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The total number of reported drug abusers in the first quarter of this year fell by 8.5% compared to the first quarter of 2005 - from 4,922 to 4,566.
The decline was attributed mainly to a 12.7% drop in the number of drug abusers aged 21 and over, from that of 2005, according to the Central Registry of Drug Abuse (CRDA) of the Narcotics Division.
The Chairman of Action Committee Against Narcotics (ACAN), Dr Choi Yuen-wan, said today (June 15) after ACAN's quarterly meeting that members noted the steady rise in the number of young drug abusers under 21, an increase of 15% (from 749 to 861) in the first quarter of this year.
"The Government and Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) have not relaxed in any way when dealing with the drug problem. The number of cases reported to the CRDA by the NGOs has risen steadily in recent years, which reflects that NGOs' strengthened efforts in early intervention and outreaching services have been effective," Dr Choi said.
Heroin remained the most popular type of drug abused but the overall number of abusers continued to drop, by 16.6% over the first quarter of 2005.
Dr Choi noted that the number of ketamine abusers increased again in the first quarter by 18.3% (from 693 to 820) although there had been a significant drop in 2005. Despite this, the number was still smaller than that in the first quarter of 2004.
ACAN members were briefed by Prof Tang Kwong-leung of The Chinese University of Hong Kong on the research findings of the Study on Drug Abuse Situation among Ethnic Minorities in Hong Kong.
Commissioner for Narcotics, Mrs Rosanna Ure, said although the number of drug abusers among ethnic minorities remained stable, it was worthwhile identifying the profiles and characteristics of these abusers so that their needs could be assessed and anti-drug services targeting them could be adjusted accordingly.
"We shall share the findings with relevant Government departments and NGOs and consider how adjustments may be made to our services. We shall release the research findings to social workers and frontline anti-drug workers serving ethnic minorities so that they can better help their clients," she said.
The study revealed that heroin was the most common drug abused by the responded abusers, followed by cannabis and cough syrup. Responded ethnic minority drug abusers were found to have encountered similar drug-associated problems as Chinese drug abusers. For example, they experienced relationship problems with family members and difficulties in finding/looking for jobs.
It also found that ethnic minority abusers in Hong Kong experienced a moderate level of social integration. This factor showed no significant association with their desire for and access to services. Language training was the most desired service among ethnic-minority drug abusers, followed by outpatient, community integration and employment services.
Mrs Ure said the Government and NGOs were providing a variety of services catering for the needs of the ethnic minorities. These included language and vocational trainings, career counselling, interest classes, recreational and cultural activities.
"The Beat Drugs Fund has also sponsored a number of NGOs providing anti-drug programmes to the ethnic minority groups and we will continue to support worthwhile projects," Mrs Ure said.
She said a Nepalese version of the publicity booklet entitled "Understanding Drug Abuse Problem" had recently been produced by the Narcotics Division. This booklet would enable the Nepalese to better understand the menace of drugs in their own language and serve as an effective tool to disseminate the anti-drug message to Nepalese youngsters.
Ends/Thursday, June 15, 2006
Issued at HKT 17:37
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