The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has set up an official Web site dedicated to its campaign against drug abuse.
In a statement on the Web site, Minister of Justice Morley Shih (
Drug abuse often leads to other criminal conduct and activities, as addicts look for cash to sustain their habit, Shih said.
According to statistics provided by the ministry, the volume of drugs seized by the government in its crackdown has been increasing in recent years.
In 2001 law enforcement officials seized more than 2 million units of various forms of drugs. This figure rose to more than 8 million units in 2003 and further to 13 million units last year.
Meanwhile, the number of people indicted for trading, trafficking, possession and using drugs has also risen in recent years. From January to November last year, 27,152 people were indicted under the Violation of the Narcotics Endangerment Prevention Act (
Aside from offering information on issues such as signs and symptoms of drug abuse, the Web site offers stories of people who successfully overcame a drug habit.
The ministry is currently working on amending a law that would enable authorities to detain users of minor drugs and force them to undergo treatment.
The proposed amendment should help young people that have become hooked on minor drugs such as ketamine, methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA or ecstasy) or flunitrazepam, which are frequently found in pubs or KTVs, according to the ministry. A stricter law could also act as a deterrent for potential drug users.
Under the current law, while selling or transporting third-class, or minor, drugs is a criminal offense, those caught using these drugs do not face criminal charges.
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off Taitung County at 1:09pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 53km northeast of Taitung County Hall at a depth of 12.5km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Taitung County and Hualien County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Nantou County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County, Kaohsiung and Tainan, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage following the quake.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) is to begin his one-year alternative military service tomorrow amid ongoing legal issues, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. Wang, who last month was released on bail of NT$150,000 (US$4,561) as he faces charges of allegedly attempting to evade military service and forging documents, has been ordered to report to Taipei Railway Station at 9am tomorrow, the Alternative Military Service Training and Management Center said. The 33-year-old would join about 1,300 other conscripts in the 263rd cohort of general alternative service for training at the Chenggong Ling camp in Taichung, a center official told reporters. Wang would first
A BETRAYAL? It is none of the ministry’s business if those entertainers love China, but ‘you cannot agree to wipe out your own country,’ the MAC minister said Taiwanese entertainers in China would have their Taiwanese citizenship revoked if they are holding Chinese citizenship, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said. Several Taiwanese entertainers, including Patty Hou (侯佩岑) and Ouyang Nana (歐陽娜娜), earlier this month on their Weibo (微博) accounts shared a picture saying that Taiwan would be “returned” to China, with tags such as “Taiwan, Province of China” or “Adhere to the ‘one China’ principle.” The MAC would investigate whether those Taiwanese entertainers have Chinese IDs and added that it would revoke their Taiwanese citizenship if they did, Chiu told the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister paper
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