Open Letter to World Health Organization to Change Its Position...

Doctors, researchers, and professors from 30 countries have signed a petition calling on the World Health Organisation (WHO) to change its position on tobacco harm reduction ahead of the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (COP-9) to be held next month, writes MedicalBrief.

100 independent specialists from Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Canary Islands, Chile, Colombia, Czech Republic, Ecuador, France, Greece, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Singapore, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, Venezuela, the United Kingdom and the United States are urging World Health Organisation (WHO) to reconsider and are pushing back against the erroneous and unscientific drive for prohibition, excessive regulations and taxation of vaping products, smokeless and heated tobacco products.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) is blindly pushing regulation that lacks the scientific backing and disregarding scientific evidence of clear progress on reduction of harm thru innovation on alternatives to smoking. Millions of dollars have been invested in research and development by global companies to provide alternatives to smoking and this should not be dismissed by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The lists the names, titles, and institutions of all the signatories, “report no conflicts of interest with respect to the tobacco industry and no issues arising under Article 5.3 of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control”.

WHO is rejecting a public health strategy that could avoid millions of smoking-related deaths. WHO must reconsider its policies and play a positive role as a driving force for innovation and supporting alternatives to smoking and/or reduction of harm.  

WHOCOP9LetterOct2021 EN page 0001

This article was previously published on UAE Moments.To see the original article, click here