Better Know a Turkish Smoker (Part 1)

A supermarket is a supermarket, wherever you are in the world these days. A mall is a mall. And a hypermarket is a hypermarket is a hypermarket. But one thing is remarkably unique about the Carrefour in Bursa. It has an escalator to the clouds. Yes, its true! Make your way past the shoe shops, the computer stores, the dry-cleaners, the Starbucks and you will find a stairless escalator that slides silently up to a misty summit.

However, this is no sacred pilgrimage. This moving path leads merely to the food court. A very, very smoky food court. Somewhere through the haze of smoking patrons you can see all the food you expect: the Burger King, the KFC, pizza and the food you don't: Iskender kebab. Grab a bite and sit down with everyone. After your meal, enjoy a smoke. After your meal, maybe you want to see a movie. Put your hands out and feel your way to the ticket booth. In the middle of the film don't be surprised at an intermission. This allows everyone to take a smoke break. You might notice in the cloudy corner a pitiful, little sign of a cigarette with a red line striking through it. Don't worry about that. Enjoy your smoke and if you don't smoke, enjoy everybody else's.

What? You say you don't enjoy second-hand smoke? Get used to it. This is Turkey baby.

Standing at the tables you might notice a young girl awkwardly unwrapping her Marlboros, trying to look casual as she struggles to cooly hold her cigarette. Don't laugh, she has only just recently embarked on a lifetime commitment to the pockets of Philip Morris. Turkey has about 70 million people. Nearly half of them smoke and this girl has just begun her rite of passage. Cha-ching.

Despite what you may think, it wasn't always like this. When tobacco finally reached here from Mexico via Europe the old Sultans used to ban smoking, some even going so far as to pour molten lead down the throats of anyone lighting up. Islamic law even forbade it, because the Koran said one must neither "squander" nor "make their hands contribute to their own destruction." Of course, that concern was short-lived and surely smoking was breathed new life with the establishment of a secular, European-embracing culture. Ever since, the Turks have been smoking like, well, like Turks.

They used to smoke cigarettes from Tekel, previously a state-owned company and still the majority market share-holder. They enjoyed serving Turks with their smokes under a comfortable monopoly, pricing and distributing all cigarettes -- foreign and domestic. They didn't need to advertise and they didn't even need to deliver their supplies. Mom and Pop had to go pick them up from the factories if they wanted to sell cigarettes from their shop.

Then came Philip Morris and RJ Reynolds (now Japan Tobacco International). Since the WTO has relaxed international trade on tobacco and tobacco sales have declined in developed countries, notably the US, Big Tobacco is setting their scopes on the developing world.

Faced with decreased revenue in the US, where only 23% smoke, Philip Morris began looking at Turkey. Although there were tough restrictions in Turkey, Philip Morris did what Big Tobacco does best. Lobby. With lots and lots of money. In this case, with a little help from Turk gazillionaire Sakip Sabanci, with promising millions of dollars of investment to a very needy economy, and a reform-minded Prime Minister, tough regulations disappeared. And so came the Marlboro Man with $100 million in his pocket.

Poor Tekel, not used to competition, didn't see what hit it. It was no match for a slick cowboy, a relentless marketing campaign, and state-of-the-art cigarette factories -- i.e. corporate America. Now, Mom and Pop are not only getting their smokes delivered, they are dressing for the occasion -- garnishing their shops with promotional hoopla. It's war.

As Tekel, Philip Morris and JTI battle for addiction, who are the casualties? What are the human costs of free trade and tobacco in the developing world? Where has that escalator really gone? What is the cloud of Marlboros, Camels, Paliaments, Winstons that you may or may not smoke, but that you absolutely must breathe if you want to have a social life, doing to Turkey?

To be continued...

Here ends Part 1 of a multi-part series: Better Know a Turkish Smoker