Traditionally, Triad Society has dominated the drug market because drugs have considerable profits and a function of manipulating people after addiction. Along with the new trend in cannabis use and other new substances, the leadership of Triad Society in drug markets had been gradually fading their role in controlling these substances. This study has interviewed and surveyed drug users in Hong Kong to examine the changes in new generations regarding the drug market. The results indicated a clear generational change in the sources of supply, trends in drug use, and reasons for choosing types of drugs. Since cannabis and new substances are cheaper, less addictive, more natural and easier to obtain than hard drugs, Triad Society is less interested in these substances, resulting in the fading role in these new drug markets. However, these new substances are more attractive to young generations. After the legalization of cannabis use in many countries, the Hong Kong young generations tend to "fact check" the history of forbidding cannabis use, re-think the zero-tolerance policy and the advertised harms of cannabis, and import foreign cannabis cultures. Compared to traditional drug users, cannabis users tend to be highly educated; hence, they researched the effects, consequences and safety measures. Turning the strict restriction to harm reduction policies is probably the better way to intervene the young substance users.
