WOIPFG’s Investigative Report on the Alleged Organ Harvesting of Living Falun Gong Practitioners at Air Force Hospital of PLA's Western Theater (formerly PLA No. 452 Hospital) and Its Staff Members Suspected of Participation

Sep 14, 2023

Address: 1 Gongnongyuan Street, Jinjiang District, Chengdu City, Sichuan Province

Foreword

The Air Force Hospital of the PLA’s Western Theater (formerly the PLA No. 452 Hospital) claims to be the best in kidney transplantation in Sichuan, and its income has soared. Zhang Cong, the hospital director, was promoted to be the director of the PLA No.309 Hospital. On April 28, 2006, a reporter from Voice of Hope International Radio conducted a telephone investigation. Xu Yahong, director of the Department of Urology, said that he had performed at least 500 kidney transplants and could provide organs from young, healthy donors who practice Falun Gong. In view of the background of the CCP’s state crime of living-donor organ harvesting, the hospital is obviously suspected of participating in the crime of organ harvesting from living Falun Gong practitioners and members of other groups.

I. Hospital Overview

The Air Force Hospital of the PLA’s Western Theater (formerly the PLA No. 452 Hospital) was established in February 1950 and is a comprehensive tertiary level-A hospital. The hospital covers an area of 121.8 mu and has 600 beds.[1]

II. The hospital performs the most kidney transplants in Sichuan, and its income has soared. Zhang Cong, the director, was promoted to be the director of the PLA No. 309 Hospital.

The hospital was one of the first batch of kidney transplant hospitals designated by the Ministry of Health, claiming that the number of kidney transplant cases is the highest in Sichuan Province.[2] According to the public information, the hospital is famous in Southwest China and the whole of China for performing kidney transplantation.[3]

According to XinhuaNet report: In 2003, under the planning of the director Zhang Cong, the kidney and urology center of 452 Hospital was established quickly. Through private entrepreneurs' investment in updating equipment and contracting methods, the number of kidney transplants in this "township-level " hospital that was in trouble quickly reached the highest in the province.[4]

In 2000, the hospital had obsolete equipment, a shortage of doctors, and foreign debts of nearly 10 million yuan, so it was called a township hospital. Zhang Cong took office as the director in 2001. In 2002, Director Zhang Cong signed an agreement with a local entrepreneur to jointly operate the kidney transplant department with the hospital with a private investment of 8 million yuan. During the joint operation period, the enterprise pays 1.2 million yuan to the hospital every year. As a result, 331 cases of kidney transplantation were performed in No.452 Hospital, the number of cases of kidney transplantation ranked the highest in Sichuan Province. In 2007, after generating nearly 7 million yuan in revenue, the hospital paid 4 million yuan to recover all the facilities, equipment and management rights invested by entrepreneur. This practice of the 452 Hospital has caught the attention in the medical service system of the whole army, and some military hospitals followed suit.[5]

In January 2009, China’s domestic news reports mentioned the huge changes in the hospital’s income: the development and changes of the hospital in the past 8 years have witnessed Zhang Cong’s deeds: from being unknown to becoming a well-known comprehensive hospital in Southwest China, from being weak in technology to now more than 10 special and advantageous departments dominating the medical system in Sichuan and even the whole region, from less than 30 million yuan in annual income to 260 million yuan now....[6]

In 2013, Zhang Cong was promoted to the director of the PLA No.309 Hospital.[7]

III. Overview of Urology

The Department of Urology of the hospital has advanced medical equipment. There are nearly 50 inpatient beds, 8 intensive care beds for post kidney transplant patients, and a kidney transplant outpatient clinic. The annual outpatient volume of the Department of Urology is about 8,000, and more than 800 general urology patients are admitted every year, and more than 700 operations (including outpatient and emergency) are completed.

The department has nearly 30 medical staff at all levels, including 1 chief surgeon, 2 associate chief surgeons, 3 with doctorate and 3 with master’s degree.

Public information stated that "especially kidney transplantation has become an important professional feature of the department." In 2007, the department passed the qualification examination for kidney transplantation technology by the Ministry of Health of China, and became one of the first hospitals to obtain the qualification for clinical kidney transplantation.[8]

IV. Number of Kidney Transplants in Medical Papers

From January 2001 to December 2003, the hospital performed at least 218 kidney transplants.[9]

From July 2006 to October 2009, the hospital performed at least 132 living donor kidney transplants. 164 cases of cadaveric kidney transplantation and donor extraction were performed. There were 81 male donors and 1 female donor, aged 22-46 years, with an average age of 32.3 years. Infectious disease examination of the donors showed they were all free of tuberculosis, hepatitis, syphilis, AIDS and other infectious diseases.[10]

V. Telephone Investigation

Note: The hospital is rich in kidney resources, and both the director of the urology department and the transplant doctors admit to using young, healthy donors who practice Falun Gong.

