Sitting with a police officer (front left), program participants read books in their spare time at a compulsory drug addiction rehabilitation facility in Guiyang, Guizhou Province, on December 23, 2015 (QIN BIN)

"My days here are quiet and well organized. I read books and newspapers every day. In spare time, I play cards with other roommates. I feel good here," the 50-year-old man surnamed Li told Beijing Review . He has been a drug addict for many years.

"My family is always worried about me. Several months later, my son will take me home when I finish compulsory drug rehabilitation. I have sworn to him that I won't take drugs anymore," Li said with tears streaming down his face.

Li was receiving addiction treatment on December 20, 2015, at a hospital in Zhongshan, south China's Guangdong Province, when he agreed to be interviewed by Beijing Review . Unlike other medical facilities, the South Region Hospital of Zhongshan specializes in offering treatment to those in police custody, including drug addicts who receive compulsory drug rehabilitation under police surveillance.

Li said that he was taken into custody one year ago for taking heroin, a substance labeled as an illegal hard drug by every country in the world. But police found out that Li has a serious heart disease and was not suited to live in a compulsory rehabilitation center. To ensure that the detoxification treatment could still take place, Li was transferred to the South Region Hospital where he could also receive treatment for his heart condition.

China has over 14 million drug addicts. In a nationwide anti-drug action launched in 2014, Chinese police captured a total of 69 tons of drugs including heroin, hallucinogens and other synthetic drugs.

While the control of narcotics is a worldwide problem, China also has its share of drug-related crimes, especially as users look to get money quick through theft or robbery. But in recent years, China's renewed fight against illegal drugs has effectively curbed the growth of those crimes.

Policemen are on duty at an anti-drug trafficking checkpoint in Lufeng County, Guangdong Province, on December 22, 2015 (QIN BIN)

Adapting to the need 

Now many local governments and community groups are trying new methods to combat drug addiction so as to support the tens of thousands of Chinese citizens in rehabilitation.

Wang Jun, head of the hospital, told Beijing Review  that the medical facilities there are able to meet the needs for treating most diseases, including drug addiction. Put into operation in 2011, the hospital has 56 members in their medical staff and is well equipped with devices for surgery, emergency treatment and intensive care for both common diseases and epidemics including HIV/AIDS, Wang said.

Li's recovery is ongoing and promising. Currently, Li takes medicine and his condition is checked every day by nurses. After he finishes compulsory drug rehabilitation, he will be free to go for a heart surgery in another hospital, Wang said.

Tan Peian, Vice Mayor of Zhongshan and the local police chief, told Beijing Review  that putting drug addicts with severe diseases into the South Region Hospital is a direct outcome of the city's anti-drug war launched in 2013. According to Tan, in the past dealing with drug addicts was a difficult job for local police. On one hand, drug addicts often gave themselves up out of desperation. On the other hand, the local government lacked qualified detention facilities to take drug addicts into custody, especially when they suffered from infectious diseases such as hepatitis and HIV/AIDS. After several days of temporary detention at the police station, these drug addicts were often set free, so they became emboldened to conduct more serious crimes, he explained.

"But with the establishment of the South Region Hospital, we are able to receive all drug addicts with chronicle diseases and offer them good treatment," Tan said.

The hospital is managed in cooperation between police and medical professionals. Doctors are responsible for the treatment for drug addicts while local police are in charge of security and guards, Tan said. So far, there have been 500 drug addicts who were seriously sick or disabled in the city. All of them have been received by different levels of drug rehabilitation facilities.

Public security has improved considerably, Tan said, though the number of drug addicts is still increasing. Last year, Zhongshan's police investigated nearly 8,000 drug abusers; and 4,000 of them were sent to compulsory drug rehabilitation centers.

Former addicts make clothes at a factory in Qingzhen County, Guizhou Province, on December 23, 2015  (QIN BIN)

Community treatment service 

Generally, drug addicts need to continue receiving treatment for a very long time. In many cases, treatment may last the rest of their life. Experts say that the major problem is that few drug addicts can stop themselves from abusing drugs again by their own will. The question of how to help them stay away from drugs then becomes a challenge for the whole of society. In many Chinese cities, methadone clinics have been established to help opioid drug addicts.

Wang Gaoxi, President of Anti-Drugs Association of Zhongshan, told Beijing Review  that methadone is an opioid medication which can reduce withdrawal symptoms in people who are addicted to heroin or other narcotic drugs, without causing addiction. Today, methadone is used as a pain reliever and as part of drug addiction detoxification and maintenance programs, he explained.

Wang Gaoxi has been engaged in medical clinics and the research of drug addiction detoxification for more than 10 years. He is now leading a team of social workers, named the Lianzhong Social Worker Service, to carry on drug addiction treatment in communities across Zhongshan. Lianzhong opens a community service station for drug rehabilitation in the Shiqi District of Zhongshan, offering Methadone maintenance programs for drug addicts.

The drug rehabilitation station has 20 staff members. It not only offers treatment but also provides drug addicts with psychotherapy and assistance to help them return to a normal life and find a job. Wang Gaoxi said, "In the beginning, many drug addicts refused to meet us. After seeing the effects of our treatment, they embraced the maintenance program."

Yet Wang Gaoxi was quick to admit that curing drug addiction is extremely difficult. "Most drug addicts can't realize this objective by themselves. We offer them professional treatment and training. Our aim is to help them recover to normal physical and psychological levels and lead a new life," he said.

More than 80 percent of drug addicts stay with the maintenance treatment, while some are able to shake off the addiction completely and find a stable job, according to Wang Gaoxi.

