May 28, 2007	Monday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 11, 1428

LAHORE, May 27: Stakeholders and experts have expressed serious concern over the proposed draft of Transplantation of Human Organ Tissue Ordinance 2007 saying it might provide a legal cover to the abominable trade.

The draft has been sent to the cabinet division for approval.

Punjab Health Minister Chaudhry Iqbal told Dawn on Saturday that the draft, after approval from the cabinet, would be presented in the National Assembly for debate in next session.

The stakeholders are of the view that if the proposed law is promulgated in the present form it will negate its prime objective — to check illegal buying and selling of kidneys.

A World Health Organisation member said the proposed law would only serve as a legal cover to the current unethical transplant practices in the country.

The major loophole in the proposed law was sanctioning of a non-relative donor in case there was a threat to the life of a patient, he said, adding that it would promote the kidney trade immensely.

“A clause of the ordinance allows wet mother or her children to donate a kidney that will automatically legitimise as donor every offspring of any woman who has served as a wet nurse”.

The Pakistan Medical Association also has expressed serious concerns over the proposed kidney law, saying it would only help the (illegal) business thrive.

PMA secretary general asked why the government had come up with a legislation that was only providing legal cover to the practice. He suggested that only ‘blood relations’ should be allowed to donate a kidney so that the illegal organ trade could be checked.

He said no major health-related organisation in the private sector in the country was consulted before finalising such an important draft.

The Punjab health department has recently warned the doctors working in the public and private sector hospitals against carrying out kidney transplantation.

At present, no law exists in the country to curb organ trade.

Reports say that a powerful mafia involved in kidney trade did not let the authorities concerned draft a strict legislation against the practice.

Over a decade ago a draft proposal in this regard was prepared but it could not be converted into a law.