Only 30% of drug addicts in Ho Chi Minh City detected: police

Major General Phan Anh Minh, deputy director of the city Police Department released the figures at a meeting held by the local People’s Committee on Friday to review the performances in cracking down on crime and ensuring order and security in the city over the two-month period ending on March 15.

The 2,800 addicts are a part of the above 30 percent of drug addicts and have been sent to rehabilitation centers since December 5, 2014, when local police launched a campaign to send them there, pending court decisions on applying compulsory detoxification to them, Major General Minh said.

According to statistics, the city now has about 19,000 drug addicts, of whom 12,000 have unstable residence.

“Therefore, we should not think that the situation of drug abuse will soon terminate after we sent more than 2,800 drug addicts to detoxification centers,” the official said.

The campaign was launched after the National Assembly adopted a resolution to allow drug addicts to be sent to such facilities as Binh Trieu Rehabilitation Center in Binh Thanh District and the Nhi Xuan Vocational Training and Job Creation Center in Hoc Mon District, pending court judgments.

Addressing the meeting, chairman of the People’s Committee Le Hoang Quan said that the sending of drug addicts to obligatory detoxification centers is a humanitarian policy.

“Don’t be afraid of wrong allegations saying that the admission of drug addicts to such centers is an act violating human rights,” the city leader said.

“The city authorities are determined to offer detoxification to drug addicts with a view to help them recover health and build a better life, he said.

The city police also reported to the meeting that 855 criminal cases occurred across the city from January 16 to March 15, down 23.18 percent from the preceding two months.

Of these cases, 520 were uncovered by units under the city police department, which arrested 609 offenders.