UN experts warn China uses ethnic minorities for organ trafficking

UN experts revealed on Monday that they had received “Credible information” about what Prisoners of ethnic, linguistic and religious minorities are subjected to forced organ harvesting in China. The 12 independent experts, who have a UN mandate but do not speak for it, they declared that they “Extremely alarmed” with this information.

In one press release published on Monday, experts said they heard that detained members of minority communities may be forcibly subjected to blood tests and organ examinations, such as ultrasounds and x-rays, without informed consent, which is not required of other inmates.

The test results are then recorded in a database from living organ sources for grafts.

In the statement, special rapporteurs and experts from the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention indicate that These organ harvesting are also practiced on Uyghurs, Tibetans, Muslims and Christians, imprisoned in China.

“Forced organ harvesting in China appears to target members of particular ethnic, linguistic or religious minorities who are in detention, very often without an explanation of the reasons for their arrest or without such a warrant.experts noted.

“We are deeply concerned at reports of discriminatory treatment of prisoners or detainees on the basis of their ethnicity and religion or belief,” they added.

According to the complaints received, the experts, including the United Nations Special Rapporteurs on Trafficking in Persons, Torture and the Right to Freedom of Religion or Belief, and the United Nations working group on arrests arbitrary, specifies that the organs most frequently harvested from detainees are hearts, kidneys, livers, corneas and sometimes pieces of liver.

“Professionals from the health sector are allegedly involved in this form of medical trafficking, in particular surgeons, anesthetists and others specialist doctors», They underlined.

They also pointed out that this issue had already been raised before Beijing by other UN human rights experts, in 2006 Yes 2007, without success.

In its responses at the time, they said, the Chinese regime had failed to provide enough data on things like sources of organs for transplantation. “In this context, the lack of data and information exchange systems available are obstacles to successfully identify and protect victims of human trafficking and to effectively investigate and prosecute traffickers”said the statement.

According to chinese tradition, when a person dies, he is buried without mutilation and very few Chinese accept organ harvesting.

China frequently accused by members of the banned sect Falun Gong to practice forced organ harvesting from his imprisoned supporters. The Beijing regime, however, has always firmly denied these accusations.

Liu Yuyin, spokesperson for the Chinese mission in Geneva, condemned the experts for having used “disinformation”. They “slandered China,” which “strongly opposes and categorically rejects the accusations,” he added.

“We are deeply alarmed that the relevant special procedures mandate holders, lacking in rudimentary thinking and judgment, have fallen for these clumsy lies, ”he said in a statement.

The experts “ignored the authoritative information provided by the Chinese government and opted for accept the disinformation provided by anti-Chinese separatist forces and the evil cult ‘Falun Gong’“, Held.

“China is a country where the law reigns (…) The trade in human organs and illegal organ transplantation are strictly prohibited by law, ”Liu said in his response.

Finally, he asked the UN experts to “Immediately correct your mistakes, reject prejudices against China, stop blatantly slandering it … and act impartially and objectively”.

(With information from AFP)

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