Smokers' haven Turkey to stub out cigarettes in bars

ANKARA: Turkish smokers fretted on Thursday over an impending ban on cigarettes in bars, cafes and restaurants that many commentators believe is unenforceable in the nation of nicotine addicts.   

The move, revolutionary for Turkey where smoking is a way of life for many, comes on the heels of similar bans in France and Germany. Many other members of the European Union, which Turkey hopes to join, have outlawed smoking in public places.   

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, known for his strong dislike of tobacco, has personally championed the smoking ban and parliament, where his ruling Islamist-rooted AK Party has a big majority, was expected to approve the law late on Thursday.   

"This ban is disgusting. It is against individual freedom. Those in power should not only think about themselves," said Mustafa Puskullu, 29, a sales advisor, enjoying a cigarette during lunch at an Ankara shopping mall.   

"I will certainly not comply with any ban," he added.   

Turkey is both a major consumer and producer of tobacco. In the country of 75 million people, some 25 million smoke, working through 115 billion cigarettes a year, statistics show. Nearly two-thirds of men smoke -- twice as many as in Western Europe -- as well as 11 percent of children aged 7 to 11.   

Clouds of smoke hang permanently in the air of most teahouses and bars as customers chat over glasses of black tea or alcoholic beverages such as the aniseed-flavoured raki.   

Health campaigners say one in five deaths in Turkey is caused by tobacco-related illnesses which cost the relatively poor country some $2.7 billion annually.   

As well as most enclosed public areas, the ban will also apply to some outdoor locations such as stadiums and the gardens of mosques and hospitals and to taxis and trains. Smoking is already banned on buses and planes.   

The law, which must also be signed by President Abdullah Gul, will take full effect in September, giving bars and restaurants time to prepare for the change. But enforcing the ban will not be easy.   

"We are a society that can promulgate laws ranging from tax regulations to traffic rules, from smoking restrictions to bans on torture, but we can't implement them," said columnist Murat Yetkin in Thursday's edition of the liberal daily Radikal.   

"The smoking ban must not remain only on paper," he said. Those flouting the smoking ban will face a fine of 57 lira ($49). Owners of bars, cafes and restaurants where customers light up could be fined up to 5,000 lira.   

Nuri Bayraktar, a 24-year-old bank employee, said: "I don't find this ban a good idea. People should be left in peace. But I will have to abide by it because I don't want to pay the fine."