ENG-1960 — Page 229

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Legislation

FIFTY eight Ordinances were enacted during the year together with a large amount of subsidiary legislation. As in past years, most of these Ordinances amend existing legislation. Short notes on the more important of them appear below-

Drug Addicts Treatment and Rehabilitation Ordinance. This Ordinance authorizes the establishment of Addiction Treatment Centres for the voluntary treatment of drug addicts. An applicant for treatment in a centre must sign an undertaking that he will remain and may be detained in the centre for up to six months, and may be retaken if during that period he escapes. This is essential to ensure successful treatment because an addict under treatment may pass through a stage when his craving for further supplies of the drug over-rides his desire to be cured, but a patient may appeal to an Addiction Treatment Centre Appeal Board against continued detention in a centre. Addicts who volunteer for treatment are protected from legal action being taken against them to the extent that no statements made by them for the purpose of being admitted to a centre are to be admissible as evidence against them in a prosecution under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance. (There is power to recover the cost of the maintenance and treatment of a patient if the patient has the means to pay. This ordinance received a warm welcome in Hong Kong and will come into operation as soon as the first voluntary treatment centre, now being organized, is fully ready.

Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Ordinance. Before the com- mencement of this Ordinance it was an offence to smoke opium or heroin. The amendments make it an offence to smoke any dangerous drug whatever and also to consume, ingest or inject any dangerous drug unless under medical supervision. The maximum penalties for the contravention of the provisions of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance and Regulations are increased from a fine of