The 17th Meeting of the International Association of Forensic Sciences (IAFS) kicked off in Hong Kong Monday.

More than 1,200 world's leading practitioners in forensic science and research including those from the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong are taking part in the five-day meeting.

The main theme of the meeting is "Justice Through Science" in which participants will discuss the relationship between forensic science and a variety of aspects such as education, drug abuse, pathology, nursing, computer forensic and digital evidence.

To introduce the latest developments of forensic science and medicine in China, a special session entitled "Forensic Science in China" will be added to the scientific program.

IAFS is the only international association which brings together academics and practicing professionals of various disciplines in forensic science, with the objective to develop the forensic sciences, to assist forensic scientists and exchange scientific and technical information.

This is the second time that the triennial meeting is held in Asia and the first in Hong Kong since the association was established in 1957. The last meeting was held in France in 2002.

(Xinhua News Agency August 23, 2005)