China Post, Taiwan: Taiwan condemns China's organ harvesting

Taiwan condemns China's organ harvesting

2006/10/14
TAIPEI, CNA


Taiwan condemns in the strongest possible terms China's harvesting of human
organs from executed Falun Gong practitioners, Mainland Affairs Council
(MAC) Chairman Joseph Wu said yesterday.

Taiwan is also gravely concerned about prevalent infringements upon human
rights across China and the development of related situations, Wu said when
he met with three human rights activists from Canada and the United States.

Wu met with David Kilgour, a former Canadian secretary of state for
Asia-Pacific and Latin America, and David Matas, an international human
rights lawyer, who co authored the Report into Allegations of Organ
Harvesting of Falun Gong Practitioners in China, and Wang Wenyi, a China
born pathologist who became famous last April when she created a scene by
shouting at visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao and his American host
George W. Bush during a White House welcoming ceremony. Wu said Taiwan is
not only concerned about organ harvesting in China but is also worried about
other human rights issues there, such as the shooting of Tibetans by Chinese
paramilitary police, arrests of human rights lawyers and a purge of Muslims
and Christians.

For his part, Kilgour, who has addressed the United Nations and the
U.S.Congress about religious freedom and China's organ harvesting, said he
and Matas had tried to enter China in May to verify the factuality of the
claims contained in their report, but were denied entrance by the Beijing
authorities.

Even more ridiculous was that Chinese human rights lawyer Gao Zhicheng, who
invited Matas and Kilgour to visit China to compile their report, was
arrested and indicted by the Chinese authorities on charges of "sedition to
overthrow the government" recently, Kilgour said, adding that Gao was only
calling for the Chinese authorities to uphold freedom, human rights and rule
of law in China. Kilgour said Beijing has totally denied the accusations of
organ harvesting from executed Falun Gong practitioners because China is
preparing to host the 2008 Olympic Games. Ironically, he said, if people
search the Google search engine for China's denial by typing in the keywords
"China denied, " they will get more than 8.2 million entries.

For his part, Matas said that while harvesting organs is reportedly guided
by the Chinese government, demands for the organs come from around the
world, including Taiwan.

To cease this practice, Matas said, it must be done from the justice side
and from the demand side as well. Matas said he is glad that Taiwan has been
active in this regard.

Matas said he hopes that Taiwan will ban organ exchanges with China and ban
organ transplants using organs from China. He expressed hope that the Taiwan
authorities will warn Taiwan people from traveling to China for organ
transplants while encouraging Taiwan people to donate their organs to help
cut demand for Chinese organs.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/detail.asp?ID=92742&GRP=B