International Anti-Drug Day Marked in China to Caution Young People against New Type of Drugs

Sunday marks the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.

China observes the annual event with the theme of "synthetic drugs and young people" - an increasing group of drug users.

Wu Jia has more.

According to China's annual report on drug control, more than 214,000 people became new drug users last year. Among them, over 50 percent, mostly under the age of 25, are synthetic drugs addicts.

Different from traditional drugs such as heroin, opium and marijuana that are made from plants, synthetic drugs are made from easily accessible chemicals and are cheap and quick to make.

Chen Zhiying is an official from a compulsory rehabilitation center in Eastern China's Zhejiang Province.

"Synthetic drugs are easily available, especially in entertainment venues such as nightclubs that are usually crowded with young people. According to research, over 80 percent of young drug addicts first encounter synthetic drugs in entertainment venues."

Chen Zhiying points out that a lack of the knowledge on synthetic drugs is a major reason why young people are easily attracted by the drugs.

A Lai, an eighteen-year-old girl from central China's Hubei Province, has stayed in a rehabilitation center for eight months.

"At first they told me taking this drug can ease my stress and lose weight. I took it out of curiosity."

Synthetic drugs users often feel pathological excitement, but then develop mental disorders. They can be manic-depressive and behave violently. As Synthetic drugs attack the central nervous system, in which damage is irreversible, they are more harmful than traditional drugs.

Li Yifan is deputy chief of the Narcotics Control Department with the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau.

He stresses the importance of proper information and precautions against drug abuse.

"Compared to the vast majority of people who know the harm traditional drugs pose to people, many people are not fully aware of the dangers synthetic drugs represent. Even for those who HAVE the knowledge, it may be incomplete or even incorrect information. Many people, because they've never seen or heard about the life of drug addicts, don't believe they will get addicted by only taking drugs once."

Drug abuse among celebrities has also improperly influenced a large number of young people.

Liu Yuejin is deputy director of the Narcotics Control Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security.

"When caught, many young addicts do not believe drug abuse is harmful as they see many celebrities taking drug still look fine. Celebrities have powerful influences. In this regard, this group of people should be instilled a sense of responsibility, especially for the younger generation."

The Supreme People's Court of China says it will speed up work on establishing criteria for imposing penalties involving synthetic drugs. While experts point out that it's a combined task for the police, education departments, social service institutions, and the general public to cultivate a drug-free environment.

For CRI, this is Wu Jia.