As an ex-smoker who underwent heart-bypass surgery, I am alarmed to see teenage girls smoking on the streets of Hong Kong. While the marketing executives of the cigarette companies may pat themselves on their backs, the Government has to seriously consider banning all cigarette advertisements in Hong Kong, including sponsorship of sports events. Young girls have already become addicts to tobacco and we can see them puffing away like chimneys. To girls who have just started smoking, I ask them to stop immediately. Dr Judith Mackay has rightly pointed out the irony of the Government being concerned about a few deaths caused by bird flu but neglecting to act firmly on cigarette smoking, which causes thousands of deaths. GLORIA WU Tai Hang
