Comparison of illegal drug use pattern in Taiwan and Korea from 2006 to 2014

Abstract

Background: Illegal drug use has long been a global concern. Taiwan and Korea are geographically adjacent and both countries have experienced the illegal use problems of methamphetamine, a predominant prototype of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS). NPS, a term coined by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in recent years, have not been scrutinized for their safety and may become a new threat to public health and security worldwide. To conduct evidence-based drug policy, it is imperative to estimate the trend and pattern of illegal drug use. Therefore, this study aims to analyze and compare the current status of drug-related seizures, arrests and illegal drug use, with a focus on methamphetamine and NPS, between Taiwan and Korea.

Methods: Data of illegal drug (including NPS)-related seizures and arrests were collected via anti-drug related agencies of both countries from 2006 through 2014.Since listing of NPS as controlled substances was a result of NPS abuse liability through official evaluation, the items of controlled NPS were used as an indicator of emerging use. These data obtained from Taiwan and Korea was then compared.

Results: The results showed that while methamphetamine remained as a predominant drug in both Taiwan and Korea for decades, different illegal drug use patterns have been observed in these two countries. In Taiwan, the major illegal drugs were methamphetamine, heroin, and ketamine, whereas in Korea those were methamphetamine and cannabis. By comparison of per capita illicit drug seizures, the illegal drug use situation in Taiwan was at a higher stake than that in Korea. In terms of NPS use, ketamine has been a major drug in Taiwan, but it was seldom found in Korea. Besides ketamine, the major type of NPS was synthetic cathinones in Taiwan whereas it was synthetic cannabinoids and phenethylamines in Korea. The difference in the numbers of controlled NPS items between Taiwan (23) and Korea (93) may be due to the implementation of temporary control on NPS in Korea since 2011.

Conclusion: While the problem of methamphetamine still lingers, NPS have emerged as a new issue in both countries. However, the NPS pattern was different between Taiwan and Korea. Although the controlled NPS items in Taiwan were far less than those in Korea, the quantity of total NPS seizures, especially with ketamine, was much larger in Taiwan than in Korea. Different NPS pattern may also imply they were from different sources. Factors other than geographical proximity, such as drug policy and availability and accessibility to drugs, should be taken into account for the current status of illegal drug use in Korea and Taiwan.

Keywords: Drug seizures; Ketamine; Korea; Methamphetamine; New Psychoactive Substances (NPS); Taiwan.

Fig. 1

Total and per capita amounts of methamphetamine seizure in Taiwan and Korea from 2006 to 2014. The trend of methamphetamine seizure was upward in both Taiwan and Korea but the stake seemed to be higher in Taiwan

Fig. 2

Total and per capita amounts of ketamine seizure in Taiwan and Korea from 2006 to 2014

Fig. 3

Total and per capita amounts of NPS (excluding ketamine) seizures in Taiwan and Korea from 2006 to 2014

Fig. 4

Comparison of drug-related arrests between Taiwan and Korea from 2006 to 2014. Most of the drug-related arrests were due to illegal drug use, which is a criminal offense in both Taiwan and Korea. a Drug-offense related arrestees in Taiwan. b Drug-offense related arrestees in Korea

Fig. 5

Number and proportion of drug-offense related arrestees according to drug types in Taiwan from 2006 to 2014. Heroin was the major drug in Schedule I, methamphetamine in Schedule II, and ketamine in Schedule III

Fig. 6

Number and proportion of drug-offense related arrestees according to drug schedules in Korea from 2006 to 2014. Methamphetamine was the major psychotropic agent