The Dutch MEP Peter van Dalen (ChristenUnie) says that the problem of reported Chinese organ robbery remains underexposed in the European Union. The EU must strongly condemn and denounce Chinese organ harvesting.
Van Dalen (ChristenUnie) said on Wednesday at a conference of the news portal EU Today on the subject: "I am working hard to get this issue back on the agenda of the European Parliament, starting with the reopening of this debate in the Human Rights Committee ”.
Just before the summer, a group of human rights activists said they were alarmed about suspected organ harvesting from Chinese prisoners. Van Dalen said at the time that “these reports of organ harvesting are an extremely unsavory thing and yet another gross violation of human rights in China. So we definitely need to check whether these alarming reports are correct and, if so, what steps the EU should take.”
During the conference, Van Dalen stated that the problem with organ harvesting is twofold: “First of all, the forced and often fatal removal of organs is a blatant assault on human rights, regardless of who the victim is.
In addition, the victims of this horrific practice are often prisoners who are already severely mistreated, given that they are imprisoned on the basis of religion or political belief.”
The Chinese Red Cross has nothing to do with the real Red Cross, the international organization, it is said. In China it is an internal organization of the communist party, so they cooperate in everything the Chinese government tells them to do.
Van Dalen believes that human rights should be central in both diplomatic relations and trade with China. Furthermore, the EU – especially the EU countries themselves – should make citizens aware of this issue, especially the medical or business professionals dealing with this issue.
“European medical professionals in particular need to be aware of these risks when working with Chinese colleagues,” said Van Dalen.