WHO FCTC Protocol to Prevent Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products Won't Be Completed Until End of 2010..

February 23, 2008 - WHO FCTC Protocol to Prevent Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products Won't Be Completed Until End of 2010.. The first session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) on a Protocol on Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products (refers primarily to the smuggling and counterfeiting of tobacco products, which are the world's most widely smuggled legal consumer product)took place from 11 to 16 February 2008 in Geneva. The elimination of illicit trade in tobacco is one of the key strategies under the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC). Illicit trade in tobacco products contributes to the rise in tobacco consumption and billions of dollars of tax revenue is lost every tax period. The Framework Convention Alliance (created to support the development, ratification, and implementation of the WHO FCTC is made up of over 300 organizations representing over 100 countries around the world) is urging governments to include the following provisions in the illicit trade protocol: An international tracking and tracing system of tobacco products; Anti-money laundering measures; System of record keeping for all imports and exports of tobacco products; Obligations for tobacco manufacturers to control their supply chain with penalties for those that fail to do so; The criminalization of participation in illicit trade in various forms; Increased international cooperation in the sharing of information and prosecution of offenses. Further negotiations are expected in October and in 2009 before a draft text is presented in 2010 to the 152 countries which have ratified the FCTC. (Nations to Launch Negotiations on Treaty to Combat Illicit Tobacco Trade, 2/11/2008) The Alliance must be prepared to aid especially developing countries because the beast will be released - Philip Morris International on March 28, 2008. Related FCTC news briefs: China to ban all tobacco advertising by 2011. and Bulgaria - a member of the European Union in 2007 and has ratified the Framework Convention... More on FCTC, the world's first public health treaty, can be found at SNUS.biz. Origins of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.. (TobaccoWatch.org)