Women and children are most vulnerable to SHS with the smoking rate among men reaching 57 percent. What's worse, a whopping 90 percent of the women are exposed to SHS at home.
The number of smokers in China has reached about 350 million, the highest in the world. And about 100,000 of the 1 million Chinese who die due to smoking-related diseases each year are passive smokers, says the report.
Prepared by the Ministry of Health (MOH), the report was presented at a tobacco control conference in Beijing two days before this year's World No-Tobacco Day, whose theme is to create a smoke-free environment.
This is the second annual report released by the country under the guidelines of the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which was adopted by the 56th World Health Assembly in May 2003.
China signed the Convention in November 2003 and approved it in August 2005. The FCTC officially came into force on January 9, 2006.
There is no safe level of exposure to SHS, said Yang Gonghuan, deputy director of China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and a top expert on smoking control.
"That's why legislation is so important for creating a smoke-free environment," said Jiang Yuan, a researcher with CDC's tobacco control office.
Susan V. Lawrence, regional head of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, a US-based non-profit organization, agrees. Creating smoke-free zones cannot save those who suffer because of SHS, nor can it build a truly smoke-free environment for all.
With the public becoming increasingly aware of the problem, Chinese leaders are now thinking of creating a totally smoke-free environment, a view widely shared by the world community, Lawrence said.
Beijing has been in the forefront of the fight against smoking. This time too it has made a promise: to make the 2008 Olympics a "smoke-free Games". In late April, the municipal government issued a notice, ordering all Olympic-designated restaurants and seven other public places to be made smoke-free zones. It urged all restaurants to follow the example.
But given the huge number of smokers the capital has, the municipal government has allowed the restaurants to have smoking areas.
Later next month, the FCTC will hold a series of discussions on how to more specifically address the problem of tobacco control. An FCTC revised principle states: "Effective measures to provide protection from exposure to tobacco smoke require the total elimination of smoking and tobacco smoke in a particular space or environment in order to create a 100 percent smoke-free environment."
But despite the government's recent initiatives, China still faces challenges, especially in ensuring that women and minors are safe from SHS.
A recent study covering about 130 neighborhoods in Beijing's Dongcheng district found tobacco vendors within walking distance of 98 percent of primary and middle schools, said Feng Ailan, an expert with the Teenage Tobacco Control Committee of China Tobacco Control Association.
There is not one, but six tobacco vendors "just across" the street from a foreign language primary school near the MOH, said Damon Moglen, vice-president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
The government's smoke-control schemes have seen "smart" responses from domestic tobacco companies. Zhonghua, for example, carries different warning labels for packs sold in China and Australia. The strong graphic warning labels on Zhonghua packets sold in Australia are much bigger than those available in China. This prompted Lawrence to say: Does this mean the tobacco company "cares more about Australians?"
From January 2009, it will become mandatory for all Chinese tobacco firms to adhere to FCTC regulations that say warning labels have to be at least one-third of the size of a cigarette packet.
Over 13,000 soldiers and policemen have been ordered to stand by in greater Bangkok to monitor and control any possible disturbance, which is likely to occur if either of the two parties, former ruling party Thai Rak Thai (TRT) and the oldest party the Democrat, was ordered to disband, security authorities have said.
Many schools in the city have canceled classes Wednesday, while foreign embassies warned nationals to stay away from sites where demonstrations are likely to be staged.
Local media quoted sources as saying that the Constitution Tribunal had on Tuesday reached the verdict that would conclude the long-running trials involving five political parties accused of electoral fraud on April 2 last year, including Thai Rak Thai (Thai Love Thai), the Democrat, and three small parties -- Phaen Din Thai (The Thai Country party), Pattana Chart Thai (Development of Thailand party) and Prachatippatai Kao Na (Progressive Democracy).
If found guilty, the parties face dissolution and their executive members would be forbidden from running for political office for five years in the worst scenario, according to legislative and political analysts here, who based their judgment on the Interim Constitution installed by the Council for Democratic Reforms (CDR, now named the Council for National Security, CNS) led by military figures who ousted then prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, former leader of the TRT party, in the Sept. 19 coup last year.
The focus is on the TRT and the Democrat, the country's two biggest parties. If disbanded and its key members kept out of politics for five years, the two parties would lose at least large stakes on winning the up-coming general elections, set in December.
The combined verdict is scheduled to be read to the parties after 1:30 p.m. (0630 GMT), after the nine Constitution Tribunal judges, all senior judges either from the Supreme Court or the Supreme Administrative Court, held a closed-door meeting Tuesday.
The Constitution Tribunal was set up by the CDR, who have authorized it to carry out the tasks of the Constitution Court, which was abrogated after the CDR staged the coup.
All the tribunal judges were asked to keep the final verdict secret, and their mobile phone communication was cut to avoid leak.
The state media Thai News Agency quoted Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont as saying Tuesday that he believed the verdict would not lead to violence, adding that whether or not an emergency decree would be declared in greater Bangkok would depend on the development of situation.
