Government to amend Tobacco Control Act (Bhutan)

Government to amend Tobacco Control Act:

Further, Lyonchhen added that questions were raised in the Parliament and the National Assemble by members questioning the use of having a law, which is not implemented with people still smoking and selling cigarettes.

The PM said that the administration was forced into rigid implementation and so that directive was issued that the law must be enforced and the actual enforcement, reluctant as the government was, began only this January 2011.

There are ambiguities, including the subject of defining what is smuggling. This is under study by the Office of the Attorney General. “We are discussing it to remove those ambiguities and perhaps make certain formulations to ensure that there is no direct relation between certain section, and the penal code.”

The parliament had no intention to punish those who smoke. “In fact, the law is very clear in that it doesn’t ban smoking, it simply bans selling tobacco and also suggests where tobacco may or may not be consumed.”

 I am pretty unclear as to what this means for people rotting in prison for buying tobacco.
One of the first victims of the Tobacco Control Act is a Buddhist monk named Sonam Tshering .
I wonder what amending the act will mean for him and the other tobacco control act victims.