Illegal trade: NA panel set to toughen up organ transplant act

Proposes life imprisonment, medical facility confiscation and a fine on perpetrators

ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary panel has proposed amendments to the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 2010, by increasing the penalty for unauthorised organ transplant with a view to making the law more effective.

Chaired by MNA Babar Nawaz Khan, the National Assembly Committee on Human Rights moved for extending the punishment from a term of 10 years to life imprisonment, confiscation of the medical facility where such activity takes place and imposing a fine of up to Rs50 million on the perpetrators.

The members also recommended the extension in the powers of the monitoring committee, allowing it to conduct raids and keep a check on any facility following the passage of the law.

Furthermore, the committee also recommended developing a mechanism through which a person could easily access information on an available match for organ transplant.

Human Organ Transplant Authority (Hota) representative Dr Suleman Ahmed informed committee members that the only viable way to curb illegal transplant is to introduce legislation for cadaveric transplant -- an organ transplant from a deceased person or unrelated person.

He further underlined that although the legislation was formulated and presented in 2014, but it was never approved.

Once the legislation is approved, hospitals will be to develop their storage banks in no time because the demand of organs is increasing and any legal way will be preferred by buyers.

The committee members unanimously suggested including the provision of cadaveric transplant in the proposed amendment bill. The committee chairperson recommended introducing the initials of an organ donor (OD) in his or her national identity card so that the data of such donors can be collected.

While responding to a question about convenient access to information about available organs for poor patients, Ahmed said the authority concerned is in the process of developing a website to provide a mechanism for dissemination of such information.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 21^st, 2016.