ENG-2002 — Page 411

PUBLIC ORDER

Commissioner of Correctional Services on employment opportunities for released prisoners.

Complaints

The CSD has a Complaints Investigation Unit that is responsible for handling and investigating complaints in relation to the department's work. All investigation reports are subject to the scrutiny of the Correctional Services Department Complaints Committee, which is chaired by the Assistant Commissioner (Quality Assurance). This unit acquired the ISO 9001:2000 Certificate in August for its complaints handling services.

Inmates may also lodge complaints with visiting senior officers or utilise other channels for redress of grievances, such as by making complaints to visiting Justices of the Peace, The Ombudsman and Legislative Councillors.

Drug Abuse and Trafficking

The Government is committed to reducing both the supply of and the demand for illicit drugs through a wide range of action and programmes. It is also committed to reducing the prevalence and incidence of drug abuse by developing a comprehensive treatment and rehabilitation programme for drug abusers and dissuading people, in particular the young, from taking or experimenting with drugs.

Overall Strategy and Coordination

In combating drug trafficking and abuse, the Government adopts a comprehensive five-pronged approach which covers law enforcement, preventive education and publicity, treatment and rehabilitation, research, and international cooperation.

Effective law enforcement curtails illicit drug supply and induces drug abusers to seek treatment voluntarily. It also brings compulsory treatment to many who are convicted of an offence and have a drug dependency. A comprehensive range of treatment and rehabilitation services is provided to meet the different needs of drug abusers from varying backgrounds.

Preventive education and publicity programmes are organised across the HKSAR and at local level to increase public awareness of the drug problem and to encourage people to adopt a drug-free lifestyle. Research studies are conducted on various aspects of the drug abuse problem and the findings facilitate the planning of suitable anti-drug strategies and programmes. Cooperation at the international level, through exchanges of information and experience as well as joint actions against illicit trafficking, enhances the effectiveness of efforts in all these areas.

These anti-drug efforts are coordinated by the Action Committee Against Narcotics. (ACAN), a non-statutory body comprising 20 members, of whom 18 are non-officials. It advises the Government on anti-drug policies and activities and is serviced by the Narcotics Division of the Security Bureau, headed by the Commissioner for Narcotics.

Given the world-wide and local increase of psychotropic substance abuse, a multi- discipline task force comprising more than 30 experts from different fields was set up in early 2000 to recommend to the Government comprehensive strategies to tackle this problem along the five-pronged anti-drug approach. The Task Force completed its work and issued a report in June 2002, recommending a series of specific measures for combating psychotropic substance abuse. These recommendations are being

343