The Voice of Hope reporter contacted the director of the Kidney Transplant Center of Beijing Yuquan Hospital on April 28, 2006. The doctor said that due to the large number of donors in Chengdu, Sichuan, he was sent to assist the local military hospital. For three consecutive days, doctors at the Air Force Hospital admitted that there were young and healthy donors who practiced Falun Gong.[11]

Voice of Hope Investigative Recording

Download MP3(3.8MB)

1. Abundant kidney sources, young and healthy donors who practice Falun Gong

Li Honghui, Director of the Kidney Transplant Center of Yuquan Hospital, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Tsinghua University in Beijing, claimed that he was sent to Chengdu, Sichuan Province, where there are many kidney sources, to assist the local military hospital, the Air Force Hospital, in performing kidney transplants. There are abundant kidney sources, young and healthy donors who practice Falun Gong.

The Yuquan Hospital of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Tsinghua University in Beijing is a kidney transplant center. Director Li (Honghui) said that they do more than 100 cases every year. Recently, due to the shortage of donors in Beijing, a month or two ago he was sent to Chengdu, Sichuan Province, a region with a large number of kidney sources, to assist the local military hospital, the Air Force Hospital, in performing kidney transplants.

Li Honghui: "We are in the military!"

Reporter: "There are abundant kidney sources here, so you came here to do surgery?"

Li Honghui: "Right."

He said that the donors came from Falun Gong a few years ago; when the reporter asked if he could provide kidneys from Falun Gong, he replied yes.

Li Honghui: "The Falun Gong-related thing happened a few years ago."

Reporter: "So a few years ago, was this kind of kidney source easier to find?"

Li Honghui: "It should be."

Reporter: "Is there any donor who is young and healthy, preferably one who practices Falun Gong?"

Li Honghui: "This can be considered, and I will tell him about it when the time comes."

Director Li said that there will be a batch of kidney sources on the 30th.

Li Honghui: "Today I informed you that there will be a kidney source the day after tomorrow, so you can make it here tomorrow because we have a batch of kidney sources the day after tomorrow.

With the arrival each batch of sources, only one or two can be provided to foreigners, because there are one or two hundred patients waiting in line every day in China. "

Li Honghui: "It's impossible to do four or five at the same time! Only one or two can be done. One or two can be done, because we still have a lot of domestic patients who also need transplant. We have more than 100 to 200 patients who are waiting every day."

2. Young and healthy organs from donors that practice Falun Gong

Director Xu Yahong, who has worked in the Department of Urology for more than 20 years, said that he has done at least 500 cases and can provide young and healthy organs from donors that practice Falun Gong.[12] After being exposed, the official website of the hospital deleted the data-related pages.

Xu Yahong: "I should have perform around 500 surgeries, and now it's around 100 every year, and it's been like this for the last two or three years."

Director Xu (Yahong) said that after mid-May there will be a another batch of kidneys and voluntary donors who can provide young and healthy organs from those that practice Falun Gong.

Reporter: "There are quite a lot of donor sources in May, is that right?"

Xu Yahong: "It should be. Usually I do it every month. Around May 20th, before the end of May, there shouldn’t be any problems. We have them at any time, and to be safe there are other sources. But this... I think this topic should wait until we meet. There are young donors."

Reporter: "Are there young donors"

Xu Yahong: "There must be. The donors are like this, and there are volunteers."

Reporter: "He emphasized the donor need to be young and healthy, and the one that practices Falun Gong would be the best. Is there such an opportunity?"

Xu Yahong: "Yes."

Reporter: "Yes?"

Xu Yahong: "There is such an opportunity; as far as our hospital is concerned, we will contact each other after May 15th."

VI. List of Responsible Persons

XBZQ-KJ001 Xu Yahong, male.

Personal Profile: Chief Surgeon and Director of the Urology Department of the PLA No.452 Hospital. He is currently the director-level member of the Urology Professional Committee of the Chengdu Military Region, a member of the Military Organ Transplant Professional Committee, and a standing member of the Sichuan Organ Transplant Branch.[13]

Specializes in kidney transplantation.

XBZQ-KJ002 Ma Xiaoping, male.