Army chief Sonthi Boonyaratkalin, who also serves as CNS chairman, assures that declaring a state of emergency would only be used as a last measure.
The Democrat Party has said that it would still use the old name of Democrat for a newly set-up party if the ruling orders its dissolution and forces it to register a new entity.
While Thai Rak Thai party's acting leader, Chaturon Chaisang told party members and supporters not to arouse any disturbance whatever the verdict would be, worrying that the authorities like CNS might blame the party for any turmoil.
Li Weiyi, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, told a press conference that the real aim of the "referendum" promoted by Chen Shui-bian and the DPP about whether the island should join the United Nations under the name of "Taiwan" is to change the status of Taiwan and split Taiwan from China.
"We are monitoring the situation closely," Li said.
"We will not tolerate 'Taiwan Independence', and we will not tolerate the Taiwan secessionists' efforts to split Taiwan from China in any form and by whatever means," said Li.
Commenting on former Taiwan leader Lee Teng-hui's visit to Japan, Li said the Chinese mainland is strongly opposed to anyone conducting separatist activities in countries which have diplomatic relations with China.
"We hope Japan will abide by the three political documents including the Sino-Japanese Joint Statement, and fulfill its promise on the Taiwan issue through its actions, and will not provide a stage for Taiwan separatist activities," Li said.
He also condemned the so-called "Normal Country Resolution" being drafted by the DPP, saying "It's a dangerous act by a small number of diehard Taiwan separatists who want to impose their 'Taiwan independence' ideas on all the members of the DPP."
The so-called "Normal Country Resolution" refers to establishing a "Taiwan country", enacting a new "constitution", and "de-sinicizing".
It aims to create the conditions for the "de jure independence of Taiwan", provoke conflicts within Taiwan society and cause tension across the Taiwan Strait, Li said.
He emphasized that DPP leaders and the small number of diehard secessionists must give up their "Taiwan Independence" ambitions and cease separatist activities.
Chinese mainland has always believed that most DPP members do not share the views of the small number of diehard secessionists, Li said.
"We believe most DPP members understand not only Taiwan's history but also the trends in cross-Strait relations and in the world, and understand that "Taiwan Independence" is doomed to fail," Li said.
As soon as the DPP gives up its pro-independence policy and stops secessionist activities, the Chinese mainland will respond positively, Li added.
"We are planning to offer three to five teachers or volunteers to each Confucius Institutions in the coming years," Xu Lin, director of the office, said here Sunday
China has so far set up 155 Confucius Institutes, schools or classrooms in 53 countries and regions worldwide.
Xu said each year, there are 10,000 positions of teaching Chinese as a foreign language in the world by conservative estimate, but only 2,000 teachers are available from China.
Last year, China sent 1,004 Chinese teachers to 80 countries and 1,050 volunteers to 34 countries.
In addition to recruiting more Chinese teachers, the office also plans to launch Confucius Institute online and broadcast services to make it more accessible for people interested in learning Chinese, Xu said.
According to the Ministry of Education, about 30 million foreigners are learning Chinese, and the figure will hit 100 million by 2010. In China alone, the number of foreigners studying Mandarin has grown from 36,000 ten years ago to 110,000 this year.
The Confucius Institute, headquartered in Beijing, is a non-profit organization aimed at promoting the Chinese language and culture. By 2010, 500 Confucius Institutes and classrooms are expected to be set up around the world.
Confucius, born in 551 B.C., was a great Chinese thinker, philosopher, statesman and educator. He was also the founder of Confucianism.
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) also warned local governments not to violate laws, regulations and policies by introducing preferential policies such as tax cuts to attract new high energy-consuming projects in the future.
The NDRC said local governments should set stricter market access standards to help eliminate outdated production facilities and tighten land use and credit supply for new projects.
To slow down the rapid growth of high energy-consuming projects is crucial to meeting China's energy saving and pollution reduction targets, the NDRC said in a statement on its Website.
The Chinese government has set a goal of reducing energy consumption per unit of gross domestic product by 20 percent by 2010, while pollutant discharge should drop by 10 percent.
Energy consumption, however, fell only 1.23 percent last year, less than one third of the annual goal of four percent.
Most of the energy-gorging industries including steel, electrolytic aluminum and cement saw growth rebound in the first quarter of the year after China introduced cooling measures in 2003, said the NDRC.
The six sectors of power, steel, oil refinery, chemicals, construction materials, and metals consume 70 percent of energy for industry and release the same percentage of sulfur dioxide.
The output of these sectors grew 20.6 percent in the first quarter, 6.6 percentage points higher than the same period last year, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said earlier this month.
Wen pledged China would push forward reforms in the pricing of natural gas, water and other resources, raise the tax levied on pollutant discharge, establish a "polluter pays" system and severely punish those who violate the environmental protection laws.
The premier said the economy could hardly be sustainable if China failed to adjust the economic structure, transform the growth mode, and reduce energy consumption.