Word: bans
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Despite all the predictions of mass outrage, New York, Dublin and even Paris have adjusted to bans on smoking in public places with quiet resignation rather than rebellion. But with London's ban commencing this week, the city's sizable Muslim population will not easily accept the closure of their beloved shisha bars...
Mohammed Matwli, a manager at Al-Sishawa, points out that half of his establishment's profits come from hookah pipes and that he is planning to lay off staff as a result of the ban. From this month onward shisha smokers will be forced to relocate themselves outside, where Al-Shishawa can at present accommodate only a tenth of its customers. Other cafes that don't serve food face complete closure...
There is, however, more than money at stake. Muslims say the cafes are an alternative to rough pubs and provide a safe environment for kids to socialize. Many fear the ban will drive more young people into pubs, bringing an upsurge in the anti-social behavior and binge-drinking for which Britain has become notorious...
...some Muslim owners hope to dodge the ban, arguing that it only covers "tobacco-based" products, which they say does not describe the fruit-based mixtures which typically go into the shisha pipe...
Café owners allied with El-Nour are lobbying for London to follow the example of New York, which made exceptions in its smoking ban for cigar rooms and hookah bars. They point out that the British ban already exempts private homes, hospitals, prisons, hotel bedrooms and, revealingly, the Houses of Parliament. If politicians can continue to puff away with impunity, they...