JEDDAH, 19 February 2003 — According to the latest Ministry of Education study based on interviews with 753 middle-school and high-school students, 30 percent are smokers. Ninety percent begin smoking in high school and become addicted. The study also revealed that 66 percent of the smokers surveyed were between the ages of 12 and 17.
An Arab News investigation has revealed that those alarming statistics are not just hot air. Yesterday at the Danube Center near Tahlia Street, where there are seven coffee shops, there are dozens of teenagers between the ages of 13 to 18 smoking cigarettes and being served hubbly-bubbly.
Ibrahim, 16, sat down at Wox Cafe and ordered a Grape flavored hubbly-bubbly without being questioned.
“I come here, or go to Joffrey’s or Millennium Cafe every couple of days,” he told Arab News. “I have never been asked about my age or been questioned. I’ve been smoking since I was 13.”
An employee at Joffrey’s told Arab News: “The former operations manager had put a minimum age requirement of 18, but it was never enforced. We have a new manager now, and I don’t know if he’ll start enforcing the age requirement.”
While at the Danube supermarket check-out counter, 15-year-old Rida asked the cashier for cigarettes.
“We don’t sell cigarettes here, but there is a young man outside selling them in the parking lot,” he was told.
Outside an 11-year-old was selling Marlboro cigarettes for SR6.
Terry Coldwell, 37, who was shopping with his 10-year-old daughter, was appalled by the results of the study.
“At the moment, I’m not that concerned that my daughter may be smoking because she’s never alone,” he told Arab News. “At home in the US, children under 18 have a hard time buying cigarettes because of state laws. Saudi Arabia doesn’t have any such laws in place. There is no problem with selling anything to kids. I know some parents that sometimes send their kids to buy their cigarettes for them. What kind of message does that send? Since there aren’t any anti-smoking laws and programs here in the Kingdom or in schools, it’s up to the individual parent to educate their children in the dangers of smoking.”
At Jeddah’s King Abdul Aziz International Airport, “No Smoking” signs are posted every few meters. However, they are simply ignored. Just a few feet away from a prominently posted “No Smoking” sign, an airline employee stands with a smoldering cigarette in hand. This employee, 24, who asked not to be identified, told Arab News: “I’ve been smoking since I was 14. I started in high school with my friends because we thought it was cool. The cigarettes were cheap then and easily available, just like they are now. I started smoking because everyone did it and I never thought about the hazard to my health.”
