Many parents realized the severity of drug abuse among youngsters and supported the idea of performing drug tests on students in schools, a survey revealed.

The number of drug addicts aged below 21 in Hong Kong increased by 13 percent in 2007, according to Narcotics Division figures.

Last month, political group New Century Forum surveyed 1,462 people aged between 11 and 80. Among them, 387 are parents.

As revealed, 84 percent agreed that juvenile drug abuse was serious in the city, said Scarlet Pong, New Century Forum district councilor and a pharmacist.

Thirty-nine percent of the respondents aged 21-30 said they had friends who took heroin or psychotropic drugs.

About 4 percent of the interviewees had taken drugs themselves, while 17.7 percent of the 21-30 age group had done so or were still doing so.

Meanwhile, 49.4 percent of all the respondents and 50.9 percent of the parents supported the idea of having drug tests in schools, provided that the students consent to it.

If drug tests are to be carried out, 48.4 percent said it should cover all students, but 35.3 percent said the measure should only apply to students with symptoms of a drug user.

Forty-four percent of the parents expressed concerns about the measure being an infringement on privacy.

In Pong's view, many young people consume drugs because of influences of their peers, curiosity and some of them believe they need to take drugs in order to relax when they feel stressed.

In addition, some teenagers are under the impression that soft drugs are less dangerous than heroin or marijuana.

She suggested the government step up its anti-drug efforts. She also called for schools to carry out drug tests on students who display suspicious behavior.

(HK Edition 06/26/2008 page1)