On any other day, the smoker’s pocket garden—colloquially known as the smocket—would be filled with people. Today, it is eerily quiet. In place of cement benches is a newly installed shrubbery.
The first two weeks of the second semester were in preparation for the end. On October 25, it was announced in a memo signed by Fr. Nemesio Que, SJ, the Loyola Schools Vice President for Administration. This total ban would affect all of the Ateneo campuses, including annex buildings. This meant that the smockets in North Carpark, North-East Carpark and in the Institute of Social Order (ISO) would be closed, as well.
The ban, in compliance with Republic Act 9211 written in 2003, aims to promote a healthy learning environment for students. For Que, the Ateneo is simply complying with Philippine law.
However, with the bill being implemented now, nearly a decade after its writing, here in the Ateneo, several questions come to light regarding the timeliness of this announcement.
Que says, “With several areas being more accessible to younger students and other members of the community, it was necessary to implement measures that are more accordant with the law.”
The ethics of displacement
Effective on November 15, the ban was met with responses ranging from apathy to aggression.
David Mercado, a theater arts junior, thinks that the smocket is not just a place for smokers to gather but also a controlled environment for intelligent discourse. Taking that away from this community, according to Mercado, is essentially displacing this community from its home.
Like most of the community, however, many of the smokers agree that the Ateneo needs to align itself with Philippine law. Despite this, the ban is something most will find difficult to come to terms with.
“Intellectually, I’m for it. But deep inside, I’m screaming,” says a faculty administrator.
Two sides of the same coin
Que believes that in the long run, the Ateneo will be able to provide a healthier and more sustainable working environment for all members of the community.
Flipping the coin onto its other side however, the smoking community thinks the ban will do more harm than good.
“We’ll probably be seeing much more smoking right outside Gates 2.5 and 3.5 since the guards can’t do anything about it. These are major highways for college students, but grade school and high school kids as well,” says another frequenter of the smocket.
While the smokers don’t mean any harm to the younger members of the Ateneo community, letting go of a habit is difficult.
According to the Global Adult Tobacco survey taken in 2009, 48% of the sample population attempted to quit smoking. Only 5% of these people (or 2.4% of the sample population) succeeded.
Lasting impact
As there are conflicting views between the administration and the smoking populace on the impact of the recent smoking ban, only time will tell if the Ateneo does become a healthier, smoke-free campus.
However, Que and the administration are not turning a blind eye to these protests: “But just like any change, people will always discuss and talk about it. We have an environment that welcomes such discussions and the administration is always available to lend an ear.”
Certainly, protests will be made and discussions will continue, but as of last night, it was goodbye.
Candles were lit on the smocket’s benches in memory of what was a home for a handful of the members of the Ateneo community. These flames were blown out as a large group of smokers dispersed. Others stayed behind.
With reports from Nadine Y. Ramos and Elijah V. Pascual
