ABSTRACT
I Introduction Opium has been used for its euphoric and medicinal effects for many centuries in China. 2 With the expansion of trade between Britain, India and China in the eighteenth century, however, the extent of smoking increased until it became a matter of imperial concern, both on account of its evil social effects and its cost in foreign exchange. In 1800, Emperor Kiaking forbade the importation and growth of opium, but this edict had no effect and the illicit trade continued to grow. In 186o, after the second 'Opium War', the importa:tion was legalized, and remained legal until 1917.3
With the establishment of the League of Nations, international co-operation was instituted to reduce the traffic, and Hong Kong attempted to phase out the use of opium in the colony. This had been first attempted following the International Opium Conference at Shanghai in 1909, but had proved ineffective. The importation of opium became a government monopoly, exercised through a private company from 1909 to 1940, when the monopoly was terminated and all imports of opium and its derivatives, other than for medicinal purposes, became illegal.' While the phasing out of opium had seemed excellent in theory, in practice smuggling replaced importation by the monopoly, and Hong Kong, a customs-free port, was almost powerless to stop it.
