Photo/Illutration A sign says smoking is prohibited at the Saga prefectural government building. (Satoshi Juyanagi)

SAGA--The prefectural government, hoping to promote healthier lifestyles among the public, rejected a request from assembly members to reopen smoking areas in the government building.

“To protect prefectural residents’ health, we will not reinstall them,” the government told the assembly on July 5. “Our decision is based on the fact that the prefectural government’s measures exert a huge impact on surrounding parties.”

Saga has one of the highest ratios of smokers among prefectures in Japan.

After the revised Health Promotion Law took effect, Saga Prefecture in July 2019 prohibited smoking at its government office, and all smoking zones were removed from the building.

However, a cooperative association of tobacco sellers in the prefecture and other groups submitted a petition to the prefectural assembly in February, seeking a revival of the smoking spaces.

The petition said a large number of prefectural officials and visitors to the government office are now smoking at a nearby convenience store and other facilities with outdoor ashtrays.

The petition said the secondhand smoke from these areas was creating a health hazard.

“Aggressive efforts should be made to distinctively separate smoking and nonsmoking areas, such as reintroducing smoking zones at the prefectural government’s office as early as possible,” the petition said.

According to Saga Prefecture, residents living around the convenience store have complained about smokers showing up there.

The prefecture and the store’s operator have drawn a line to clearly define where smoking is permitted. A poster was also set up to limit “the number of ashtray users to three.”

The prefectural assembly unanimously adopted the petition on March 18.

On the other hand, Saga Prefecture Medical Association and the Saga Medical Practitioners Association objected to the assembly’s decision in a letter submitted to Saga Governor Yoshinori Yamaguchi.

They said the reinstallation of the smoking corners could “send the wrong message that smoking is OK.”

Tomihisa Baba, head of the prefectural government’s property utilization department, said the prefecture’s decision to reject the petition was based largely on scientific studies that clearly show the harmful effects of tobacco.

According to the health ministry’s Comprehensive Survey of Living Conditions in 2019, 21.2 percent of people in Saga Prefecture were smokers, the fourth highest ratio in Japan.

Hokkaido topped the list at 22.6 percent, followed by Aomori Prefecture at 22.1 percent and Fukushima Prefecture at 21.9 percent.

“The prefectural government should take the initiative in forging ahead with policies,” Saga Prefecture said in a report handed to the assembly about the rejection of the petition. “The same applies to anti-smoking steps, and the prefectural government’s approaches could have a significant impact on those around it.”

The smoker ratio among Saga prefectural officials dropped from 16.1 percent in 2018 to 13.1 percent in 2021, reports showed.

“We are telling our personnel not to visit convenience stores simply to smoke and demanding they pay attention to prevent passive smoking,” Baba said. “We will take measures to reduce the number of smokers.”

Baba said he quit smoking 13 years ago after working at a prefecture-run hospital. He said he previously saw his colleagues lighting up even at their workplaces.

“I am now told by doctors that the negative effects from my smoking no longer remain in my body,” Baba said.

The prefectural assembly building beside the prefectural government office still has a smoking area.

The assembly building is in the Class II category, where dedicated smoking rooms can be installed. The smoking space has been maintained based on the judgment of the assembly.

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