islamabad - A workshop aimed at creating awareness on the dangers of illegal organ transplantation and promotion of deceased organ donations will be held on Thursday (today) at Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan (LJCP).
Additional Attorney General (AAG) Syed Nayyar Rizvi will give a presentation on progress of Committee, which was constituted to formulate recommendations and to strengthen Human Organ Transplant Act (HoTA) to put an end to the illegal transplantation of organs mainly kidneys.
In March, Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar while hearing a case of illegal organ transplantation at the Karachi Registry had formed the Committee to devise recommendations to curb the menace of illegal transplantation. The CJP had visited Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT) and announced to donate his own organs. The Committee’s Patron is Dr. Syed Adeeb Rizvi while the other members including Senior Advocate Muneer A. Malik, AAG Nayyar Rizvi, Secretary LJCP Dr. Raheem Awan, Dr. Anwar Naqvi and Dr. Mirza Naqi Zafar of SIUT.
The workshop will be attended by advocate general of Pakistan of all provinces including Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), four prosecutor general of all the provinces including ICT, secretaries of health departments of all the provinces, Inspector General of Police (IGPs) of all provinces including ICT, directors of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) from provinces, secretary Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), two professional doctors and one member from civil society.
The invitees shall participate and contribute through their feedback in proposals of recommendation regarding laws to curb illegal transplantation.
The final 2-days conference will be held on April 20 and April 21 in Karachi and the above mentioned Committee shall submit its report before the top court on May 5.
It is believed that some of the doctors of well-reputed hospitals are also involved illegal transplantation of kidneys and other organs to benefit the foreigners mostly from Arabic Countries.
Medical experts say that due to advance technology, organ transplantation can be easily and successfully carried out in any facility where the requisite labor is available.
Currently there is no effective check on recognized hospital, laboratories and dialysis centres as well as there are several flaws on the procedural side.
ICT Police, in a similar nature case filed a 53-page report in 2017, had stated that during the investigating of criminal cases regarding illegal transplantation it had been revealed that the mafia involved in the illegal business of kidney transplantation had planted their network throughout the country and special focus is being made upon people belonging to poor low cost of society.
“The most important is that an aggrieved person cannot move an application prior to giving a notice of 15-days to the monitoring authority, which takes more than a month. So, there is a clear conflict of interest as the same authority is mandated to regulate this illicit activity, the report had stated, adding that this procedure give an ample time to the accused to abscond and conceal the items used in illicit activity.
“It is a mafia, which has a well-developed network of donors, recipients, main agents, subagents, medical specialists and support staff,” the report had further stated.