President Sends Vape Ban Bill Back to Parliament with Concerns
President of Kyrgyzstan Sends Amendments to Anti-Tobacco Laws Back to Parliament
The President of Kyrgyzstan has sent back proposed amendments to the Law “On the Protection of the Health of Citizens of Kyrgyzstan from the Consequences of Tobacco Consumption, Nicotine, and Exposure to Ambient Tobacco Smoke and Aerosol,” as well as changes to the Code of Offenses and Criminal Code, to the Parliament for further review. The amendments had been previously approved by deputies but were returned with objections from the head of state, Sadyr Japarov.
According to the parliament’s website, the President noted that certain comments from the Cabinet of Ministers had not been taken into account when the bill was initially adopted. One of the key points of contention was the proposal to increase penalties for the illegal import of electronic cigarettes, including fines of 1,500 to 2,000 calculated rates or imprisonment for one to two years.
President Japarov highlighted that the current description of the offense does not specify a threshold amount of damage for the proposed punishment, which could result in individuals facing criminal liability regardless of the amount of goods imported. As a result, the document has been sent back to Parliament to develop a revised version that takes these concerns into consideration.
The amendments had been approved by deputies in the second and third readings before the summer recess, with adjustments made to reduce fines for individuals caught using vapes from 40,000 to 10,000 soms in response to requests from colleagues. Now, the Parliament will need to work on reaching an agreed version of the amendments in light of the President’s objections.
