February 6, 2024 – A typical day at the Conference of the Parties begins very early and ends very late, and today was no different. At 7:00 AM, ASH begins by meeting with our civil society allies to discuss strategy for the day. Starting at 9:00 AM, we attend meetings
February 5, 2024 – The in-person portion of the 10th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP10) of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) began today in Panama City. In a very fitting opening message, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General said, “We must continue advocating for
Media Contact: Megan Manning manningm@ash.org Introduction In 2005, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) entered into force, becoming a legally binding treaty that has now been joined by more than 180 countries. Parties to the FCTC meet every two years (officially called the Conference of the Parties or
By: Kelsey Romeo-Stuppy, Managing Attorney at ASH Throughout my time at ASH, I have visited the United Nations, both in New York and in Geneva, many times. But every single time I step onto a UN campus, I’m awestruck. This is where international change is made, and I am so
ASH’s work is based on the principle that the actions of the tobacco industry – producing, marketing, and selling addictive products that kill when use as intended – violates human rights, such as the right to health, that have been recognized at the highest level through international, regional, and national legal
This has been another fast-paced year in ASH’s fight to protect society from the harm caused by the tobacco industry. A year where we have seen much progress, reached new milestones, and marked major anniversaries though, unfortunately, also a year where we faced painful setbacks as the tobacco industry does
To the People of New Zealand/Aotearoa and Right Honourable Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, Honourable Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters, Honourable David Seymour, Honourable Minister of Finance Nicola Willis, and Honourable Minister of Health Dr Shane Reti, As medical, public health, academic and human rights organisations from across the globe that
The White House Must Support Health Equity by Approving the FDA’s Proposed Rule on Menthol Statement from Laurent Huber, Executive Director, Action on Smoking and Health December 7, 2023 In 2009, Congress gave FDA the authority to regulate tobacco in the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act and banned
New Zealand Plans to Gut Public Health Policies on Tobacco Sales Statement from Laurent Huber, Executive Director, Action on Smoking and Health November 29, 2023 Last week, New Zealand led the way in ending the tobacco epidemic with the most progressive and hard-hitting tobacco policies in the world. This Monday,
November 20, 2023 – INC-3 adjourned on Sunday, November 19th with a decision for the Secretariat to provide a revised zero draft text. The text will be available by December 31, 2023 and will serve as the subsequent document to be negotiated at INC-4, which will be held from April 21-30,
November 17, 2023 – The contact groups continued with the publication of the written submissions and revised synthesis documents. The Stop Tobacco Pollution Alliance (STPA) and its allies spent much of the day reviewing everything as we were able. (Available online for those following along). Today’s debates centered around how and
November 16, 2023 – Contact Groups continued today in the run up to the plenary, which was quite brief. The plenary only included a review of each Contact Groups’ progress and the next steps on the agenda for each group. Contact Groups 2 and 3 have completed their first round
November 15, 2023 – Day 3 brought back-to-back to back Contact Group sessions. The atmosphere is intense with member states eager to maximize their time available in Nairobi for INC-3 negotiations. Today, we also learned that the day would be extended to accommodate another evening Contact Group 1 session. Robust
November 14, 2023 – Per usual INC was off to a slow start, running behind on the agenda which was revised overnight to allow for added plenary time this morning to accommodate additional member state interventions and observer interventions. Despite the delays, we were very pleased to see Panama, Uruguay,
November 13, 2023 – The third negotiating session of the UN Treaty to End Plastic Pollution, held at United Nations Environmental Programme headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya began today, commencing another 7 days of discussion on ways to combat the devasting impact of plastic pollution on our planet. Though we are
Tobacco Products Violate the Human Rights of Women and Girls in France 53 Organizations call on The UN Committee on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) to make recommendations for France to protect the right to health of women and girls PARIS, FRANCE – OCTOBER 16,
By: Laurent Huber, Executive Director of ASH I have now spent over two decades working on UN treaties and international processes with the aim of ending the negative health, social and economic consequences of tobacco products, and I am often asked: why? Why don’t you just concentrate at the local
Media Contact: Megan Manning ManningM@ash.org (202) 390 – 9513 New Report Outlines Increase in Tobacco Companies Interfering in U.S. Public Health Policymaking Safeguards are Needed to Ensure Public Health Goals are Prioritized Over Industry Profits WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 5, 2023 – Today, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) released
Statement from Laurent Huber, Executive Director of Action on Smoking and Health, Supporting British Prime Minister’s Smoke-Free Generation Proposal October 4, 2023 Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) welcomes and applauds the announcement by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak detailing his government’s plans to introduce a bill forever banning the
The FDA Continues to Delay Protecting Americans from Mentholated Cigarettes August 2023 was the deadline announced by FDA to propose a rule WASHINGTON, DC – AUGUST 31, 2023 – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) missed their self-imposed deadline to propose a life-saving rule to ban menthol as a
By Kelsey Romeo-Stuppy, ASH and Dr. Raglan Maddox, ANU College of Health and Medicine While commercial tobacco use negatively impacts the right to health of all people, there are many groups whom have been intentionally targeted by the tobacco industry and their affiliates.[1] Groups have had their culture exploited for
Media Contact: Megan Manning ManningM@ash.org (202) 390 – 9513 208 Organizations Unite to Call on UN Committee to Recommend Stronger Tobacco Control Policies The UN Committee on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) is making recommendations on Racism and the Right to Health for its 182 party
After planting an apple tree, it will be years before you get an actual apple. But it is very satisfying when you do, and that first apple will taste all the sweeter because you planted it. ASH and our supporters planted a seed over five years ago when we launched
Media Contact: Megan Manning (202) 390 – 9513 New Data Compilation Shows Scope of Tobacco Industry Lobbying in the U.S. Tobacco Companies Hire Hundreds of Lobbyists as They Post Court-Ordered Signs about Decades of Lies WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 14, 2023 – Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) released a
Agenda Item 4 of the Second Session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (INC2) Option 2 – Possible core obligation: banning, phasing out and/or reducing the use of problematic and avoidable plastic products I am speaking on
