In 1999, the mega-hit TV serial Gulls and Guys had all of Pakistan glued to their TV screens.

Aired every Saturday on PTV, the program showed the voyage of John Player Gold Leafs yacht, called Discovery, through 17 countries in 170 days. It was and still is the biggest international promotion taken up by any company in Pakistan. The hype surrounding the Voyage of Discovery hadnt quite died down that following growing concerns about the high social cost of smoking tobacco, the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) was initiated. Pakistan, in accordance with the provisions of the FCTC, passed an

ordinance governing multiple areas of tobacco control, including restrictions on public smoking, sales to minors, and tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship. Pakistan Tobacco Company was at a loss; with a ban on promotion and advertisements it had lost its foremost medium of communication with its consumers.

HISTORY Tobacco is said to be first introduced to Mughal Emperor Akbar by the British Ambassador to the court. Akbar smoked it without paying heed to his physicians warnings about its health hazards. By Jahangirs time, the habit of smoking was widespread both among the nobility and the common man. A few centuries later the Imperial Tobacco Company was established for business in South Asia. Upon independence in 1947, the Pakistan Tobacco Company (member of the British American Tobacco Group) took over the business of Imperial Tobacco, becoming the first multinational to operate in the country. Now, 65 years later, the company has transformed into one of the leading corporations of Pakistan, producing 40 billion

cigarette sticks a year while earning Rs.67 billion in revenue and paying Rs.45 billion in customs, excise duties and sales tax.

TOBACCO AND THE ADVERTISING BAN The US Surgeon Generals report in the 1960s made widely known the harmful effects of tobacco smoking. International pressure to control tobacco production and sale (due to increasing concerns about its cost to governments, to employers and to the environment) escalated. Countries, especially in the West, started taking steps to curb the use of tobacco. One of the first measures to be put in place was a ban on the promotion of tobacco. Pakistan, keeping up with the times, introduced the Prohibition of Smoking in Enclosed Places and Protection of Non-Smokers Health Ordinance in 2002. Proponents of the ban rely on the 'strong' theory of advertising, which holds that advertising exerts a powerful persuasive influence on consumers' behavior. According to them, advertisements reinforce existing brand imagery, associate brands with aspirational and successful characteristics and thus may not only strengthen the resolve of people who have already made the decision to smoke but also attract new smokers especially adolescents and teenagers. The Pakistan Tobacco Company, which currently holds a market share of 50%, shares the concerns of health activists about the influence of advertising on children. But at the same time it maintains that there is ample evidence to suggest that tobacco advertising is not the main cause in the decision of adults or youth to smoke - the key drivers are youth culture, peer-pressure and family influence (Duffy 1996). Also, the effects of smoking are widely known and warnings are also placed on cigarette packs

thus PTC argues that Volenti non fit injuria, or to a willing person, no injury is done, which is a common law doctrine meaning that someone willingly places themselves in a position where they are negatively affected by tobacco consumption. For PTC, advertising was a means of promoting its brand among informed adults who had already made the decision to smoke. It made the difference between smokers choosing its brand Benson & Hedges over the competing Marlboro. In the wake of strong anti-smoking lobbies such as the Tobacco Control Cell (TCC), several ordinances and legislations against blatant advertisement and public smoking, Pakistan Tobacco Company was muddled with testing times for its image and overall business.

THE WAY OUT Pakistan has been in the spotlight for being unable to duly enforce its anti-smoking laws. Illicit trading, i.e. smuggling cigarettes, tax evasion and counterfeiting, accounts for 20% of the market share. Even established companies like Philip Morris, the only major competitor of PTC, blatantly ignore the laws. In 2011, a police case was filed against Philip Morris for placing an advertisement in a youth magazine. The company was fined Rs.100, 000 - surely a small price to pay for a Rs.50 million advertising campaign. In light of these events PTC can, like other market players, choose to circumvent the rules. But doing so would be grossly unethical and against the code of conduct that PTC observes. The company recognizes that tobacco products pose real risks to health and raise important questions about how best to define responsible product stewardship. With a ban on promotion and advertising it becomes even more

imperative to communicate to the consumer the responsible corporate conduct of the company across all its operations: from appropriate marketing and consumer information to supporting sensible tobacco regulation; from respecting workplace human rights and reducing its environmental impact to contributing to local communities. As an immediate and long-term remedial action, Pakistan Tobacco Company is now engaged in active social responsibility campaigns, At Pakistan Tobacco Company we aim to demonstrate responsible corporate conduct across all aspects of our operations. The company has been running several programs under its umbrella of Corporate Social Responsibility. Including these are the Youth Smoking Prevention programs that the company has been managing since 1998. PTC strongly believes that children should not smoke, and smoking should only be for adults who understand the risks associated with it. Keeping in mind that only 4% of Pakistans land mass is covered by forests, Pakistan Tobacco Company has established the largest private sector afforestation program in the country, by currently planting four million trees per annum; a service the company is widely lauded and appreciated for. As a result of their efforts, PTC has been continuously winning the annual Environmental Excellence Award, awarded by the National Forum for Environment and Health consecutively for some years now. In order to improve their environmentally sound business practices, PTC actively seeks to reduce their pollution share via 3 Rs principle: Reduce, Recover, Recycle. PTCs Environment, Health and Safety program ensures a safe work place for employees, contributing to improvements in environment with a focus on minimizing

natural resource depletion through various initiatives such as, reduction of energy usage, water use and discharge management, waste reduction, waste recycle and controlled air emissions. These efforts have culminated in environmental discharges that are well within the National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS) limits set by the Government of Pakistan. PTC is also committed to maintaining biodiversity. PTC carried out a comprehensive study through a third party for their two factories at Akora Khattak and Jhelum and all six Leaf Regions (2 in Punjab and 4 in KPK). These biotic indicators reflect the richness of Pakistans biodiversity. These indicators are reviewed and monitored on a regular basis to provide for a base to monitor and establish any change in the external environment in which they operate. PTC operates a Mobile Doctor Units (MDUs) for the provision of healthcare facilities in the underprivileged and remote areas of the country. Over 70,000 patients were treated as part of this MDU program in Punjab and KPK Province in 2011.

CONCLUSION Pakistan Tobacco has experienced growth even while other companies have succumbed to the burden of the anti-smoking laws, inflationary pressures and weak local currency. By staying committed to fulfilling ethical and legal expectations required of a tobacco company, PTC has established itself as the market leader. While it can no longer publicize any sponsorships, let alone a sponsorship of the scale and caliber of Gulls and Guys, it can still communicate with and promote its brands among the consumers using CSR as a tool. It goes to show how a companys decision to give back to the society can be a means of building brand image and increasing brand awareness, all while winning the consumers trust.

EXHIBIT 1 Extract from Anti-Smoking Ordinance

EXHIBIT 2 Cigarette consumption in Australia (providing proof of effectiveness of anti-tobacco laws if implemented correctly)

EXHIBIT 3 Gross Turnover of PTC

BIBLIOGRAPHY World Health Organization (1997), Tobacco or Health: a Global Status Report, Geneva: World Health Organization. Duffy, M. (1996), Econometric studies of advertising, advertising restrictions, and cigarette demand: a survey, International Journal of Advertising, 15, 123. Pakistan Tobacco Company (2010), Operating Responsibility, Retrieved December 25 2012, from http://www.ptc.com.pk/group/sites/PAK_7SHBXN.nsf/vw PagesWebLive/DO7T5LSK?opendocument&SKN=1