Beijing says US legalization of marijuana is a 'threat to China'
China has stepped up its efforts to combat the sale of illegal drugs in recent years
Monday, June 17, 2019
Beijing's leading drug enforcement body has blamed the legalization of marijuana in Canada and parts of the United States for a spike in the amount of drugs smuggled into the country, describing it as a "new threat to China." Liu Yuejin, deputy director of the China National Narcotics Control Commission, said that the number of cannabis users in China had grown by more than 25% in 2018, rising to about 24,000 people. "In two years, we have found increasing cannabis trafficked from North America to China," he said, though he conceded there were "few cannabis abusers in China" relative to the total population. Anyone found with more than 50 grams of a controlled substance can face the death penalty in China. (See also: China nominates Hong Kong occupy-era police chief for UN post)
