Beijing Red Cross Has Never Started Its Organ Donation Program as of Now
In view of the fact that the Chinese Communist regime announced that starting from January 1, 2015, China would end the practice of using organs from executed prisoners in organ transplants, voluntary donation from Chinese citizens would be the only legal source of human organs for transplants, and China Human Organ Donation Administrative Office at the Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) is the official organization responsible for overseeing organ donations in China and it’s led by the State Council[1];
In view of the fact that since 2015, the number of organ transplants in China has been increasing, instead of decreasing, year over year. Official numbers show that the annual numbers of donated major organs are as the following: 2,297 donors and 6,428 major organs in 2015[2]; 4,080 donors and 11,295 major organs in 2016[3]; and 5,148 donors and 16,000 organs in 2017[4], an increase of 25.9% from 2016. These are the official numbers made public by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). According to evidence collected by World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (WOIPFG), organ transplants in Communist China experienced an explosive growth after year 2000. More than 891 hospitals have participated in organ transplantation. The actual transplant volume per hospital per year is often more than ten times of the officially reported quantity. Most hospitals would each perform several hundred to several thousand cases of organ transplantation every year, with the highest organ transplant volume per hospital exceeding 8,000 cases per year.
In view of the fact that Beijing is China’s capital and has the largest number of organ transplant hospitals (according to the latest list of 178 organ transplant hospitals published by the National Health and Family Planning Commission, there are 23 such hospitals in Beijing), as well as the largest organ transplant volume (for example, Peking University People’s Hospital self-claimed that that it had performed more than 4,000 liver and kidney transplant operations in one year)[5].
Therefore, WOIPFG conducted a phone investigation from August to September 2018 on the state of human organ donations at Red Cross Society of China, Beijing Branch (hereafter referred to as “Beijing Red Cross”).
Our investigation results: After the Beijing Red Cross Organ Donation Office, which is located in China’s capital, was established six years ago, it is still in the preparatory stage, and it has never started any actual organ donation work. Its subordinate district-level Red Cross Societies haven’t set up their organ donation offices yet and have not started any actual organ donation operations. And their functions have been merely limited to some publicity work. However, the CCP has officially claimed that “voluntary organ donation by Chinese citizens is the sole legal organ source for the human organ transplants”, and it also has claimed that “starting from January 1, 2015, China would end the practice of using organs from executed prisoners”. Then, such large numbers of transplanted organs in Beijing obviously have illegal sources. Where on earth do these organs come from?
I. Telephone investigation on Wang Zhaohui, Director of the Organ Donation Preparation Office at Beijing Red Cross
On September 6, 2018, a WOIPFG investigator called Wang Zhaohui, the person in charge of human organ donation at Beijing Red Cross. The investigator identified himself as a patient’s relative to consult him regarding organ donors. Wang greeted him warmly and said that he was “very familiar with” the directors of organ transplant departments at various hospitals in Beijing, implying that he could connect the caller with these directors to find organ donors. Wang also said that his office was actually the organ donation preparation office, and that Beijing Red Cross had not yet started actual organ donation operations.
When the investigator asked about the organ donation situation in Beijing, Wang said, “I have not yet participated in the donation process at the hospitals, and they usually do it themselves.” He also said, “Red Cross Society, now the National Health and Family Planning Commission, we have not cooperated together. That is, the hospitals usually do it themselves.”
Trying to confirm with Wang Zhaohui, the investigator asked, “You are saying that the Beijing Red Cross Organ Donation Office has not formally begun to participate in this actual (organ) donations, right?” Wang replied, “Right, right. Because I am in the preparatory office. The organ donation office has not yet been established by now.”
When the investigator asked Wang when his office could be ready for actual work, Wang replied, “I do not know.” He also said, “Since there are many hospitals in Beijing, our situation is quite special, so we have not yet started this work.” He then said, “Now the state (government) is... the next step is to see how to handle it, I don’t know how to put it!”
When Wang Zhaohui recommended to the investigator to send his relative (the patient) to Beijing Armed Police General Hospital for organ transplant, the investigator asked if this hospital had a better source of organs. Wang said, “It’s not that their sources are relatively good… I can only tell you that the armed police hospital does a lot (of organ transplants). They do the most.” “The Armed Police Hospital is a hospital of the army. The Armed Police Hospital does the most in the military.”
