006 Aug;15(4):277-8.
    PMID: 16885572
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry*
  5. Fulltext The tobacco industry's accounts of refining indirect tobacco advertising in Malaysia
    Assunta M, Chapman S
    Tob Control, 2004 Dec;13 Suppl 2:ii63-70.
    PMID: 15564223 DOI: 10.1136/tc.2004.008987
    OBJECTIVE: To explore tobacco industry accounts of its use of indirect tobacco advertising and trademark diversification (TMD) in Malaysia, a nation with a reputation for having an abundance of such advertising.
    METHODS: Systematic keyword and opportunistic website searches of formerly private tobacco industry internal documents made available through the Master Settlement Agreement.
    RESULTS: 132 documents relevant to the topic were reviewed. TMD efforts were created to advertise cigarettes after advertising restrictions on direct advertising were imposed in 1982. To build public credibility the tobacco companies set up small companies and projected them as entities independent of tobacco. Each brand selected an activity or event such as music, travel, fashion, and sports that best suited its image. RJ Reynolds sponsored music events to advertise its Salem brand while Philip Morris used Marlboro World of Sports since advertising restrictions prevented the use of the Marlboro man in broadcast media. Despite a ban on tobacco advertisements in the mass media, tobacco companies were the top advertisers in the country throughout the 1980s and 1990s. The media's dependence on advertising revenue and support from the ruling elite played a part in delaying efforts to ban indirect advertising.
    CONCLUSION: Advertising is crucial for the tobacco industry. When faced with an advertising ban they created ways to circumvent it, such as TMDs.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/methods*
  6. Malaysia steps up anti-tobacco legislation
    Ashraf H
    Lancet, 2002 Aug 24;360(9333):627.
    PMID: 12241947
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/legislation & jurisprudence*
  7. BAT flouts tobacco-free World Cup policy
    Assunta M
    Tob Control, 2002 Sep;11(3):277-8.
    PMID: 12198283
    In Malaysia, British American Tobacco flouted the World Cup of football's no-tobacco ruling
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry*
  8. Fulltext Small/Kiddie Cigarette Packaging Size and Its Impact on Smoking: A Systematic Review
    Mat Rifin H, Jane Ling MY, Robert Lourdes TG, Saminathan TA, Rodzlan Hasani WS, Ab Majid NL, et al.
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2022 Sep 23;19(19).
    PMID: 36231349 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph191912051
    Background: Small cigarette pack sizes contain less than 20 cigarette sticks in a pack. Smaller packs may suggest lower costs, increasing affordability among lower-income users, especially the younger generation, which could lead to tobacco-related diseases and economic costs, including human capital lost results from tobacco-attributable morbidity and mortality. This concern has caused many countries to ban the sale of single cigarette sticks or kiddie packs. However, small cigarette pack sizes were proposed recently to be reintroduced by the tobacco industry with an excuse to prevent consumers from buying illicit cigarettes. This would demean efforts in combating tobacco consumption based on the existing tobacco control policies to prevent minors from purchasing cigarettes. Given the competing influences of affordability and availability of tobacco on consumption and the dearth of evidence-based review on the impact of pack size on smoking, this systematic review was conducted to identify the link between kiddie packs and smoking specifically on the initiation of smoking, urge/tendency to buy cigarettes among the general population and attempt to reduce cigarette consumption and prevalence of smoking using kiddie packs among current smokers. Methods: We include all studies except for reviews, guidelines, conference papers, commentaries, editorials, or opinion pieces. A database search was conducted in PubMed, EMBASE, CENTRAL, Web of Science and Scopus on 27 November 2021. The results were presented in the form of narrative synthesis under four groups: initiation of smoking; urge/tendency to buy cigarettes; the prevalence of smoking, and attempt to reduce cigarette consumption. The literature search identified 1601 articles, of which 21 articles had met the inclusion criteria. The methodological quality of all included articles was determined using a validated 16-item quality assessment tool (QATSDD). The average quality score for all papers was 34.8%. Discussion: Given the diverse study settings of the articles and despite the challenges of the methodological quality of some articles, this review provides some evidence that kiddie packs may increase the urge/tendency to buy cigarettes and mixed evidence on the attempt to reduce cigarette consumption. This review also found some evidence that kiddie pack purchasing among teenage smokers was higher compared to adults. However, we are uncertain about the link between kiddie packs and smoking initiation. Nevertheless, since most studies were of low quality, further high-quality studies are needed to conclude about the impact of kiddie packs on smoking to assist the policymakers and stakeholders in formulating new policies and strengthening existing strategies related to the kiddie packs.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry*
  9. A grim contradiction: the practice and consequences of corporate social responsibility by British American Tobacco in Malaysia
    Barraclough S, Morrow M
    Soc Sci Med, 2008 Apr;66(8):1784-96.
