MANILA: Philippine police were ordered on Wednesday (Nov 20) to arrest anyone caught vaping in public, just hours after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte announced he would ban e-cigarettes.
The abrupt prohibition, revealed by Duterte late Tuesday, adds to a growing global backlash against a product once promoted as less harmful than tobacco smoking.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Duterte, a former smoker, called the devices "toxic" and said vaping introduced "chemicals" into the user's body.
He ordered the arrest of anyone vaping publicly in a country that already has some of Asia's toughest anti-smoking rules.
READ: Philippine leader Duterte says to ban 'toxic' e-cigarettes and arrest users
No formal, written order has been made public that spells out the scope of the ban or penalties for violations.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Duterte is notorious internationally for his deadly anti-narcotics crackdown, but he has also targeted tobacco with a wide-ranging ban on smoking in public.
Citing "the order of the president", on Wednesday a statement from the head of the Philippine police ordered "effective today, all police units nationwide to enforce the ban on use of vapes; ensure that all violators will be arrested".
The ban came days after Philippine health authorities reported the nation's first vaping-related lung injury, which resulted in a 16-year-old girl being hospitalised.
Vaping has taken off in the Philippines, with speciality shops and vapers puffing away in public a common sight.
E-cigarette users were caught off guard by the ban and questioned the utility of arresting people who, at worst, were hurting themselves.
"It's inappropriate. In any case, we don't hurt people, the environment or animals," said 22-year-old student Alexis Martin.
"Why are vapers being targeted?"
E-cigarettes warm flavoured Read More – Source