As a non-profit organization, their annual budget of 2 million yuan ($307,200) is sponsored by the municipal government. Wang believes the local government purchasing professional services from non-governmental organizations is a positive attempt to seek diversified solutions for rehabilitation of drug addicts. "This is just a beginning," he said. "To help more drug addicts, more professional community workers are needed."

There is good news for Wang Gaoxi and his team: Zhuhai College in Guangdong Province started recruiting students for the job in the fall of 2015. In 2017, those students will graduate and join the social working team.

A doctor examines a seriously ill drug addict at the South Region Hospital in Zhongshan, Guangdong Province, on December 20, 2015 (QIN BIN)

Out of the shadows 

Community clinics for drug addicts can also be found in southwest China's Guizhou Province.

Li Mei, a 45-year-old former drug addict, often comes to a community clinic in Wudang District of Guiyang, capital of Guizhou. She told Beijing Review  that her greatest regret was becoming addicted to heroin. In the late 1990s, she started a garment business and made some money. But later she started abusing heroin, which was the beginning of a long nightmare for her. Li Mei said that she began drug treatment over 10 years ago, but she couldn't always restrain herself from the drug in the past. For some time she had fallen into despair. She also divorced due to drug abuse.

Later, Li Mei was recommended the methadone therapy in the community where she lives. "I have a cup of 40 milliliter methadone medication per day," she said. She could hardly believe that she has been persistent in maintaining treatment for eight years and has never touched heroin again.

In Li Mei's view, however, another obstacle that she had to overcome was beyond the physical addiction. "There was a psychological dependence on drugs," she said. "Every time I met frustration or trouble, I wanted to numb myself by taking drugs."

Yang Ruibing is Li Mei's psychologist at the community clinic. Yang told Beijing Review  that drug addicts often suffer from such problems. "The drug abuse will make addicts have complicated chronic brain diseases, making it easy to relapse," Yang said. Therefore, apart from the methadone medication, drug addicts must receive psychological therapy regularly, Yang said.

Furthermore, drug addicts are often fragile and mentally sensitive. Any frustration in their everyday life can cause a mental breakdown, Yang said.

"So, it requires psychologists and social workers to take care of drug addicts patiently and find out their problems, and help them out of the shadows of drug addiction," Yang said.

Yang has rich experience in the practice of psychological treatment. Four years ago, the Guiyang Municipal Government launched an anti-drug initiative and Yang agreed to offer psychological treatment for drug addicts in the community. Yang admitted that she never thought the work would be so hard. In a mere month, several drug addicts who had received Yang's psychological therapy had abused drugs again, which made Yang disappointed.

Yang subsequently did further research on drug addiction and then adopted customized treatments to each addict, she said. "We must always care for them, encourage their efforts and offer help when they need us," Yang said. In the last four years, Yang has treated over 100 drug addicts and she reported that many of them have led normal lives again.

With proper treatment and Yang's counseling, Li Mei fully recovered. She has gotten married once more.

According to the Public Security Department of the Guizhou Provincial Government, there are a total of 62 comprehensive community clinics offering methadone treatment and psychological therapy in the province. Around 42,000 drug addicts have received treatment in community clinics and 14,000 addicts are participating in maintenance programs.

Offering job opportunities 

Treatment is not the last step in the anti-drug cycle. It is necessary to help those who have recovered from drug addiction get a stable job and lead a decent life. To fulfill the objective, Guizhou launched the Sunshine Initiative four years ago. Under the initiative, the local government, communities, voluntary organizations and enterprises work together to offer occupational training and job opportunities.

Chen Ying, 36, has been working at a clothing factory in Qingzhen County of Guiyang for the last five years. Chen told Beijing Review  that it was in 1997 when she touched heroin for the first time and became an addict. Today, Chen has been drug-free since 2007.

After finishing drug rehabilitation, Chen failed to secure a job due to her past. When she was desperate, the initiative lent a hand to her, and Chen was recommended to work at a newly-opened cloth factory in 2011. She now receives 2,000 yuan ($306.8) per month. Together with the earnings from her husband, the life for Chen's family has improved gradually.

However, operating a company that recruits former drug addicts is not easy, said Huang Fei, the owner of the factory that Chen works for. Huang told Beijing Review  that without the support of local government, his company could not have survived.

The local government called on entrepreneurs to support the Sunshine Initiative by offering job opportunities for drug addicts who lived in poverty. After Huang accepted the offer, the government exempted the factory of tax and promised to order garments from the factory.

But problems came after the factory opened. "The biggest challenge was that many workers lacked discipline and worked carelessly," Huang said. "I knew they were drug addicts, but a fundamental reason was that they had no confidence in the factory and didn't trust me."

Huang told himself that he must prove his integrity to his workers and dispel their misgivings. He then often talked with his workers and tried to understand their thoughts, and he

encouraged them to master occupational skills to earn a living. Gradually, Huang and his workers became good friends.

"The key point is that you must treat former addicts as ordinary people and care for them," Huang said. "Many of the workers' health is not good due to drug addiction. So I don't let them work too much. It took us three years to adapt to each other," Huang said.

At present, Huang said his workers have recovered to normal levels and the factory has earned small profits. "The workers have been able to concentrate on their jobs so they are not haunted by drug addiction," he said.

Huang said that the factory has around 100 workers now. Over the past five years, over 400 drug addicts have worked here. Many of them found other jobs after learning skills at Huang's factory.

According to the Guizhou Provincial Government, a total of 140 companies joining in the Sunshine Initiative are running well. These enterprises provide more than 2,000 job opportunities for people who are recovering from drug addiction.

Copyedited by Marra Lee Durrell

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