CAIRO: The Shoura Council, Egypt's Upper House of Parliament, approved a draft law on organ donations and transplant on Monday, following discussions by 84 MPs, including doctors and legal experts, said Shoura Council Speaker Safwat El-Sherif. The discussions highlighted the necessity for a proper organ waiting list, he said, with provisions that would seriously penalize anyone who tries to cheat his way into the list. Shoura Council MP Shawki Al-Sayyed, also member of the ruling National Democratic Party, told Daily News Egypt that that he hopes the law will be enforced as soon as possible to end illegal organ trafficking in Egypt. The draft law was referred to the Shoura Council for deliberations after the People's Assembly (PA) officially approved it earlier this month. The PA's health committee and the constitutional and legislative affairs committee signed off on the law which has been under discussion in parliament for two years. At the time, PA Speaker Fathi Sorour referred the law to the advisory Shoura Council even though this is not constitutionally required. He justified his decision by saying that President Hosni Mubarak wanted the input of the Shoura Council due to the sensitivity of the issue at hand. He gave them a one-month deadline. Now, the draft law will be referred back to the PA where members will vote on it. The main bone of contention in the bill was agreeing on a definition of death. Although clinical death in the medical profession is brain death, many MPs argued that death must involve the arrest of both the brain and the heart. Hence, both PA committees decided that the legislation would not define death but would refer cases of organ donation from deceased persons to a panel of three experts, who must reach consensus on whether or not the donor is dead. The Higher Committee for Organ Transplants would appoint the experts in conjunction with the Ministry of Health. According to the draft law, any decision to remove organs before the panel's approval would be considered first-degree murder and punishable by death. The law also stipulates that organ donations from live donors will be restricted to family members of the fourth degree. Transplant procedures for low-income patients will be financed by the state, according to the new law. Health Minister Hatem El-Gabaly said that operations would be conducted according to case urgency, with a specialized committee in place to decide on priority cases. The new law also penalizes doctors who perform illegal organ transplant procedures, subjecting them to a maximum sentence of 15 years in jail. Hospitals and medical facilities allowing illegal operations will also be fined up to LE 1 million and can be shut down altogether. In 1997, Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar Mohamed Sayed Tantawy declared organ donation permissible. Tantawy even proclaimed his intention to donate his own organs to any needy patient. It was the Doctors' Syndicate that first proposed the organ donation law in Egypt eight years ago, partly to combat illegal trafficking. Hamdy El-Sayyed, head of the Doctor's Syndicate, said that organ donations could help 42,000 people in Egypt in need of transplants. He previously told Daily News Egypt that "the government is very excited about the new law and the [the ruling party] has the majority of seats in the PA so it will pressure its members to approve the legislation.
