EYE SCANS IN MALAYSIAN SCHOOLS TO DETECT JUNKIES

Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia will soon begin using eye-scan machines in
schools to detect drug usage among teenage pupils after reports that
a large number of adult drug users begin their addictions while in
school, media reports said yesterday.

Deputy Education Minister Noh Omar said the 200,000-ringgit ($53,333)
machines should be able to detect signs of drug use within 24 hours
by using light displays to measure eye movement.

A preliminary test of the eye scans is to be conducted next month at
a school in Kuala Lumpur, he said.

"This machine will enable more students to undergo drug checks so
that those suspected of being addicted can undergo counselling and
begin the recovery process," Noh was quoted as saying by the
Malay-language Berita Harian daily.

Previously, the government had been conducting random urine tests on
teenage students in schools.

Noh said many parents had expressed discomfort at the urine tests,
adding that only pupils with a positive reading from the eye-scan
machine will have to get their urine tested.

He said the government would also make it compulsory for teachers to
begin the day with a five-minute lecture on the perils of taking
drugs as part of a nationwide anti-drug campaign targeted at
schoolchildren.

"If every day for five minutes, we keep talking about drugs, it is
hoped this will instil an awareness in the children of the dangers of
drug abuse," he said.

The government revealed Thursday that a total of 17.7 per cent of
drug addicts polled in Kuala Lumpur had started their addictions
before the age of 13 with morphine and heroine topping the list of
favoured substances.

Authorities said Malaysia has more than 500,000 addicts, but health
workers fear the numbers could be much higher.

Despite Malaysia's tough drug laws, which prescribe a mandatory death
sentence by hanging for drug trafficking, drug addiction continues to
be on the rise.

The eye-scan machines use a 30-second display to test how a subject's
eyes react to light. The machine is able to detect and identify the
use of eight categories of drugs, including marijuana, depressants,
opiates, stimulants and inhalants as well as alcohol.