Beijing
(AsiaNews/Agencies) - China's government has admitted that an illegal
traffic in human organs for transplant actually exists, but blamed it on the
work of rogue surgeons. For this reason, it has called on the members of the
profession to adhere to a "code of conduct".
Addressing a conference of
surgeons in Guangzhou yesterday, Deputy Health Minister Huang Jiefu acknowledged
that most organs harvested come from executed prisoners. He insisted that
informed consent must inform organ harvesting, that donation be voluntary and
done with the consent of donors or their families.
"The harvesting,
distribution and use of organs must be closely tracked under responsible
supervision by related administrations," Mr Huang said.
"Under-the-table
business must be banned," Mr Huang said cognizant that too often organs come
from non consenting parties and are sold for high fees to foreigners.
He
added that the authorities would set up an information network that would
register and keep track of all human organ donations. For some time now
relatives of executed prisoners have accused the authorities of harvesting
organs from dead prisoners without their consent or respect for rules with the
complicity of prison officials.
China executes anywhere between two and
ten thousands prisoners, the highest number in the world. And families have
complained that the bodies of their executed relatives are not handed over.
Human right groups have said some mainland hospitals have traded organs
to patients in other countries, and foreign patients disguised as tourists have
come to the mainland for transplants using organs from prisoners or other donors
who had not given their informed consent.
In response to the charges the
Health Ministry issued an Interim Regulations on Human Organ Transplant Clinic
Application Administration in March. These allow only top hospitals with
qualified doctors, equipment and technical facilities to provide organ
transplant surgery and ban organ trading and unwilling donation.
Although the regulations took effect in July, they have not had any
effective influence, this according to organ transplant professionals. Still,
this is the first time the authorities officially acknowledge the existence of a
black market in transplant organs from executed prisoners.
Surgeons
responded immediately to a request by the Health Minister to abide by the
ethical regulation of human organ transplants. This means that the
responsibility falls on their shoulders.
The code of conduct insists on
the obligation for everyone in the medical profession to respect the law and the
ethical principles of medicine and thus not participate in the harvesting and
trading in organs without the written consent of the donor.
About 600
surgeons gathered in Guangzhou agreed not to be involved in any organ trading or
provide transplant services to foreign patients visiting as tourists, and that
they would abide by the law and respect ethical rules.