Under the changes, adults who involve young people or vulnerable persons in smuggling or supplying Kpods face up to 20 years in jail and up to 15 strokes of the cane. Adults who possess a Kpod and fail to try to prevent a young person from using it can be jailed for up to 10 years.

The law also places new duties on entertainment venues such as bars and clubs to stop patrons from vaping and require them to discard their devices. Venues will be allowed to eject patrons who refuse.

At border checkpoints, drivers found with vapes in their vehicles will also face tighter rules, with the burden shifting to them to prove they did not know the devices were there.

Penalties have been raised sharply across offences. Vape users can now be fined up to $10,000, while sellers face fines of up to $200,000 and up to six years’ jail. Smugglers can be fined up to $300,000 and jailed for up to nine years.

The new laws follows concern about drug-laced vapes. In July 2025, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said authorities were working to list etomidate under the Misuse of Drugs Act after one in three seized vapes was found to be a Kpod. The Health Sciences Authority later extended hotline hours and added an online reporting form for vaping offences.

Health authorities point to the uncertain long-term effects of inhaling e-liquids as a major factor behind these bans. Chemicals in vape liquids, including nicotine and other additives, have been linked to potential respiratory and cardiovascular issues. Governments are also concerned about the rising prevalence of vaping among young people , who may develop nicotine dependence early and transition to conventional smoking.

In addition to physical health, mental health risks have become a key concern. In Malaysia, for example, authorities have reported cases of drug-induced psychosis linked to adulterated vape liquids and synthetic substances. These incidents prompted the Health Ministry to establish a task force to monitor and address potential health crises associated with vaping.

Regulatory approaches differ across countries, but the overall aim is consistent: to protect public health and prevent addiction. Some governments have enacted total bans, prohibiting sales, imports, and marketing entirely. Others have introduced partial restrictions, such as limiting sales to minors or banning online advertising. These measures reflect a cautious approach in regions where healthcare systems may struggle to manage the long-term consequences of widespread vaping.

Malaysia is preparing one of the most comprehensive bans in the region. The government has announced plans to implement a nationwide prohibition on e-cigarettes by mid-2026, pending final legislative approval. Officials describe the decision as inevitable, framing it as a continuation of public health policy rather than a sudden intervention.

Medical organisations in the region have generally supported these measures. In Malaysia, the Malaysian Medical Association has backed the upcoming ban, highlighting the need for preventive action rather than reactive treatment of health crises. Across the Global South, similar reasoning underpins decisions to regulate or prohibit vaping.

The shift reflects a broader recognition that public health, particularly among vulnerable populations such as youth, must take priority over commercial interests. As more countries in the Global South move to restrict or ban e-cigarettes, they signal a commitment to preventing nicotine addiction and safeguarding both physical and mental health in the face of emerging global vaping trends.

The DOH reiterated that vapes pose serious risks — including cardiovascular disease, cancer and severe lung injuries — and noted that the country recorded its first EVALI-linked death last year. 

Herbosa said authorities must tighten enforcement of existing laws but suggested a total ban may be simpler.

The concern mirrors global trends. The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that e-cigarettes are driving an “alarming” surge in nicotine addiction among children, with young people far more likely to vape than adults. 

WHO estimates more than 100 million people worldwide now use e-cigarettes, including at least 15 million adolescents.

Neighbouring Malaysia is moving ahead with a phased vape ban, starting with refillable devices and eventually covering all models — a plan that will go before the Cabinet for final approval. 

Several Malaysian states already enforce local bans, despite legal complexities stemming from the country’s 2024 vape regulation law. If fully implemented, Malaysia would join Brunei, Thailand and Singapore in outlawing vaping.

In the Philippines, regulators are tightening rules even without a full ban. 

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has released a draft order requiring mandatory permits for all vape promotions and advertisements, along with strict age-gating for online content and proof that stores are not near schools or playgrounds. Public comments are open until December 15.

With the DOH signalling openness to prohibition and the DTI moving to curb marketing, the Philippines appears increasingly aligned with regional efforts to rein in vaping — raising the question of whether a ban may soon follow.

The warehouse was rented by Lim Zhi Wei, who told police in 2022 that electronics had been stolen. Investigators later uncovered that the unit had been storing large quantities of vapes imported from Malaysia. Lim admitted to packing, delivering, and selling the products locally and was eventually fined $8,500. 

The probe into the burglary led to Chua’s name surfacing. Authorities allege he directed others to rent storage units, coordinated shipments across the border, and oversaw distribution in Singapore.

Chua was arrested during an islandwide operation on October 10, 2024, carried out jointly by the Singapore Police Force and the Health Sciences Authority (HSA). He has since been held in remand for nearly a year while facing a series of charges, including cheating and attempting to obstruct the course of justice .

The police and HSA issued a joint statement describing him as a “key syndicate figure” in the illegal trade .

An inter-agency discussion will be held to finalise the implementation plan, which will then be submitted to the Cabinet for approval.

“The outcome of these deliberations and the proposed implementation plan will be presented to the Cabinet for policy approval, which will form the basis for the full ban on vapes in Malaysia,” Dzulkefly said.

Currently, Malaysia only prohibits the online sale of vapes. But users easily bypass the restriction by searching for specific brand names rather than generic terms such as “vape” on e-commerce platforms and search engines.

The announcement comes less than a year after Malaysia introduced Act 852 — the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 — which banned the sale of tobacco and vape products to minors and regulated advertising, packaging, labelling, point-of-sale displays and online sales.

