Wenyi Zhang
Research expert covering Greater China
Nearly six percent of the world's population uses illicit drugs and substances. For most countries, narcotics remain a major cause of social and public health challenges. Owing to historical and cultural reasons, Chinese society has little tolerance for illicit drugs, while the country has one of the most stringent anti-narcotics laws in the world. Anyone convicted of trafficking more than 50 grams of heroin, methamphetamine, or cocaine can be sentenced to death.
Consequently, more drug users have shifted to other substances like Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and Mescaline, which frequently cause hallucinations or manic symptoms and increase the risk of violent crime among drug users. Some criminal organizations have also turned to producing illegal anesthetic drugs and selling them online for use in sexual offenses such as rape and indecent assault.
Sources of illicit drugs in China
The vast majority of narcotics circulating in China originate beyond the country's borders. Of the nearly 12 tons of heroin, methamphetamine, and ketamine seized nationwide in 2022, more than 92 percent came from abroad, with the "Golden Triangle" region, located along the borders between Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand, accounting for nearly 99 percent of China's heroin supply. With the exception of marijuana, which is often smuggled into the country through postal parcels, drug trafficking activities in China are dominated by bulk smuggling via land or sea.Drug users in China
The share of drug users in China's population is far below the world average. As of December 2022, the country had 1.12 million drug users, accounting for only 0.08 percent of the country's population. Men under 35 are at higher risk of being addicted to illegal substances. Unlike drug trafficking, drug use is not a criminal offense in China, yet drug addicts apprehended by the police are almost always sent to compulsory isolation and drug rehabilitation centers, where they are detained and treated.Challenges associated with drug use
Like in most other countries, drugs have led to considerable complications in China's society. Blood-borne diseases such as acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) are more common among drug addicts due to the use of shared syringes for intravenous drugs. Poverty caused by drug use has also led desperate drug users to engage in criminal activities. As the supply of drugs in China fell sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic, the prices of illicit drugs soared in the country, making them unavailable or unaffordable to their consumers.Consequently, more drug users have shifted to other substances like Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and Mescaline, which frequently cause hallucinations or manic symptoms and increase the risk of violent crime among drug users. Some criminal organizations have also turned to producing illegal anesthetic drugs and selling them online for use in sexual offenses such as rape and indecent assault.
