Abu Dhabi: The anti-tobacco laws were made to be enforced and respected and not to be broken,” a member of the Federal National Council told the House yesterday (Tuesday).
Marwan Bin Galitha, a member from Dubai, said it takes only a signature of an official from a local department to flout the anti-tobacco rules and get a shisha cafe opened next door. “This makes efforts and campaigns over the last five years to no avail,” he said.
Bin Galitha put a question to Abdul Rahman Al Owais, Minister of Health, on measures taken to ensure cafés’ abidance by the anti-tobacco laws.
Under the rules, shisha cafés and shops selling tobacco products must not be near schools and mosques. A minimum distance of 150 metres should be maintained from kindergartens, schools, universities and colleges and a minimum of 100 metres from places of worship. A minimum of 150 metres from residential areas is the rule for shisha cafés.
Shisha cafés are subject to specific rules when it comes to their opening hours. The regulations specify that these cafés must comply with working hours from 10am to midnight. Shisha may not be served to customers younger than 18 years, and the cafés will be forbidden from delivering shisha to apartments,
Further, tobacco products cannot be displayed near items marketed for children, or sportswear, health, food and electronic products.
Advertising of tobacco products is no longer permitted. The law bans any content that advertises tobacco products, such as newspaper advertisements, TV commercials and animations.
It also bans importing tobacco products that are not in line with technical standards set by the UAE, and any violations regarding such imports can lead to a one-year prison sentence and a fine ranging from Dh100,000 to Dh1 million, in addition to the confiscation of products.
Hamad Ahmad Al Rahoumi, a member from Dubai, put a question to Dr Anwar Mohammad Gargash, Minister of State for FNC Affairs, on Abu Dhabi-based telecommunications group etisalat’s sponsorship agreement with Barcelona, extended by four years to the end of June 2017.
Abdul Aziz Al Sawaleh Al Shehhi, Human Resources Officer of Etisalat Group, said the group’s revenues generated from Barcelna’s sponsorship reached Dh22 million last season and are expected to shoot up to Dh32 million this year.
