TOKYO -- The future looks hazy for a Japanese ministry's efforts to extinguish secondhand smoke in restaurants, as pro-tobacco factions in the ruling party cloud negotiations even though less than 20% of the country now lights up.
The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare proposes banning smoking in all eateries, except for small bars and similar establishments under 30 sq. meters, a move geared in part toward the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Since the World Health Organization and International Olympic Committee teamed in 2010 on a "Tobacco Free Olympic Games" initiative, host cities have enacted similar bans.
