Organ Trafficking in Eastern Europe

Written by Sam Vaknin


A kidney fetches $2700 in Turkey. According to last month's issue ofrepparttar Journal ofrepparttar 119241 American Medical Association, this is a high price. An Indian or Iraqi kidney enriches its former owner by a mere $1000. Wealthy clients later pay forrepparttar 119242 rare organ up to $150,000.

CBS News aired, two years ago, a documentary, filmed by Antenna 3 of Spain, in which undercover reporters in Mexico were asked, by a priest acting as a middleman for a doctor, to pay close to 1 million dollars for a single kidney. An auction of a human kidney on eBay in February 2000 drew a bid of $100,000 beforerepparttar 119243 company put a stop to it. Another auction in September 1999 drew $5.7 million - though, probably, merely as a prank.

Organ harvesting operations flourish in Turkey, in central Europe, mainly inrepparttar 119244 Czech Republic, and inrepparttar 119245 Caucasus, mainly in Georgia. They operate on Turkish, Moldovan, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Romanian, Bosnian, Kosovar, Macedonian, Albanian and assorted east European donors.

They remove kidneys, lungs, pieces of liver, even corneas, bones, tendons, heart valves, skin and other sellable human bits. The organs are kept in cold storage and air lifted to illegal distribution centers inrepparttar 119246 United States, Germany, Scandinavia,repparttar 119247 United Kingdom, Israel, South Africa, and other rich, industrialized locales. It gives "brain drain" a new, spine chilling, meaning.

Organ trafficking has become an international trade. It involves Indian, Thai, Philippine, Brazilian, Turkish and Israeli doctors who scourrepparttar 119248 Balkan and other destitute regions for tissues. The Washington Post reported last week that in a single village in Moldova, 14 out of 40 men were reduced by penury to selling body parts.

Last year, Moldova cut offrepparttar 119249 thriving baby adoption trade due to an - an unfounded - fearrepparttar 119250 toddlers were being dissected for spare organs. According torepparttar 119251 Israeli daily, Ha'aretz,repparttar 119252 Romanians are investigating similar allegations in Israel and have withheld permission to adopt Romanian babies from dozens of eager and out of pocket couples. American authorities are scrutinizing a two year old Moldovan harvesting operation based inrepparttar 119253 United States.

Organ theft and trading in Ukraine is a smooth operation. According to news agencies, last August three Ukrainian doctors were charged in Lvov with trafficking inrepparttar 119254 organs of victims of road accidents. The doctors used helicopters to ferry kidneys and livers to colluding hospitals. They charged up to $19,000 per organ.

The West Australian daily surveyed in Januaryrepparttar 119255 thriving organs business in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Sellers are offering their wares openly, through newspaper ads. Prices reach up to $68,000. Compared to an average monthly wage of less than $200, this is an unimaginable fortune.

National health insurance schemes turn a blind eye. Israel's participates inrepparttar 119256 costs of purchasing organs abroad, though only subject to rigorous vetting ofrepparttar 119257 sources ofrepparttar 119258 donation. Still, a May 2001 article in arepparttar 119259 New York Times Magazine, quotes "the coordinator of kidney transplantation at Hadassah University Hospital in Jerusalem (as saying that) 60 ofrepparttar 119260 244 patients currently receiving post-transplant care purchased their new kidney from a stranger - just short of 25 percent ofrepparttar 119261 patients at one of Israel's largest medical centers participating inrepparttar 119262 organ business".

Many Israelis - attempting to avoid scrutiny - travel to east Europe, accompanied by Israeli doctors, to performrepparttar 119263 transplantation surgery. These junkets are euphemistically known as "transplant tourism". Clinics have sprouted all overrepparttar 119264 benighted region. Israeli doctors have recently visited impoverished Macedonia, Bulgaria, Kosovo and Yugoslavia to discuss with local businessmen and doctorsrepparttar 119265 setting up of kidney transplant clinics.

Such open involvement in what can be charitably described as a latter day slave trade gives rise to a new wave of thinly disguised anti-Semitism. The Ukrainian Echo, quotingrepparttar 119266 Ukrinform news agency, reported, on January 7, that, implausibly, a Ukrainian guest worker died in Tel-Aviv in mysterious circumstances and his heart was removed. The Interpol, according torepparttar 119267 paper, is investigating this lurid affair.

How to Select a Divorce Lawyer

Written by Scott Morgan


Selecting a divorce lawyer to handle your family law case is a very important decision. The following are a few important criteria to help in findingrepparttar right divorce lawyer.

Experience and Focus

Any divorce lawyer you consider should have substantial experience in handling divorce cases in your location. An experienced divorce lawyer will knowrepparttar 119240 tendencies ofrepparttar 119241 various judges in your jurisdiction and should be able to use this knowledge to your advantage. Additionally, that lawyer should practice primarily inrepparttar 119242 field of divorce law. Often people will hire a lawyer who practices primarily in some other area, thinking that any lawyer will do. However, divorce law is a very specialized field that requires particular skills and experience in order to have a likelihood of reaching a successful conclusion.

Past Client Testimonials

Perhapsrepparttar 119243 best way to decide which divorce lawyer to use for your divorce case is to find out what former clients have to say about that lawyer. While divorce is never an enjoyable process, some divorce lawyers have more success at satisfying their clients than others. If you do not know someone who has been a client of that particular divorce lawyer, you should consider askingrepparttar 119244 lawyer for a list of clients that you can contact who can describe their experience withrepparttar 119245 lawyer. While client confidentiality is important, any good experienced divorce lawyer should have at least a few former clients who are willing to vouch for him or her.

Accessible

When a client becomes dissatisfied with a divorce lawyer, one ofrepparttar 119246 most common complaints is that they were unable to communicate withrepparttar 119247 lawyer. It is very important that your divorce lawyer be accessible and prompt in responding to your phone calls, emails, and requests for meetings. While you can askrepparttar 119248 divorce lawyer about their office policy, this is another area where you can best evaluaterepparttar 119249 divorce lawyer by hearing what former clients have to say.

If a former client ofrepparttar 119250 lawyer tells you that they found it very difficult to contactrepparttar 119251 attorney, or thatrepparttar 119252 lawyer either did not return calls or respond to emails or would take several days to do so, you should definitely avoid that lawyer. Divorce is an unpleasant and frustrating process underrepparttar 119253 best of circumstances. If you are unable to reach your divorce attorney, or at least someone on his or her staff,repparttar 119254 frustration level can increase exponentially.

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