According to the Taipei Times, starting from March 22, cigarette packaging in Taiwan will be required to print health warnings on at least 50% of the packages.
Until now, health warnings were required to cover 35% of cigarette packaging, but from March 22 this will increase to 50%, as announced by the Health Promotion Authority (HPA).
According to the Taipei Times, Article 11 of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control requires all parties to ensure that tobacco packages carry health warnings describing the harmful effects of tobacco use. The clause states that the warning "shall occupy 50% or more of the principal display area, but not less than 30% of the principal display area."
The Tobacco Harm Prevention Act required warnings on cigarette packages as early as 1997, and was amended in 2007 to ensure that warning images and text cover at least 35% of packages from 2009. According to Wu Chaochun, director of the General Administration of Health, the bill has now been revised again, stipulating that warnings must cover 50% of cigarette packages, otherwise they will be fined up to NT$50,000 (US$1,592). He stressed that graphic images and warnings were a useful tool to remind smokers of the harmful effects of smoking and to convey a clear message to children and young people, reducing the likelihood of them picking up harmful habits.
