[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 93 (Monday, June 13, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H3721-H3724]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           STRATEGY TO OPPOSE PREDATORY ORGAN TRAFFICKING ACT

  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 3694) to combat trafficking in human organs, and for other 
purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3694

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Strategy To Oppose Predatory 
     Organ Trafficking Act'' or the ``STOP Organ Trafficking 
     Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 
     approximately 10 percent of all transplanted kidneys 
     worldwide are illegally obtained, often bought from 
     vulnerable impoverished persons or forcibly harvested from 
     prisoners.
       (2) In 2004, the World Health Assembly passed a resolution 
     urging its member-states to take measures to protect the 
     poorest as well as vulnerable groups from exploitation by 
     organ traffickers.
       (3) On February 13, 2008, the United Nations Global 
     Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking (UNGIFT) hosted the 
     ``Vienna Forum to Fight Human Trafficking'', and subsequently 
     reported that a lack of adequate illicit organ trafficking 
     laws has provided opportunity for the illegal trade to grow.
       (4) On March 21, 2011, the Council of the European Union 
     adopted rules supplementing the definition of criminal 
     offenses and the level of sanctions in order to strengthen 
     the prevention of organ trafficking and the protection of 
     those victims.
       (5) In 2005, the United States ratified the Protocol to 
     Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, 
     Especially Women

[[Page H3722]]

     and Children, a supplement to the United Nations Convention 
     against Transnational Organized Crime, which includes the 
     removal of organs as a form of exploitation under the 
     definition of ``trafficking in persons''.
       (6) According to a 2013 United Nations report from the 
     Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially 
     women and children, the economic and social divisions within 
     and among countries is notably reflected in the illicit organ 
     trafficking market, in which the victims are commonly poor, 
     unemployed, and more susceptible to deceit and extortion.

     SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

       It is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) the kidnapping or coercion of individuals for the 
     purpose of extracting their organs for profit is in 
     contradiction of the ideals and standards for ethical 
     behavior upon which the United States has based its laws;
       (2) the illegal harvesting of organs from children is a 
     violation of the human rights of the child and is a breach of 
     internationally accepted medical ethical standards described 
     in WHO Assembly Resolution 57.18 (May 22, 2004);
       (3) the illegal harvesting and trafficking of organs 
     violates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in 
     Article 3 which states that ``Everyone has the right to life, 
     liberty and security of person.'', and in Article 4 which 
     states that ``No one shall be held in slavery or 
     servitude.''; and
       (4) establishing efficient voluntary organ donation systems 
     with strong enforcement mechanisms is the most effective way 
     to combat trafficking of persons for the removal of their 
     organs.

     SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

       It shall be the policy of the United States to--
       (1) combat the international trafficking of persons for the 
     removal of their organs;
       (2) promote the establishment of voluntary organ donation 
     systems with effective enforcement mechanisms in bilateral 
     diplomatic meetings, as well as in international health 
     forums; and
       (3) promote the dignity and security of human life in 
     accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

     SEC. 5. REVOCATION OR DENIAL OF PASSPORTS TO INDIVIDUALS WHO 
                   ARE ORGAN TRAFFICKERS.

       The Act entitled ``An Act to regulate the issue and 
     validity of passports, and for other purposes'', approved 
     July 3, 1926 (22 U.S.C. 211a et seq.), which is commonly 
     known as the ``Passport Act of 1926'', is amended by adding 
     at the end the following:

     ``SEC. 4. AUTHORITY TO DENY OR REVOKE PASSPORT.

       ``(a) Issuance.--The Secretary of State may refuse to issue 
     a passport to any individual who has been convicted of an 
     offense under section 301 of the National Organ Transplant 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 274e) if such individual used a passport or 
     otherwise crossed an international border in the commission 
     of such an offence.
       ``(b) Revocation.--The Secretary of State may revoke a 
     passport previously issued to any individual described in 
     paragraph (1).''.

     SEC. 6. AMENDMENTS TO THE TRAFFICKING VICTIMS PROTECTION ACT 
                   OF 2000.

