In the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Rulebook on the ban on smoking enters into force today.
Owners of catering facilities must display stickers about the prohibition of smoking in visible places and remove ashtrays from tables.
However, the application of the regulations does not mean a complete ban on smoking. Owners of cafés smaller than 50 square meters, where only drinks are served, can register their establishments as smoking establishments. Minors will not be allowed to enter them, and the space will have to have a ventilation system.
Owners of larger catering facilities will be able to provide smoking areas in their premises. This space will have to be enclosed by the entire surface of all associated walls and ceilings, with doors that must close independently and that must not be open.
The smoking area must not be intended for transition to other areas, it must not encompass the bar, nor can food be consumed in it.
The ban on smoking is an important issue in the European Union, and with the beginning of the application of the Regulation on the ban on smoking of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the first step towards the harmonization of regulations with the EU was made.
The EU wants to curb the normalization of tobacco use and create a smoke-free generation by 2040, but there are still differences in tobacco rules within the Union.
In early December, most EU health ministers expressed support for expanding smoke-free areas in an effort to reduce the number of cancer deaths. The recommendation was adopted with the votes of all countries, except for Germany and Greece, which abstained, which indicates certain political divisions on this issue.
The aim of the new guidelines is to limit smoking in public spaces where children or other vulnerable people congregate, such as playgrounds, amusement parks, public swimming pools, restaurant terraces and public transport.
The recommendations also target new tobacco products, such as electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products, to discourage youth from smoking. Reducing exposure to second-hand smoke and aerosols would mean better protection for non-smokers, according to an EU press release.
A week earlier, the European Parliament voted against a resolution on the same topic, after right-wing lawmakers passed amendments to distinguish traditional tobacco products from electronic devices. The parliamentary resolution would have only a symbolic value.
The European Commission proposed a revision of the current guidelines from 2009 because every year around 700,000 people in the EU lose their lives due to tobacco consumption, said the new EU Commissioner for Health, Oliver Varhelyi, before the vote.