    PMID: 18304713 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2008.01.001
    In the wake of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is among the few remaining mechanisms for tobacco corporations publicly to promote their interests. Health advocates may be unaware of the scale, nature and implications of tobacco industry CSR. This investigation aimed to construct a typology of tobacco industry CSR through a case study of the evolution and impact of CSR activities of a particular tobacco corporation in one country - British American Tobacco, Malaysia (BATM), the Malaysian market leader. Methods included searching, compiling and critically appraising publicly available materials from British American Tobacco, BATM, published literature and other sources. The study examined BATM's CSR strategy, the issues which it raises, consequences for tobacco control and potential responses by health advocates. The investigation found that BATM's CSR activities included assistance to tobacco growers, charitable donations, scholarships, involvement in anti-smuggling measures, 'youth smoking prevention' programs and annual Social Reports. BATM has stated that its model is predominantly motivated by social and stakeholder obligations. Its CSR activities have, however, had the additional benefits of contributing to a favourable image, deflecting criticism and establishing a modus vivendi with regulators that assists BATM's continued operations and profitability. It is imperative that health advocates highlight the potential conflicts inherent in such arrangements and develop strategies to address the concerns raised.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/economics; Tobacco Industry/legislation & jurisprudence; Tobacco Industry/ethics*
  10. TPPA and tobacco control: threats to APEC countries
    Sy DK, Stumberg RK
    Tob Control, 2014 Nov;23(6):466-70.
    PMID: 25170023 DOI: 10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2014-051900
    Twelve-member countries of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) are negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA), a free trade agreement to facilitate international trade and investment. As reported by multiple sources, the TPPA would grant the same trade benefits and legal protections to tobacco products, services and investments that it would provide to other sectors. Malaysia proposed excluding tobacco control measures from the scope of all TPPA chapters while the US proposed only to establish a consultation process in tobacco-related disputes and to declare that tobacco control measures serve a health objective within the scope of the general exceptions.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/economics; Tobacco Industry/legislation & jurisprudence*
  11. Fulltext Industry sponsored youth smoking prevention programme in Malaysia: a case study in duplicity
    Assunta M, Chapman S
    Tob Control, 2004 Dec;13 Suppl 2:ii37-42.
    PMID: 15564218
    OBJECTIVE: To review tobacco company strategies of using youth smoking prevention programmes to counteract the Malaysian government's tobacco control legislation and efforts in conducting research on youth to market to them.
    METHODS: Systematic keyword and opportunistic website searches of formerly private internal industry documents. Search terms included Malay, cmtm, jaycees, YAS, and direct marketing; 195 relevant documents were identified for this paper.
    RESULTS: Industry internal documents reveal that youth anti-smoking programmes were launched to offset the government's tobacco control legislation. The programme was seen as a strategy to lobby key politicians and bureaucrats for support in preventing the passage of legislation. However, the industry continued to conduct research on youth, targeted them in marketing, and considered the teenage market vital for its survival. Promotional activities targeting youth were also carried out such as sports, notably football and motor racing, and entertainment events and cash prizes. Small, affordable packs of cigarettes were crucial to reach new smokers.
    CONCLUSION: The tobacco industry in Malaysia engaged in duplicitous conduct in regard to youth. By buying into the youth smoking issue it sought to move higher on the moral playing field and strengthen its relationship with government, while at the same time continuing to market to youth. There is no evidence that industry youth smoking prevention programmes were effective in reducing smoking; however, they were effective in diluting the government's tobacco control legislation.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/legislation & jurisprudence; Tobacco Industry/ethics*
  12. "The world's most hostile environment": how the tobacco industry circumvented Singapore's advertising ban
    Assunta M, Chapman S
    Tob Control, 2004 Dec;13 Suppl 2:ii51-7.
    PMID: 15564221
    To review how tobacco transnational companies conducted their business in the hostile environment of Singapore, attempting to counter some of the government's tobacco control measures; to compare the Malaysian and the Singaporean governments' stance on tobacco control and the direct bearing of this on the way the tobacco companies conduct their business.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/legislation & jurisprudence; Tobacco Industry/methods*
  13. Fulltext A mire of highly subjective and ineffective voluntary guidelines: tobacco industry efforts to thwart tobacco control in Malaysia
    Assunta M, Chapman S
    Tob Control, 2004 Dec;13 Suppl 2:ii43-50.
    PMID: 15564220 DOI: 10.1136/tc.2004.008094
    OBJECTIVE: To describe tobacco industry efforts in Malaysia to thwart government efforts to regulate tobacco promotion and health warnings.