       (a) Definitions.--Section 103 of the Trafficking Victims 
     Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (9)--
       (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting: ``; or''; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(C) trafficking of persons for the removal of their 
     organs (as defined in paragraph (13)).'';
       (2) by redesignating paragraphs (13) through (15) as 
     paragraphs (14) through (16), respectively; and
       (3) by inserting after paragraph (12) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(13) Trafficking of persons for the removal of their 
     organs.--
       ``(A) In general.--The term `trafficking of persons for the 
     removal of their organs' means the recruitment, 
     transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt of a person, 
     either living or deceased, for the purpose of removing one or 
     more of the person's organs, by means of--
       ``(i) coercion;
       ``(ii) abduction;
       ``(iii) deception;
       ``(iv) fraud;
       ``(v) abuse of power or a position of vulnerability; or
       ``(vi) transfer of payments or benefits to achieve the 
     consent of a person having control over a person described in 
     the matter preceding clause (i).
       ``(B) Organ defined.--In subparagraph (A), the term `organ' 
     has the meaning given the term `human organ' in section 
     301(c)(1) of the National Organ Transplant Act (42 U.S.C. 
     274e(c)(1)).''.
       (b) Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat 
     Trafficking.--Section 105(d)(3) of the Trafficking Victims 
     Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7103(d)(3)) is amended by 
     inserting after the first sentence the following new 
     sentence: ``Such procedures shall include collection and 
     organization of data from human rights officers at United 
     States embassies on host country's laws against trafficking 
     of persons for the removal of their organs and any instances 
     of violations of such laws.''.

     SEC. 7. REPORTING.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter through 
     2024, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate 
     congressional committees a comprehensive report that includes 
     the following information:
       (1) A description of the sources, practices, methods, 
     facilitators, and recipients of trafficking of persons for 
     the removal of their organs during the period covered by each 
     such report.
       (2) A description of activities undertaken by the 
     Department of State, either unilaterally or in cooperation 
     with other countries, to address and prevent trafficking of 
     persons for the removal of their organs.
       (3) A description of activities undertaken by countries to 
     address and prevent trafficking of persons for the removal of 
     their organs.
       (b) Matters to Be Included.--The reports required under 
     subsection (a) shall include the collection and organization 
     of data from human rights officers at United States 
     diplomatic and consular posts on host countries' laws against 
     trafficking of persons for the removal of their organs, 
     including enforcement of such laws, or any instances of 
     violations of such laws.
       (c) Additional Matters to Be Included.--The reports 
     required under subsection (a) may include--
       (1) information provided in meetings with host country 
     officials;
       (2) information provided through cooperation with United 
     Nations or World Health Organization agencies;
       (3) communications and reports provided by nongovernmental 
     organizations working on the issue of trafficking of persons 
     for the removal of their organs; and
       (4) any other reports or information sources the Secretary 
     of State determines to be necessary and appropriate.

     SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
     ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee 
     on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the 
     Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate.
       (2) Organ.--The term ``organ'' has the meaning given the 
     term ``human organ'' in section 301(c)(1) of the National 
     Organ Transplant Act (42 U.S.C. 274e(c)(1)).
       (3) Trafficking of persons for the removal of their 
     organs.--The term ``trafficking of persons for the removal of 
     their organs'' means the recruitment, transportation, 
     transfer, harboring, or receipt of a person, either living or 
     deceased, for the purpose of removing one or more of the 
     person's organs, by means of--
       (A) coercion;
       (B) abduction;
       (C) deception;
       (D) fraud;
       (E) abuse of power or a position of vulnerability; or
       (F) transfer of payments or benefits to achieve the consent 
     of a person having control over a person described in the 
     matter preceding clause (i).

     SEC. 9. LIMITATION ON FUNDS.

       No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to 
     carry out this Act or any amendment made by this Act.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Royce) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.


                             General Leave

  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to 
include any extraneous material on this bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Trott and Mr. Deutch for introducing 
this important bill. The concept here is to combat the horrific crime 
of human trafficking for organ removal. And, as always, I appreciate 
the support of the ranking member, Mr. Eliot Engel, in moving this 
antitrafficking bill forward.
  As hard as it is for us to accept this, as shocking as this is, the 
circumstances are such that rising global demand and a lack of adequate 
laws in many countries has fueled the growth of a worldwide black 
market for transplant organs.
  The World Health Organization estimates that 10 percent of all 
transplanted organs worldwide are illegally obtained. That would mean 
that they were being coerced from vulnerable populations or forcibly 
harvested from prisoners. Often these prisoners are shot first in order 
to obtain organs, such as hearts, corneas, or lungs. They

