Karachi, September, 29, 2013
After the bombs in the church of
All Saints in Peshawar, the situation remains tense
in the Pakistani society: not only tragedy but also
horror. The Christians said they were
"horrified" by the rumors that link the
bombs in Peshawar to the vast problem of organ
trafficking: this is what some members of NGOs in
civil society in Pakistan told Fides. Some of the
"jackals", presumably local paramedics,
seem to have taken advantage of the high number of
deaths and injuries in order to steal the bodies of
victims and exploit them for the illegal organ trade.
"If this were true, it would mean that there are
criminals who are taking advantage of the suffering
of Christian victims in a truly blasphemous and
sacrilegious manner", notes Fr. Mario Rodrigues,
a priest of Karachi.
"We call for a serious investigation on behalf of the
police", he concludes.
Pakistan enacted a law to regulate organ transplants in
2010, to shake off its reputation as a "destination
leader" for transplant tourism and to stop the
illegal trafficking of human organs. After the approval of
the law, the illicit traffic slowed down, but in 2011 many
cases of illegal transplants emerged again. Last July,
given the data of a "thriving business", the
Supreme Court issued directives asking the provincial
government to take action and enforce the law.
According to police investigations, 42 medical facilities
engaged in illegal organ transplants have been identified
in Punjab.
Agenzia Fides
