菲律宾“挽救”烟草税增加的提案
Manila fights to save tobacco tax increase
来源：天和网
核心提示：菲律宾政府提议增加烟草税，但受到烟草游说组织的反对，烟草税增加提案能否通过还是未知数。
MANILA - Philippine President Benigno Aquino's tax reform program has met resistance from the country's politically powerful tobacco lobby, a policy struggle that has pitted the executive and legislative branches. While other countries in the region have imposed higher taxes on tobacco products, current levies on cigarettes in the Philippines are still based on 1996 retail prices.
菲律宾总统贝尼尼奥•阿基诺（Benigno Aquino）的税收改革计划遇到了来自烟草游说组织在政治上的强大阻力，双方在政策上的斗争已经涉及到菲律宾的行政和立法机构。虽然东南亚地区的其他国家也提高了烟草产品的税收，但是目前菲律宾对香烟的征税标准还都是基于1996年香烟的零售价格。
Aquino's executive office has argued for a unitary 60 billion pesos (US$ billion) tax system, or "sin tax", for both alcohol and tobacco products per annum. The government has said it hopes to raise enough revenues to meet two key policy objectives: 1) to raise enough revenues to finance a universal healthcare program and 2) to curb high levels of smoking among both adults and youth.
阿基诺的行政办公室已经提出一个价值600亿比索(合15亿美元)的税收制度，或称为烟酒税，即每年对酒精和烟草产品进行征税。政府表示希望筹集到足够的财政收入来实现两个关键的政策目标，以筹集足够的收入来资助全民医疗计划，并抑制成年人和青少年较高的吸烟率。
Some 85% of the proposed revenue under Aquino's proposal would be earmarked for healthcare costs, while 15% would aim to help tobacco farmers displaced by any tax-motivated slump in local consumption. Tobacco farmers would also be given funds to pursue alternative livelihoods under the proposal.
阿诺基提议将筹集到收入的85%专门用于医疗保健开支，15%的收入将用于解决因为税收激励政策导致当地的烟草农民流离失所的问题。根据阿诺基的提议，烟草农民会得到一定的补偿资金来寻找新的生计手段。
The House of Representatives, home to a strong pro-tobacco voting bloc, passed a watered-down version the proposed bill in June. The House's amendments effectively halved the government's 60 billion peso collection target for tobacco products. Those proposed tax revenues will fall further if Senator Ralph Recto, whose committee has vetted the proposed tax measure, has his way.
众议院强烈反对烟草税增加的提案，在今年6月份通过了一个“缩水”版本的提案。众议院的修正案将政府计划对烟草产品征收600亿比索的目标减半。参议员Ralph Recto的委员会已经开始审查拟议的税收措施，如果他找到办法的话，那么阿诺基提议征收的烟草税的收入还将进一步减少。
Recto came under fire last month after suggesting to cut the proposed levy on tobacco products even further to 15 billion pesos in the first year with annual upward adjustments. His report, which proposed a three-tier tax system on low-, medium-, and high-priced cigarette products, critics said was strikingly similar to a proposal advocated by Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Corp (PMFTC).
Recto在上个月提出削减烟草产品的征税，并在第一年将征税收入减少到150亿比索，然后每年再向上调整，之后他便遭到了抨击。他的报告提出了一个三个层次的税收制度，分别针对于低中高三档不同价格的香烟进行征收，而批评者认为他的这一提案与菲利普•莫里斯公司财富烟草集团(PMFTC)所倡导的提案惊人的相似。
PMFTC, formed in a 2010 merger between US tobacco giant Philip Morris and local tobacco firm Fortune Tobacco, now controls more than 90% of the Philippines US$ billion tobacco market. Philip Morris's $300 million manufacturing plant, it's biggest and most expensive in Asia, is in Recto's home province of Batangas.
