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19
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New Clauses 4(3A) and 4(3C) respectively make it an offence for a person to transplant in Hong Kong or remove from a dead or living person in Hong Kong an organ that he knew or should have known was a commercially-traded organ, regardless of where payment was to be made for it. A new Clause 4(3B) makes it an offence for a person to import such an organ.
The purpose of amended Clauses 4(4), 5(7), 6(3) and new Clause 7(4) is to provide harsher deterrent penalties.
Amendments to Clause 5 (4) and (5) prescribe arrangements for ensuring that both living organ donors and organ recipients give informed and unpressured consent to the transplant procedure.
A new Clause 7 introduces requirements for information to be supplied to accompany imported organs. The purpose of this is to ensure that organs are healthy and that they have not been obtained commercially. A new Clause 8 provides an extended time limit of three years for commencing criminal proceedings.
To complement the provisions in the Bill when enacted, we shall solicit co- operation from the medical profession to take the lead by reporting any violations to the Administration. Suitable publicity materials will also be produced and made available for the information and guidance of doctors and patients in hospitals.
End/Wednesday, February 22, 1995
Legal Aid Services Council Bill
Following is the speech by the Chief Secretary, the Hon Mrs Anson Chan, in moving the second reading of the Legal Aid Services Council Bill in the Legislative Council today (Wednesday):
Mr President,
I move that the Legal Aid Services Council Bill be read the second time. The Bill provides a legislative framework for the establishment of an independent Legal Aid Services Council to oversee the publicly-funded legal aid services operated by the Legal Aid Department and the Duty Lawyer Service.