Young Tunisia smokers cause concern

Smoking claims 7,000 lives every year in Tunisia, and educators, parents and officials are worried that young smokers are on a dangerous path.

By Monia Ghanmi for Magharebia in Tunis – 05/11/10

Every day in Tunisia, twenty people die of smoking-related diseases. Despite these grim statistics, secondary school and college students remain heavy smokers.

"It's my pen that I can't give up," said 17-year-old Ramez Aloui. "The fun of sipping a cup of coffee is not complete unless it is accompanied by a cigarette."

Aloui added that young people in Tunisia smoke because they consider smoking to be a symbol of manhood, an ability to shoulder responsibility, a challenge to family authority and as a means to attract the opposite sex. He then pointed to his classmate Yasmine Nafati, 17, sitting next to him, playing with a cigarette between her fingers and blowing smoke out of her lips.

Nafati told Magharebia that she smoked her first cigarette when she was 14-years-old. She justified it by saying cigarettes are available everywhere at prices affordable to everyone.

Adham Dhaoui, a 16-year old student, goes every day to the coffee shop that is located near his school on Marseille Street. He justified his addiction to smoking by saying that it gives him more self-confidence and feels enjoyable. Dhaoui said began smoking when he was 13 years old after pressure from friends. He took up the habit as something to do or as a "change of the mood" but now it is a daily practice that he can't avoid.

Nabil Ben Amer, a waiter at the coffee shop, said the same scene is repeated every day, with students representing most of his customers. He added that their number continues to increase, something he blames on the lack of parents observing their children.

However, Hammadi Mahjoubi, a parent, said the reason young people smoke is due to "the absence of a law banning the selling of such products to students". He considered that to be some sort of encouragement of smoking, especially in light of the continued sale of individual cigarettes for low prices. Hammadi also accused educational institutions of not providing better activities for students to occupy their free time.

Teacher Bessma Chanmi disagreed, saying that parents are the ones who encourage their children to smoke in an indirect way by giving them money and not monitoring their behaviour. She said parents give their children absolute freedom to act at an early age without any guidance or observation.

"Educational institutions have for years been implementing an awareness policy to sensitize students about the harms of smoking, noting that they have formed health clubs for students that aim to warn them of the serious diseases and the negative complications of cigarettes on man's health," Chanmi added.

Dr Mounira Masmoudi Nabli, co-ordinator of the national anti-smoking program, confirmed that smoking can cause many deadly diseases, such as cancer and clogged arteries. In addition, there is a possibility that smokers, especially young people, may suffer from heart disease and strokes.

She noted that the government has prepared an integrated awareness program, both in the media and at schools, in order to reduce the percentage of smokers and subsequent deaths. The ministry has also created 211 clinics to help people quit smoking. The clinics are staffed by specialized doctors who care for smokers both physically and psychologically.

The government has also stepped up legal measures by banning smoking in public spaces and punishing violators with fines. In addition, Tunisia has banned all forms of advertising for tobacco products and insisted that tobacco manufacturers clearly show the negative effects of smoking on cigarettes packs.

Dr Nabli urged all parties to combat tobacco manufacturers, who turned their attention to the young people category, who they started to focus on in their ads, after studies showed that the percentage of adult smokers has dropped.

Source: Magharebia.com.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2010/11/05/feature-03.