OK. OK. Before anyone gets too excited - it’s only nicotine gum for smokers trying to quit.
Singapore is set to partially lift its famous ban on chewing gum this week, but those yearning to blow bubbles or freshen their breath will have to settle for a chewy nicotine substitute. Starting Thursday, the tightly controlled city-state will allow the sale of Nicorette -- a nicotine gum for smokers trying to quit. The government last year agreed to relax its 12-year ban on chewing gum to allow the sale of brands that health authorities consider "therapeutic" as part of a free-trade agreement with the United States that took effect Jan. 1. Pfizer, the company that makes Nicorette, will send senior executives to Singapore to officially launch the gum, the company said in a statement.
Squeaky-clean Singapore outlawed the import, manufacture and sale of chewing gum in 1992 because of complaints that spent wads were fouling the city-state’s tidy pavements, buildings, buses and subway trains. But gum became a sticking point in free-trade talks with Washington when Rep. Philip Crane of Illinois pressed for Singapore to lift the ban on all gum. Crane represents Chicago, the home of chewing gum giant Wrigley. Singapore resisted, agreeing only to allow sales of "therapeutic" gum in pharmacies. Critics of Singapore’s strict laws on media, behavior and politics have often cited the chewing gum ban as an example of the government’s legal excesses. |