II. Investigation on the Organ Donation Situation of the Red Cross Society Branches in Six Major Administrative Districts of Beijing
At the same time, WOIPFG conducted a phone investigation on the Red Cross Society branches in six major administrative districts of Beijing. The investigation results are consistent with Wang Zhaohui’s statements.
These six Red Cross Society branches are: Red Cross Society of Haidian District Branch, Red Cross Society of Xicheng Branch, Red Cross Society of Dongcheng Branch, Red Cross Society of Chaoyang District Branch, Red Cross Society of Shijingshan District Branch and Red Cross Society of Fengtai District Branch. These districts are the major administrative districts of Beijing and also the region, where 20 organ transplant hospitals in Beijing are located. According to the principle of preferential allocation of organs based on donation locations, these six districts should be the main areas for organ donation.
The investigation on these six Red Cross Society branches shows:
1. The district and county level Red Cross Society branches in Beijing don’t have an organ donation office, either. The Red Cross system in Beijing has not yet begun the organ donation practice, at most only some publicity work was done. The donors were told to register online by themselves.
2. The district and county level Red Cross Society branches in Beijing have not done any actual organ donation work, because the municipal level Red Cross Society has not made any specific arrangements regarding organ donation.
3. If someone calls these Red Cross branches to express his wish to donate his organs or body, he would be given the contact numbers of the human body receiving stations at these three medical colleges or be told to contact the hospitals for the donation.
III. Investigation on the Body Donation System of Beijing Red Cross
In addition, WOIPFG conducted an investigation on two body donation receiving stations in Beijing (at Peking Union Medical College and Capital Medical University), and the Human Body Donation Coordination Office of Beijing Red Cross. Our investigation results show that, first, it is acknowledged that Beijing Red Cross indeed did not carry out any organ donation, and the transplanted organs came from the hospitals; second, the official attitudes towards human body donation and organ donation are different.
Regarding the fact that Beijing Red Cross hasn’t done any organ donation, Jing Peng, the contact person at the body donation receiving center of Capital Medical University, said that as for organ donation, the Red Cross indeed had not started this business.
In this regard, Beijing Red Cross Donation Coordination Office said, “Human body (donation) and organ (donation) are handled by two different departments.” And Wang Zhaohui is in charge of organ donation. The investigator mentioned that Wang said the Beijing Red Cross hadn’t started any organ donation work. The officer-on-duty said, “His explanation should be the most accurate source of reference, but he is indeed in charge of this area!”
WOIPFG’s investigation has also found that the two body donation receiving stations were not enthusiastic about receiving donated human bodies. Peking Union Medical College emphasized that the body donation was “limited to one’s own locality”, and that it refused to accept human bodies from other provinces or cities. The Capital Medical University told the family of a would-be body donor that “I will suggest him not to come here to pick up the form” and “there are no dedicated personnel (to go to different places to check the would-be donors).”
When being asked about where a donated human body would go, Jing Peng, the contact person at Capital Medical University, said, “Its destination is for teaching and scientific research. There is no other use. It will not be donated again to hospitals. There is no such thing, no such situation.” When the investigator asked for the reason, Jing Peng said, “The organs cannot be excised! Because in his case, it cannot be done. Because when there’s his deceased body, the organs are already useless.”
When being asked whether the donor or donor’s family would receive any payment for the donation, Jing Peng said that instead of receiving any money, the donor’s family would have to pay out of their own pocket. He said, “Medical treatment expenses, the family is still responsible for them, including (the expenses for) the several days’ morgue storage after death. The family has to take care of these. We will take care of only the final transportation of the body.”
Jing Peng also said, “After the body is used, it is also cremated, but they cannot return the ashes to the family, because this is collective cremation. It is done in batches. You cannot tell who is who, so the ashes cannot be returned to the family.”
Conclusion
The CCP claims that since 2015, China has completely stopped the use of organs from executed prisoners, and that the only source of transplanted organs is voluntary donation from Chinese citizens. Who is responsible for the “voluntary donation of organs”? In January 2010, the former Ministry of Health issued “The Letter regarding Entrusting the Red Cross Society of China to Carry out the Work related to Human Organ Donation” to the Red Cross Society of China. This document clarifies that organ donation is the responsibility of the Red Cross of China.
According to our latest investigation, the Beijing Red Cross Organ Donation Office, located in the Chinese capital, has always been in the preparatory stage since its establishment six years ago, and has not carried out actual organ donations.
