TNAG-2512-FCO40-3665-Future-of-Hong-Kong-International-Rights-and-Obligations-(IR-1992 — Page 36

19-OCT-1992 15:55

POLITICAL ADVISOR OFFICE

+852 521 8702

P.02

香港總督府

GOVERNMENT HOUSE HONG KONG

15 October 1992

Для водії

Transplant Organs from Executed Chinese Prisoners

Thank you for your letter of 1 October.

I sympathise with your concern about media reports of trade between China and Hong Kong in transplant organs from executed prisoners in China. However, to our knowledge Hong Kong is not involved in such practices. No transplant has been performed in any public hospital in Hong Kong using organs purchased from China or elsewhere. And, as far as we are aware, no commercial transplant has been performed in any private hospital here either. The Hong Kong Medical Association has spoken out publicly against the practice and called upon doctors to refuse to be involved in commercial organ trading as a matter of professional ethics.

But the Hong Kong Government nevertheless takes a serious view of the matter. A bill to prohibit organ trading in Hong Kong was introduced into the Legislative Council on 8 April this year. It makes it an offence for any person to be involved in the sale or purchase of human organs, whether removed from a living or dead person. The bill also seeks to ban all advertisements and solicitations relating to organ trading. The use of organs obtained from living donors may only be transplanted into blood relatives and spouses or exceptionally, with the approval of an independent transplant board, into non-related persons. The donor's consent must be obtained in all transplant cases. This bill is presently under study by a Legislative Council Ad Hoc Group.