China slowly legalizing methadone to help combat AIDS

GEJIU, China - At first, addicts couldn't believe it. The city opened a clinic right on the main road, where it offered something called methadone, a drink that supposedly eliminated the craving for heroin, for less than $1.

"People weren't sure," said Zhang Liren, an addict for 10 years. They thought it might be a trap.

But word spread that the drink worked. Now, every afternoon, more than 160 addicts stream into the tiny clinic for a shot of a bright green liquid that tastes vaguely of lime.

Many say that they've stopped using heroin, that the methadone calms them and returns them to normal lives.

A synthetic drug used to treat addiction in Western countries for more than 30 years, methadone is gradually being legalized in China as the government tries to control the spread of AIDS. At least half of the estimated 1 million HIV infections in China have come from sharing dirty needles, according to government statistics.

The United Nations has said China could have 10 million HIV/AIDS cases by 2010 if the government doesn't take immediate action........

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