The 13th World Conference on Tobacco OR Health

After the release of the major reports concluding that tobacco was a cause of serious disease, many in the public health community expected that their governments would act decisively to warn the public, discourage tobacco use and curtail the behavior of the tobacco companies that was promoting tobacco use. It didn't happen until those concerned about the impact of tobacco recognized that the most effective solutions were political and depended on the ability of public health proponents to motivate government to act in the face of strong opposition from a very powerful opponent - the tobacco industry.

This paper will explore the factors that have had the greatest effect in motivating governments to act and the mechanisms that have been most important.

It will identify a number of factors that appear to be common to most campaigns and to identify those factors that are most effective in different political and cultural systems. A particular focus will be made to include examples from different political systems and different backgrounds.