The Rehabilitation Center for Drug Addicts opened Monday at Cambodia's tourism city Siem Reap, about 314 km north of the capital Phnom Penh.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen presided over the inauguration ceremony joined by other government officials and representatives of international organizations.

"We have determined that combating against this danger (drugs) is the most prioritized action for all of us," Hun Sen said.

With the positive socio-economic development in Cambodia, the country has been affected by transnational crimes which distress social stability and threaten human lives, Hun Sen pointed out. These include drugs and human trafficking, money laundering and terrorism activities which have become a major concern.

"In this connection, we all have to recognize that efforts in preventing all those illegal activities must be in parallel with the development of our nation in the future," he stressed.

There are about 300 drug addicts in Siem Reap and most of them are youth, according to local officials. They are often the offenders of social order and security.

While urging relevant authorities to strengthen efforts to combat against drugs, the premier called on all law-enforcement agencies to treat drug addicts as ill persons not the criminals.

"Drug addicts are suffering from an illness that they do not know how to treat," he said. "In reality, according to Law on Drug Control in Cambodia, drug addicts should receive consultancy, treatment and rehabilitation rather than putting them as an outlaw of the society."

Hun Sen, at the same time, called on concerned authorities and schools to strengthen the education on the danger of drugs. "The real and effective person to fight against the threat of drugs on the future of our society and economy are the Cambodian people."

Source: Xinhua