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The Action Committee Against Narcotics (ACAN) at its quarterly meeting today (June 19) reviewed the local drug situation in the first quarter of 2015. Members noted that the local drug situation had continued to show a declining trend. Both the total number of reported drug abusers and number of young drug abusers had decreased compared to the same period in 2014.
According to the latest figures of the Central Registry of Drug Abuse (CRDA), the total number of reported drug abusers in the first quarter of 2015 had decreased by 11 per cent (from 3,335 to 2,972), compared with the same period last year. The number of newly reported drug abusers also dropped by 2 per cent (from 558 to 547).
The number of reported drug abusers aged under 21 recorded a substantial decline of 25 per cent (from 297 to 224), while the number of newly reported drug abusers aged under 21 decreased by 12 per cent (from 138 to 121).
The latest CRDA figures also showed that the median time of abusing drugs by newly reported abusers (i.e. the time for abusers to be discovered by the CRDA reporting agencies from their first drug abuse) was 5.1 years, compared with 5.2 years in 2014.
At the meeting, members also reviewed other local drug-related figures in the first quarter of 2015.
As compared with the same period in 2014, the number of reported psychotropic substance abusers continued to be higher than the number of abusers taking narcotics analgesics. However, there was a drop in both the number of abusers of psychotropic substances (from 1,880 to 1,670) and narcotics analgesics (from 1,742 to 1,648).
Among all reported drug abusers, heroin remained the most common type of drug abused. However, the number of reported heroin abusers was 5 per cent lower (from 1,742 to 1,647)¡@compared to the same period last year.
Ketamine remained the most common type of psychotropic substance abused. The number of reported ketamine abusers was 19 per cent lower (from 840 to 684) compared to the same period in 2014. Among them, 14 per cent were young people aged under 21.
The numbers of reported abusers of most of other types of psychotropic substances saw reductions: triazolam/midazolam/zopiclone was 19 per cent lower (from 335 to 273), cocaine was 16 per cent lower (from 216 to 182), cannabis was 14 per cent lower (from 111 to 96) and cough medicine was 4 per cent lower (from 113 to 109). However, the numbers of reported abusers of ecstasy and methamphetamine (ice) increased by 63 per cent (from 8 to 13) and 8 per cent (from 587 to 634) respectively.
The ACAN Chairman, Dr Ben Cheung Kin-leung, said, "Although the number of reported drug abusers has declined, we will not slacken our anti-drug efforts in view of the long drug history of newly reported cases.
"In light of the serious health damage which psychotropic substances could inflict on drug abusers, the problem of hidden drug abuse remains an issue of concern. We will continue to step up publicity to arouse public awareness of the drug problem and encourage members of the community, especially parents and front-line personnel to play a more active role in drug prevention, early identification and intervention."
Dr Cheung added, "Moreover, we will continue to encourage people with drug problems to seek help early. For example, they can call the 24-hour telephone helpline 186 186, or make use of the smartphone applications WhatsApp and WeChat to send messages to 98 186 186 to seek help."
The Commissioner for Narcotics, Mrs Erika Hui, said the Government would continue its five-pronged anti-drug strategy, namely preventive education and publicity, treatment and rehabilitation, legislation and law enforcement, external co-operation and research, to tackle drug problems in a holistic manner. The Government will also closely monitor the latest drug situation and take appropriate actions to combat the drug problem.
Mrs Hui said, "We notice that many young people have the misguided belief that they are less criminally culpable than adults, and hence are lured into drug trafficking. In this regard, we will step up publicity efforts to dispel the misconception about the legal liability of young people involved in drug trafficking."
With the summer holidays approaching, Mrs Hui encouraged youngsters to participate in healthy activities and stay away from drugs. The Narcotics Division will step up anti-drug publicity including the launch of a new set of TV and radio Announcements in the Public Interest to encourage drug abusers to seek help early. Related publicity and advertisements will be broadcast and displayed on public transportation networks, in entertainment venues, on the Internet and social media platforms.
Ends/Friday, June 19, 2015
Issued at HKT 18:03
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