CAPHRA Calls Out Unfounded Accusations In FCTC Discussions

Wednesday, 26 November 2025, 1:56 pm
Press Release: CAPHRA

Manila, Philippines - 26 November 2025

CAPHRA is raising strong concerns about the increasingly rigid and punitive tone emerging from recent coverage of global tobacco control discussions. The latest article from Health Policy Watch on the recently held FCTC COP11 frames any government or expert who questions full prohibition as being influenced by industry interests. CAPHRA believes this framing is inaccurate, unfair, and risks undermining genuine progress in reducing smoking related harm across the region.

CAPHRA Executive Coordinator Nancy Loucas said the debate has shifted away from science and respectful engagement. “The suggestion that any country or advocate who supports harm reduction must be aligned with industry is unacceptable. It is an authoritarian approach that shuts down legitimate scientific discussion. Public health decisions should be based on evidence, not ideological purity tests,” she said.

CAPHRA Philippine representative Clarisse Virgino emphasised that harm reduction is a recognised pillar of public health. “Many countries want balanced policies that protect youth and support adults who smoke to move away from deadly combustible cigarettes. These positions are grounded in science and public health realities in their own communities. They should not be dismissed or vilified simply because they do not mirror prohibition,” she said.

Both Loucas and Virgino noted that the article itself refers to complaints about ideological rigidity within the treaty process. CAPHRA believes those complaints reflect a wider concern from governments that the current approach does not allow room for innovation, updated evidence, or diverse national contexts. Loucas added, “Not all products carry the same risk, and not all countries face the same challenges. Treating every viewpoint that is not prohibition as suspicious makes it impossible to design effective, proportionate policies.”

The coalition also expressed concern that consensus based decision making has led to repeated delays rather than meaningful agreements. Virgino said, “This paralysis cannot be blamed solely on industry influence, as the article implies. It reflects a refusal to consider harm reduction approaches even when they come from credible delegations. Governments deserve better than a process that silences dissent instead of examining it.”

CAPHRA urges global tobacco control leaders to adopt a more open and science focused process. The organisation calls for transparent debate, respect for national differences, and recognition that harm reduction plays a vital role in reducing deaths caused by smoking.

“A world that truly wants to reduce disease and save lives cannot afford to embrace absolutism,” Loucas said. “Accusations and ideological pressure will not deliver public health gains. Evidence, honesty, and genuine engagement will.”

© Scoop Media