COP11 deliberations sideline harm reduction despite proof it saves lives. To remain relevant, the FCTC must honor its own Article 1(d). #COP11 #THRworks #TobaccoControl bit.ly/48NeYDp

New Zealand: record low smoking rates via vaping regulation. Sweden: lowest tobacco mortality thanks to snus. UK & Canada: pragmatic vaping policies drive cessation. Harm reduction works. Policy must catch up. #COP11 #THRworks #TobaccoControl bit.ly/48NeYDp

A better path is clear: ✔ Evidence-based regulation ✔ Consumer education ✔ Access to safer alternatives Prohibition isn’t progress—it’s a deadly mistake. bit.ly/BansSA

In Bangladesh, adult smoking prevalence was approximately 16.8% in 2022, with a significant gender disparity: 34.1% for men and only 0.4% for women. youtu.be/37nXXVJK2Fw

“Protecting public health” with SNP bans is a dangerous illusion. The outcome? More smoking, thriving black markets, and higher death rates. bit.ly/BansSA

The World Health Organization’s FCTC guidance is failing Asia Pacific. Countries are adopting bans that worsen smoking rates while ignoring harm reduction evidence. Time for reform. bit.ly/BansSA

Harm reduction is embraced for HIV, drugs, and alcohol. But for tobacco? Suddenly it’s dismissed as an “industry narrative.” This contradiction threatens the credibility of the FCTC. #COP11 #THRworks #TobaccoControl bit.ly/48NeYDp

Australia - How NOT to implement Public Health Policy

The FCTC defines tobacco control as supply, demand, and harm reduction. Yet COP11 draft decisions omit harm reduction entirely. Ignoring Article 1(d) risks undermining global health progress. #COP11 #THRworks #TobaccoControl bit.ly/48NeYDp

Critics warn that vape bans in Malaysia could fuel illicit markets that mirror those of traditional cigarettes, and harm a legal vape industry that employs thousands

LMICs bear the heaviest tobacco burden worldwide. Blocking safer options denies millions the chance to quit smoking and reduces their chance of survival. bit.ly/BansSA

❌ Ban safer alternatives ✅ Watch cigarette sales rise ✅ Watch black markets thrive ✅ Watch health risks grow This is the reality of SNP bans in Asia Pacific. Time for evidence-based regulation. bit.ly/BansSA

Bans don’t protect youth. They push young people toward cigarettes and illicit products with unknown ingredients. Education + access—not prohibition—are the real solutions. bit.ly/BansSA

Multiple state governments have halted the issuance and renewal of vape sales licenses, signaling an increasing move toward stricter regulation

Evidence from the UK, Japan & New Zealand shows vaping reduces smoking. Why are Asia Pacific governments ignoring real-world success in favor of ideology? bit.ly/BansSA

LMICs account for 80% of the world’s 1.3B tobacco users—yet bans cut off access to safer alternatives. These policies lock people into smoking, maintaining the deadly status quo. bit.ly/BansSA

Malaysia is currently considering a phased federal vape ban, starting with open-system vapes, amid rising use and health concerns. Where was this concern with cigarettes?

Bans on safer nicotine products fuel black markets, not health. In Thailand, the underground SNP trade is a multi-million-dollar industry, putting consumers at even greater risk. Regulation works—prohibition doesn’t. bit.ly/BansSA

Public health advocates are raising concerns that bans on safer nicotine products (SNPs) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), particularly across the Asia Pacific region, are worsening smoking-related harms rather than reducing them. bit.ly/42OPMsw

The opposition to Tobacco Harm Reduction is based on ideology and hubris, not evidence. It is damaging in 2 ways; 1. Continue high death rates in vulnerable populations by prohibiting safer tobacco products 2. Undermines credibility of evidence based policy and promotes extremists eg anti-vaxxers

Why is @who.int running meeting like this? Because they know @whofctc.bsky.social is on wrong track! Even more embarrassing if exposed in daylight.

@tcrgbath.bsky.social completely miss plot as safer nicotine products rapidly replace combustible cigarettes. Global vapes plus nicotine pouches doubling time now <6 years! Despite furious headwinds from nicotine abstinence activists like TCRG @caphra.bsky.social @chancethegardener.bsky.social

🚨 Banning safer nicotine products (SNPs) in LMICs doesn’t stop nicotine use—it drives people back to cigarettes. India’s vape ban was followed by an 8% rise in cigarette sales. Policy failure at the expense of public health. bit.ly/BansSA

A cultural conflict exists between Western-funded tobacco control advocacy and the policy choices directly impacting Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs), particularly in Asia

With only 10 days’ notice for public registration, WHO FCTC has ensured exclusion. This is not consultation—it’s obstruction. CAPHRA urges all stakeholders: call out the flaws, demand genuine participation. #COP11 #FCTC bit.ly/4pQHtXh

CAPHRA demands reform: ✅ Grant observer status to consumer groups ✅ End ideological opposition to harm reduction ✅ Uphold human rights by letting affected voices be heard WHO cannot claim rights while silencing the people. #COP11 #THR bit.ly/4pQHtXh

Unlike other UN processes, #COP11 will: ❌ exclude consumers ❌ bar the media ❌ block livestreaming All behind closed doors. Harm reduction deserves sunlight, not secrecy. #FCTC #Transparency bit.ly/4pQHtXh

