The capital has successfully taken drugs off the streets after a crackdown on three main black markets for narcotics, local police said yesterday.

The head of the anti-narcotics department under the Beijing municipal public security bureau, Zhao Wenzhong, said police busted the underground markets with help and support from residents.

Residents of Wanquansi in Fengtai District, home to the largest black market for drugs in Beijing, even volunteered to pull down more than 8,000 sq m of buildings illegally constructed to sell narcotics, Zhao said.

"The government has also invested more than 3 million yuan ($405,700) and planted 28 surveillance cameras at public areas in Wanquansi," he said.

The other two black markets for drugs busted by police are in Wanzi in Xuanwu District and Weigongcun in Haidian District.

Figures also show that the drive against drugs is gaining steam.

Zhao said the number of drug addicts at entertainment outlets in the capital has dropped by 72 percent this year from last year.

A recent survey suggested that 77.4 percent of those who work at such entertainment outlets have realized the danger of drugs, Zhao said.

Statistics from police showed that the number of drug smugglers arrested in Beijing this year have gone up by 38 percent from last year, while the amount of drugs confiscated this year went up by 45 percent from last year.

The proportion of drug addicts with an addiction history of less than three years among all drug addicts in Beijing also went down, from 63.1 percent in 2003 to 29.6 percent so far this year.

In addition, only 32.8 percent of all addicts were under 35 years old, much lower than the national average of 59.3 percent.

"The spread of traditional drugs has been controlled and is going down, but the spread of new narcotics like MDMA or Ecstasy pills is still a tough obstacle in the fight against drugs," said Shi Jianchun, the deputy chief of the Beijing anti-narcotic control center.

Shi told China Daily the center was negotiating with international institutions from Finland and Sweden to battle drugs together.

A total of 14,485 volunteers, including many who have suffered from the evils of drug addiction, have also joined the city's fight against drugs by helping to spread the anti-drug message.

Liu Xueli, who was addicted to drugs for seven years, became a volunteer in 2003.

"Being a volunteer, I want to not only help others but also remind myself of how I quit drugs, every day," she said.

Taxi drivers were also asked to join the cause yesterday, where 150,000 cabbies received text messages from the local traffic management department to become anti-drug volunteers.

"Taxi drivers are in frequent contact with various entertainment outlets, so their involvement will not only help spread the anti-drug message but also provide clues for hunting down drug smugglers," Zhao said.

The Beijing drug control committee has put up a total of 2 million yuan ($270,500) to encourage residents to report information on drug smugglers, where those who provide such tip-offs can receive 1,000 yuan to 10,000 yuan for their help.

(China Daily December 6, 2007)