Indonesia Tightens Tobacco Control, Focuses on E-Cigarettes and Social Media

Key Points:

1.The Indonesian government has officially issued Government Regulation No. 28 of 2024, which strengthens regulation of advertising and consumption of traditional tobacco and e-cigarettes.

2.The new regulations explicitly prohibit the promotion of tobacco products in any form on social media platforms, including podcasts. The regulations emphasize that advertisements may not be within 500 meters of educational institutions.

3.The Ministry of Health recommends including broadcasting, podcasts, and other media spaces in the definition of "smoke-free areas" (KTR), in order to expand the scope of anti-smoking policies.

4.The Health Ministry pointed out that e-cigarettes are spreading rapidly among teenagers, with fruit and other diverse flavors increasing market appeal and posing a policy challenge.

Siti Nadia Tarmizi, Director of the Disease Prevention and Control Division at the Indonesian Ministry of Health, recently stated at a launch event in Jakarta for "RAW (Resilient, Awesome, and Wise)" that Government Regulation No. 28/2024 will become a key tool in current tobacco control policies, especially in addressing the rapid growth of e-cigarette and social media tobacco advertising.

The regulation clearly stipulates that all tobacco product advertisements must be at least 500 meters away from educational institutions, can only be broadcast on television platforms between 22:00 and 05:00 each day, and are completely prohibited from being promoted on social media platforms (including podcasts). Tamiz highlighted that while some smoking behaviors in podcasts may be presented as "personal habits" rather than explicit advertisements, such actions still constitute indirect promotion to the public and fall within regulatory scope.

She also emphasized that the smoke-free area (Kawasan Tanpa Rokok, KTR) policy should continue to expand its application to more places. Currently applicable to public spaces, healthcare facilities, educational institutions, and hotels, there are suggestions to include "transmission spaces" such as podcasting and broadcasting rooms in the definition of KTR in the future. It is recommended that these spaces be incorporated into the regional government assessment system as one of the regulatory compliance indicators.

When discussing the current challenges of tobacco control, Tamiz specifically pointed out that e-cigarettes are growing in popularity among adolescents, with a wide variety of flavors that far exceed traditional cigarettes, making them easier to spread through social platforms. She emphasized that this characteristic poses a new test for the current regulatory framework.

"Our current priority is how to protect children, especially in the area of e-cigarettes."