    METHODS: Systematic keyword and opportunistic website searches of formerly private tobacco industry internal documents made available through the Master Settlement Agreement and secondary websites; relevant information from news articles and financial reports.
    RESULTS: Commencing in the 1970s, the industry began to systematically thwart government tobacco control. Guidelines were successfully promoted in the place of legislation for over two decades. Even when the government succeeded in implementing regulations such as health warnings and advertising bans they were compromised and acted effectively to retard further progress for years to come.
    CONCLUSION: Counter-measures to delay or thwart government efforts to regulate tobacco were initiated by the industry. Though not unique to Malaysia, the main difference lies in the degree to which strategies were used to successfully counter stringent tobacco control measures between 1970 and 1995.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/legislation & jurisprudence; Tobacco Industry/ethics*
  14. Tobacco and the Malays: ethnicity, health and the political economy of tobacco in Malaysia
    Barraclough S, Morrow M
    Ethn Health, 2017 04;22(2):130-144.
    PMID: 27892686 DOI: 10.1080/13557858.2016.1244620
    OBJECTIVES: To identify the historical nexus between Malaysia's largest and politically dominant ethnic group and the political economy of tobacco, and to consider the implications of this connection for tobacco control.

    DESIGN: Primary and secondary documentary sources in both English and Malay were analysed to illuminate key events and decisions, and the discourse of industry and government. Sources included: speeches by Malaysian political and industry actors; tobacco industry reports, press releases and websites; government documents; World Health Organization (WHO) tobacco control literature; and press reports.

    RESULTS: Malays have the highest smoking prevalence among Malaysia's major ethnic groups. The tobacco industry has consistently been promoted as furthering Malay economic development. Malays play the major role in growing and curing. Government-owned Malay development trusts have been prominent investors in tobacco corporations, which have cultivated linkages with the Malay elite. The religious element of Malay ethnicity has also been significant. All Malays are Muslim, and the National Fatwa Council has declared smoking to be haram (forbidden); however, the Government has declined to implement this ruling.

    CONCLUSION: Exaggerated claims for the socio-economic benefits of tobacco production, government investment and close links between tobacco corporations and sections of the Malay elite have created a conflict of interest in public policy, limited the focus on tobacco as a health policy issue among Malays and retarded tobacco control policy. More recently, ratification of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, regional free trade policies reducing the numbers of growers, concerns about smoking from an Islamic viewpoint, and anxieties about the effects of smoking upon youth have increasingly challenged the dominant discourse that tobacco furthers Malay interests. Nevertheless, the industry remains a formidable political and economic presence in Malaysia that is likely to continue to proclaim that its activities coincide with Malay socio-economic interests.

    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/economics; Tobacco Industry/organization & administration*
  15. The tobacco industry and pesticide regulations: case studies from tobacco industry archives
    McDaniel PA, Solomon G, Malone RE
    Environ Health Perspect, 2005 Dec;113(12):1659-65.
    PMID: 16330343
    Tobacco is a heavily pesticide-dependent crop. Because pesticides involve human safety and health issues, they are regulated nationally and internationally; however, little is known about how tobacco companies respond to regulatory pressures regarding pesticides. In this study we analyzed internal tobacco industry documents to describe industry activities aimed at influencing pesticide regulations. We used a case study approach based on examination of approximately 2,000 internal company documents and 3,885 pages of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency documents obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests. The cases involved methoprene, the ethylene bisdithiocarbamates, and phosphine. We show how the tobacco industry successfully altered the outcome in two cases by hiring ex-agency scientists to write reports favorable to industry positions regarding pesticide regulations for national (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) and international (World Health Organization) regulatory bodies. We also show how the industry worked to forestall tobacco pesticide regulation by attempting to self-regulate in Europe, and how Philip Morris encouraged a pesticide manufacturer to apply for higher tolerance levels in Malaysia and Europe while keeping tobacco industry interest a secret from government regulators. This study suggests that the tobacco industry is able to exert considerable influence over the pesticide regulatory process and that increased scrutiny of this process and protection of the public interest in pesticide regulation may be warranted.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/legislation & jurisprudence*; Tobacco Industry/methods*
  16. Fulltext Cigarette purchasing behaviour in Thailand and Malaysia: comparative analysis of a semi-monopolistic and a free-market structure
    Ross H, Driezen P, Sirirassamee B, Kin F
    Glob Public Health, 2009;4(6):588-99.
