Gov. Benigno R. Fitial said he will not support legislation recently introduced at the House of Representatives that seeks to ban smoking in restaurants, bars, and workplaces in the Northern Marianas.
House Bill 16-47, sponsored by Rep. Justo S. Quitugua, proposes to make public places smoke-free. Exemptions include open-air bars, hotel rooms, and outdoor jobsites.
“I'm against that because you know I just came back from Honolulu last year and I noticed that the occupancy at the hotel I usually stay in has gone down dramatically because the Japanese will never stay there anymore; they don't allow people to smoke anymore at that hotel,” the CNMI's chief executive said in an interview Friday.
Fitial feels that a smoking ban in the CNMI is too radical a measure if the House, or for that matter Rep. Quitugua, is concerned about the health of the local community.
“I think if the bill is concerned about the local people's health, there should be other measures to target the health of people because of smoking. But we should not ban smoking because we know our economy is very dependent on the Japanese and the Asian market. And most of our Japanese and Asian tourists are smokers. I'm not supporting that bill,” he said.
The leaders of the islands' biggest business organizations, meanwhile, said that their respective boards have not yet discussed Quitugua's anti-smoking bill but made their personal positions on the controversial measure known.
Hotel Association of the Northern Mariana Islands chair Lynn A. Knight, herself a cancer survivor, said she welcomes House Bill 16-47.
“We have not yet had a chance to address this but I would personally be in favor. Guam and Hawaii have already done this and it has not hurt their tourism industries and it has not improved ours that we allow smoking in public places like restaurants and bars. I care very much about the health of my employees and have invested in smoke filtration equipment for Century Hotel. Also, some guests just do not want to be in a smoky environment so we are starting smoke-free nights at Tribes on Tuesday and Thursdays,” she said an e-mail to the Saipan Tribune.
Saipan Chamber of Commerce president Jim Arenovski, in an interview with Radio New Zealand, said many businesses are concerned about the health of their employees.
He, however, expects the anti-smoking bill to be opposed by some in the tourism sector. “I think some people will fight it on the premise that our tourists from China, Korea, and Japan come from a smoking society, if you want to call it that. And I think that they will put up a reasonable fight for the people who service our tourism industry mostly.”
Marianas Visitors Authority managing director Perry Tenorio, for his part, said he will have to consult with the board of the islands' tourism body to determine the MVA's position on the matter.
But the MVA head said the anti-smoking bill will indeed have a serious effect on the islands' key tourism markets of Japan, Korea, and China.
In his 14-page bill, Quitugua cites a long list of studies concerning the ill effects of secondhand smoke. He also says analyses have shown a link between a smoking ban and the profitability of restaurants and hotels.
“It is the duty of the Commonwealth Legislature to provide a healthy and safe environment for the people of the CNMI as well as for visitors to our islands. This includes establishing smoke-free public and work places for the benefit of all, and particularly for the elderly and children,” Quitugua states in his bill.
He adds that a smoking ban will protect the public health and welfare, and guarantee the right of nonsmokers to breathe smoke-free air, and recognize that “the need to breathe smoke-free air shall have priority over the desire to smoke.”
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