菲利普•莫里斯公司财富烟草集团是在2010年由美国烟草巨头菲利普•莫里斯（Philip Morris）和马尼拉当地的烟草公司Fortune Tobacco并购而成，目前该集团控制着菲律宾17亿美元的烟草市场的90% 的市场。菲利普•莫里斯的烟草制造工厂价值3亿美元，是亚洲最大和最昂贵的制造工厂，它位于Recto的家乡八打雁省（Batangas）。
Recto suggested that the three-tier system include a six-peso levy for low-priced tobacco products, 10 pesos for medium-priced products, and 14 pesos for high-priced items. PMFTC's proposal called for six, 12 and 14 pesos for the respective low- to high-price categories.
Recto提议的三个层次的税收制度包括对于低价格的烟草产品征收6比索的烟草税，中等价格的烟草产品被征收10比索的税，高价格的烟草产品被征收14比索的烟草税。而菲利普•莫里斯公司财富烟草集团提议对这三个价格档次的烟草产品分别征收6比索，12比索和14比索的烟草税。
Soon after Recto released his report, a government official claimed that the tobacco lobby was the reason why the country had failed to increase tobacco taxes for 16 years. Bureau of Internal Revenue top official Kim Hinares, whose staff helped to prepare the committee report, was quoted as saying that her office felt "betrayed" by Recto's proposal. The public health community, meanwhile, has warned of a catastrophic cancer epidemic if tobacco taxes are not raised soon and substantially.
因此，在Recto发布这一报告之后，一位政府的官员认为马尼拉之所以16年都没能成功的增加烟草税，原因就是烟草游说组织。国内税收署（Bureau of Internal Revenue）的高级官员Kim Hinares的职员帮助准备了委员会的报告，但是她的办公室感觉Recto的提案背叛了她们的初衷。同时，公共卫生社区警告说，如果烟草税没能在短时间内显著提高，那么癌症将会在成为马尼拉的流行病。
Amid the barrage of criticism, Recto stepped down from his position as chairman of the Senate's Ways and Means Committee. "I am the national punching bag of the week," said Recto during his privilege speech where he announced his resignation late last month. "I am not hurt if my critics condemn me, but I will be lying if I say that I am not affected by the unfounded criticisms of my friends in the executive [office]."
在接二连三的批评声中，Recto辞去了他在参议院筹款委员会（Senate's Ways and Means Committee）主席的职位。在上个月末的辞职演讲中Recto 表示，“如果我的批评者谴责我，我不会受到伤害，但是我在执行办公室的朋友们也毫无根据的指责我，如果说我不受到他们指责影响的话，那么我就是在说谎。”
Senator Franklin Drilon, the committee's vice-chairman and an ally of health advocates, has taken over Recto's top committee position. He will face a number of obstacles as Recto and other alleged allies of the tobacco industry will reportedly bid to delay the legislative process. The senate resumed deliberations on November 5 and will debate the tax measure, though Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile has expressed doubts it will be passed during this session.
参议员Franklin Drilon是委员会的副主席而且还是健康倡导者的盟友，他接管了Recto在委员会最高的位置。据说Recto和其他所谓的烟草行业的盟友们将投标来推迟烟草税的立法议程，这会使Franklin Drilon会遇到重重的阻碍。参议院在11月5日重新开始讨论并针对税收措施展开辩论，但是参议院议长Juan Ponce Enrile怀疑烟草税的提案不会在此次谈话中通过。
With an estimated million Filipinos puffing an average of 1,073 cigarettes every year, the Philippines has the second-highest percentage of smokers in Southeast Asia, trailing only Indonesia, according to Health Secretary Enrique Ona. The country also has the highest percentages of youth smokers in the region, with % of boys and % of girls aged between 13-15 consuming tobacco, according to the World Health Organization.
