Thai students face drug testing

Officials have only been able to estimate the extent of methamphetamine use from seizures of the drug

BANGKOK, Thailand -- Thai students face nationwide compulsory urine tests in an attempt to curb a growing drug-use epidemic.

Though a final decision on the dates and details of the tests will be made later this month, Interior Minister Purachai Piumsombun on Wednesday said they are aimed at determining the number of users of methamphetamines among the nation's youth.

The trafficking and consumption of methamphetamine -- a cheap illegal stimulant -- is fast becoming Thailand's top social problem.

The drug is in plentiful supply in the Southeast Asian nation and is believed to be smuggled into the country from neighboring Myanmar, authorities have said.

Announcing the drug testing, Purachai said that schools and colleges would not punish those found to be drug users, The Nation newspaper reported.

Instead, students would be rehabilitated and their records kept confidential, Purachai said.

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Parental consent would be sought prior to the tests that would be conducted simultaneously across the nation, he added.

Authorities have only been able to speculate on the extent of the use of methamphetamines in the country of about 62 million people.

Purachai said that seizures of methamphetamines suggest that the number of pills smuggled into the nation has risen from 100 million to 700 million in the last few years.

"The figures may not show the real magnitude of the problem," the minister was quoted in The Nation.

Purachai is the same minister that last year enforced the early night-time closure of bars and other venues across Thailand winning him widespread public support.

He has expressed concern over the problems facing Thailand's youth after numerous media reports said young people were increasingly being drawn into a life of illegal drugs and promiscuous sex.