CHINA—On March 21, 2007, the State Council Executive Meeting passed in principle a draft of the "Human Organ Transplant Ordinance." The ordinance particularly specified a strict ban of taking organs from citizens under 18 years for transplant.

Experts outside of China speculate that the Chinese Communist Party had no choice but to respond to the organ harvesting crimes which have shocked the world in the lead up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Analysts have pointed out this regulation shows that live organ removal is common in China and it happens to minors who are not supposed to be on death row.

Organ Removal From Minors?
On March 22, 2007, many online news websites posted a draft of the "Human Organ Transplant Ordinance" from China Radio (www.cnr.cn). One of the regulations prohibits the use of organs for transplant from citizens under 18 years of age. Wang Yifeng, an Epoch Times columnist, said the making of such a regulation indicates the management, supervision, procedures, and legal responsibility of live organ removal are very chaotic in China.

The new regulation also points out that organ removal from minors obviously happens frequently, otherwise the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) would not have strictly prohibited it.

Wang said China's Constitution states that the death penalty can not be used on minors under 18.

Last year, Huang Jiefu, Deputy Director of the China Ministry of Health, openly admitted that the major source of organ transplants in China came from death row prisoners, and not by donation as claimed previously by the regime. If there are no death row prisoners under 18, then where do the minors' organs come from?

Wang believes the State Council indirectly exposed this dark secret. This prohibition has occured while many international groups are still seeking to enter China to investigate live organ removal from Falun Gong practitioners. This ordinance is also seen as the communist regime's response to the intense international exposure of live organ harvesting in China and several condemnations from the international community.

Putting On a Show for the Olympics?
Twu Shiing-Jer, a former Director of the Department of Health in Taiwan and a member of the Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (CIPFG), said that the CCP made this ordinance to brush up its image for the 2008 Olympics. Twu said the Chinese government should not only employ the ordinance but also allow the CIPFG to enter China and conduct investigations to stop the live organ harvesting.

The Regime's Reluctance to Stop Organ Harvesting
The ordinance says to " ... realize the protection of minors. Any organization or individual should not use organ from citizens under 18 in transplant." Yang Zhizhu, an associate professor of the Department of Law in the China Youth University of Political Sciences questions the rationale and legitimacy of the regulation.

Yang said the issue of live organ removal is not about age. The rights of both minors and adults should be protected. According to Chinese tradition, every part of the body is from the parents and shouldn't be discarded. Most Chinese people want their body to stay together after death. So the majority of the organ removals in China are illegal and no consent was given by the individual or their families.

Yang believes the government does not necessarily want to stop illegal organ harvesting, especially form death row prisoners, since the government is also a beneficiary of this operation. Everyday people cannot start this type of business. It can't be done without government involvement.

Keep Up the Condemnation and Pressure to Investigate
It's been a year since sources exposed the atrocities of live organ removal from Falun Gong practitioners in China. A growing number of experts, scholars, and politicians have confirmed and condemned such crimes. By Feb. 12, 2007, over 300 influential people had joined CIPFG and have requested to enter China for an investigation without obstruction from the CCP.

Sun Wenguang, a former professor of the Physics Department at Shandong University, said case after case of illegal live organ harvesting, especially from Falun Gong practitioners, continues to be exposed. The intention of the ordinance is to calm down the angry domestic voices, overseas condemnation, and attempts at independent investigation. Moreover, relieving international pressure may serve to remove the spotlight from the Chinese communist regime before the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Ma Xiaoming, a former TV reporter and program director of Shanxi TV, said the CCP has tried to respond to the tremendous international pressure by making the ordinance but it only makes it even more obvious. The international community needs to keep the spotlight on China because the CCP is going to continue these crimes and try even harder to cover them up through ineffectual regulations.

Ma said he's heard many reports about the inhumane activities. The government tried to take organs from death row prisoners when he was in prison. Because some patients desperately needed organs, the doctor would suggest to the patients' families, "Do you have any connections? If you do, ask the judges to sentence a few death row criminals and we'll pick one up."

The Chinese people's fear of the communist regime induces a numbness and indifference which encourages the CCP to commit even more atrocious crimes against humanity without fear of retribution. Ma said, "People should stop counting on the government for anything."