SC flays govt for inaction over illegal trade of organs

Asks provincial chief secretaries to achieve needful within two weeks.

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Wednesday expressed displeasure over the federal government’s inefficacy in chalking out due legislation prohibiting illegal trade of human organs.

Calling for the enforcement of appropriate legislation, the three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry issued directives to all provincial chief secretaries in its written order to take action against the illegal practice.

Referring to the new contempt of court law, Justice Khilji Arif Hussain said rulers promptly carve out laws for their own benefit, but have no regard for matters concerning the poor. “Executive will is required to accomplish the task,” remarked the third judge on the bench Justice Jawwad S Khawaja.

The bench had asked provincial chief secretaries in its last hearing to direct all concerned executive district officers to conduct surveys on the practice. It had also sought a report on the subject by July 31.

Though Director General (Health) Qazi Saboor had informed the bench a rule-making process was ongoing to get rid of illegal transplantations, the chief justice had said implementation was the real problem.

In Wednesday’s order, however, the bench flayed the government for meagre progress and asked relevant authorities to achieve the needful within two weeks.

The chief justice while lauding a report submitted by a district and sessions judge of Sargodha on illegal trade of human organs in his area, referred copies of the dossier to all the provinces as an example on how to compile the data.

The chief justice told Additional Advocate General, Punjab, Jawad Hassan that counterfeit medicines were being sold at pharmacies and illegal health centres, but the provincial administration was doing nothing about it.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 2^nd, 2012.