One school even carries the name of its benefactor and is called ‘Sichuan Tobacco Project Hope Primary School.' That could maybe still have been passed over, but on one of its walls the message reads: “Work hard for society! Tobacco can help you become an achiever!” There are so many things wrong with that message that nobody can say it doesn't matter!
Experts worry that the constant exposure to the tobacco advertisements may cause the children to become smoking addicts, especially if they are told it can help them to become achievers.
There are 70 tobacco sponsored schools throughout China. Gu Zhenzhen, spokesman for the China Youth Development Foundation, said they want to control the number of sponsorship from tobacco companies, but some of the poorest rural areas have no other sponsors.
Meanwhile, tobacco companies say they should be allowed to sponsor these schools and advertise and should not be barred from contributing socially “simply because the cigarettes they produce are harmful to their user’s health.”
