APPEAL Applauds the Ban on the Sale of Cigarettes to Youth in Vietnam
Asian Pacific Partners for Empowerment, Advocacy and Leadership (APPEAL) commends efforts to reduce smoking in Vietnam by making it illegal to sell cigarettes to youth under 18 years of age or to employ youth of the same age to sell tobacco products.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 13, 2013
Contact:
Rod Lew, Executive Director, APPEAL
(510) 318-7814
[email protected]
APPEAL Applauds the Ban on the Sale of Cigarettes to Youth in Vietnam
Oakland, CA – February 13, 2013 – Asian Pacific Partners for Empowerment, Advocacy and Leadership (APPEAL) commends efforts to reduce smoking in Vietnam by making it illegal to sell cigarettes to youth under 18 years of age or to employ youth of the same age to sell tobacco products.
The strategy to curb youth smoking accompanies a ban on all forms of tobacco advertising and smoking in public places. APPEAL hopes that these efforts will reduce smoking both in Vietnam and in Vietnamese American communities.
“Due to the high proportion of Asian Americans that are immigrants, changing cultural norms to make smoking less acceptable in Asian countries can have a profound impact on attitudes and reducing smoking in Asian American communities,” said Rod Lew, executive director of APPEAL. “Estimates of smoking prevalence among Vietnamese Americans indicate that nearly a quarter to over half of Vietnamese American men smoke.”
Studies in the U.S. show that nearly 100% of daily smokers try their first cigarette as youth or young adults, so reducing youth access to cigarettes is a crucial part of preventing tobacco-related disease, disability, and death. APPEAL applauds efforts to curb smoking among youth and young adults in Vietnam, where smoking-related disease causes an estimated 40,000 deathes each year, and is expected to rise to 70,000 deaths per year by 2030.
Asian Pacific Partners for Empowerment, Advocacy and Leadership (APPEAL), founded in 1994, is a national organization working towards social justice and a tobacco-free Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander community. APPEAL’s mission is to champion social justice and achieve parity and empowerment for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders by supporting and mobilizing community-led movements through advocacy and leadership development on critical public health issues. To learn more about APPEAL, please visit www.appealforcommunities.org.