"We noticed in the media last week the Minister's statement that he intends to implement the proposed regulations to ban public place smoking," says Linda Madida, president of the Gauteng Liquor Forum, which represents the 19 associations.
Amongst other provisions, the new law states that smoking will only be allowed more than 10 metres from a door, walkway or window and that the tavern and shebeen owners should enforce this.
"It's easy to see why this is a problem in a township. My neighbour's door is less than two metres from mine and I do not think there is one single property or business in Alex that will be able to comply with these regulations.
"Our members believe that the regulations are unrealistic and unenforceable and will result in people simply ignoring the law. In addition, we are living in tough financial times. This is not the right time to impose new rules that make it harder for township businesses to create jobs, support our employees and feed our families.
"We know that the Minister's intentions are good, but these new laws will cause more problems than they will solve. There are better ways to address the issue, such as public health education, particularly at schools as well as in shebeens and taverns involving all stakeholders, such as liquor traders associations who could help drive joint education campaigns," concludes Madida.
Cedric Chauke, general secretary for the Responsible African Food & Beverage Association, who lives and works in Alexandra, agrees with Madida.
"It is going to be impossible to abide by these laws, so we are struggling to see the logic of introducing them and we hope that Minister Motsoaledi will reconsider," says Chauke.
"We are not sure why the Minister wants to mess with something that is working. The existing regulations allow for closed off designated indoor smoking areas. If taverns do not have enough space to close off a smoking area, then the smokers simply go outside. There has never been a problem with this and nobody has ever complained to us."
Chauke also believes these regulations will create new opportunities for corrupt police in townships.
"The fact that unrealistic regulations are often not obeyed or enforced does not mean that they are harmless. Such laws tend to promote bribery and corruption. They tempt and encourage police and inspectors to intimidate defenceless traders and demand favours from them.
"Township life is not easy. We need our police to focus on keeping us safe not on enforcing trivial regulations, just as we need our healthcare Minister to focus on the big issues, such as HIV/Aids, TB and fixing our broken clinics and hospitals. This should be his priority.
"We are committed to working with the Department of Health in addressing healthcare challenges. An example of how successful partnerships can be is our success in ensuring that our patrons have access to free condoms at our members' establishments. We are working with both the private and public sectors to achieve this.
"We think the Minister should give the people more credit than he does. We are not children. Township culture, by its very nature, is based on people living very close to each other and to make this work, we have to respect each other's preferences and space.
"The Minister may have forgotten what it's like living and working in a township. We understand that he is currently in hospital and wish him well for his recovery, after which, we would like to invite him to come and spend some time with us."
The Gauteng Liquor Forum has added its voice to that of thousands of Western Cape based township tavern owners, who recently voiced their concerns with the new regulations.
Mlungisi Majola the general secretary of Gauteng Liquor Forum supports his colleagues' concerns. "The taverns, pubs and restaurants were built in accordance with the costly specifications of the Gauteng Liquor Board, which requires separating the smoking and non-smoking areas. We have never deviated from these specifications, as we also believed that they are for the good of our customers. We also strictly enforce the age restrictions for both cigarettes and alcohol.
"We think the proposed new restriction, which limits smoking to 10 metres from a doorway, window or walkway is very difficult. We are better able to manage the impact of our customers on the community if they remain on our premises. It is also safer for them. The further they have to walk from fellow patrons, the more at risk they are from potential criminal elements.
"Gauteng Liquor Forum therefore respectfully urges the Minister to reconsider the implementation of these unjust laws and allow our patrons to smoke in the designated smoking areas as, in our experience, this does not in any way disturb or affect non-smokers," he concludes.
