http://www.coe.int/t/dghl/monitoring/trafficking/docs/news/organtrafficking_study.pdfTrafficking in organs, tissues and cells and trafficking in human beings for the purpose of the removal of organs
Joint Council of Europe/United Nations Study
...the conclusions and recommendations of this Joint Study could be summarised as follows:
The need to distinguish clearly between “Trafficking in OTC” and “Trafficking in human beings for the purpose of the removal of organs”. The two are frequently confused in public debate and in the legal and scientific community. This leads to general confusion and consequently hinders effective efforts to combat them and also to provide comprehensive victim protection and assistance.
The principle of the prohibition of making financial gains with the human body or its parts should be the paramount consideration in
relation to organ transplantation. All national legislation concerning organ transplantation should conform to this principle.
The need to promote organ donation and establish organisational measures to increase organ availability. Preference should be given to deceased organ donation, which should be developed to its maximum therapeutic potential. In addition, there is a need to extend worldwide the organisational and technical capacity for the transplantation of organs.
The need to collect reliable data on trafficking in OTC and on trafficking in human beings for the purpose of organ removal. There is limited knowledge of the two issues since little information is available from official sources. The information about the number of victims and trafficked OTC therefore remains rather fragmentary. This hinders both the quantification of the two and also their qualitative description. The data should be disaggregated by sex in order to assess whether and to what extent the processes disproportionately affect women and girls. States should make efforts in terms of data collection in relation to both problems.
The need for an internationally agreed definition of “Trafficking in organs, tissues and cells”. This Joint Study did not aim to provide a definition of “Trafficking in OTC”. Such a definition should be agreed upon at international level with the involvement of all the relevant players. While underlining that all national systems should be based on the principle of the prohibition of making financial gains with the human body or its parts, the starting point for such a definition should be the idea that any organ transaction outside the national systems for organ transplantation should be considered organ trafficking. It is therefore recommended that an international legal instrument be prepared, setting out a definition of “Trafficking in OTC” and the measures to prevent such trafficking and protect the victims, as well as the criminal-law measures to punish the crime.
“Trafficking in human beings for the purpose of the removal of organs” is included in the definition of trafficking in human beings in the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings [CETS No. 197] and in the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, Supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime. Indeed, the definition of trafficking in human beings set out in both legal instruments explicitly states that exploitation also includes the removal of organs. The principles and measures applicable to other forms of exploitation of trafficking in human beings must also be applied to combat this type of trafficking for organ removal. There is no need for the further
development of a legally binding international instrument at universal or regional level. All relevant aspects for preventing and combating trafficking in human beings for organ removal are set out in the above-mentioned legally binding international instruments.
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