Interview
More and more healthcare institutions and hospitals support the criminal case against tobacco producers. The prosecutors are assisted by lawyer and ex-smoker Bénédicte Ficq (59). “They can’t get away with this!”
Why is this such an important lawsuit?
“The figures are hal-lu-ci-nant: in the Netherlands alone, 20,000 deaths per year are caused by smoking! And this is the first time that smokers are not going for money, but for a ban on the cigarette. through criminal law. If someone has beaten you up, you know that you have to file a report for assault. But the Criminal Code also states that you may not make someone ill on purpose. Yet that is exactly what tobacco manufacturers have been doing for years: they add substances to make smokers more quickly and more intensely addicted. Sugar for example. When burned, it acts as an antidepressant. And ammonia. This ensures that the nicotine reaches the brain faster. All these additives amplify the addiction and disable the free will to quit smoking. I believe that the tobacco industry is therefore also responsible for all deaths and serious injuries that result.”
A ban on the cigarette, you don’t make friends with that…
“No, what did you think! Many smokers are angry with me. Anne Marie, the lung cancer patient on whose behalf I reported, is being denounced. Smokers say: ‘You choose it yourself!’ But that’s a big misunderstanding. You choose the first cigarette, but after that you are addicted. I know, I smoked myself. Gauloises. guitars. I thought that sounded nice. I felt like a wild gypsy with a Gitanes in my mouth. Even during my pregnancies I still smoked one a day because I couldn’t keep my hands off it. As soon as the children were off the breast, hoppeta, I went back to the smokehouse. Not realizing it was junk behavior.”
What punishment should those responsible receive?
“I can imagine that it is good for a CEO to go behind bars for a while, so that he realizes what he has been doing. But imprisonment is not the primary goal of my clients: a lung cancer patient, a COPD patient and the Youth Smoking Prevention Foundation. On their behalf, I filed charges against tobacco companies for attempted murder, harm to health, and forgery. They want the cigarette out of the world to protect children. That is more important than a punishment.”
Are you doing this case out of personal indignation?
“I started it because Anne Marie came to me. Then I started looking into the cigarette and now I’m totally behind it. I have discovered how genius the design is. I didn’t know that all filters contain tiny ventilation holes that are not covered by the fog machine during the measurements. As a result, the machine draws in air, which results in lower values that were stated on the packages. In reality, smokers ingest nearly double the amount because they cover those vents with their fingers or mouth. By publishing the wrong values on cigarette packs, tobacco manufacturers forged documents for years. When I found that out, I knew I had it. They lied to smokers for years. That is a very important point, because it clearly shows the bad intentions of the tobacco industry.”
You received no support from politicians when you announced the manipulation of smoke machines. No parliamentary questions to the Minister of Health.
“Brainwash has descended into the minds of just about everyone. It’s bizarre how light-hearted people are about the cigarette. Do you know what Jet Bussemaker said when I spoke to her about this at Pauw’s table? She said, “Give them their pleasure.” I would have loved to have pulled her across the table and asked: what are you saying?! Give them their pleasure! But with 20,000 deaths a year! What do you radiate to the youth as Minister of Education!”
What do you expect from the Public Prosecution Service?
“Serious research, especially into manipulating the smoke machines. I consider the risk of prosecution for forgery to be quite high, but I have also provided convincing material about harm to health and attempted murder. 900 other sick smokers have also registered via the Sickofsmoking.nl website, and people are still coming. The Public Prosecution Service cannot therefore say that the Netherlands is not waiting for prosecution.”
You also defend people accused of terrible things. Is it nice to stand by an innocent victim now?
“As a lawyer you sometimes have to act for professional reasons, but I support this 100 percent in principle. That’s why I love doing this thing. But the difference with assisting suspects is not as great as it seems. Both are people’s work. I make sure that justice is done to my client, whether that is a suspect who has been caught by the government or a victim of a crime. In the one case I defend against an indictment, in the other case I contribute the ammunition for prosecution.”
Source: Plus Magazine (photo Linelle Deunk)