Colombia

The law does not contain a definition of this key term. Unlike the term “tobacco advertising and promotion,” which a decision by the Constitutional Court (C-830-10) found should be understood in the context of the definition contained in the FCTC, the Constitutional Court found that lawmakers adopted a definition of “sponsorship” that is less restrictive than the definition in the FCTC. Thus, this term is interpreted within the parameters set out in Art. 17 of Law No. 1335, which applies only to sporting and cultural events, and is therefore more limited than the definition in the FCTC. To align with FCTC Art. 13 and the FCTC Art. 13 Guidelines, the law should provide a definition of “tobacco sponsorship” in accordance with the definition contained in FCTC Art. 1(g).

The law does not contain a definition of this key term. However, a decision by the Constitutional Court (C-830-10) found that the term as used in the law must be understood in the context of the term as defined in the FCTC. This court decision lends guidance for interpretation of the law. However, to clarify the scope of the law and to aid in enforcement, the law should provide a definition of “tobacco advertising and promotion” in accordance with the definition contained in FCTC Art. 1(c).

The lack of definition for this key term could render enforcement of the law difficult. The law should provide a definition of “tobacco product” in accordance with the definition contained in FCTC Art. 1(f).