CO129-511-2 Dangerous Drugs Amendment Ordinance- 1928 20-4-1928 - 20-4-1928 — Page 13

HONG KONG.

MEMORANDUM

SHOWING THE ACTION WHICH HAS BEEN TAKEN IN HONG KONG WITH REGARD TO

THE GENEVA CONVENTION, 1925.

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1. Geneva Convention, 1925, Article 1.-Definitions of the terms "coca leaves", "Indian hemp" and "medicinal opium have been inserted in section 2 of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, 1923, by section 4 of the Dangerous Drugs Amendment Ordinance, 1928. These definitions are copied from sections I and 4 of the Dangerous Drugs Act, 1925, which practically embody the definitions of those respective terms in the Convention. It has not been considered necessary to adopt the other definitions in the Convention, because it has not been done in England.

2. Article 2.-Raw opium is already fully controlled up to the standard of the Geneva Convention by the Opium Ordinance, 1923, as amended by the Opium Amend- ment Ordinance, 1924. No raw opium is produced in Hong Kong.

3. Article 3.—The only raw opium which is allowed to be imported into Hong Kong is (a) raw opium required for the purpose of manufacturing prepared opium for use under Government restrictions pending complete suppression, and (b) raw opium. in transit under strict supervision and under the system of import certificates. The only raw opium which is allowed to be exported from Hong Kong is the transit raw opium just referred to. Coca leaves are treated in exactly the same way as the dangerous drugs to which Chapter III of the Convention applies: see section 14 of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, 1923, as enacted by section 11 of the Dangerous Drugs Amendment Ordinance, 1928.

4. Article 4.-The Hong Kong dangerous drugs legislation has been made to apply to all the drugs specifically referred to in Article 4 of Chapter III of the Convention: see sub-sections (1) and (2) of section 5 of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, 1923, as enacted by section 7 of the Dangerous Drugs Amendment Ordinance, 1928. The sub- sections in question have been copied from section 3 of the Dangerous Drugs Act, 1925. That section does not refer specifically to crude cocaine, but it is assumed that crude cocaine is in effect included. On the other hand, the wording of the sub-sections in question, as copied from the English Act, is a little fuller than the Convention on certain points, and it includes a provision for the calculation of the percentage in the case of morphine. Provision for adding to the official list of dangerous drugs was made by section 5 (4) of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, 1923.

5. Articles 5, 6 and 7.-The requirements of these articles seem to be fully met by the provisions of the Hong Kong Ordinance and regulations. The Ordinances in question are the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, 1923, and the Dangerous Drugs Amend- ment Ordinance, 1928. The regulations are practically a copy of the English regulations and do not differ from them in any essential point.

6. Article 8.-Section 16 of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, 1923, as enacted by section 11 of the Dangerous Drugs Amendment Ordinance, 1928, makes provision for excluding from the operation of the dangerous drugs legislation any preparation con- taining dangerous drugs which, according to the finding of the Health Committee of the League of Nations, communicated by the Council of the League of Nations to the parties to the Geneva Convention, is a preparation which cannot give rise to the drug habit on account of the medicaments with which the said drugs are compounded and which in practice preclude the recovery of the said drugs.

7. Article 9.-It is not intended to take advantage of this Article in Hong Kong. 8. Article 10.-On this Article see the last sentence of paragraph 4 above.

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