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0Erinome: Hello everyone! Welcome to our podcast. Today, Enceladus and I are here to talk about a super interesting news from the Maldives. Have you heard about their new smoking rule? It’s really surprising!
Enceladus: Oh yes! I saw it online yesterday. Wow, the Maldives did something big. They announced a smoking ban, but not for everyone. It’s only for people born after a certain year.
Erinome: Right! Let me remember… Oh right! From November 1st this year, people born on or after January 1st, 2007, can never smoke or buy cigarettes in the Maldives. Even foreign tourists!
Enceladus: Wait, really? Even tourists? So if a 16-year-old tourist goes there, they can’t smoke at all? That’s strict!
Erinome: Exactly! And if a shop sells cigarettes to them, the shop will get a big fine. Like 50,000 Maldivian Rufiyaa. Do you know how much that is?
Enceladus: No, how much?
Erinome: It’s about 20,000 Chinese yuan! Oh no, that’s a lot of money. Shops must be really careful now.
Enceladus: And what about e-cigarettes? I heard they are even stricter with e-cigarettes.
Erinome: You’re right! For e-cigarettes, if you sell them or even use them, you get fined 5,000 Rufiyaa. That’s like 2,000 yuan. So no e-cigarettes at all there now.
Enceladus: Hmm, first, let’s talk about the Maldives. What kind of country is it? I know it’s a beautiful place with islands.
Erinome: Yes! It’s a small country in the Indian Ocean, with many islands. The land area is only 298 square kilometers, and the population is about 521,000. Their main economy is tourism and shipping, right?
Enceladus: Exactly! So tourism is very important for them. But why would they make such a strict rule? Maybe it’s about people’s health?
Erinome: Oh yes! The World Health Organization (WHO) said that in the Maldives, 24% of people over 15 smoke. And every year, about 1,200 people die early because of smoking. That’s 18% of all deaths there. Sad, right?
Enceladus: That’s really sad. So the president probably thought, “We need to protect the young people.” Because if young people start smoking, they get addicted easily.
Erinome: Maybe! So this ban is like a “lifetime lock” for people born after 2007. They can never start smoking. But wait, didn’t the Maldives already ban underage smoking before?
Enceladus: Oh right! The news said this new ban is just adding a “lifetime” rule. So even when those born after 2007 grow up to 18 or 20, they still can’t smoke. It’s not just for minors now.
Erinome: Wow, that’s a first in the world! So they’re the first country to do this “generational smoking ban.”
Enceladus: Yeah! But some people online joked, “Is Lin Zexu reborn in the Maldives?” Because Lin Zexu was famous for banning opium in China long ago. But wait, is that a good joke?
Erinome: Hmm, maybe not. Because opium is a drug, but tobacco is different. The news said Lin Zexu banned drugs, but this is about tobacco. So the two things are not the same. But the joke is funny, I guess.
Enceladus: Right! Now, let’s think about some questions. Like, if a person who can legally smoke (born before 2007) gives a cigarette to someone born after 2007, is that illegal?
Erinome: Oh, good question! The news said the law only bans the under-2007 group from buying or using cigarettes. It doesn’t say others can’t give them. So maybe that’s a loophole? Or maybe the news didn’t report it all.
Enceladus: Maybe. Let’s see another example: New Zealand tried a similar ban in 2022. They said people born after a certain year can never buy cigarettes. But guess what? They canceled it less than a year later.
Erinome: Oh really? Why?
Enceladus: Because the new government worried about losing money from tobacco taxes. And they were afraid of black markets. Like, people might sell cigarettes secretly.
Erinome: So will the Maldives have the same problem? They depend on tourism. If tourists can’t smoke, maybe some will not go there?
Enceladus: Maybe. But the Maldives is small, so maybe their enforcement cost is lower. And they might want to build a “healthy tourism” image. Like, “Come to our country, it’s clean and healthy!”
Erinome: That makes sense. What do people think about this ban? Some must support it, right?
Enceladus: Yes! Some say it’s a good example of “prevention is better than cure.” Because if you stop young people from smoking early, they’ll be healthier. But others are worried. Like, will there be a black market? Or can they really check everyone’s ID when selling cigarettes?
Erinome: Oh, checking ID is important. Shops must look at people’s passports or IDs to see if they were born before 2007. If they make a mistake, 50,000 Rufiyaa fine! That’s a lot of pressure for shop owners.
