KT&G will pull advertising depicting monkeys to promote its new This Africa cigarette brand in Korea following charges of racism, BBC reported.
The anti-smoking group African Tobacco Control Alliance said the ads were offensive, BBC said in a story on its website. "Mocking Africa to sell a product that causes death and disease is unacceptable, and we will not stand for the exploitation of Africa by tobacco companies," the group reportedly said in a statement.
A KT&G spokesperson said the advertising would be pulled in October, but that images of monkeys roasting tobacco on the cigarette pack itself would remain, BBC said. This Africa was launched in September as a product for the Korean market containing African tobacco roasted and dried in traditional fashion, according to BBC and the KT&G website.