, Aug. 13 -- Bangladesh Health Reporters Forum on Wednesday declared that no form of opinion from tobacco companies is acceptable in the process of amending the Tobacco Control Act.

According to the forum, such a move is a direct violation of Article 5.3 of the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) and poses a severe threat to public health. The organisation has, therefore, demanded that the government immediately withdraw its decision to seek tobacco company opinions under the guise of stakeholder meetings.

The demands were raised on Wednesday at a workshop titled "Public Interest vs. Tobacco Industry Influence: The Role of Journalists in Expediting Tobacco Control Law Amendment", organised by t...