Narcotics

The retail price of No. 4 heroin fluctuated throughout 1997. By the end
of 1997, the average purity was 49.49 per cent at the average price of
$418.90 per gram compared with a purity of 44.97 per cent and a price
of $390.65 at the end of 1996.

During 1997, 169.5 kilograms of opiate drugs, comprising opium and
No. 4 heroin, were seized, compared with 309.1 kilograms in 1996. Police
and the Customs and Excise Department made 12 483 arrests for
narcotics offences, compared with 14 827 in 1996. The decline in
seizures was attributed to unlawful syndicates' practice of storing drugs in
bulk across the border and then bringing supplies in small quantities into
Hong Kong to meet local demand.

Narcotics enforcement resulted in 12 heroin manufacturing and cutting
centres being neutralised. A total of 74.6 kilograms of methylamphetamine
or 'ice' was seized in 1997, compared with 46.8 kilograms in 1996.

Since the introduction of the Drug Trafficking (Recovery of Proceeds)
Ordinance in September 1989 and the establishment of the Financial
Investigation Unit, assets valued at $297 million have been ordered
confiscated and a total of $216 million has been paid to the government.
Further assets amounting to $169 million were under restraint at the end
of 1997, pending confiscation proceedings.

Efforts to prevent young persons from getting involved in the drug trade
continued to be a main target of the narcotics enforcement strategy. In
1997, amendments to the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance were made and
implemented to provide for heavier sentences for adults exploiting young
persons in the illegal drug trade. Other plans include the proposed
extension of the Superintendent's Discretion Scheme to cover minor
opiate offences.

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