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LAW, ORDER AND RECORDS
morphine base, without which heroin cannot be manufactured locally. The suppression of drug peddling and consumption is an important target of both the CID and the uniformed branch. The narcotics bureau is concerned with the wider aspects of preventing narcotics traffic and maintains close liaison with other Govern- ments and international organizations. The uniformed branch is mainly concerned with the arrest of local pedlars and addicts.
Other Government departments play their part in the campaign against trafficking and addiction such as the Preventive Service, the Prisons Department with its prison at Tai Lam for convicted drug addicts, the Medical and Health Department and the Infor- mation Services Department with its anti-narcotics publicity. Co- ordination of the general policy of these activities continues to be the responsibility of the Secretary for Chinese Affairs who is assisted by the Narcotics Advisory Committee. During the year, the Society for the Aid and Rehabilitation of Drug Addicts_opened a new centre for voluntary patients on the island of Shek Kwu Chau. Another serious threat to society is the potential growth of triad societies whose members are always watching for the opportunity to control places of prostitution, gambling and vice. The triad societies bureau deals exclusively with the suppression of these illegal organizations, and whilst it has not been possible to elimi- nate them completely, they have been rendered comparatively impotent by the curtailing of leadership and growth. However, the threat remains and requires constant observation.
As elsewhere, the CID would make little headway without the co-operation of the public. At formal ceremonies at Police Head- quarters during 1963, letters of appreciation and monetary rewards were presented to 51 members of the public in recognition of their valuable contribution to law and order in the prevention of crime or apprehension of criminal offenders, sometimes at considerable risk of personal danger. In addition to the CID other branches of the force, briefly described below, contribute to the maintenance of law and order.
Uniformed Branch. The largest section of the force is the uniformed branch which has an establishment of 4,955 officers and men, supported by 460 senior civilian, clerical and minor grade staff. The branch is deployed in the three territorial districts of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories. The three