There are 20 Grade A tertiary hospitals with organ transplant qualifications in Beijing, including many hospitals with large volumes of organ transplants, such as Beijing Armed Police General Hospital, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) No. 302 Hospital, Beijing Chao-Yang Hospital, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Beijing YouAn Hospital and Peking University People’s Hospital. According to conservative estimates, they perform several thousand cases of liver and kidney transplantation each year. However, these donor organs are not from the donation channels of Beijing Red Cross. According to China’s official regulations, the Red Cross of China should be the only legal source of donated organs. Therefore, the large volume of transplanted organs used in Beijing every year obviously have illegal sources.
According to the investigation of WOIPFG for more than a dozen years, since year 2000, the CCP has concealed the truth of its live organ harvesting of Falun Gong practitioners in the name of organs from “executed prisoners” and organs from “brain death donations”, while committing the most horrendous crime against humanity in the entire human history.[6] The results of WOIPFG’s investigation on the organ donation of the Beijing Red Cross once again debunked the CCP’s lie that the transplanted organs all come from voluntary donations by Chinese citizens.
In view of the crimes and current situation of the CCP’s cruel persecution against Falun Gong practitioners for more than a dozen years,[7] the CCP’s crime of live organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners will not stop. In recent years, a large number of investigations by WOIPFG have revealed that live organ harvesting is still ongoing.
Phone Investigation Recordings (10 in total)
Investigation Recording 1: Director of the Organ Donation Preparation Office at Beijing Red Cross
(Download recording MP3; download translated conversation transcript 1. Wang Chaohui, Director of Organ Donation Office at Beijing Red Cross.pdf)
Investigation date: September 6, 2018 (Tel: 18910670191)
Wang Zhaohui: “I am in the preparatory office. The organ donation office has not yet been established by now. Now it is our Red Cross Society, now the National Health and Family Planning Commission, we have not cooperated together. That is, the hospitals usually do it themselves. Our situation is quite special, so we have not yet started this work. Now the state is... the next step is to see how to handle it, I don’t know how to put it!”
Investigation Recording 2: Red Cross Society of Haidian District, Beijing
(Download recording MP3; download translated conversation transcript 2. Officers at Red Cross Society of Haidian District, Beijing.pdf)
Investigation date: August 31, 2018 (Tel: 86+10-68317551)
Officer-on-duty: “The organ donation work in Beijing is still in the preparatory stage (and it was established six years ago). And this department has just been set up for them this year. Since the municipal society hasn’t implemented it, it is even more impossible to carry it out on the district-level! Our district is mainly undertaking the propaganda work for organ donation from the deceased, and other work has not been implemented.”
Investigation Recording 3: Beijing Red Cross Society, Xicheng Branch
(Download recording MP3; download translated conversation transcript 3. Official at Beijing Red Cross Society, Xicheng Branch.pdf)
Investigation Date: September 14, 2018 (Tel: +86+1083975423)
Red Cross official: “Since we are not the organ donations office, if someone calls us, we are responsible for giving him the phone numbers of these three body donation receiving stations. At the department of our level, there is no specific office (for organ donation).”
Investigation Recording 4: Beijing Red Cross Society, Dongcheng Branch
(Download recording MP3; download translated conversation transcript 4. Official at Beijing Red Cross Society, Dongcheng Branch.pdf)
Investigation Date: September 17, 2018 (Tel: +86 10 87556904)
Red Cross official: “We don’t have an organ donation office. The district and county level Red Cross Societies are the departments responsible for promoting organ donations.” The Beijing Red Cross Society doesn’t have an organ donation office, either, and is also responsible for promoting organ donations.
Investigation Recording 5: Beijing Red Cross Society Office, Chaoyang District Branch
(Download recording MP3; download translated conversation transcript 5. Ms. Sun, Beijing Red Cross Society Office, Chaoyang District Branch.pdf)
Investigation Date: September 20, 2018 (Tel: +86+1065094673)
Ms. Sun: “Regarding the organ donations, Beijing Red Cross Society did not open this business. We only deal with body donation, no organ donation. You still must contact major hospitals for organ donation. We don’t have a direct contact relationship with the hospitals, due to the different nature of our work. We only accept the work arrangements from Beijing Red Cross Society. What it arranges for us now are three corresponding hospitals, for body donation.”
