14 DAY TRIAL // Whereas other countries, such as the UK, are still investing greatly in setting in place anti-smoking campaigns, and failing to lower the rate of smokers in the process, in Japan, Tokyo, more specifically, the campaign has just been taken one step further. A new initiative from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police will be aimed at banning smoking in interrogatory rooms, first on a trial basis, The Associated Press reports.
The move has been prompted, as expected, by concerns over second-hand smoke, but also by the fact that offering a suspect a cigarette from a policeman’s own pack may be interpreted as a favor on behalf of the policeman, it is said. As of now, it is not yet known whether the initiative will be taken on a larger scale, pending results from the trial period. Suffice it to say, all hopes are that it will fare well, with larger acceptance to follow.
According to the AP, the initiative has already gotten both sides voicing their opinion. The opposition, for one, has expressed concerns that suspects will turn more aggressive, as most ask for a cigarette break as a means to lower the “tension” during interrogation. Nevertheless, the Tokyo police will judge all the pros and cons once the 3 months of trial will have run out, and then decide whether to instate the smoking ban in all interrogatory rooms permanently.
When contacted by the AP for comment on this, a Tokyo Metropolitan Police spokesperson said she could not disclose any kind of detail of the planned initiative, since nothing had been announced officially. With all this, several media outlets are already reporting that the campaign is as good as done, meaning that it’s very likely to kick off in mid-February, as reports have it.
As previously reported, in the UK, the NHS spent £33 million (up from £26 in 2007) on anti-smoking campaigns and several other initiatives meant to help smokers kick the habit. When the figures were made public a short while back, it was shown that, instead of a decrease in the number of smokers, there were actually more of them in the UK than there were a year before, which prompted the British media to label the initiative as useless and, moreover, as glorifying smoking.