XN000022-1973-10-17 — Page 12

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Wednesday, October 17, 1973

"As I see it we must now work to achieve progress on all four

fronts, while making our major effort on those within our own jurisdiction."

Sir Murray said.

It would do little good, he pointed out, to improve treatment

of drug addiction in the face of an abundant and cheap supply of drugs.

"Nor would interruption of the sea-borne traffic have much effect

if abundance of production in the Golden Triangle and a strong demand

in Hong Kong remained an open invitation to traffickers to bridge the gap."

The Governor noted that much imaginative work had been done in

Hong Kong in the field of curing drug addiction by various organisations,

including the Prisons Department, SARDA, and the Discharged Prisoners' Aid

Society, among others.

This work is second to none in the world and has received considerable

international acclaim," he said.

"But one must recognise that the problem persists on a very large

scale and that if we are to make headway, much more will have to be done in

the future than has been possible in the past."

The Governor laid great stress on the importance for any programe

of eradication of having a form of treatment for addicts which could be

applied en masse without long confinement in an institution,

"The pilot schemes now being conducted by the Department of Medical

and Health Services, and by the Discharged Prisoners' Aid Society are

therefore of critical importance, T$

he said.

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