Political ironies are always interesting.  Saddam Hussein's son controls Iraq's tobacco industry.  The following article claims that American cigarette manufacturers are smuggling cigarettes through Iraq.  For more info, contact joossens@... 

 

Theory on contraband tobacco unveiled in Montreal

By Tracey Madigan, Online News Journalist
CBC Montreal, Sep 16 2002
http://montreal.cbc.ca/template/servlet/View?filename=tobacco020916

Montreal - One-quarter of all the tobacco distributed around the world is illegal contraband, according to an international researcher.

According to research done by the World Health Organization expert Luk Joossens, there are millions of cigarettes traded on the black market.

Industry figures show a world-wide smuggling system is at work, he says. The American-based multi-national cigarette industry manufactures and exports about 100 billion cigarettes every year.

But statistics of worldwide imports show only 75 billion cigarettes imported, according to the U.S. department of agriculture Web site.

The difference, 25 billion cigarettes, find their way into contraband, unauthorized markets.

Joossens has been following the pattern of contraband distribution for many years.

Iraq reaps profits

Iraq is the main supply line between U.S. tobacco manufacturers and the clients, says Joossens.

The irony, he says, is that Saddam Hussein's son controls Iraq's tobacco industry. So American tobacco companies are helping keep Hussein's family rich.

The losers in this pattern of commerce are the governments, deprived of tobacco taxes and the health of people who can get cigarettes more cheaply than they would if they were controlled and taxed the legal way.

For more info, contact joossens@...