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Rave Parties Face Having to Be Licensed
A licensing system for rave parties is expected to be introduced in Hong Kong as part of a clampdown on drug abuse amongst youngsters.
The message came from Professor Lee Shiu-hung, chairman of the Action Committee Against Narcotics who disclosed the figures of drug abusers in the first three months at a media briefing on Thursday.
Local officials believed that Hong Kong is following the worldwide trend of chalking up a rapid increase in the number of people under the age of 21 taking drugs. They said the rising popularity of rave parties is responsible though there is no concrete evidence to back their view.
According to figures from the Central Registry of Drug Abusers, the number increased from 765 in the last quarter of 1999 to 1,057 in the first quarter of this year. The increase in the number of cases of people abusing the "party drug" ecstasy rose from 170 to 465 over the same quarterly period.
The figures also showed that abusers of ketamine, an anesthetic used by veterinary surgeons that has also become synonymous with raves, rose from 10 to 141.
The licensing system will be discussed next month when police anti-drugs officers and members of the Action Committee Against Narcotics meet owners of premises used for rave and party organizers.
More youngsters are taking psychotropic drugs as the "rave" culture makes it easier to obtain party drugs such as ecstasy and ketamine, local officials said. They estimated that about five large "rave" organizers were running events for up 4,000 party- goers as well as dozens of small "raves" in Hong Kong.
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