Star war on drugs

Beijing entertainers vow drug-free stages

Actor Gao Hu arrested for drug abuse

Gao confessed that he had been smoking marijuana and he tested positive after his arrest on Aug 4, police said.

Not long before, Zhang Mo, actor and son to actor and director Zhang Guoli, made news headlines when police confirmed he was arrested for using drugs on July 29, following his arrest over marijuana use in 2012 when police searched his home after receiving a tip.

In June, Beijing police detained screenwriter and novelist Chen Wanning, whose pen name is Ning Caishen, for possession and use of methamphetamine in an apartment in Beijing.

That same month, film director Zhang Yuan was arrested for drug offenses at a Beijing railway station, after he allegedly tried to evade a random drug check.

A total of nine entertainment industry people have been detained on drug charges, and most of them are celebrities.

The detention list also includes Li Daimo, who was arrested in March for taking illegal drugs in an apartment, and Hong Kong actor Roy Cheung, 51, who was arrested while smoking marijuana in a Beijing hotel in July.

Qu Xiao, movie producer and founder of Beijing Qiyu Ji Culture and Media Company, sees the pledge initiated by the entertainment industry association and companies as a serious warning to performers.

"The government is faithful to control illegal drug use and corruption. Entertainment industry people are not excluded from that mission," Qu says.

"Those who don't believe in the government's determination and continue with illegal drug use will regret it sooner or later."