S. KOREA AND JAPAN TO LAUNCH ANTI-DRUG HOTLINE

South Korean and Japanese anti-drug police units have agreed to set up a
joint hotline to crack down on rising drug crime, in preparation for the
2002 World Cup soccer finals, the National Police Agency (NPA) said yesterday.

Investigators from the NPA's drug intelligence division and some members of
the Japanese National Police Agency's drug crime prevention unit agreed at
a meeting Wednesday to establish the hotline through telephone, fax and e-mail.

Both host countries of the international soccer event will crack down on
drug trafficking, particularly trafficking in methamphetamine, or "speed,"
officials said.

The bilateral agreement on fighting drug crime comes amid a growing problem
with drug smuggling from Southeast Asia.

Bilateral efforts will include strengthening information exchange to curb
the inflow into South Korea and Japan of illegal substances such as heroin,
mostly cultivated in Myanmar, Taiwan and Laos, as well as speed, produced
in China, according to officials.

The NPA said it would launch Jan. 1 next year anti-drug enforcement units
nationwide with the cooperation of local police agencies.

About 960 police officers from 119 local police agencies in major cities
throughout South Korea will be mobilized in the national fight against
drugs. Police will also cooperate with China and other neighboring
countries to crack down on drug crimes, officials said.

During its crackdown on narcotics and other illegal substances in November
this year, the NPA's drug intelligence division filed charges against 811
suspects, detaining 648.

Police suspect the rate of drug smuggling cases is rising along with the
numbers of tourists from China and Southeast Asia.