u  Damages of drugs and legal responsibilities

1. Drugs mean the psychotropic or narcotic drugs used “not for medical and scientific purposes” and being able to cause “dependency” (i.e. addiction). For crimes involving abused drugs, strict prohibition measures such as severe punishments are adopted in most countries currently.

2. Countries that adopt death penalty as the most severe punishment to drug abuse include Taiwan (R.O.C.), China, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and some countries of Middle East and Africa.

3. Countries adopting life sentence as the most severe punishment to drug abuse include Hong Kong, Japan, Netherlands and U.S.A.

4. New generation anti-drug strategy in Taiwan;

 (1) Anti-drug surveillance: blockage outside borders, intensifying inspection

     1. Purchase fast identification instruments to enhance the ability of blocking drugs outside borders.

     2. Promote examination ability of new drugs to improve inspection capabilities.

 (2) Prevention of drugs: no drugs in campus

     1. Integration of schools and police stations for cooperation to set up patrol networks of drugs.

     2. Individual follow-up project with professional counseling and referral for each drug abuse case.

 (3) Anti-drug campaign: no dead space for drugs

     1. Integration of inter-institutional resources to establish national drug database.

     2. Intense attacks of small and medium scale drug sale network in communities.

     3. Establishment of planning and supervision mechanism for regional mutual aid system.

     4. Establishment of local drug report net in rural region and intensifying anti-drug smuggling of drug dealers.

     5. Establishment of drug notification and inspection mechanism in the military.

 (4) Anti-drug treatment: diverse, evidence-based and continuous drug treatment services

     1. Raise the coverage rate of drug (addiction) treatment services.

     2. Establish the integrated addiction treatment medical care centers.

     3. Set up therapeutic communities and half-way houses.

     4. Promote cross-regional drug delivery services of methadone alternative treatment and intensify alternative treatment services for rural regions.

     5. Build up family-based supporting services to help addicts return to their families.

     6. Connect network resources for enhancing employment preparation and promotion service for individual case.

 (5) Law amendment strategy

     1. Increase the penalties and fines for manufacturing, transporting and selling drugs.

     2. Increase the penalties for selling drugs to minors and pregnant women, and for manufacturing, transporting and selling mix-type drugs.

     3. For multiple or class-four or class-three drug addicts, there are administrative measures, such as fines, lectures, physical and psychological treatment and counseling, first. For those who don’t complete physical and psychological treatment and counseling and violate more than four times in three years, there are criminal punishments.

     4. Introduce and expand the confiscation system to cut the cash supplies of drug dealers.