A local smoking-control law came into effect on September 1 in Guangzhou. Smokers can only smoke in the streets, their homes and limited public areas.
But getting people to comply with the law is challenging. This has been found to be so in every country in the world where such laws have been introduced. In Guangzhou, it seems the majority disregard it. But experience around the world has shown that it takes time to get the message across. Perhaps two years.
The law in Guangzhou stipulates that if the manager of a non-smoking venue doesn’t take the responsibility, they will be warned and fined RMB2,000-5,000 (US$300-749) for further offenses.
China.org.cn reports that 22.8% or 2.3 million of Guangzhou’s population of 10 million are smokers. Cutting down that figure drastically will take time.
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