Public organizations call on Lytvyn to sign anti-smoking law
Kyiv, October 27 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Over 50 public organizations and several MPs of Ukraine have called on Verkhovna Rada Chairman Volodymyr Lytvyn to sign the so-called anti-smoking law, which was corrected by the profile committee, and send it for signing to the president as soon as possible.
"The law was passed, but the text of the bill sent to Lytvyn was considerably changed. Two key amendments were removed from it: the first amendment referred to the right to forbid any kinds of advertising that stimulates sales of tobacco products. In addition an item that forbids sponsorship and mentioning cigarette producers was removed," Our Ukraine-People's Self-Defense MP Lesia Orobets said during a press conference hosted by Interfax-Ukraine on October 27.
According to her, the law has been falsified. Due to this, Orobets sent a letter to Lytvyn, who, in turn, sent the law, which was passed at second reading, to the committee on rules of parliamentary procedure.
"The committee on rules of parliamentary procedure confirmed the fact of falsification of the bill, which was passed, but proposed to hold an additional vote on the law, regardless of parliamentary procedure," the MP said.
She added that an additional vote would mean the failure of the law.
"All of the responsibility lies on Lytvyn now… I hope he will listen not only to his conscience, but also to political reasonability, and will not do this [return the law for an additional vote]," Orobets said.
The MP stressed that in the next plenary week she and other parliamentarians would register an instruction on the formation of an interim panel for investiging the falsification of the draft law.
In turn, Director of the Media Law Institute Taras Shevchenko said that this was the first case of the falsification of a law after its adoption at the stage of its signing by the speaker.
"We call on Lytvyn to sign the law… in its initial wording," he said, and added that public organizations also asked the chairman of the Verkhovna Rada not to make any amendments to the text of the law, sign it and send it to the president.
Head of the Zhyttia (Life) Regional Center of Civil Representation Adnriy Skipalsky added that initiators of the address to Lytvyn hope to hear the speaker's reaction during the conciliatory council on October 31.
Bill No. 5164 suggesting amendments to some legal acts of Ukraine regarding complete prohibition of advertising, sponsorship and stimulation for sales of tobacco products was passed in 2010. On September 22, 2011 the parliament passed the document in general in second reading.