Organ trafficking rife in Egypt

2006-04-04 11:58

Cairo - On the back of dire poverty, legal shortcomings and religious conservatism, a new mafia is prospering in Egypt and turning the country into the regional hub for the human organs trade, say experts.

There were no official statistics, but in a country where social inequality was high and a quarter of the population was believed to live under the poverty line, more and more destitute Egyptians were falling prey to the phenomenon.

The large scars slicing the sides of many Egyptians in impoverished Cairo neighbourhoods most probably testify to an illegal kidney sale to a rich fellow countryman or a Gulf Arab who could not find a donor.

Most donors 'are poor'

Hamdi al-Sayyed, the head of Egypt's doctors' union, said: "A Saudi patient can pay up to $80 000 split between the doctor, the donor and the go-between.

"For example, a Jordanian or a Saudi who needs a transplant comes to Egypt accompanied by a relative as an official cover and then looks for an Egyptian or a Sudanese who is ready to sell his organ."

While most donors were poor and hoping for a better life, not all were volunteers, with grisly accounts of forced organ "donations" earning Egypt the sinister reputation of "Brazil of the Middle East".

Like millions of Egyptians, Abdelhamid AbdelHamid, Ahmed Ibrahim and Ashraf Zakaria were seeking better paid jobs in the Gulf, but their quest cost them a kidney.

Kidney infection

In a recent interview, they explained how they had been promised jobs, but were requested to undergo a medical examination beforehand.

The doctor "discovered" they were all suffering from a kidney infection requiring immediate surgery. They woke up later in hospital with a missing kidney. The go-between had vanished, but they feared to speak out.

A few days later, the health ministry caught a trafficker red-handed as he was selling a kidney to a Saudi citizen for $3 500. Cairo Hospital was supposed to be paid the same amount.

According to the main anti-narcotics body, a kilogramme of bango, the popular local form of marijuana, fetched about $100 on the drugs market.

Legislation

But, dealers exposed themselves to major risks to run their trade, while organ trafficking could offer a safer and often more lucrative alternative.

Sayyed said: "This mafia should be busted and the only way to do it is to pass legislation" regulating organ donation.

Only cornea transplants were covered by legislation, with all other operations falling in a gaping legal loophole. He said: "Some doctors see it as an opportunity to make easy money."

Sayyed, who was also a lawmaker, had been pushing for parliament to adopt new legislation slapping heavy fines and prison sentences on people found guilty of involvement in illegal organs trafficking.

His proposal also banned transplants between two people of different nationalities, in a bid to reduce the incentive for transplant tourism.

- AFP