TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) reiterated the government's zero-tolerance drug policy at an annual meeting on combating drug use.

Chen said Taiwan's High Prosecutors Office and anti-drug mechanisms needed to be ramped up to intercept and block drugs and drug precursors at their source. The goal is to curb the spread of marijuana and emerging drugs, while simultaneously strengthening detection techniques to uphold public health and ensure social stability and security, he said.

Chen mentioned Taiwan’s collaborative efforts with the U.S., resulting in the confiscation of a record-breaking 175 tons of the third-class drug kratom this year. The number of first-time drug offenders decreased from 23.2% in 2017 to 18.7% as of October this year, he said. Additionally, the number of drug users in Taiwan correctional facilities dropped from 50% in 2017 to 40.8% by the end of October this year, according to a Cabinet press release.

Due to increased government crackdowns, as of October this year, there have been no reported deaths from PMMA and PMA, which are sold as alternatives to ecstasy, Chen said.

However, the premier acknowledged the prevalence of cannabis and other emerging drugs. The use of precursor chemicals by drug traffickers to manufacture drugs and the rise in cases of drug smuggling pose significant challenges to the government's drug enforcement efforts.

The Tsai administration introduced the NT$100 billion (US$3.27 billion) “New Generation Anti-drug Strategy” in 2017, which lasted until 2020. In 2021, the "New Generation Anti-drug Strategy 2.0 was launched with a budget of NT$150 billion, which will last until 2024.

These strategies aim to “prevent the raw materials and precursors for illegal drugs from entering Taiwan, reduce drug-related health problems for addicts and make them less likely to commit other types of crime, and strengthen investigation and seizure measures against the manufacture, sale, and transport of drugs,” according to the Cabinet.