Abstract:
Qualitative research was conducted for this study in order to explore the process of advocacy
using the movement for the ban of the display of cigarettes at point of sale in Thailand as a case
study. Information was collected from a document review and analysis, in-depth interviews with
key informants, and focus a group.
The results of this study showed that the movement to ban the display of cigarettes at point of sale in
Thailand corresponded with the principles of policy advocacy, which consisted of 6 main steps: 1)
Analysis - Technical information regarding the display of cigarettes at point of sale had been researched
and investigated. This included the international interventions and situation, the impact on youths and
analysis regarding the stakeholders in this process. 2) Planning - A team had been formed to discuss the
planning of the advocacy and media advocacy by framing the issue and the framing for media access. 3)
Mobilization - Allies from many sectors including the government, professional and civil society sectors
had been mobilized to take part in this process. 4) Action - A number of significant situations arose
during the advocacy process including resistance from discontented stakeholders. However, the tobacco
control advocate was able to respond to these concerns in time, resulting in the eventual implementation
of this measure by the Ministry of Public Health. 5) Evaluation - Some weak points were still detected in
this advocacy process. 6) Continuity - After the implementation of this measure, it appeared that some
retailers were not abiding by this law, resulting in the need for the tobacco control advocate to exert
continuous efforts before finally succeeding. This advocacy catapulted the subject of banning the display
of cigarettes at point of sale into media and political agendas, which ultimately resulted in the successful
push for this measure. This has been considered to be a success on both domestic and international levels.
As for the impact from this measure, it has been found that the implementation of the ban of
cigarettes at point of sale has resulted in the decrease in sales of both Thai and imported cigarettes,
while at the same time youths tend to agree with the measure.
There are many factors which led to the success of this advocacy process, most importantly
are the presence of main players and lead advocates to drive the movement and build a network
between allies from a number of different sectors for the successful push for this measure.
The findings of this study would be of great benefit to public health officials who wish to
develop participatory healthy public policies by using the advocacy process as a tool