Electronic cigarettes are "bizarre contraptions", says Erdogan
The Turkish government is following in India's footsteps. The 1 October the government announced that a total ban on e-cigarettes should be introduced.become relevant in the country.
Turkey already has laws that formally prohibit the sale of vejp products. However, the use of e-cigarettes is allowed in the same places where smoking is allowed.
"We will now also ban the entry of e-cigarettes into the country," Health Minister Farettin Koca told the newspaper. Hurriyet Daily News
The Turkish government has long pursued an aggressive anti-smoking policy in the country. According to Ahval News magazine 14.5 million people in Turkey smoke, including 250 000 children. Turkey's health authority does not consider vejpning to be an alternative to cigarettes. And President Reccep Tayyip Erdogan earlier this year called e-cigarettes "bizarre".
"They have invented something as bizarre as 'an electronic cigarette' The companies say they contain no or very little nicotine. But they are addictive" Mr Erdogan said, according to Ahval News.
As Vejpkollen previously reported, India will also ban e-cigarettes completely. What both countries have in common is that a large part of the population smokes regular cigarettes. In Turkey, according to a WHO report from 2011, as many as 40 per cent of men in the 25-44 age group smoke. And smoking is increasing overall, including among women.
The number of vejp people quitting smoking with the help of e-cigarettes in Turkey is currently unclear.
