Smoking to be banned at Inle Lake

Shan State’s Nyaungshwe, home to tourist hotspot Inle Lake, has been designated a tobacco-free area starting this month. Scuzzy backpackers, be warned.

It’s part of an ASEAN-wide initiative to curb smoking in public places, according to state-run newspaper the Global New Light of Myanmar.
 
U Win Myint, National Race Minister and Dr Khin Maung Yin, head of the District Public Health Department announced the ban at a local workshop on Monday.
 
Tobacco bans are already in place at major Bagan temples, and Shan State’s Pindaya Caves will follow.
 
Under legislation adopted in 2006, most public places in Myanmar – including hospitals, sports venues, schools and airports – ban smoking and tobacco use. But the law is poorly enforced.
 
In 2007 the World Health Organization estimated that about 33 per cent of men and 15 per cent of women smoke while ‘smokeless’ forms of tobacco use, including betel-chewing, abound.

Photo / Coconuts Yangon

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