CONFIDENTIALI
27
29
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CHINA AND HONG KONG
25.
Drug addiction has traditionally been a serious problem in China and Hong Kong. Strict controls have been enforced in China since 1949, and there is no longer any evidence of drugs problems on such a scale which would have significant deleterious effects on the Chinese economy and society.
26.
In Hong Kong, drug abuse remains a problem despite energetic efforts by the Hong Kong Government to combat trafficking and to treat and rehabilitate addicts. The principal drug of abuse is heroin, much of which originates from the Burma/Laos/Thailand "Golden Triangle" area. As a source of finance for the criminal gangs known as "Triads", the drugs trade is a potentially destabilising factor, although in current circumstances not a serious threat to the Government's authority.
JAPAN, REPUBLIC OF KOREA (ROK), TAIWAN AND NORTH KOREA
27. The illicit use of drugs is a major issue only in Japan, but even there, it is in no sense a destabilising factor.
Japan
28.
The Japanese authorities have always taken a firm attitude towards the illicit use of drugs and in general, this has been effective. In recent years, however, the illicit use of drugs appears to have increased. In 1979, some 18,000 Japanese (out of a population of about 121 million) were arrested for illicit drug use. Ten years previously, the figure was about 700. According to one recent book, the Japanese police believe there are "several hundred thousand" drug addicts. Wider use of illicit drugs has attracted the Japanese criminal groups, and in the early 1980s, the
turnover handled by criminals was estimated at US $4.5 billion per though such figures have to be treated with caution. The main drugs used are amphetamines - "speed" - which it is claimed originate outside Japan. Main users have been described as truck drivers, to help with long working hours, and bored housewives. Students also use them, and cheaper glue sniffing has spread among high school students. While Japanese affluence is likely to lead to increased drug use, the social constraints and strict control by the authorities mean that drugs are unlikely to be a major problem.
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ROK and Taiwan
32 29.
In both the ROK and Taiwan drug abuse is very limited. Until recently, both have been under martial law or quasi-martial law regimes, which have been firm in punishing drug abuse. In the ROK, the existence of a curfew until 1982, plus tright customs controls for security reasons, have been major factors in inhibiting drug smuggling. In Taiwan too, customs controls have been tight for security reasons. Some drugs do find their way in, especially from Hong Kong, but the problem is minor.
North Korea
30. There is no known drug problem in North Korea, and one is unlikely to develop, given the very rigid control exercised.
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