Pubdate: Sat, 27 Apr 2002
Source: Straits Times (Singapore)
Contact:  2002 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd.
Website: http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/429
Author: Jason Leow
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mdma.htm (Ecstasy)

BEIJING DECLARES WAR ON NEW BREED OF DRUG USERS

Successful, Young, Professional - The Profile Hardly Fits Drug Abusers - 
But It Applies To More And More Of Them In China's Night Spots

BEIJING -- High-income Chinese professionals are cashing in on new leisure 
drugs and as a result they have become the focus of an anti-drug campaign.

Since February, police have infiltrated more than 21,000 discos, bars and 
karaoke lounges and made spot checks to flush out young drug users.

Up to 882 night spots have been warned or closed down, according to Chinese 
public security authorities.

Many white-collar workers have become traffickers in amphetamine-type 
stimulant drugs such as ice and 'shaking head pills', slang for ecstasy.

The trade is now common in big cities such as Beijing and Guangzhou.

While the crackdown on drugs is a year-long activity, the fact that young 
people are now involved has given the authorities a new sense of urgency.

Official statistics have yet to list specifics such as profession or income 
group - there aren't even statistics on how many young professionals take 
drugs.

Most likely, the authorities do not have much in-depth information on such 
a new and burgeoning social trend.

But one thing is for sure, social scientists blame the pressure of city 
life for increased drug use among the young.

'Young people are stressed out at work and drugs help them relax. They have 
money to buy them and don't think there's any harm in that,' said Professor 
Chen Lisi, a sociologist at the China Youth College for Political Sciences.

For many professionals, work had become the centre of their lives and they 
used drugs to fill a spiritual vacuum, she said.

There are other reasons to step up vigilance - officials fear China's 
emerging HIV crisis could be made worse by intravenous drug users sharing 
needles.

Given that many crimes are drug-related, the authorities have to come down 
hard on the scourge in order to maintain social stability.

Police statistics show that more than 30 per cent of robberies and 
burglaries are committed by drug users or those associated with drug 
trafficking.

Better road and rail conditions have made narcotics smuggling through 
Yunnan province - which borders the Golden Triangle area where Laos, 
Myanmar and Thailand meet - easier.

The drug trade is also closely linked to organised crime which poses a 
direct challenge to the central government's authority.

To combat China's drug problem, officials have decided it is most effective 
to hunt down the smugglers.

Anti-drug units have been set up in towns near Yunnan's border and 
inspection stations have been set up along the Nanning-Kunming railway.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jackl