Personal Profile: Associate Chief Surgeon of the Urology Department of the PLA No. 452 Hospital, Director of Kidney Transplantation. Member of the Sichuan Branch of the Chinese Society of Organ Transplantation

He has been engaged in clinical urology kidney transplantation for a long time, and has studied kidney transplantation in Xijing Hospital Affiliated to Fourth Military Medical University and Guangzhou People's Hospital.

Good at kidney transplant tissue matching, surgical operation and postoperative treatment.[14]

XBZQ-KJ003 Gu Xinwei, male.

Personal Profile: Associate Chief Surgeon of the Department of Urology, The PLA No.452 Hospital

Graduated from the First Military Medical University.

Specializes in the treatment of post kidney transplant.[15]

References:

[1]Baidu Encyclopedia: The PLA No. 452 Hospital

https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A7%A3%E6%94%BE%E5%86%9B%E7%AC%AC%E5%9B%9B%E4%BA%94%E4%BA%8C%E5%8C%BB%E9%99%A2

https://archive.is/yD17M

[2] NetEase: Relying on the Market to Guarantee the "Battlefield" - Zhang Cong, Director of PLA No.452 Hospital 2009-01-12 Source: Xinhuanet

http://news.163.com/09/0112/20/4VG19ACC000120GU.html

Link to WOIPFG Files:

http://www.zhuichaguoji.org/cn/images/nationalcriminalreports/712.png

[3]Baidu Encyclopedia: The PLA No. 452 Hospital

https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A7%A3%E6%94%BE%E5%86%9B%E7%AC%AC%E5%9B%9B%E4%BA%94%E4%BA%8C%E5%8C%BB%E9%99%A2

https://archive.is/yD17M

[4]Sohu News: Zhang Cong, Director of PLA No. 452 Hospital: Relying on the Market to Guarantee the "Battlefield" January 12, 2009

http://news.sohu.com/20090112/n261710745.shtml

Link to WOIPFG Files:

http://www.zhuichaguoji.org/cn/images/nationalcriminalreports/713.png

[5]Clearwisdom.net: The CCP's Army That Doesn't Fight Wars is the World's Number One in Transplantation (Photos)

http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2009/11/17/212749.html

[6]NetEase: The PLA No. 452 Hospital of Chengdu Military Region's Capabilities to Innovate and Develop Medical Support Have Greatly Improved

https://web.archive.org/web/20190124004944/http://news.163.com/09/0112/…

[7] China Finance and Economics: Zhang Cong, Director of the PLA No. 309 Hospital: We must dare to take responsibility 2013-12-20

http://finance.china.com.cn/industry/medicine/yzld/20131220/2064111.sht…

Link to WOIPFG Files:

http://www.zhuichaguoji.org/cn/images/nationalcriminalreports/714.png

[8]Good Doctors Online: Urology of the PLA No. 452 Hospital

https://www.haodf.com/faculty/DE4r08xQdKSLuKplxrpF9fQsVXyf.htm

http://web.archive.org/web/20201102074214/https://www.haodf.com/faculty…

[9]WOIPFG—The PLA No. 452 Hospital

https://www.zhuichaguoji.org/node/99549

[10]Southwest National Defense Medicine, Vol. 20, No. 08, 2010, pp. 846-848 Comparison of the clinical efficacy of relative living donor kidney transplantation and cadaveric donor kidney transplantation"

Authors: Ma Xiaoping, Xu Yahong, Li Yangbo, Li Jian, Gu Xinwei, Yan Pin, Zhao Min (Department of Urology, PLA No. 452 Hospital, Chengdu, 610021);

Link to WOIPFG Files:

http://www.zhuichaguoji.org/cn/images/medicalarticles/9801.pdf

http://www.zhuichaguoji.org/cn/images/medicalarticles/9802.pdf

http://www.zhuichaguoji.org/cn/images/medicalarticles/9803.pdf

[11] Clearwisdom.net recording: The Military Hospital Acknowledges Uses of Kidneys of Falun Gong Practitioners, May 2, 2006

http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2006/5/2/126638p.html

[12]Renminbao.com-Chengdu Air Force Hospital Admits to Transplanting Organs from Living Falun Gong Practitioners

http://www.renminbao.com/rmb/articles/2006/5/1/40296.html

[13]Good Doctors Online: Profile of Dr. Xu Yahong

http://www.haodf.com/doctor/DE4r0BCkuHzdugX-5cflZMGILTrbd.htm

https://web.archive.org/web/20140504064520/http://www.haodf.com/doctor/…