Could Israelis soon be prohibited from smoking cigarettes in their own home if it bothers the neighbors? A new bill proposal recently submitted by Likud MK Yehuda Glick seeks to amend the Land Law to essentially ban smoking regular or electronic cigarettes in apartment buildings or in public areas in apartment buildings, such as porches and balconies, if doing so could cause another person discomfort.
If the bill passes, the expected fine for violating the law would be NIS 14,400. If the amendment to the Land Law is approved, it will also be possible to issue an injunction against the smoker for trespassing.
Glick wrote in the bill's explanation: "The World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which Israel and the courts have ratified, also repeatedly emphasizes the basic right to breathe fresh air, free of cigarette toxins – a right that today a person does not enjoy in his apartment when his neighbor's smoke poses a nuisance in his home. We are talking about immediate suffering, as the smoke causes headaches, respiratory difficulties, dizziness, and with people who are particularly sensitive, those with asthma or allergies for example, there is also the concern of immediate damage and even death. The passive smoker is a prisoner is his home, cannot escape the smoke infiltrating his home and cannot enjoy his own balcony in a reasonable manner. His right to breathe clean air is taken from him."
The bill was inspired by a legal battle being waged by Haim and Ruti Elias, both 65, from the central Israeli city of Holon. For close to 10 years they have been unable to sit and drink a cup of coffee on their own balcony or enjoy a fresh breeze from an open window. Ten years ago, they say, the neighbors who chain-smoke cigarettes and hookahs on their balcony moved in next door. The smoke penetrates their home and causes nausea, headaches and exacerbates their asthma. The neighbors' balcony is situated a mere 16 inches from Haim and Ruti's balcony.
"We don't have a life; we are suffering. If we open the living room door, smoke enters the home, and I start coughing. We almost can't use the balcony at all," Haim said.
The couple said they turned to the relevant bodies and were told there was no solution. They later filed a lawsuit at the Magistrate's Court, but their request to prohibit their neighbors from smoking on the balcony was rejected because there is no law on the matter. They were even charged NIS 10,000 to cover their neighbors' legal fees.
