Jiang Wanan went to Kunming Prevention and Control Center to inspect the implementation of methadone: completely different from supplying drugs in a community center

Taipei Mayor Chiang Wanan went to the Kunming Prevention and Treatment Center today to inspect the implementation of methadone maintenance therapy. In the face of the situation, an article on drug prevention and control written by DPP Taipei mayoral candidate Shen Boyang 12 years ago from a criminological perspective was recently uncovered and quoted by Blue Camp. Addressing the controversy, Jiang Wanan emphasized that Taipei City has promoted methadone replacement therapy in 2005 and is now implemented by four professional medical institutions. It must be carried out under the strict supervision of medical staff and is completely different from "providing drugs in community centers."

Jiang Wanan said that the hospitals currently providing methadone replacement therapy in Taipei City include Taipei Medical University Kunming Campus, Yangming Campus, Songde Campus and the Beitou Branch of the Military General Hospital, and the implementation is supervised by professional medical personnel. He emphasized that methadol is a second-level controlled drug and is not a drug as commonly known. It is mainly used for treatment purposes. The city's various drug prevention measures also have careful evaluation and rigorous procedures.

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Regarding netizens' doubts that Jiang Wanan's inspection of methadone therapy was a way to "whitewash" Shen Boyang, Jiang said that the city government wants to let the public know correct information and avoid panic caused by false information. Citing the experience of cities such as San Francisco and Los Angeles as examples, he believes that if control measures are overly open, serious consequences may result. He stressed that although there is a consensus on anti-drug control, different control measures may lead to different results. Taipei City "firmly opposes" the distribution of relevant drugs in areas other than professional medical hospitals.

In response to Shen Boyang's recent reaffirmation that Taiwan will not promote the decriminalization of drugs, Jiang Wanan said that he affirmed the other party's statement that he did not support the legalization of drugs, but hoped that the position could be clearer and advocated "firm opposition to the decriminalization of drugs." He also said that Shen's past articles had talked about drug prevention and control practices such as community centers, and once again asked Shen to explain what model the relevant propositions were.

Jiang Wanan also pointed out that the content of Shen Boyang's 2014 article is not the same concept as what is now called methadone replacement therapy. He believes that if the position has changed, it can be explained, but the content of the past article should be faced directly and honestly to avoid confusing different drug prevention measures.