Liquor ad ban ‘within K Speu’s rights’
JUST days after the Kampong Speu Provincial Administration imposed a ban on alcohol advertising in public, the Ministry of Commerce stated that any decision to this effect is not up to the local authorities.
Provincial governor Vei Samnang on May 20 gave business owners a week to remove alcohol banners from public places. The move, he said, was to maintain public order and improve the environment.
Samnang also warned that if the deadline passes and businesses still have not removed banners, the provincial administration will take them down and bill the owners.
The decision has drawn support from some members of the public and civil society. In a press release on May 24, The NGO Cambodian Movement for Health (CMH) said the ban was a good start in preventing gatherings for drinking, which he
said run counter to the government health guidelines to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
CMH said that alcoholic drink advertising encouraged people to drink more and that Cambodia needed a law to control it.
“The advertising ban is not enough to stop people from drinking because alcoholic drink advertising on TV, radio, in newspapers and on social media still
influences people,” it said.
CMH claimed that alcohol was the main factor contributing to traffic accidents, poverty and, citing the World Health Organisation, more than 200 types of diseases. It called on the government to take action so that Cambodia can achieve the UN sustainable development goals.
However, commerce ministry spokesman Pen Sovicheat told The Post on May 25 that alcoholic beverages were not banned and considered normal goods, unlike cigarette advertising which has been banned by the government. Cambodia does not have a law prohibiting or controlling alcoholic beverages, he noted.
“We do not know the intentions of the local authorities to take down the banners... We just know that local authorities are within their rights to beautify the city,” he said.
Yean Saolinh, a resident of Kong Pisei district who volunteered to take down alcohol banners, told The Post on May 25 that he was happy with the ban.
“After the provincial administration made the announcement, many people supported the administration and took down banners. I hope that other provinces will follow suit by replacing banners with logos representing provinces, culture or national values,” he said.