11 November 2009 / TODAY’S ZAMAN WITH WIRES, İSTANBUL
The New York-based Muslim Consultative Network (MCN) has extended its anti-smoking campaign, dubbed Nafis Salaam (a peaceful soul), which began in the United States, to Turkey, appealing to media institutions and launching a campaign in mosques to reduce smoking.
The MCN started its anti-smoking campaign almost a year ago to fight against smoking in Muslim communities in the US and then extended the campaign to other Muslim communities around the world. According to the MCN, 30 percent of the Turkish population smokes, with tens of thousands of people dying from smoking-related diseases every year.Nearly 25 million people in Turkey smoke on a daily basis, and the total number of smokers around the world is estimated to be around 1.3 billion. The MCN hopes to reduce this number by making presentations in mosques, submitting articles to the media and employing a bilingual team to speak on radio and television about smoking and other health concerns.
