(A bill to prevent smoking advertisements in the written press was rejected in the Knesset - an analysis of a known failure)
Prof. Ben-Ami Sela
After years of writing hundreds of articles on purely medical and scientific topics, I chose to express myself today in a one-time way in a journalistic statement about a sad event that occurred on Wednesday, November 15, 2005, in the Israeli Knesset. A private bill by Member of Knesset Haim that was supposed to ban advertisements for cigarettes and other tobacco products in the written press, in magazines and on websites, was rejected by a vote in the Knesset plenum by a majority of 29 against 26, with two abstentions. We will emphasize at the outset that in the State of Israel there is already legislation that prevents the advertisement of cigarettes on electronic means of communication such as television and radio as well as in magazines intended for youth and outdoor signage. But we still find, especially in the supplements of the weekends, the entire back page, which is very striking to look at, dedicated in bold colors and impressive graphics to the advertisement speaking in praise of smoking. And it is necessary to say here again the things that sound so trite and even disturbing to some extent, because smoking is the most effective public killer that goes around legally in our midst and kills about ten thousand smokers a year, and another two thousand who smoke secondhand, being around smokers.
The bill to ban cigarette advertisements in the general press is a moral and sensible proposal, and takes care of public health. Such laws already exist in several European countries such as Ireland, Norway, France, Great Britain and Italy and in several other countries in Asia. Considered newspapers in the USA, which has not yet adopted a similar law, the "New York Times" and "Washington Post", decided on their own initiative and according to standards of morality and fairness towards their readers to stop publishing advertisements for cigarettes, and even increased the publication of articles against tobacco use. We do not expect in our places that leading newspapers will voluntarily decide to stop advertising tobacco products, because the economic consideration here usually outweighs any other reasoning, even if it is in our hearts. That is why we put our hope in the members of the Knesset, lest they, in a rare glimpse of logic, decency and public morality, adopt and approve the said bill, which might have slightly reduced the number of people who join the circle of smokers every day.
It turns out that it was false hope. The cigarette smoke blinds even the eyes of the people's elected officials. And if you thought that those who voted against the proposal to ban smoking advertising are actually the smokers among the members of the Knesset, you are wrong. The vote was conducted according to clear party lines, perhaps even due to coalitional considerations, and I will explain immediately. Let's deal with the winners of that unfortunate vote first, those who support the continuation of advertising for smoking, out of an apparent desire to see the "smokers in the nation" get stronger and who among the members of the Knesset wants the morbidity from smoking to increase? Out of 20 MKs from the ruling party "Likud" who were present in the plenum, 17 voted against the proposal and only three were in favor of it and I will mention the names of the supporters of the bill out of respect for them, Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, David Levy and Ayoob Kara. It is important to get to know those for whom the health of the residents of Israel is not important, certainly less than the economic motive: Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Minister of Internal Security Gideon Ezra, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance-who-is-filled-every-year-with-billions-of-shekels-from-the-cigarette-tax, Ehud Olmert, Omri Sharon, one of the initiators of the "Clean Air" bill, which deals with air pollution and its effects, Haim Katz, Chairman of the Health Committee, Moshe Kahlon, Eli Afalo, Yuli Edelstein, Marina Solodkin, Inbal Gabrieli, Daniel Benalulu, Magali Vahva, Rochama Avraham , Ehud Yatom, Leah Ness, Naomi Blumenthal and Gideon Sa'ar. And what about the Minister of Health Danny Neve, who shows empathy for the fight against smoking these days? He announced that he is not participating in the vote, despite his inclination to vote in favor of the bill, because he cannot violate the decision of the Ministerial Committee for Legislation, which apparently decided in a previous procedure in which he was not present at all, to reject the proposal. And what is the state of support for smoking among members of the Labor Party, the social party in the unity government, with regard to disengagement from Gaza and non-disengagement from smoking? Of the 10 labor members present at the vote, only one voted in favor of the bill (Ilana Cohen), one abstained, and eight opposed it: Minister of the Environment Shalom Simhon who apparently believes that smoking cigarettes is good for air quality, and Minister of Housing Yitzhak Herzog, and ministers Former health minister Haim Ramon and Dr. Ephraim Senna, who is a doctor by training, Eitan Kabel, Yuli Tamir, Colt Avital and Eli Ben Menachem. Eliezer Cohen and Zvi Handel from the National Union, Vassal Taha from BLD and Avraham Porez from Shuni, who mobilized in the interest of the press and even spoke in condemnation of the bill, after the Minister of Health, as the representative of the government, failed to justify the government's opposition to the law. We would be doing a disservice to the good people who supported the aforementioned bill if we did not mention here that all five Shas Hakims voted for it, as well as five members of Mertz-Yahed who participated in the vote, as well as members of Arab parties including Hadash-Ta'al, Balad and Ra' M: There has never been such a sweeping unanimity between the Shas people, the Arab parties and Mertz-Yahed, and it is good that there is smoking in the world, that these parties could unite against it. And since only Shaul Yahlum participated in the vote and supported the proposal, please remember. And since the writer of these words is a member of the health system, I will be forced to emphasize once again that three former ministers of health, Ephraim Senna (the doctor), Chaim Ramon, and Ehud Olmert, voted against the law to prevent cigarette advertising in the press, literally converted to anger. And I can only relate with bewilderment to the non-appearance of the current Minister of Health for the vote out of protocol responsibility for a political decision, despite "his conscience and knowledge as Minister of Health".
And why did the perverse thought of the coalition discipline imposed on the Hakims occur to me when the Likud and the Alignment unite in the Knesset plenum to violate the advice of those who oppose the smoking advertisement in the daily press? From observing the activities of the chairman of the coalition Gideon Sa'ar, the tireless whipper, seen above the screen of the Knesset channel running around during the vote among the Hakims in the plenum and encouraging them to vote against the proposal. His behavior was so unusual even in a Knesset like ours, where everyone is running everywhere at any given time, that the chairman of the plenum had to call him to order. Why are the Likud and the Alignment, and important ministers and even the head of them, coming together to prevent a law that is so true, so just, so healthy, only they have solutions. And perhaps the solution lies in the strength of the newspaper owners, and in the "Gordian connection" between politicians and journalists and the newspapers that write about them, so they should not be angry. Cigarette advertising brings in a lot of money for newspapers, did we say that?
I don't feel comfortable writing these things. I am not an ordinary journalist, and articles about what is happening in the Knesset are not legitimate bread. But I see every day in my hospital the victims of smoking, and the fight against this scourge, unfortunately, will not help my electorate with such people.
* Prof. Ben-Ami Sela is the director of the Institute of Pathological Chemistry, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer; Department of Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University and consultant to the Cancer Society in the field of lung cancer
Ben-Ami.Sela@sheba.health.gov.il
https://www.hayadan.org.il/BuildaGate4/general2/data_card.php?Cat=~~~993719976~~~255&SiteName=hayadan
