Cuba, land of long cigars, bans smoking in public

Cuba, which evokes images of cigar-chomping revolutionaries, banned smoking in public places on Monday - an uphill struggle in a country synonymous with fine tobacco where more than half of adults smoke.

Cubans are no longer allowed to smoke in air-conditioned areas, offices, schools and sports centers in an island-wide health drive by President Fidel Castro's government.

Castro, once a famous aficionado of Cohiba cigars, gave up smoking two decades ago to safeguard his health.

But many Cubans continue to be heavy smokers and it is common to find people smoking in hospitals, elevators and even crowded buses, despite previous attempts to curb the habit.

Cigarette vending machines have been banned outright as part of the drive. State-run bars and restaurants must set up separate smoking areas, although few have done so yet.

Private restaurants known as "paladars," fed up with fines by roving inspectors, were quick to clamp down on patrons.

At Havana's landmark Nacional Hotel, ashtrays have been removed from the lobby and guests are being told to visit the veranda if they want to enjoy a cigar with their mojito cocktail.

Smoking at the city's international airport is a thing of the past, though the national carrier Cubana will continue to let passengers smoke on some of its flights, the airline said.

At the How Yueng restaurant in central Havana, where the only Chinese dish is fried rice, no-smoking signs have been up for five years, but that did not deter customers from smoking.

"We turned a blind eye. Now we will be stricter," said waitress Yaily.

A freshly painted "Do Not Smoke" sign was stuck to the mirror of Gerardo's barber shop in Old Havana, and patrons were stepping out for a quick smoke.

"People smoked in here before, despite my complaints," said Gerardo, cropping a customer's hair. "Now they will have to go outside. It's clear now. It's the law," he said.

"It's all right," said Jorge, a pack-a-day truck driver, as he waited for his turn out on the sidewalk, puffing on a powerful Popular, Cuba's non-filtered dark tobacco cigarette. "There is air conditioning inside and that bothers people who do not smoke."

HABIT HARD TO KICK

The smoking decree published a month ago also banned the sale of cigarettes to minors and at any kiosk within 109 yards of schools.

At the Calixto Garcia Hospital in Havana, however, Cubans were puffing as usual in the cafe where cigarettes were still on sale.

More than half of Cuban adults smoke and lung cancer is a major cause of death in the island nation of 11 million.

Many Cubans are skeptical that the new regulations will stick in a country where smoking is so ingrained that the Communist state still hands out subsidized cigarettes with ration books to Cubans over the age of 50.