Police in southwest China's border province of Yunnan seized 9.6 tons of drugs in the first 11 months this year, more than double the four tons seized in the whole of 2005.

 

"The amount of drugs seized accounts for 80 percent of the national total during this period," Sun Dahong, deputy director of the Yunnan Provincial Public Security Department.

 

Police seized 3.87 tons of heroin, 3.71 tons of methamphetamine, or "ice," 1.38 tons of opium and 0.64 ton of other drugs, Sun explained.

 

11,976 drug-related suspects were arrested, including 35 listed key drug dealers, through 9,959 solved drug trafficking cases, said Sun.

 

Bordering Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, Yunnan is involved in a constant war on drug trafficking from the Golden Triangle, a notorious drug-producing area along the Mekong River delta, including Myanmar and Laos.

 

Last year, Yunnan seized more than 4,000 kg of drugs and arrested 4,600 suspected drug dealers while nationwide, police seized 6.9 tons of heroin and 5.5 tons of "ice."

 

The province has carried out a series of frontier patrols this year, mobilizing more than 30,000 police, to net drug traffickers, said Sun.

 

It also established 166 anti-drug volunteer teams with 105,000 people at provincial, prefectural and county levels, Sun said.

 

Chinese police have increased efforts to crack down on drug-related crimes, uncovering 36,400 cases and seizing 45,100 suspects in the first 11 months of this year nationwide.

 

Police seized 4.79 tons of heroin, 1.52 tons of opium, 4.9 tons of ice, 329,000 ecstasy tablets and 267.5 tons of chemical drug components, Ministry of Public Security figures show.

 

(Xinhua News Agency December 31, 2006)