Indeed, tobacco receipts finance as much as half of some provincial governments’ budgets. Even in an authoritarian country like China, the loss of so much income, not to mention the ire of 300 million addicts, would make prohibition a huge challenge.
Même dans un pays autoritaire comme la Chine, la perte d’un tel revenu, sans parler de la colère de 300 millions de fumeurs, font de la prohibition une entreprise excessivement difficile.