HEROIN 'GLAMOURISED', USE ON RISE

THE number of Australians who tried heroin jumped 50 per cent in the
three years from 1995 to 1998, according to the latest snapshot on
crime.The youngest person recorded as using the drug was only 14, the
Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence figures show.

More than 100,000 people tried heroin at least once in 12 months.
Those most likely to use the drug were men aged between 20 and 39.

Despite record seizures, police are concerned that heroin is gaining
in acceptance. The report also says more women are now using the drug.

The report blames the increase in those trying heroin on dealers
tempting youngsters with a mixture of heroin and cannabis - a practice
known as "snowconing".

Crime-fighting agencies have raised grave concerns about heroin's
growing "respectability . . . as a result of occasional glamorous
representations in the media and the arts", the report says.

For as little as $25 a hit, teenagers are able to obtain the drug,
often in its purest form but also cut with caffeine and even the
cleaning agent, Ajax.

The report highlights the case of a Melbourne schoolboy who travelled
to the city for cannabis, chose heroin because it was cheaper, and
then died of an overdose.

Justice Minister Amanda Vanstone said the most worrying trend was
evidence of people shifting from one illicit drug to another,
depending on the availability.

"This report highlights, for anybody who hasn't yet taken a close
interest in the drug problem we have, just how serious this problem
is," Senator Vanstone said.

"We have got kids who can't even drive a car . . . using these sorts
of drugs."

Describing heroin as the most "visible" problem confronting
authorities, the bureau's chief commissioner, Neil Comrie, said: "This
should be a concern for all Australians, not just those who work in
law enforcement."

Drug dealing was becoming harder for police to detect, with dealers
concealing hits in small balloons in their mouths or up their noses
before transferring it to a buyer, the report says.

A trend has emerged among teenagers who mix the date-rape drug,
Rohypnol, in slush drinks to achieve a high. And about 20 per cent of
secondary students between 12 and 17 experimented with tranquillisers,
the research shows. But the latest figures coincide with greater
seizures, including 722kg of heroin, 52kg of cannabis, 90kg of ecstasy
and almost 1000 detections of performance-enhancing drugs.