Turkish parliament passes smoking ban bill

0 Comments | AFP, January, 2008

ANKARA (AFP) — Turkey's parliament passed Thursday a bill banning smoking in bars and restaurants as part of a series of stringent restrictions on nicotine addicts in a country where 60 percent of males smoke.

The law, which will take effect four months after it is approved by the president, allows for an 18-month transition period for bars, restaurants and cafes to prepare themselves for the ban.

Smoking is already banned in Turkey on buses, airplanes and larger public institutions, but enforcement has been uneven.

The new law was passed with strong support from the Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, himself an ardent anti-smoking campaigner.

It bans smoking in all government buildings, work places...