Poles embark on smoking ban

POLAND’S ban on smoking in public places went into effect yesterday, despite worries it may be too harsh.

The ban calls for fines of up to 500 zlotys (€127) for those who break the regulations, but it allows for a special room to be set aside for smokers as long as it is well-ventilated.

The move has provoked a discussion on whether it goes too far in limiting civic freedoms in a country where lighting up was a lifestyle under communism, before 1990.