139 Orgs Call On New Zealand To Prioritize Human Life Over Tobacco Industry Profit

139 organizations from 53 countries have self-published an op-ed expressing support for New Zealand/Aotearoa’s world-leading smokefree law, The Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products (Smoked Tobacco) Amendment (SERPA) Act and the Smokefree Aotearoa Action Plan.

Here is a short excerpt:

“We wholeheartedly agree with our colleagues and concerned citizens in New Zealand that repealing this Act would be both irresponsible and immoral. The marketing and sale of tobacco products – the only consumer products that addict and kill when used as intended – is a violation of the human right to health. Governments have an obligation to stop third parties such as tobacco companies from violating the rights of their citizens. We remind you that Māori leaders first proposed the smokefree goal and inspired the National-led government to commit to this goal in 2011.”

The full op-ed and list of signatories is available to read here: https://ash.org/139orgs-to-nz/.

We ran a full-page ad in the Herald yesterday to highlight our global support to help prevent 5,000 New Zealanders from dying every year from tobacco-caused diseases.

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