Speakers at a meeting in Rajshahi on Sunday stressed that coordinated efforts by government, non-government, and volunteer organizations are crucial to establishing a tobacco-free society and ensuring better public health.
The meeting, organized by the Lady’s Organization for Social Welfare (LOFS) with support from Bangladesh Tamak Birodhi Jote and Work for a Better Bangladesh, highlighted the indispensable role of communities in building a tobacco-free city. LOFS Executive Director Shahnaz Parveen chaired the event, which also featured addresses by Ziaul Abedeen of Rajshahi City Corporation and schoolteachers Sekendar Hossain and Razendra Nath Sarker.
Discussants urged stronger and sustained implementation of the Tobacco Control Law, emphasizing community participation as a key driver. Parveen expressed concern over tobacco companies expanding their market through promotional activities under the guise of corporate social responsibility, which she said must be resisted.
She also highlighted the need to restrict smoking in public spaces and transport to protect non-smokers from tobacco-related non-communicable diseases such as cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, tuberculosis, and chronic respiratory disorders.
“Frequent and indiscriminate smoking in public places harms non-smokers even more than the smokers themselves,” Parveen said, calling for proper enforcement of the revised tobacco control law to safeguard public health.
