9 Jul 2013, 16:23
The Foreign Affairs Committee will receive a presentation on unethical organ harvesting in China at its meeting tomorrow, Wednesday 10th July 2013.
Those attending tomorrow’s meeting are: Dongxue Dai, Falun Gong practitioner; David Matas, Senior Legal Council, B’nai Brith Canada; Ethan Gutmann, Writer, Journalist and Independent Investigator on Organ Harvesting; and Declan Lyons, representative of Doctors Against Forced Organ Harvesting in Ireland.
Committee Chairman Pat Breen TD said: “Organ harvesting, the removal of organs from a donor, without obtaining prior free and voluntary consent, is considered a crime against humanity, as well as a threat to medical science in general, according to the organisation Doctors Against Forced Organ Harvesting. China, under pressure from the international community, has agreed to phase out its practice of harvesting organs from executed prisoners. However, human rights groups, medical practitioners, lawyers and politicians around the world have demanded an immediate end to forced organ harvesting in China. Tomorrow our Committee will meet with a number of people campaigning against the practice of unethical organ harvesting in China. It’s an opportunity for the Committee to get an update on the matter and members will have a chance to raise any issues or concerns they may have.”
The meeting will start in Committee Room 1, Leinster House at 2.30pm on Wednesday, 10th July 2013.
Committee proceedings can be followed live here.
Media queries to:
Ciaran Brennan,
Houses of the Oireachtas,
Communications Unit,
Leinster House,
Dublin 2
P: +3531 618 3903
M: 086-0496518
F: +3531 618 4551
Committee Membership
Deputies
Seán Crowe, TD
Pat Breen, TD (Chairman)
Eric Byrne, TD
Olivia Mitchell, TD
Bernard J Durkan, TD
Pádraig Mac Lochlainn, TD
Gerald Nash, TD
Dan Neville, TD
Maureen O’Sullivan, TD
Brendan Smith, TD
Senators
Deirdre Clune,
Mark Daly,
Lorraine Higgins,
Michael Mullins,
David Norris,
Jim Walsh.