The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the date May 31 as the World No-Tobacco Day. Every year various activities are conducted througout the world to mark the Day. These activities include poster and children's drawing competition, sporting, events, musical and drama festivals, progammes in school and the issuance of commemorative stamps.

Smoking habit does not agree with the purpose of national health development program since it can torment the smokers' health as well as their surrounding's. This may lead to the decreasing of the society's health rate.

Health scholars believe that smoking is a slow motion suicide because it can cause coronary heart disease, peripheral vascular disease, lung cancer, cronic bronchitis, and emphysema. WHO estimates that tobacco-related deaths will triple by 2020, which would make tobacco the world's most leading cause of death.

Although efforts have been made to raise people's awareness of the danger of tobacco, including putting the Government Warning : Smoking Can Harm Health label on the cigarette packs, the number of smokers in Indonesia is augmenting. The result of the Family Health Study done by the Department of Health in 1980 and 1986 shows that the rate of adult male smokers raised from 46.4% to 52.9 % while the females's rate raised from 2.4 % to 3.6 %. The number of adult consumption of tobacco per person per year also raised from 1 kg in 1974-1976 to 1,4 kg in 1990 and it is predicted that the rate will be 1.6 kg in 2000.

This situation is deteriorated by the fact that Indonesian-made cigarettes have high contents of nicotine and tar. The result of laboratories research carried out by the Center of Food and Drug Controlling Body on 235 brands of local and 20 imported cigarettes shows that 78% of Indonesian cigarettes have high nicotin contents, 22% medium and none of them with low nicotine contents. Meanwhile, 80% of imported cigarettes have low contents, 20% medium and 0% have high contents. The contents of tar shows the similar figures : 91,5% domestic cigarettes have high tar contents, 6.8 % middle and only 1,7% have low contents. On the contrary, all (100%) imported cigarettes have low contents of tar.

The issuance of The "World No-Tobacco Day" stamp series is expected to raise people's awareness of the danger tobacco can cause. The design featured on the stamp is the winning work of the stamp design competition for students held last year.

TECHNICAL DETAIL 

STAMPS

Product code        : 970810

Issue Date            : 31 May 1997

Denomination       : Rp 1.000,00  

Design                   : Anti-Tobacco Campaign

Designer               : Riawati, student of Budimulia Highschool, Jakarta

Size                      : 31,96 mm x 48 mm

Perforations          : 12,75 x 12,75

Colors                  : 4 colors + 1 logo

Paper                    : white unwatermarked

Gum                      : PVA

Printing process     : rotogravure

Printing quantity     : 500,000 sets

Sheet composition : 50 pieces (10 x 5) 

Printer                   : Perum Peruri, Jakarta

data Source            : Directorate General of  Food and Drug Administration, Jakarta

FIRST DAY COVER

Product code     : 970820

Price                  : Rp 1,800.00

Printing quantity : 19,000 pieces

Designer             : Hendiyana

Printer               : Accent Studio, Bandung

Stamp Sales Period : 31 May 1997 - 31 Desember 2000

Period of Validity For Letter Postage : 31 May 1997 - 31 December 2002

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