However, the act also formally recognised the vape industry, which Dzulkefly said complicates the legal path to an outright ban.

“This has created a ‘legitimate expectation’ under the law , meaning that if we now impose a sudden ban after establishing Act 852, we must be ready to face possible legal challenges,” he said. 

Some Malaysian states have already acted independently. Perlis, Terengganu, Kedah and Pahang have moved to ban vape sales, while Johor and Kelantan have enforced similar bans since 2016 and 2015, respectively.

Another complication of a sweeping ban would be its economic impact on the burgeoning vape sales industry. In 2023, the market value of this industry reached RM3.48 billion (S$1.05 billion) in 2023 from RM2.27 billion in 2019, according to the Malaysia Vape Chamber of Commerce.

A 2023 Global Adult Tobacco Survey estimated that 1.4 million Malaysian adults — out of a population of 34.2 million — use vapes.

If implemented, the ban would place Malaysia alongside regional neighbours such as Brunei, Thailand and Singapore, which already prohibit vaping — in Singapore’s case under some of the strictest enforcement measures in the region.

According to data compiled by 24/7 Wall St. from the County Health Rankings & Roadmaps programme, a joint project of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, more than one in four adults in these counties drink excessively far above the national average of fewer than one in five.

Digging deeper, 41 of these top 50 “drunkest” counties are in Wisconsin, making the Badger State by far the most concentrated region on the list.

Even outside public perception of Wisconsin as “ America ’s beer capital,” the data shows this trend extends well beyond social stereotypes; Outagamie County, home to Appleton, ranks number 1, where about 31% of adults report binge or heavy drinking.

In a broader metro-area analysis, 7 of the 10 drunkest U.S. cities, including Appleton, Green Bay, and Madison are located in Wisconsin.

Why it matters

1. Health risks soar.

Excessive alcohol use is a major preventable risk factor your health—linked to chronic illnesses like liver disease, cancer, heart disease, and mental-health issues, alongside accidents and impaired driving.

2. Wisconsin leads—and that spotlight demands awareness.

While the state appears on top in statistics, it also raises questions about cultural norms, access to treatment, and alcohol policies across the region.

3. Geography plays a role.

The regional clustering suggests local customs, social environments, and even economic factors influence drinking behaviors.

That long, narrow nation stretches into South America’s Pacific coast for 4,270 kilometres. This comparison shines a light on Chile’s extraordinary geography and the sheer variety of climates contained within its thin boundaries.

From the Atacama Desert in the north to the glaciers of Patagonia in the far south, Chile stretches over 33 degrees of latitude. It occupies a narrow strip of land between the Andes and the Pacific Ocean, measuring 4,270 kilometres from north to south while averaging only about 175 kilometres wide.

The country’s present shape emerged from a combination of rugged topography and historical events: the Andes formed a natural barrier to the east, and colonial expansion, followed by 19th‑century wars, extended Chile’s reach north and south.

Travelling the length of Chile is like journeying from London to Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso or from New York to Bogotá—it’s that long.

This extreme length produces remarkable environmental contrasts. In southern Chile, including Tierra del Fuego, a maritime climate prevails; some parts receive up to 4,000 millimetres of rain a year, though cities such as Punta Arenas get a much more modest 410 millimetres.

Central Chile around Santiago enjoys a Mediterranean climate with warm, dry summers and mild, wetter winters, averaging around 275 millimetres of annual rainfall. At the northern extreme, the Atacama Desert sees almost no rainfall because the cold Humboldt Current suppresses cloud formation.

In just a few thousand kilometres, you move from snow‑capped Andean peaks and fjords to fertile valleys and some of the driest landscapes on Earth.

Understanding the Moon’s Scale

Placing Chile and the Moon in the same sentence invites curiosity about the Moon’s true size. Astronomers describe the Moon as a mid‑sized natural satellite: Universe Today reports its diameter as approximately 3,474 kilometres.

Space.com , citing NASA data, notes that the Moon’s mean radius is 1,737.5 kilometres, giving a mean diameter of about 3,475 kilometres, and that it orbits Earth at an average distance of roughly 384,400 kilometres.

In other words, the Moon spans just over a quarter of Earth’s width and sits about thirty Earth diameters away. If our planet were scaled to the size of a nickel, the Moon would be no bigger than a coffee bean.

The Maldives government strongly denounced Israel’s plan to seize control of Gaza, calling it a violation of international humanitarian law. Officials reiterated support for Palestinian self-determination and urged the global community to act decisively.

Thulhaadhoo Airport project back on track

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu acknowledged an 18-month delay in the Thulhaadhoo Airport project, citing financial arrangements as the main cause. He assured residents that construction will now move forward without further interruptions.

Abdul Ghani Mohamed sworn in as Chief Justice

The Maldives has a new Chief Justice, Abdul Ghani Mohamed, whom Parliament unanimously approved. He succeeds Ahmed Muthasim Adnan, who recently retired.

Decentralisation Act amendments trigger backlash

Over 80 local councils opposed proposed amendments to the Decentralisation Act, claiming the changes would weaken local governance and democratic aspirations. Former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih pledged to restore council powers if his party regains leadership.

Customs scandal over vape products linked to minister’s son

A high-profile scandal emerged after Maldives Customs detained Abdulla Mahil Shaheem, son of the Minister of Islamic Affairs, for attempting to import banned vape products. The case has raised serious questions about potential government involvement in illicit trade.