China says some UK hospitals harvested human organs

BEIJING (Reuters) – China took a swipe on Thursday at
British transplant experts who accused it of removing organs
from executed prisoners to sell them, saying some British
hospitals had harvested organs of dead patients in the past.

The British Transplantation Society said on Wednesday there
was an accumulating body of evidence that suggested organs of
executed Chinese prisoners were being removed for transplant
and sold without prior consent of the prisoners or their
families.

“I want to remind this organization not to forget that a
few years ago this kind of thing happened in Britain: some
British hospitals harvested the organs of the dead for other
purposes without notifying their families,” Chinese Foreign
Ministry spokesman Qin Gang told a regular news conference.

Qin said he could not understand why the transplantation
society raised the issue now.

Human rights groups have criticized the use of organs from
executed prisoners in China and hospitals that have allegedly
turned to organ sales and transplants to raise funds.

Last month, China said it would ban the sale of human
organs and strengthen procedures for transplants by requiring
written consent and limiting the number of hospitals carrying
out transplant surgery.