Dhaka University (DU) members of the Bangladesh Anti-Tobacco Alliance (BATA) have demanded a ban on tobacco company brand promotion and other advertising on the DU campus, as well as a ban on the establishment of separate designated smoking zones.
Two BATA representatives at DU, Tarana Zahid Sandhi and Faiyaz Anam Swanon, met with Vice-Chancellor Professor A.B.M. Obaidul Islam on Monday, August 24, and handed him two letters.
The letters highlighted tobacco companies’ involvement in universities and other educational institutions through advertising, brand promotion, job and career-related activities, and involvement disguised as corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. They requested effective action under existing tobacco control law to stop these activities.
The letters also raised concerns about a proposal to establish separate smoking zones on campus. In light of students’ health protection, tobacco control law and the university’s own policies, BATA called for effectively enforcing tobacco control law across the entire campus, rather than setting up separate designated smoking areas.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr A.B.M. Obaidul Islam said: “Wherever the law prohibits something, that law must be followed.”
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report