据卫生部长Enrique Ona表示，菲律宾估计有1730万人平均每年吸掉1073支香烟，菲律宾吸烟者的比例在东南亚居第二，仅次于印度尼西亚（Indonesia）。根据世界卫生组织的报告显示，菲律宾的青年吸烟比例在东南亚地区排名第一，在青少年的吸烟人群中，13岁到15岁的烟草消费者中男孩所占的比例为%，女孩的比例为%。
The Department of Health (DOH) and civil society groups believe that those high smoking rates are directly correlated to exceptionally low cigarette prices and taxes. , a website maintained by smoking enthusiasts, recently identified the Philippines as having the second lowest-priced tobacco products in the world, trailing only Zimbabwe.
卫生部(DOH)和公民社会团体认为，吸烟频率高的人群与极低的香烟价格和税收有直接的联系。是一家由吸烟爱好者创办的网站，最近公布菲律宾的烟草制品价格在世界排名倒数第二，仅次于津巴布韦（Zimbabwe）。
Health Undersecretary Ted Herbosa has said that the public health burden of smoking-related illnesses outweighs widely the 26 billion pesos collected annually in tobacco taxes. The DOH estimates the top four killers of Filipinos - lung cancer, heart attack, stroke, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, all smoking-related - cost the country a staggering 188 billion pesos per year.
菲律宾卫生部副部长Ted Herbosa表示，吸烟所引起的相关疾病导致公共卫生的负担要远远超过每年征收的260亿比索的烟草税。卫生部估计菲律宾人的四大杀手分别是肺癌、心脏病发作、中风和慢性阻塞性肺疾病，而所有与吸烟有关的疾病每年将花费掉菲律宾政府高达1880亿比索的开支。
"It will not be surprising to see an epidemic of lung cancer among our productive members in the workforce within the next 10 to 15 years," Herbosa recently said. "This will also cost the Philippines billions of pesos for health care, chemotherapy and palliative care. A major lung cancer epidemic could deplete our resources for universal health care, so we need to focus on prevention." He has argued Aquino's proposed unitary "sin tax" is equivalent to an "anti-cancer tax" and would safe 240 lives every day as higher priced cigarettes would curtail adult smokers and youth from taking up the habit. Civil society groups, meanwhile, have taken to social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube to champion the bill's public health upsides.
Herbosa最近表示，“在未来10到15年，菲律宾的在职人员将开始流行肺癌，而这一点不让人感到惊讶。这将消耗菲律宾数十亿比索用于卫生保健，化疗和安宁疗护。肺癌的流行可能会耗尽我们用于全民医疗保健的资源，所以我们需要将重点放在预防工作上。”他认为阿基诺提出的单一烟酒税就相当于一个“抗癌税”，而且每天可以使240个人的生命处于安全状态，因为更高价格的香烟会减少成人吸烟的数量并且预防青少年吸烟。同时，公民社会团体利用Facebook、Twitter和YouTube等社交网站来获得该法案的公共卫生支持。
The tobacco industry in the Philippines, dubbed by the University of Sydney as having the "strongest lobby in Asia", is already fighting back. Last month, the International Tobacco Growers Association (ITGA), an alleged front group for the local tobacco industry, held a meeting in Manila that claimed higher tobacco taxes would "kill" the industry and result in loss of "thousands" of jobs and livelihoods.
悉尼大学（University of Sydney）称菲律宾的烟草行业是“亚洲最强的游说”，而菲律宾的烟草行业也已经开始反击。国际烟草种植协会(ITGA)是菲律宾当地烟草行业的合法组织，上个月在马尼拉召开了一次会议，声称更高的烟草税将扼杀掉烟草行业并导致菲律宾人将失去数以千计的就业机会和生计手段。
The website of the National Tobacco Authority, a government office, estimates the current number of tobacco farmers at 43,960 and about 300, 000 members of their families as dependent on the tobacco industry. The figure represents a tiny share of the country's estimated 40 million workforce.
国家烟草权威（National Tobacco Authority）是一个政府办公室，它的网站统计菲律宾目前的烟草农民数量为43960，其中约有30万人的家庭成员依赖于烟草业。这个数字在菲律宾大约4000万的劳动力中代表了微小的份额。
In an email to Asia Times Online, PMFTC said that while it agrees sin taxes should be raised, the increase should not be as high as the 708% proposed in the executive office's original proposal. "No other country in Asia has implemented increases to such a degree," said PMFTC, adding that "an excessive tax hike" would result in thousands of job losses and illicit trade activities. (The company declined to comment on its alleged lobbying of solons.)
