Hard to Fine

During the second week of January 2010, the Tobacco or Health (TOH) team of the Adventist Relief and Development Agency (ADRA) reached the Cambodian National Headquarters of the Special Forces for Counter Terrorism to conduct Quit Counselor Training; demonstrating a strong commitment to their goals to help Cambodians choose a smoke free life and those who already smoke to quit. To reach their goals, ADRA is working with partners towards strong tobacco laws and had learned about this government department which is under supervision by General Hun Manet, son of the Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, and was eventually able to reach the leader to approve this Quite Counselors’ Training course.

On behalf of General Hun Manet, his advisor Colonel Phan Sophang opened the training and stated “I am so impressed with the Adventist Development and Relief Agency team who could find the National Headquarter of Counter Special Forces. This department is very secret and nobody can see it, so it was like finding a needle a haystack, but ADRA Cambodia found it! This shows that ADRA and the Ministry of Health care for you and wants to save your life and health.”

During the Quit Counselor Training closing remarks, General Sopheap compared cigarettes to terrorists that are striking in you and destroying your health day and night but you never care about them. People think about the terrorists outside the body but forget the hidden terrorists inside of the body, the ones will kill anytime and any day. He urged the participants to serious think about this. They have knowledge and abilities, but if their health becomes weak and weaker, how can they protect people? He praised the 16 smokers who attended the training and determined to stop smoking cigarettes.

Mark Schwisow, Country Director for ADRA Cambodia, stated that although it is true that the world is highly concerned about terrorism at the moment which has killed and injured thousands in recent years, tobacco use kills over five million people each year from a well know killer - tobacco. Schwisow went on to praise the Counter-Terrorism headquarters for making the choice to inform their personnel about the dangers of tobacco use. He said that ADRA was grateful to see the commitment of those who were still smokers to quit. This decision is in accordance with the commitment of the Cambodian government to implement the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention of Tobacco Control, signed by Cambodia in 2005.