U.S. House passes bill to combat forced organ harvesting
null / Credit: life_in_a_pixel/Shutterstock Washington D.C., Mar 28, 2023 / 15:10 pm (CNA).
On Monday night the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would impose sanctions and penalties on individuals involved in the forced harvesting of human organs.
The bill, authored by Catholic Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, and called the Stop Forced Organ Harvesting Act of 2023, had nearly unanimous support, passing in a 412-2 vote. It will now advance to the Senate.
Under this law, any person determined by the president to be funding, sponsoring, or in any way facilitating the forced harvesting of organs could face sanctions as well as civil and criminal penalties.
Individuals determined to be involved with the forced organ harvesting industry could face civil penalties of up to $ 250,000 and criminal penalties of $ 1 million and up to 20 years in prison.
Additionally, individuals involved in the organ harvesting scheme could face sanctions blocking them from entering the U.S. and prohibiting them from engaging in transactions in property or interests in property within the country.
According to Smith, the secretive forced organ harvesting industry preys on minority communities throughout the world, with victims being abducted or imprisoned only for their organs to be removed for harvesting.
In some instances, the victims have been reported to still be alive during the harvesting procedure.
This forced organ harvesting industry is said to be especially prevalent in China under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
“These crimes against humanity are unimaginable,” Smith said during debate on the House floor on Monday. “Every year, under General Secretary Xi Jinping and his Chinese Communist Party, between 60,000 to 100,000 young victims — average age 28 — are murdered in cold blood to steal their internal organs.”
China’s Falun Gong and Uyghur communities, Smith explained, are especially targeted by the CCP for forced organ harvesting.
“Elderly high-ranking Chinese Communist Party officials have received replacement organs from the very people they despise like the Falun Gong and the Uyghurs,” Smith said.
“We must act decisively,” Smith continued. “State-sponsored forced organ harvesting is big business for Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party and shows absolutely no sign of abating. Which is why we and the rest of the world need to step up.”
