Naturally, in a country where half of the adult population smokes, this law has upset and disappointed many. Yet, many commentators agree that it will help people to quit smoking in the long term and will decrease the rate of smoking-related diseases in the country, saving non-smokers from the harmful effects of secondhand smoke. Radikal’s İsmet Berkan terms the passage of this law in Parliament a revolution for Turkey, saying it will allow people to see that a smoke-free life is possible. Yet, he believes that just as with any other type of revolution, the anti-tobacco revolution should be internalized; in other words, the areas it includes should be clearly defined and defended. According to Berkan, if citizens do not comply with this law and tell others not to comply with it, it is not possible for it to become a reality. Berkan emphasizes that imposing such a ban will bring about numerous benefits, saying the first benefit is that the number of smoking-related diseases will decrease in Turkey. As for the second most important benefit of this law, he claims that it will have an indirect and facilitating effect on people who are thinking about quitting. “When you are not always breathing others’ smoke and are experiencing the comfort of living in a smoke-free environment, it becomes easier for you to quit smoking. In this respect, I am eagerly waiting for this law to go into effect. Undoubtedly, this will be one of the most significant reforms that the current Parliament brings to fruition,” says Berkan.
While praising Parliament’s efforts to expand the scope of the ban on smoking, Hürriyet’s Hurşit Güneş says that merely banning smoking in certain places is not sufficient to discourage people from smoking. He suggests that some other measures could be taken in this regard, saying that the cost of a pack of cigarettes, which is rather low in Turkey, could be increased by half a percent to force smokers in the lower income brackets to quit. In addition, he states that people’s awareness of the harmful effects of smoking should be increased through TV programs. “We can do more; it is particularly important to prevent children from starting. In some countries, smoking is forbidden even in the streets. This shows that we have a long way to go,” he says. Güneş also thinks that if it is fully enforced, this law will eventually compel smokers to quit because they will feel guilty and embarrassed smoking outside of restaurants and other places where smoking has been banned.
Another columnist from Radikal, Hasan Celal Güzel, is at odds with the other columnists and thinks that expanding the ban on smoking will not help people quit smoking but will rather make it more attractive. He claims that if something is banned, it becomes more attractive to people. He also argues that the anti-tobacco ban conflicts with the modern understanding of human rights and liberties. “Nobody has the right to disturb the peace of half of the people in society for any reason,” contends Güzel, in apparent reference to the 25 million smokers who make up half of the adult population in Turkey. In light of this, he criticizes the government, which has launched studies to draft a more pro-freedom constitution for Turkey, for contradicting its pro-freedom stance with this law. “All the necessary amendments should be made before this law -- which is, as it stands, impossible to implement -- goes into effect. Or the president should veto it,” says Güzel.