Investigation Recording 6: Beijing Red Cross Society, Shijingshan District Branch
(Download recording MP3; download translated conversation transcript 6. Official at Beijing Red Cross Society, Shijingshan District Branch.pdf)
Investigation Date: September 20, 2018 (Tel: +86 +10 68606619)
Red Cross official: “Our job is just to provide telephone registration and contact information for body donation. Red Cross Society (of Shijingshan District) does not do (organ donation work). We don’t do this job. Maybe Beijing Red Cross knows about this, but they normally don’t do this job, either.”
Investigation Recording 7: Beijing Red Cross Society, Fengtai District Branch
(Download recording MP3; download translated conversation transcript 7. Official of Beijing Red Cross Society, Fengtai District Branch.pdf)
Investigation Date: September 20, 2018 (Tel: +86+1063824717)
Red Cross official: All districts’ Red Cross Societies in Beijing have no organ donation business. “Our department hasn’t launched this business.”
Investigation Recording 8: Human Body Donation Coordination Office of Beijing Red Cross
(Download recording MP3; download translated conversation transcript 8. Human Body Donation Coordination Office of Beijing Red Cross.pdf)
Investigation Date: September 21, 2018 (Tel: 10 63558266)
Officer-on-Duty: “(At the Beijing Red Cross), human body (donation) and organ (donation) are handled by two different departments.” Wang Zhaohui is in charge of organ donation. “His explanation should be the most accurate source of reference, but he is indeed in charge of this area!”
Investigation Recording 9: Beijing Red Cross Society, Peking Union Medical College Hospital Body Donation Station
(Download recording MP3; download translated conversation transcript 9. Beijing Red Cross Society, Peking Union Medical College Hospital Body Donation Station.pdf)
Investigation Date: August 30, 2018 (Tel: +86+10 69156975)
Red Cross Officer: “We do not accept donations from other provinces or cities. It has to be from Beijing. It’s limited to one’s own locality.”
Investigation Recording 10: body donation station Capital Medical University
(Download recording MP3; download translated conversation transcript 10. Dr. Jing Peng of the body donation station at Capital Medical University.pdf)
Investigation Date: September 6, 2018 (Tel: 86+1083911443)
Jing Peng: In terms organ donation, it hasn’t been carried out (in Beijing by the Red Cross). “Many hospitals have organ donations, but the Red Cross Society is not responsible for that specifically. Right now, many (organ donations) indeed don’t go through the Red Cross Society!”
Reference
-----------------
[1] Xinhua News Network. “Wang Qishan is Hired as Honorary President of the Red Cross Society of China.” June 29, 2018. http://www.chinanews.com/gn/2018/06-29/8551399.shtml
[2] Xinhua News Network. “Organ Donation and Transplants receive the Chinese version of ‘Nobel Prize in Medicine’.” http://web.archive.org/web/20181017041708/http://www.xinhuanet.com/health/2015-12/01/c_128485798.htm, December 1, 2015. Source: The Beijing News.
[3] “The number of organ donation and transplants in China rank the second in the world.” http://news.sciencenet.cn/htmlnews/2017/8/384342.shtm Source: China National Radio Website, August 5, 2017.
[4] Zhang, Siwei. “The number of people, who have registered to donate their organs, on the website Shiyushou has exceeded 300,000”. Source: www.sciencenet.cn. May 6, 2018. http://news.sciencenet.cn/htmlnews/2018/5/411424.shtm?id=411424
[5] Xinhua News Network. Experts Say that the Decrease of Death-row Prisoners will Result in an Increase of Patients on Organ Transplant Wait List. Source: China Economic Weekly. September 3, 2013. http://news.xinhuanet.com/legal/2013-09/03/c_125305093.htm
WOIPFG’s archived link: http://www.zhuichaguoji.org/cn/images/nationalcriminalreports/301.png
[6] “WOIPFG's Report on the Crime of Live Organ Harvesting in China”. Published on August 9, 2016, Chinese version updated on July 7, 2018. http://www.upholdjustice.org/node/370
[7] From October 01, 2017 to June 30, 2018, “WOIPFG’s Phone Investigation Report on the Situation of Organ Harvesting from Falun Gong Practitioners by the Chinese Communist Party (6)”. http://www.zhuichaguoji.org/node/96870