在一封给亚洲时报在线（Asia Times Online）的电子邮件中, 菲利普•莫里斯公司财富烟草集团表示，虽然它同意提高烟酒税，但是税收不应该为行政办公室最初提案增加708%。该集团表示，“没有一个亚洲的国家将税收上涨到如此的地步。过度增税将导致数千人失业，而且还会引起非法贸易活动。(该公司拒绝对所谓的其他游说发表评论。)
Anti-tobacco pressure groups see the situation differently. The Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) recently said that a 700% increase in sin taxes would still result in low cigarette prices considering tax rates of tobacco products have been frozen for the last 16 years. SEATCA characterizes the tobacco industry's doomsday predictions of tax hike-related job losses as mostly "lies". "We are deeply concerned about events in the Philippines and how the tobacco industries blatantly try to meddle in government legislative processes with the attempts to water down tax laws," SEATCA said in a recent public statement.
反烟团体对此却持不同看法。东南亚烟草控制联盟(SEATCA)最近表示，烟酒税增加700%仍会导致低价格的香烟考虑在过去16年里已被冻结的烟草产品。东南亚烟草控制联盟认为，烟草税增加会带来烟草行业的世界末日预言，而且税收上调会导致相关失业，这些论断纯属谎言。东南亚烟草控制联盟最近公开声明，“我们正在密切关注菲律宾的事件以及烟草行业公然试图干涉政府立法进程，并试图淡化税收法律。”
Civil society groups led by the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Alliance Philippines (FCAP) recently wrote to the Commission on Elections to protest the candidacy of an alleged tobacco industry front group that aims to run in the 2013 midterm congress election. The Agrarian Development Association (ADA) includes in its list of nominees individuals who are strongly identified with the tobacco industry, the civil society groups said. They include Ilocos Sur Congressman Eric Singson Jr, his father and former congressman Eric Singson Sr, Rodolofo Salanga, president of the Philippine Tobacco Institute and Blake Clinton Dy, an official of the Anglo-American Tobacco Corp. Ilocos province is the country's prime source of tobacco products and a bloc of its legislators in both houses of congress has strongly opposed the proposed sin tax.
以《烟草控制框架公约》菲律宾联盟(FCAP)为首的公民社会团体最近写信给选举委员会以抗议烟草行业所谓的合法组织的候选人，旨在运行2013年中期的国会选举。该公民社会团体表示，土地开发协会(ADA)以及其名单中的提名候选人强烈认同了烟草行业。其中包括伊罗戈斯南（Ilocos Sur）的国会议员Eric Singson Jr，以及它的父亲—前国会议员Eric Singson Sr，还有菲律宾烟草研究所（Philippine Tobacco Institute）的负责人Rodolofo Salanga，以及英美烟草集团（Anglo-American Tobacco Corp）的官员Blake Clinton Dy。伊罗戈斯南省是菲律宾烟草制品的主要来源，而且该集团在国会两院的立法者强烈反对拟议的烟酒税。
FCAP executive director Maricar Limpin has argued that ADA, nominally a poor farmers' organization, should be banned from joining the election because its nominees obviously do not hail from a marginalized sector of society, a requirement for running in the party list poll. "This is not just a clear misrepresentation of the agrarian sector but a direct assault on our electoral process," said Limpin.
《烟草控制框架公约》菲律宾联盟的执行董事Maricar Limpin FCAP认为土地开发协会在名义上只是一个贫穷农民的组织，应该被禁止参加选举，因为其提名者显然不是来自于一个社会的边缘领域，而且也没有必要进行政党名单的投票。Limpin 表示，“这不仅仅是对农业部门的歪曲，而且还直接影响我们的选举过程。”
译者：王玲玲
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