Some drug addicts will be allowed to recover in their communities rather than being confined to rehabilitation centers under China's first Anti-Drug Law, which became effective on June 1.

The law says that drug addicts aged under 16, pregnant women and women breast-feeding babies aged under one do not need to recover in an isolated environment.

These addicts can opt for community recovery. Under this method, they receive treatment individually designed for them, the Shanghai Anti-Drug Commission said yesterday.

"Under previous drug-control-related regulations, addicts were sent to compulsory rehabilitation centers when discovered for the first time," said a commission expert surnamed Zheng. "If found taking drugs a second time, they were sent to reeducation-through-labor centers."

Zheng said the new law shows a more humanitarian side.

"If minors were sent to such centers, it was recorded in their archives by the Public Security Bureau, which may have hampered them finding jobs in the future,'' he said.

"Community recovery and compulsory isolated drug-rehab will be the two major methods for addicts,'' he added. "Only when parents are unable to help their addicted children to rehabilitate, and community corrections have proved ineffective as well, should young addicts receive isolated compulsory drug-rehab."

The Anti-Drug Law also stipulates that addicts are allowed to recover in their communities for a period limited to three years.

The Shanghai Anti-Drug Commission said yesterday the number of people addicted to drugs had reached 34,429 in the city by the end of March, and the number of cases involving newer drugs such as ecstasy, ketamine and methamphetamine is rising.

Police had solved 2,151 drug cases by the end of March since last year, with 2,397 suspects arrested. About 400.99 kilograms of drugs were seized, among which 74.19 percent were newer drugs, while 14.46 percent were heroin.

According to Zhou Weihang, office director of the commission, young people are trying newer drugs in nightclubs and bars in the belief they are not as harmful as traditional hard drugs, such as heroin.

"In fact, the newer drugs can cause serious mental disorders," Zhou said, mentioning a case in April when a man jumped out of a window after taking ecstasy in an entertainment venue.

Police have launched an intensive campaign to crack down on drug-related crimes in entertainment venues.

It is the first time police, cultural law-enforcement departments and industrial and commercial authorities have joined forces to target drug activity in these venues.

(Shanghai Daily June 5, 2008)