Papua New Guinea smuggled tobacco products from Indonesia..

June 19, 2009 - Papua New Guinea’s (PNG's) tobacco industry says its under threat from counterfeit tobacco products, which are allegedly being smuggled into the country from Indonesia.

Police say the counterfeit cigarettes are being sold openly in local markets and on the streets. PNG’s cigarette maker and distributor, British American Tobacco says the counterfeit cigarettes have been packaged to look like leading brands and has warned smokers to be more vigilant. They say their sales and revenue are being threatened by the development, which could eventually destroy the local markets. The police inspector for Sandaun province, Sakawar Kasieng, says they believe the cigarettes are made in Indonesia and are being smuggled into the country on boats crossing the mostly unguarded sea border between PNG and Indonesia.

Reference: PNG warning over counterfeit cigarettes, Fiji Daily News, 6/18/2009.

Click on image to enlarge; Coat-of-Arms Papua New Guinea.

Other references: PNG MEDICAL SOCIETY WANTS SMOKING BAN ENFORCED
All work places should be free from smoking, PACIFIC ISLANDS REPORT - The National, 5/30/2009; BETEL NUT CHEWING DEADLY IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA, Indigenous Portal, 2/11/2009.

Papua New Guinea has ratified (May 2006) the
WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) Treaty.