CO129-438 - Public Offices - 1916 — Page 16

OPIUM CONFERENCE.

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1.

Home Office Memorandum for consideratim bonference.

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The question of the control of the opium traffic was under consideration by a departmental conferonce at the time of the outbreak of war and a draft of proposals based on the provisions of the International Opium Convention had b been provisionally agreed upon. These proposals were of an elaborate character and raised some questions of great difficulty. It is suggested that it would not be practicable in present circumstances to revive these proposals, and that the particular evils which at the present moment it is specially desired to prevent could be effectively dealt with by measures of a simpler kind.

2. The main question at the moment is the smuggling of prepared opium from this country to merica and the East. From the Police and other reports which the Home Office has been receiving during the last 18 months or 2 years, it would appear that to prevent this traffic

(i)

it will be necessary to supervise and possibly control the sale of opium by the wholesale merë At present the Chinese smugglers in Liverpool elsewhere seem to have no difficulty in buying the opium they want from the wholesale merchanj London. Convictions under the Pharmacy Acts been obtained against some of the wholesale but the penalties are altogether inadequate. cannot be much doubt that the wholesale me are well aware of the purpose for which the is being bought.

(ii) it must be made an offence to prepare onium'ff

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smoking purposes, or to possess opium so pro in this country, and the Felice should / Live

in such cases to enter and seize all

books etc.

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