Designation of smoking areas in parks withheld

By Lee Hyo-sik

Seoul has suspended its plan to establish smoking areas in public parks after a leading anti-tobacco activist complained directly to Mayor Park Won-soon.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Monday that Park Jae-gahb, a professor at the College of Medicine in Seoul National University, sent a protest letter addressed to the mayor on Nov. 1, demanding the city abolish the planned establishment of smoking zones inside city parks.

On Oct. 18, Seoul announced a plan to set up a total of 34 smoking areas in 15 out of its 20 public parks by the end November. Park, the civic activist-turned mayor was elected on Oct. 28.

The professor, widely known as Korea’s most hardcore anti-tobacco crusader, recently learned of the city’s plan and sent a letter of complaint to the newly-elected mayor.

In the letter, Park said, “As representative of the Movement Headquarters against the Production and Sale of Tobacco in Korea, I am urging you to reconsider the city’s move to set space aside for smokers in its parks.”

He said it makes no sense to set up smoking zones in non-smoking public parks, stressing such a plan will cause a big health hazard to citizens as a result of second-hand smoke.

“Smoking in public domains should not be allowed under any circumstances.”

As soon as Mayor Park learned of the matter, he held a meeting with city officials responsible for its policies concerning public parks. The mayor then called the professor and said the city government will positively consider his request.

“Benchmarking similar cases in foreign countries, we had initially planned to set up smoking areas in public parks as a step before designating them outright non-smoking areas. But we have decided to put the plan on hold after professor Park raised concerns over the harmful effects of second-hand smoke,” a senior city official said.

The professor has been leading the nation’s anti-smoking movement, opposing the manufacture and sales of cigarettes.