Smoke-free zones in Cambodia
Smoke-free zones in Cambodia
Plans are in the offing to introduce smoke-free zones in Cambodia’s tourist areas.
Speaking during Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance’s annual Asia Pacific Smoke-Free Meeting, Tourism Minister Thong Khon said the campaign will start in Siem Reap with plans to turn the popular Pub Street a no smoking zone. It’s not clear whether this includes the whole strip or just the restaurants and bars along it. Siem Reap is the jumping off point for the country’s premier tourist attraction, Angkor Wat, and its surrounding historical sites.
It was not stated when the clean-up drive will kick off but it will be followed with similar initiatives in Phnom Penh, Battambang, Kampot, Kep, Preah Sihanouk, and Koh Kong.
Last month it was announced that elephant rides will be completely banned at Angkor from early 2020. Several of the fourteen elephants have already been retired. They were moved to the nearby Bos Tham forest where they can live out their lives in natural surroundings.
The Angkor historical complex in Siem Reap attracts most of the kingdom’s foreign tourists topping six million in 2018. Angkor welcomes almost half of those.