Concerns over scenes of smoking children in Ramadan drama

CAIRO – 20 May 2018: The Fund for Combating and Treatment of Addiction and Abuse has a full operating room to follow up all Ramadan series, in coordination with the Supreme Council for Media Regulation, to monitor any scenes of smoking or addiction, Amr Othman, assistant minister of social solidarity told Egypt Today on Sunday.

Othman added that the fund monitored several scenes and filed a complaint to the Supreme Council for Media Regulation, stressing that smoking is considered a crime for children and scenes of smoking children promote for that crime.

He also added that all these scenes are countering the state’s efforts to eliminate smoking and addiction, noting that the fund organized several campaigns like the major campaign featuring Mohamed Salah, Liverpool's and Egyptian national team player.

In the same context, SCMR announced in April that any advertisement that disrupts the Egyptian community’s values during the holy month of Ramadan will be banned.

Ahmed Selim, secretary-general of SCMR, told Egypt Today that the ads should have valuable content and represent a respectful image of Egypt’s society. He also stressed that the council is going to send a list of the Islamic scholars authorized to issue fatwas through media outlets during the holy month of Ramadan.

Siham Saleh, Media Syndicate deputy, also told Egypt Today on April 16 that a separate committee has been formed to monitor the new programs expected to air during Ramadan. Saleh urged television hosts to commit to the declared charter of honor. She added that no one will appear on the screen without being a recognized member of the Media Syndicate.