    PMID: 19548160 DOI: 10.1080/17441690903072204
    A wide range of cigarette prices can undermine the impact of tobacco tax policy when smokers switch to cheaper cigarettes instead of quitting. In order to better understand this behaviour, we study socio-economic determinants of price/brand choices in two different markets: a semi-monopolistic market in Thailand and a competitive market in Malaysia. The hypothesis that the factors affecting the price/brand choice are different in these two markets is analysed by employing a 2005 survey among smokers. This survey provides a unique perspective on market characteristics usually described only in business reports by the tobacco industry. We found that smokers in Thailand have fewer opportunities to trade down to save money on cigarettes, but pay lower prices than smokers in Malaysia, despite Thailand's higher tax rate. The Malaysian market, on the other hand, offers many possibilities to shop around for cheaper cigarettes. Higher income and education increase the price paid per cigarette in both countries, but the impact of these factors is larger in Malaysia. This has implications for sensitivity to cigarette prices. Using tax policy alone should be a more effective tobacco control measure in Thailand as compared to Malaysia. The effectiveness of a tax increase in Malaysia can be improved by adding programmes focusing on smoking cessation among low-income/low-educated smokers.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/economics*; Tobacco Industry/organization & administration
  17. Fulltext Levels and correlates of awareness of tobacco promotional activities among adult smokers in Malaysia and Thailand: findings from the International Tobacco Control Southeast Asia (ITC-SEA) Survey
    Yong HH, Borland R, Hammond D, Sirirassamee B, Ritthiphakdee B, Awang R, et al.
    Tob Control, 2008 Feb;17(1):46-52.
    PMID: 18218808 DOI: 10.1136/tc.2007.021964
    To examine the impact of tobacco advertising policy on adult smokers' awareness of tobacco promotion in two developing countries--Malaysia and Thailand.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/economics; Tobacco Industry/legislation & jurisprudence
  18. Demand analysis of tobacco consumption in Malaysia
    Ross H, Al-Sadat NA
    Nicotine Tob Res, 2007 Nov;9(11):1163-9.
    PMID: 17978990
    We estimated the price and income elasticity of cigarette demand and the impact of cigarette taxes on cigarette demand and cigarette tax revenue in Malaysia. The data on cigarette consumption, cigarette prices, and public policies between 1990 and 2004 were subjected to a time-series regression analysis applying the error-correction model. The preferred cigarette demand model specification resulted in long-run and short-run price elasticities estimates of -0.57 and -0.08, respectively. Income was positively related to cigarette consumption: A 1% increase in real income increased cigarette consumption by 1.46%. The model predicted that an increase in cigarette excise tax from Malaysian ringgit (RM) 1.60 to RM2.00 per pack would reduce cigarette consumption in Malaysia by 3.37%, or by 806,468,873 cigarettes. This reduction would translate to almost 165 fewer tobacco-related lung cancer deaths per year and a 20.8% increase in the government excise tax revenue. We conclude that taxation is an effective method of reducing cigarette consumption and tobacco-related deaths while increasing revenue for the government of Malaysia.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/economics*; Tobacco Industry/statistics & numerical data
  19. Fulltext Psychiatry and World No Tobacco Day
    Amer Siddiq Amer Nordin
    ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry, 2013;14(2):190-192.
    MyJurnal
    Objective: Smoking is a prevalent problem globally but more so among most ASEAN countries. Worldwide, six million lives are lost annually and this number is expected to grow. In light of this, the World Health Organization recognises the 31st of May to be World No Tobacco Day. For 2013, the theme is "Ban Tobacco Advertising, Promotion and Sponsorship". This article aims to increase awareness among mental health workers, in particular psychiatrists, on the dangers of smoking, the tactics of the tobacco industry, and simple measures to address these problems within their daily activities.

    Method: A brief review of recent relevant literature in the field and actual experience from the field were highlighted in this opinion section.

    Results and Conclusion: Mental health workers are at an advantage as they have training in both psychological treatments such as brief intervention, cognitive behavioural therapy or counselling skills and for some others, pharmacological treatments. It is timely that health workers in the region take up this challenging but meaningful opportunity to help those with mental illness to stop their dependence for tobacco.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry
  20. Fulltext Cigarette tax avoidance and evasion: findings from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation (ITC) Project
    Guindon GE, Driezen P, Chaloupka FJ, Fong GT
    Tob Control, 2014 Mar;23 Suppl 1:i13-22.
    PMID: 24227541 DOI: 10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2013-051074
    Decades of research have produced overwhelming evidence that tobacco taxes reduce tobacco use and increase government tax revenue. The magnitude and effectiveness of taxes in reducing tobacco use provide an incentive for tobacco users, manufacturers and others, most notably criminal networks, to devise ways to avoid or evade tobacco taxes. Consequently, tobacco tax avoidance and tax evasion can reduce the public health and fiscal benefit of tobacco taxes.
    Matched MeSH terms: Tobacco Industry/economics*
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