Less than a hundred years ago, doctors would have scoffed at the idea that an organ could be removed from one person and transplanted into another and at the end of this process still have both people alive and healthy.
These days, the transplanting of organs has become commonplace and doctors are constantly learning better ways and treatments to make the process safer.
However, with improved standards of living, people are living longer and that, coupled with the increase in population, is the reason for the upturn in demand for organs – a demand that far outweighs supply. This has led to a thriving black market in the trade of human organs.
Wealthy people are often willing to pay exorbitant amounts to skip the waiting list and obtain an organ illegally, while at the other end of the spectrum, the very poor, are willing to sell off parts of their body just to put food on the table. This situation is ripe for abuse, given that organised crime specialises in exploitation. Throw in a couple of unethical health practitioners and the whole process goes underground.
As is commonly the case, it is the very poor, uneducated and desperate who suffer. Organ traffickers have been known to pay $10,000 for a kidney – if you are willing to sell to them – and they often collect up to $150,000 when selling that organ to a desperate patient.
But there is an even darker side to organ trafficking. In some countries, traffickers are not even willing to pay out the minimal amount to the “donor”. It is far easier to kidnap a victim, or coerce them with threats, cut out the required organ and leave the victims to recover as best they can, or worse, die in the process.
The international medical and legal community has grappled with this problem and it has been suggested that the selling of organs should be legalised. The idea behind this is based on the presumption that personal health choices should be left up to the individual to make. However, this option still leaves the voiceless poor open to abuse.
In light of the profound human rights violations of the vulnerable victims, it is imperative that this issue gets the attention it demands.
Everyone should be educated about organ donation and encouraged to register as an organ donor. It may not only save the life of someone in need of an organ, but it could also save the life of someone vulnerable to organ traffickers.