Is Hong Kong doing enough to tackle its underage drinking problem?
- Wellness worker who used to be teen addict details her struggles and dark tales of going ‘off the rails’, as well as accessibility of booze to young
- Recent law prohibiting sale of intoxicating liquor to minors is step in right direction but advocates say more is needed
On the rooftop of a Hong Kong shopping mall, 12-year-old Alice (not her real name) took her first shot of vodka, with her 15-year-old schoolmates egging her on.
“I felt cool, pretty and attractive,” she recalls. “I felt amazing.”
Now 26, Alice admits she did it so her older friends would think she was “cool” like them. Booze fuelled the weekends that followed. Alice would tell her parents she was sleeping over at a friend’s home, where they would secretly get drunk on liquor stolen from her friend’s father.
“I hated being sober because it was slow and boring, and I didn’t think I was smart, pretty or cool enough.”
At 15, Alice needed rehabilitation. By then, she had also begun using hashish and smoking crystal meth.
Alice says it is easy to get drunk and high in Hong Kong. “Alcohol and drugs are relatively cheap and accessible,” she says. “The police are also lenient – I’ve been in clubs that were raided, but never had my ID checked even though I was clearly underage.”