The WHO FCTC hides behind Article 5.3—misapplying it to block harm reduction voices. This isn’t about protecting policy. It’s about shutting out science, consumers, and democratic participation. #THR #COP11 bit.ly/4pQHtXh

Climate change talks: 3,000+ NGOs have observer status. Tobacco control talks: just 26 NGOs—and none representing consumers. Why does the WHO silence the voices of people most affected? #FCTC #COP11 #HumanRights bit.ly/4pQHtXh

Periodic reminder for the world: Correlation is not causation

At #GFN25, tobacco harm reduction advocate Nancy Loucas @opalboo.bsky.social shared how consumers in New Zealand are pushing back against vaping misinformation, why education is key in today’s world, and how Asia-Pacific communities are making progress by doing it their way. youtu.be/Qend9QkE9Cs

CAPHRA’s Executive Coordinator, Nancy Loucas: “The WHO FCTC has implemented an insane system—deliberate barriers that exclude legitimate stakeholders, especially consumer advocates.” Transparency and participation should be non-negotiable. #THR #COP11 bit.ly/4pQHtXh

🚨 CAPHRA condemns the World Health Organisation’s #FCTC for deliberately excluding public voices from #COP11 in Geneva this November. Barriers to registration show a system designed to silence, not include. Consumers deserve a seat at the table. bit.ly/4pQHtXh

The Advocates Voice is back for 2025. Premiering on 22 September 2025 at 16:00 Manila. youtu.be/XtHIKo8R-xc

🚫Bans don’t reduce smoking. Options do. Empowering adults with access to safer alternatives like vapes, pouches, and heated tobacco helps reduce harm, especially in countries w/limited cessation support. Science supports it. Regulation should too. #THR #SaferNicotine #RightToSwitch bit.ly/3In1ljz

📉 Countries like the UK & NZ are proving that pragmatic, proportionate regulation works. When safer nicotine products are accessible AND people are informed, smoking rates fall. It's not theory. It's public health in action. #EndSmoking #THRworks #PublicHealth bit.ly/3In1ljz

When you deny adults access to safer alternatives, you protect combustible and dangerous oral tobacco, not people.Let’s disrupt the status quo with evidence-based regulation, consumer engagement and public education. That’s how we reduce harm. #SmarterRegulation #THRworks bit.ly/3In1ljz

Abstinence-only thinking is outdated. Harm reduction accepts reality: not everyone can or wants to stop using nicotine, but they CAN switch to far less harmful products. It’s time public health caught up. #Harm Reduction #NicotineReform #ScienceBasedPolicy bit.ly/3In1ljz

The Advocates Voice is back for 2025. Premiering on 22 September 2025 at 16:00 Manila. youtu.be/XtHIKo8R-xc

NOTICE: The CAPHRA website is currently experiencing technical difficulties so some links may not be working. The web guy is working on resolving it as soon as possible. Thank you for understanding.

Every day without access to safer nicotine products is another day millions remain at risk. Denying options doesn’t reduce harm, empowering choice does. Regulators must act on the science and evidence, because doing nothing is a decision with consequences. #THR #ScienceDrivenPolicy bit.ly/44MgPEZ

What does tobacco control think it can achieve by cheating when inexorable & unstoppable replacement of deadly combustible cigarettes by safer, smoke-free nicotine products is taking place anyway? @aliveadvocacy.bsky.social @algore09algor.bsky.social @ianamossyd.bsky.social @caphra.bsky.social

👏 AFN25 brought thousands together in live Q&A sessions and expert panels, creating optimism for stakeholder-driven change in Asia-Pacific. 🌐 Recordings are available for ongoing engagement: afn.asia

❌ Bans drive underground markets. 🇸🇬 Singapore’s vaping criminalisation and 🇮🇩 Indonesia’s enforcement struggles highlight the dangers of prohibitionist approaches. 💡 THR offers a smarter path forward.

As COP11 approaches this November, CAPHRA warns of exclusionary tactics that risk condemning millions to preventable deaths. "Consumer advocates must be heard," said Nancy Loucas. 📣 Progress requires inclusion, evidence, and accountability.

Australia’s “extremist” policies have created a A$6.3 billion illicit market and rising smoking rates. 🔥 Dr Alex Wodak contrasted this with global THR success stories, urging consumer mobilisation and investor pressure for faster change.

Speakers at AFN25 demanded risk-proportionate regulations. ✅ Safer nicotine alternatives such as vaping and heated products are proven to be 95% less harmful. 🌍 Success stories from Japan, New Zealand, and Sweden show the power of evidence-based policies.

Malaysia faces confusion where THR is wrongly equated with Big Tobacco. 🇲🇾 Professor Sharifa Ezat called out gaps fueling illicit markets, arguing bans worsen black-market activity and drive people back to smoking. 📢 Education and expert dialogue are key.

Professor Tikki Pang praised the WHO FCTC’s role in averting 22 to 24 million deaths but criticized its rejection of THR. ⚠️ He warned of 8 million annual smoking deaths, mostly in low and middle-income countries, and predicted WHO’s stance will eventually collapse.

🌏 The inaugural Asia Forum on Nicotine (AFN25) united global experts, advocates, and consumers to push for evidence-based tobacco harm reduction strategies. With 781 million tobacco users in Asia-Pacific, the need for safer alternatives is urgent. 🔗 Watch recordings: afn.asia