Progress: Procedure completed
Legal Basis:
RoP 144Events
The European Parliament adopted a resolution on the reports of continued organ harvesting in China.
The text adopted in plenary was tabled by the EPP, S&D, Renew, Greens/EFA, ECR groups and Members.
The resolution noted that 10 000 illicit human organ transplants are performed each year worldwide. The trade in human organ trafficking generates, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than EUR 1 billion in profits per year.
China has extremely low rates of voluntary organ donation owing to traditional beliefs. However, in 1984, China implemented regulations that permitted the harvesting of organs from executed prisoners. China declared that it had stopped using organs from executed prisoners in 2015 and had launched a national donation system, without, however, ever completely banning the practice, which still remains legal.
The China Tribunal issued a final judgment in March 2020, concluding that forced organ harvesting had been committed for years throughout China on a significant scale and that Falun Gong practitioners had been one – and probably the main – source of organ supply. The Chinese Government refused to testify before the Tribunal.
Parliament expressed its serious concerns about the reports of persistent, systematic, inhumane and state ‑ sanctioned organ harvesting from prisoners in China, and, more specifically, from Falun Gong practitioners and other minorities such as Uyghurs, Tibetans and Christians. It also considered that the practice of organ harvesting from living prisoners on death row and prisoners of conscience may amount to crimes against humanity , as defined in Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. China is urged to sign and accede to the Rome Statute.
The Chinese authorities are urged to:
- promptly respond to the allegations of organ harvesting and to allow independent monitoring by international human rights mechanisms;
- request and ensure the free and informed consent of prisoners or detainees in connection with medical examinations and to adopt a regulatory framework, in line with international conventions, for a voluntary and transparent organ donation system.
Members denounced the lack of information from the Chinese authorities on reports that the families of deceased detainees and prisoners are being prevented from claiming their bodies.
In addition, the EU and its Member States are called on to:
- raise the issue of organ harvesting in China at every Human Rights Dialogue;
- publicly condemn organ transplant abuses in China;
- take the necessary actions in order to prevent transplant tourism to China by their citizens and to raise awareness of this issue among their citizens travelling to China;
- raise the issue of forced organ harvesting in its engagement with third countries, especially with its partners in the Gulf region, where Chinese transplant centres have advertised ‘halal organs’ from Uyghurs and Muslim minorities in China;
- ensure that their conventions and cooperation agreements with non-EU countries, including China, in the area of health and research respect the EU’s ethical principles in relation to organ donation and the use for scientific purposes of elements and products of the human body.
Lastly, Parliament called on the UN Human Rights Council to deal with the issue of forced organ harvesting as a matter of priority.
Documents
- Results of vote in Parliament: Results of vote in Parliament
- Decision by Parliament: T9-0200/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0248/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0249/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0250/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0251/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0252/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0253/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0254/2022
- Joint motion for resolution: RC-B9-0250/2022
- Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0248/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0249/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0250/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0251/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0252/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0253/2022
- Motion for a resolution: B9-0254/2022
- Joint motion for resolution: RC-B9-0250/2022
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