This Day, That Year

Item from Jan 25, 1996, in China Daily: Twelve headmasters were honored in Beijing yesterday for creating smoke-free schools. Four others were praised by the government for their support for the national anti-smoking campaign.

People from all walks of life in China are being urged to contribute to the drive aimed at eliminating tobacco ads throughout the country before the year 2000. ...

Statistics from the Ministry of Health suggest that there are nearly 300 million smokers in the country, accounting for about 35 percent of the total Chinese population above age 15 and one-fourth of the world's total tobacco smokers.