Report of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee

Petition 2011/84 of Sam Fang on behalf of the Falun Gong Association Incorporated 

  Report of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee 

Contents 

  

Recommendation                                                                 2 

  

Appendix                                                                              4 

Petition 2011/84 of Sam Fang on behalf of the 

Falun Gong Association Incorporated   

The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee has considered Petition 2011/84 of Sam Fang on behalf of the Falun Gong Association Incorporated and recommends the House take note of its report. 

  

The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee has considered the petition of Sam Fang on behalf of the Falun Gong Association Incorporated, requesting that 

  

the House make it illegal for New Zealand citizens and permanent residents to receive an organ overseas that has been trafficked or illegally harvested and urge the New Zealand Government to publicly condemn the brutal and inhumane persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China and publicly call on the Chinese Communist Party to immediately end the persecution. 

The committee is aware that the petition forms part of a long campaign from Falun Gong and its supporters alleging that Falun Gong practitioners in China have been used as a source of organs for illegal donation. This allegation is unproven despite independent investigations and continues to be denied forcefully by the Chinese government. 

  

The  petition  proposes  that  the  House  make  it  illegal  for  New Zealand  citizens  and permanent residents to receive an organ overseas that has been trafficked or illegally harvested. 

  

The committee was advised that the sale of organs is not permitted in New Zealand. If people seek an organ transplant overseas then the New Zealand Government is not involved.  Furthermore, with around a million New Zealanders resident abroad, it  is difficult to see how, a law making receipt of an organ offshore illegal, could be enforced given issues including patient confidentiality, legal circumstances in other countries, and the clinical circumstances surrounding organ transplants. 

  

The committee understands that New Zealand uses many channels for discussing human rights and rule of law matters with China. These include ministerial discussions, bilateral dialogue on human rights led by New Zealand’s Ambassador in Beijing, and bilateral Foreign Ministry consultations. New Zealand also discusses human rights issues at the United Nations (last month New Zealand spoke on the China Universal Periodic Review). There is also a secondment arrangement between the China University of Politics and Law and the New Zealand Human Rights Commission which provides direct exposure to New Zealand’s human rights practices. The committee members reaffirm our belief that religious and spiritual beliefs and expression of those beliefs is a fundamental human right that should be respected in all countries. 

  

Issues raised in this petition have come before this committee in the last Parliament. The New Zealand Government investigated allegations made by Falun Gong of illegal organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners after they surfaced in March 2006 in a report written by Canadians David Kilgour and David Matas, and publicised through the Falun Gong publication Epoch Times. 

Neither committee members nor the Government are aware of any independent evidence verifying the Falun Gong claims on organ harvesting. This conclusion is based on both New Zealand and foreign inquiries. New Zealand officials discussed the allegations with Kilgour and Matas; the office of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on torture; human rights non-governmental organisations; and other countries interested in the human rights situation in China. Other international organisations also attempted to verify whether the claims on organ harvesting made in the Kilgour/Matas report had substance. This included a significant US State Department investigation that concluded that there was no evidence of the practice. Officials are not aware of any independent assessment that supports the Falun Gong’s claims of forced organ harvesting. 

  

We have no further matters to bring to the attention of the House. 

Appendix 

Committee procedure 

  

The petition was referred to the committee on 7 November 2013. The committee met on 14 and 21 November 2013 to consider the petition. 

  

Committee members 

  

John Hayes (Chairperson)  

Hon Phil Goff 

Dr Kennedy Graham 

Hon Tau Henare  

Dr Paul Hutchison  

David Shearer  

Lindsay Tisch 

SF:http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/pb/sc/documents/reports/50DBSCH_SCR6012_1/petition-201184-of-sam-fang-on-behalf-of-the-falun-gong