Efforts on organ trafficking in Kavrepalancowk district

According to the Human Body Organ Transplantation (Regulation and Prohibition) Act, 1998, the illegal selling of human organs for transplantation is a crime in Nepal. Furthermore, the Human Trafficking and Transportation (Control) Act, 2007 clearly states that the extraction of human organs, except otherwise determined by law, is an act of human trafficking and transportation. However a number of cases of illegal kidney transplantation have been reported by the media in the last couple of years. PPR Nepal and CTIP program partners working in Kavrepalanchowk district have in the last year documented many cases related to sale of kidneys for transplantation which indicate the existence of organ trade for commercial purposes. However, it has been a legal and social challenge to determine if these cases qualify as organ trafficking due to the lack of systematic documentation and evidence gathering. In Nepal, given the legal provision and framework, little research has been done to examine the link between the cases of exploitation, deception, and trafficking. Many donors consented to sell their kidneys upon being lured by the brokers but were cheated on the payment promised to them. To address this, PPR Nepal held a series of activities with the locals, key governmental and non-governmental stakeholders in Kavrepalanchowk district.

Under the CTIP program, stakeholders' meetings were conducted in Dhulikhel and Kavre with a focus to control the sale of kidney for illegal transplantation. Leaflet and brochure on kidney trafficking was published and distributed at the community and district level in Kavrepalanchowk district and a poster depicting organ selling as a form of human trafficking was also published and distributed. Further, as an initiation to combat organ trafficking, Legal Awareness and Mobile Legal, Psychosocial and Health Clinic was organized in Hokse VDC of Kavre where the victims of kidney trafficking handed over written First Information Report (FIR) to the head of the District Police office.

PPR Nepal's intervention in the last two years brought to notice to local administration, police and the community many cases of illegal organ sale in Kavrepalanchowk district. The program partners have been successful is forcing the local administration and the law enforcement agencies to at least register initial complaint in a few cases and later case being registered in Kavrepalanchowk district court. Regular follow-up and monitoring of the district and meeting with the police, CDO and district attorney has helped to get the updates of the situation of the FIR registered against the traffickers. To address the problem and positioning it within existing anti-trafficking legal provisions, PPR is conducting an empirical research to understand the status of organ trafficking. The study strives to understand the process, the reasons and the impact of sale of kidney by doing a qualitative case analysis of at least fifty reported cases. It will look into the socio- economic, political and cultural aspects that drive the process and how that be addressed within the existing legal and administrative framework. The research analyzes if the reported cases of illegal kidney transplantation can be addressed under existing legal provision related to organ trafficking and if so how.