LEGAL PROBLEM CONCERNING NON-SMOKER’S HEALTH PROTECTION

Abstract

In decades past, the topic of second-hand smoke was commonly mentioned in the medical profession.  Scientists stated that toxic chemicals in second-hand smoke cause harm to people’s health and that there is also no safe level of exposure to second-hand smoke.       Second-hand smoke contains a mixture of particulate matter and thousands of chemicals such as carcinogens and formaldehyde which are cancer-causing; it has harmful chemicals which are similar to those which smokers inhale. Since much research concerning the hazards of      second-hand smoke are well-known, people are beginning to want to live in smoke-free society. Many rights were established to protect people from the hazard of second-hand smoke. The right to live in healthy environment and the right to breathe clean air are two such rights.

                   In Thailand, to protect non-smokers’ health from exposure to tobacco smoke, the Thai government enacted the Non-Smokers’ Health Protection Act B.E. 2535 two decades ago. The law gives the power to the Minister to define non-smoking areas and if smokers are smoking in non-smoking areas which are provided by law, they shall be subject to a fine not exceeding two thousand baht. However, exposure of second-hand smoke to non-smokers is not only restricted in non-smoking areas, but also the non-smoker who lives outside the non-smoking areas should have protected the rights to breath clean air by law similar to the people who also live in non-smoking areas. A protection for the right to breathe clean air should not restrict only in specific places but law should protect everyone equally.

                   The purpose of this study is to study legal measures for the non-smoker’s health protection outside non-smoking areas, are which provide by law. Domestic and Foreign laws, theories of human rights  and related international laws have been researched to see whether Thai law can protect non-smokers outside non-smoking areas from hazard of second-hand smoke and the justifications for doing so. If Thai laws are not capable of protecting non-smokers’ health outside non-smoking areas, research must be conducted to find the cause of this problem and to make improvements to the law. This study would be conducted as a qualitative research by researching and gathering related documents from various information sources, then analyzing the data and compiling with the content of the study in each chapter.