‘Let the market dictate smoking ban policy’

Gov. Benigno R. Fitial, who had been reluctant to support a smoking ban proposal, yesterday welcomed the recent move by some local restaurants to turn smoke-free.

Shirley’s Coffee Shop, Tony Roma’s and Capricciosa are some of the private dining establishments that recently banned smoking in their premises.

“I believe in free market forces and I applaud the private sector’s voluntarily response to growing market demands for greater standards of public health and safety,” said Fitial, a non-smoker.

Fitial had earlier expressed reluctance to approve a bill to ban smoking at all CNMI restaurants, saying such a move could harm the Northern Marianas’ tourism industry. Smoking is common in the Commonwealth’s top tourism markets such as Japan, Korea, and China.

The governor argued that strict smoking bans have been put into effect in California and Hawaii, both popular travel destinations for many tourists, and some opponents of a CNMI-wide smoking ban may wish to give the Northern Marians a limited competitive edge.

“I am glad more companies in our private sector are voluntarily responding to public calls for a smoking ban,” said Fitial. “I prefer that this matter be resolved through private voluntary actions reflecting true market demand instead of having the government paternalistically dictate certain rules on private properties.”

Fitial maintained that businesses and their customers should decide whether smoking bans should be in effect at different business establishments.

“Some establishments may cater to smokers while others may prefer to attract non-smokers,” he said. “The CNMI should maintain a market for both customer groups by maintaining maximum freedom of choice among business establishments and their valued customers.”

Tribes Bar in the Century Hotel also recently instituted a smoking ban on selected days in response to customer demands.

Press secretary Charles P. Reyes Jr. noted that a smoking ban is now in effect at many government offices, including the CNMI Legislature, but the ban is not strictly respected or enforced at certain offices. He said the case would likely be different with commercial establishments.

“Although smoking bans may be routinely violated at some government offices, they would most likely be strongly enforced if legally applied to private establishments,” he said.