AMMAN - The Ministry of Health decided to fully implement the smoking ban in the Kingdom’s restaurants starting Wednesday, a ministry official said.

Bassam Hijjawi, director of the ministry’s primary healthcare directorate, said health inspectors will issue warning notices to restaurants that allow customers to smoke, before issuing fines.

“We will not wait, the law is binding and should be implemented in all public places, even restaurants,” Hijjawi noted in a meeting with the ministry’s health inspectors who will be responsible for monitoring the implementation of the smoking ban and will issue tickets to violators.

He also explained that the ministry will cooperate with restaurant owners who ask for a grace period to designate an area for smokers in accordance with the standards set earlier by the ministry.

“We will not fine restaurants that show willingness to designate special areas for smokers, and we will wait until they are ready. But they have to abide by the law, and they can designate one table only for smokers until they finish preparing the section,” Hijjawi said.

Last year, restaurants asked the ministry to allow them to gradually implement the smoking ban in the Kingdom’s restaurants, but no agreement was reached between them.

Despite several attempts by The Jordan Times to call officials at the Jordan Restaurants Association, they were not available for comment.

During yesterday’s meeting, Minister of Health Nayef Fayez noted that although the Public Health Law has not been fully implemented since its issuance in 2008, the ministry has been preparing its staff to fully enforce it and the public to accept it.

The minister stressed the need to implement the law due to the alarming increase in the number of smokers in the country.

According to figures he presented, 29 per cent of Jordanians above the age of 18 are smokers, in addition to 14 per cent of children in the 13-15 age bracket. He said 23 per cent of the younger group smoke argilah.

Malek Habashneh, director of the Health Ministry’s awareness department, said that in the past two years the ministry increased the number of health inspectors from 14 to 139.

He noted that this was part of the ministry’s preparations to implement the law, adding that those inspectors will be based in Amman, pending the training of more inspectors in the Kingdom’s other governorates.

The official also warned people against smoking smuggled cigarettes, noting that they are even worse than those produced locally due to the bad storage conditions.

Habashneh revealed that authorities seize two containers of smuggled cigarettes every month, and each of them contains 10 million cigarettes.

The Public Health Law, which prohibits smoking in public places, was implemented gradually starting in early 2009.

The law was enforced in the Kingdom’s shopping malls and Queen Alia International Airport in March 2009, and in fast food restaurants in June of the same year.

The Cabinet has also issued a decision prohibiting smoking in the ministries and public institutions that went into force on May 25, 2010.

Although the legislation calls for banning smoking in public institutions, it has not been enforced in full. According to the law, smoking is prohibited in public places including hospitals, healthcare centres, schools, cinemas, theatres, libraries, museums, public and non-governmental buildings, public transport vehicles, airports, closed playgrounds, lecture halls and any other location to be determined by the health minister.

The law also stipulates that any person caught smoking in a public place is subject to between one week and one month imprisonment or a JD15-JD25 fine. The same penalties apply to those who sell cigarettes to minors.

In conjunction with the smoking crackdown, the ministry is offering consultations and nicotine substitutes free-of-charge for smokers willing to kick the habit, as part of its efforts to reduce smoking among Jordanians.

Under the decision, patients can go to the ministry’s premises near Prince Hamzah Hospital for consultation and receive nicotine substitutes approved by the ministry.

The ministry will also launch a nationwide inspection campaign to ensure that shops are not selling tobacco products to children.

According to ministry figures, Jordanians spend around JD360 million a year on tobacco products, while smoking-related diseases cost the country almost the same amount.

Reactions

Smokers and non-smokers expressed mixed reactions regarding the law, with some supporting and others opposing.

“Although I am not a smoker, I believe we should also respect smokers,” Nancy, a 23-year-old told The Jordan Times yesterday.

“All my family members are smokers. I don’t like the smell of cigarettes but I do accept that they are free to practise this habit, even in restaurants,” she added.

Majd Tayseer, who is visiting the Kingdom from Dubai, also agrees.

“If they want to ban smoking in restaurants, there should be places designated for smokers,” Tayseer told The Jordan Times.

Others welcomed the implementation of the law, but said they hope the implementation will be real this time.

“I want to enjoy eating my meal without being bothered by a smoker sitting next to me,” Ayman Madi, a purchasing manager, said yesterday, adding that this is a good step that might encourage smokers to kick the habit.

Although Islam Bawaaneh is a smoker, he said this is a good decision.

“When I travel to a country that prohibits smoking in public places, I respect the law, and I have to respect it in Jordan as well,” the lawyer said.

Ali Shawahin, a country manager for the Special Olympics, also agrees.

“A smoker will not bother to wait until he leaves the restaurant to smoke a cigarette. This is a law, and I have to respect it,” Shawahin noted.