Organ transplant and trade: Provinces given six weeks to create policy

ISLAMABAD:

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed provincial governments and the Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) to issue a notification within six weeks regarding transplantation of human organs and tissues.

An apex court bench, comprising Justice Jawwad S Khawaja and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain, issued the direction after law officers from the four provincial governments and a CADD official apprised the bench that they have prepared legislation and require six weeks to issue a formal notification.

Muneer A Malik, counsel for the petitioners, told the bench that the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act 2010 was given protection under Section 17 and Article 270 (AA) but since the decentralisation of the health ministry, the provinces had failed to exercise their powers of lawmaking.

The petitioners alleged violation of human rights through illegal organ trade and kidney transplants in the country. They claimed that the Human Organ Transplant Authority had failed to check illegal organ trade and transplantation and sought the apex court’s intervention.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 30^th, 2012.