A Luxembourg woman is leading a drive to ban smokers from lighting up in places where non-smokers can see them.
Karen Bizibahdi, who moved to the Grand Duchy in December, says she was shocked when she first exited the airport and observed a group of people smoking cigarettes in broad daylight while police stood by and did nothing.
“Sure, the smokers were far enough away that I couldn’t smell their nasty smoke, but I could still see it and it hurt my eyes,” said the 35-year-old mother. “What if my baby sees people smoking despite my dislike of it? Imagine that effect that will have on his sense of entitlement.”
“I don’t want to have to cover my baby’s eyes or put him in a corner every time we’re out in public,” she added. “Nobody puts baby in a corner.”
Bizibahdi admits that although her husband’s company might transfer him to an office in Switzerland later this year, she’s creating a petition to urge the Chamber of Deputies to pass a law obliging smokers to hide whenever they engage in their wicked behavior – or to stand at least 100 meters away from non-smokers and to hunch over to give the impassion they’re ashamed.
“I was taught at an early age that the world should conform to my desires, not the other way around,” she said. “There’s no reason why smokers can’t confine themselves to underground caves, the sewer system, abandoned warehouses, and other dark smelly places.”
