5,816 Cancellations Within One Month
According to the government’s May press releases, 28,000 applications to cancel organ donation registrations were received by the Centralized Organ Donation Register (CODR). It also stated that the number of cancellations was unusually high. However, the 21,600 applications received from applicants who were either unregistered or had failed the identity verification process were deemed invalid. The government did not provide any detailed information on the remaining 6,400 cancellations. However, when responding to media inquiries, it stated that there were 5,816 valid cancellations in May.The government and Chief Executive John Lee Ka-Chiu publicly condemned individuals who had questioned Hong Kong’s dialogue with mainland China on establishing a permanent organ transplant cooperation mechanism. He also condemned those who had never applied for registration but were applying to withdraw or cancel their registration.
HK Govt Discusses Permanent Organ Transplant Collaboration Mechanism With China
The Secretary for Health, Mr. Lo Chung-mau, has been pushing for Hong Kong to be included in the China Organ Transplant Response System (COTRS). His proposals have persisted since the completion of the first organ transplant from China for a 4-month-old baby girl in Hong Kong on a “special case” basis in December 2022.In mid-March, Mr. Lo visited the China Organ Transplantation Development Foundation in Beijing to discuss establishing a regular organ transplant collaboration mechanism with China.
Experts Raise Concerns
Many experts and organizations have expressed concern about Hong Kong’s discussions with mainland China on establishing a permanent organ transplant collaboration mechanism. Such collaboration has also drawn international attention to the longstanding concerns with organ harvesting practices in China.Mr. Alex Lam Chi-yau, chairman of the Hong Kong Patients’ Voices, expressed concern about establishing a permanent mechanism. He stated that there was a possibility of donors withdrawing from the CODR if they were unwilling to send their organs to mainland China.
In an interview program on Radio Free Asia, Dr. Lee, a former Hong Kong doctor, expressed his distrust of China’s organ donation system. He said that if Hong Kong became integrated with the mainland mechanism, Hong Kong could “participate in an axis of evil” within China’s illicit organ trading system.
Dr. Jacob Lavee, former chairman of the Israeli Transplantation Society and renowned Israeli heart transplant surgeon, expressed concerns to The Epoch Times. He stated, “This may drag Hong Kong into a situation where organs obtained through live organ harvesting are being used.” He further suggested that Western countries should “unite their diplomatic and economic efforts to combat these atrocities (live organ harvesting) and end Hong Kong’s use of harvested human organs.”
In January 2023, international organizations accused former Deputy Minister of Health of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Huang Jiefu, of involvement in live organ harvesting. He had proposed exporting organs into Hong Kong and Macau, promoting the so-called “mainland and Taiwan organ sharing mechanism,” and connecting countries along the Belt and Road Initiative.
Chairperson of the Universal Declaration on Combating and Preventing Forced Organ Harvesting, Teresa Chu, called on the world to resist the CCP’s organ whitewashing, organ warfare, and organ diplomacy. She stated, “Through this ‘organ sharing’ mechanism, they want to whitewash these stolen, forcibly harvested, live-harvested organs. This is not humanitarian cooperation. Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan governments should resist and reject this ‘organ-sharing mechanism.’”
Since the exposure of the CCP’s organ-harvesting atrocities in 2006, many international investigations have confirmed the existence of these practices. Prominent human rights lawyer David Matas, in an interview with The Epoch Times senior editor Jan Jekielek, stated, “The problem is not a lack of evidence but rather an excess of it.”
Mr. Matas served as a joint investigator and co-author of the reports “Revised Report into Allegations of Organ Harvesting of Falun Gong Practitioners in China” and an updated version of “Bloody Harvest, The Killing of Falun Gong for their organs,” released in 2006 and 2016, respectively. These reports confirmed the large-scale live organ harvesting of Falun Gong practitioners by the CCP.
On March 27, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the “Stop Forced Organ Harvesting Act of 2023.” The bill is awaiting approval by the U.S. Senate and the President’s signature to become effective.
On a radio interview program, Mr. Sam, a registered organ donor, said he had concerns about the organ exchange mechanism between mainland China and Hong Kong. He cited the case of a 15-year-old student who went missing in mainland China in January. The student was never found, even after relevant authorities had conducted an extensive search. Mr. Sam also mentioned other incidents where the relatives of his friends in mainland China had been cremated before the bodies were officially verified.
Despite the Hong Kong government claiming that the organ transplant system is transparent and open, Mr. Sam believes it would only be possible to regain confidence with significant improvements. He expressed skepticism about government statements, stating that they often consider the problem solved once they have made their claims, but in practice, many measures are inadequate. Mr. Sam also speculated that many people may cancel their organ donor registrations out of concern for being “registered,” regardless of whether they have already registered.
When asked if online discussions influenced him, Mr. Sam said he had not seen any calls to cancel organ donor registrations online.
