United States: CCP Organ Harvesting Gets Attention at the World Transplant Congress in Boston

The first World Transplant Congress was held in Boston on July 23rd, 2006. More than 6,000 doctors and scientists from 85 countries gathered in Hynes Convention Centre for a five-day congress. The allegation of organ harvesting from living Falun Gong practitioners for profit drew attention from the attendees.

Chair of the congress Dr. Kecime, Surgical Director of Organ Transplant at Massachusetts General Hospital, said that he learned about the allegation of harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners happening in China and the Canadian independent investigative report at the congress. He felt that the practice of live organ harvesting, which is against medical ethics, is true. He also felt that the congress committee and the international organ transplant circle will strongly condemn it.

Display boards and banners protesting the CCP harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners

Falun Gong practitioner Kay Harmon from Orlando, Florida, stood at the entrance to the Hynes Convention Centre in Boston on the morning on July 23rd, handing out copies of the "Report into Allegations of Organs Harvesting of Falun Gong Practitioners in China" to every doctor who was to attend the World Transplant Congress. Many of them had already heard about the atrocities.

George Abouna from Drexel Medical Institute in Philadelphia expressed his support for Falun Gong practitioners, and said he had learned long ago about the organ removal from prisoners in China. A group of Japanese doctors also told practitioners that before coming to the United States, each of them had received information regarding the CCP’s harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners.

George Abouna said that he has known for a long time about organ removal in China’s prisons	Conference attendees read about the CCP’s live organ transplants

There were seminars on a variety of topics, including issues of medical ethics on the first day of the congress. When being asked if the congress has international standards and requirements related to organ suppliers, and if the congress provides a code of medical ethics for countries including China, Mr. Kathryn J. Wood from the committee said that the congress is negotiating and cooperating with the World Health Organization (WHO) on the matters concerned.

A person-in-charge of scientific research from Astellas, one of the major sponsors at the event said that their company will not cooperate with China on human organ transplants, because China does not have law sand regulations on organ transplants. Also because they do not agree to stop using organs from death penalty prisoners. The woman in charge, who did not want to reveal her name, said that everybody knew the extent of the organ transplant problem in China and that none of the medication companies that usually assist in organ transplants is willing to be connected with them.

The "World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong" said on July 23rd that among the targets for investigation are Chen Zhishui and Chen Zhonghua from the CCP’s Tongji Hospital in Wuhan. They had each submitted dissertations to the congress. It is reported that more than 100 people from China attended the congress. They provided over 70 dissertations on organ transplants.

Falun Gong practitioners wore T-shirts exposing the CCP’s harvesting and selling of human organs. They attracted attention and interest from doctors and local people in Boston. Doctors who came in and out of the Hynes Convention Centre expressed their support for Falun Gong by buying T-shirts. A doctor from New Delhi said, "Now all we can do is to prevent Chinese doctors from joining in this international organ transplant congress, because their ways of doing things is against the statute of transplant associations."

Doctors buy T-shirts exposing the CCP’s harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners

Director of Italian Careggi Kidney Transplant Centre Prof. Maurizio Salvadori said that in Italy, live organ donation only happens among family members. He felt very "sad" for organ harvesting from living Falun Gong practitioners.

Maurizio expressed, after learning that the Canadian Independent investigator David Kilgour would hold a press conference on July 25th in Boston, that he would lead over 60 people from their group to attend and show support.