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The Chief Executive, Mr Donald Tsang, today (August 5) visited Police Headquarters to learn more about action taken by the Police to combat youth drug offences.
Accompanied by the Commissioner of Police, Mr Tang King-shing, and the Commissioner for Narcotics, Ms Sally Wong, the Chief Executive was briefed by the Narcotics Bureau on the latest situation in youth drug offences and the enforcement action taken by the Police.
According to police statistics, 609 youngsters were arrested in the first six months of this year for serious narcotics offences, a rise of 9.3% on the number arrested in the same period last year. Fourteen drug cases in schools, resulting in the arrest of 24 students, were detected, representing respective increases of 27% and 50% when compared with the corresponding period last year.
With the growing problem of youth drug abuse, Mr Tsang noted that the Police had strengthened intelligence-led enforcement action and inspected drug dealing black spots in every police district. They carried out 2,400 successful anti-drug operations in the first half of 2009, 10% more than for the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the Police have strengthened controls at all boundary control points to deter the flow of drugs into Hong Kong. They have also enhanced the exchange of intelligence and conducted joint operations with their Mainland and overseas counterparts. In the first half of 2009, the Police successfully cracked eight serious narcotics cases, seizing more than 300kg of drugs. Among them, three cases were targeting the local retail market.
The Chief Executive was pleased to learn that the Police, in response to a recommendation by the Task Force on Youth Drug Abuse led by the Secretary for Justice, had set up a cyber patrol team to enhance intelligence gathering capability on the Internet.
Viewing a cyber patrol demonstration, Mr Tsang noted that criminal elements had been selling drugs online while youngsters were sharing their drug abuse experiences by posting messages and photos on the Internet.
"I am very concerned about this phenomenon. On one hand, selling drugs online has made police investigations more difficult while making drugs more easily accessible to youth. On the other hand, sharing their drug experiences openly on the Internet indicates that the moral values of our youngsters are seriously distorted," Mr Tsang said.
"With the speedy advance in technology, the Government will ensure that the Police have sufficient manpower and up-to-date equipment to effectively tackle cyber offences," he said.
Apart from law enforcement, the Chief Executive stressed that preventive education and publicity were equally important. To strengthen co-operation with schools, the Police have increased the number of School Liaison Officers to 85. They will also join with other government departments to organise anti-drug talks and activities for schools and parents.
"Summer vacation is a high-risk period of youth drug offences. Police enforcement will be strengthened, and complemented by multi-pronged measures including drug tests, rehabilitation, publicity and education, I hope we could effectively fight youth drug abuse through the mobilisation of the whole community," Mr Tsang said.
Ends/Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Issued at HKT 17:50
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