Beijing's Disease Prevention and Control Center is urging the city's 40,000 restaurants to "take an active move" and voluntarily ban smoking.

China has no government regulations banning smoking in restaurants nor are the restaurants required to have smoking sections, said Feng Ailan, a health expert with the center.

"No-smoking restaurants are still rare in Beijing, which is harmful to the health of diners and restaurant staff," she said.

Currently, about 27 percent Beijingers smoke while the remainder are passive smokers from breathing in second-hand smoke, she said. During the busy dinner hour, the air in many small and medium-size restaurants in Beijing is often blue with cigarette smoke.

"To respect the rights and health of non-smokers, restaurants should offer a clear and smoke-free dining environment," she said.

China's Ministry of Health has said it is revising its regulations that could lead to a ban on smoking in public areas and indoor work places. Although no timetable has been provided, the revision is expected before the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008, said Mao Qun'an, a spokesman for the ministry, last month.

The State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA) estimates that China has more than 350 million smokers, about 26 percent of the country's total population and a third of the world's smoking population. Each year, about 700,000 die from smoking-related diseases.

(Xinhua News Agency January 31, 2007)