[[Page H3723]]

are taken from hostages. They are taken from oppressed minorities. An 
example would be kidneys or part of a liver.
  These abuses are more than just grave human rights violations. They 
also have worldwide implications for national security and public 
health. What do we mean when we say implications for national security? 
Well, criminal organizations and terrorist groups are increasingly 
engaging in this black market industry that is valued now at a billion 
dollars.
  To give you some of the most extreme examples: ISIS recently issued a 
fatwa sanctioning forced organ harvesting from captives and, as they 
call them, from apostates; and traffickers smuggling refugees into 
Europe have reportedly coerced organ donations, coerced a kidney as 
payment for travel.
  A number of studies have underscored how this shady commerce also 
creates biosecurity threats to the rest of the world. Recipients of 
infected tissue or organs may become human carriers of disease. Or 
another problem is drug-resistant pathogens that contribute to the 
spread of pandemics and antibiotic resistance.
  Now, the U.S. has led the fight against human trafficking, and I 
would add, with help from the Foreign Affairs Committee, with help from 
the legislation that we, our members on the committee, have authored.
  This bill continues and expands that effort, and it does so by 
closing the gap in U.S. law that currently fails to recognize the 
trafficking in persons for the removal of their organs as a form of 
human trafficking.
  Specifically, this bill also makes it the policy of the United States 
to combat such trafficking, to promote the adoption of effective 
voluntary organ donation systems in bilateral engagements and 
multinational health forums that we have with other countries. And it 
requires an annual report to Congress, an annual report on human 
trafficking for organ removal, which details activities by our State 
Department and by other countries to combat this crime.
  Finally, the bill allows for the revocation of passports from any 
individual that is involved in this kind of activity, that is convicted 
of an organ trafficking offense under the National Organ Transplant 
Act, as well as permitting the denial of visas to applicants with such 
convictions.
  So I urge all Members to support this important measure.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this measure, and I 
yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Before I begin, this is the first time I have spoken on the House 
floor since the horrific attack in Orlando, and I just want to take a 
brief moment to talk about it. This was a shocking hate crime against 
the LGBT community, a jarring and disgusting attack on our LGBT 
brothers and sisters, and on the progress LGBT rights have made in this 
country. And, of course, this was also a terrorist attack, and we need 
to look at it in the broader context of how we're working to meet the 
challenge of violent extremism here and around the world.
  Mr. Speaker, since yesterday morning, there has been an outpouring of 
thoughts and prayers for the victims in Orlando and their loved ones; 
and, to be sure, moral and spiritual support are a part of how we 
grieve and heal.
  We are all angry about this heinous attack. We are all heartbroken. 
We are all committed to finding answers. We are all standing together, 
and we will move forward from this tragedy together.
  But, as lawmakers, we are empowered to do more than think and pray. 
In fact, we are certainly empowered to do more. I certainly have my 
views on what is necessary on the domestic side to stop this slaughter 
by gun violence, but I will leave that contentious debate aside for the 
moment.
  What I will say is that, on the Foreign Affairs Committee, 
Republicans and Democrats have found a great deal of common ground on 
what sort of measures will help to keep us safe and to confront the 
threat of violent extremism. What has guided us in the past: the spirit 
of nonpartisanship and the belief that politics should stop at the 
water's edge, should continue to inform our work.
  Turning to this bill, let me thank the chairman of the Foreign 
Affairs Committee, Ed Royce; and I want to thank Mr. Trott and Mr. 
Deutch for all of their hard work on this measure.
  The World Health Organization estimates that 10 percent of all 
transplanted organs worldwide are illegally obtained. That is an 
alarming number; but, like so many illegal enterprises, this is a crime 
that is poorly understood, that seeks out zones of impunity where the 
light of the law doesn't shine and where information is hard to come 
by.

  So with a handful of estimates and reports, we are left asking: Who 
are the victims of this crime? How do they become trapped by this 
illegal trade? What pressures and vulnerabilities made them 
susceptible? What are governments doing to halt the practice to track 
down those responsible and to provide services to survivors? Should 
this challenge be included in our efforts to confront modern slavery, 
or is this a different sort of problem altogether?
  This bill will help us get answers to these questions. It calls for a 
report on this crime that will allow us to connect the dots. Once we 
know what we are dealing with, then we can figure out the best way to 
act and chart a path forward. So I am glad to support it. I thank the 
chairman and the bill's sponsors again.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Trott), who is the author of this bill.
  Mr. TROTT. Mr. Speaker, I want to begin by thanking Chairman Royce, 
Ranking Member Engel, the committee staff, and Mena Hanna from my 
office for their work on H.R. 3694. I also want to thank my colleague, 
Representative Deutch, for coauthoring the STOP Organ Trafficking Act 
with me.
  Illegal trafficking of human organs has long been a terrible and 
heinous crime, but unfortunately our policies and laws have not kept 
pace with this outrageous practice.
  China has been inexplicably targeting the Falun Gong for years, and 
more recently, ISIS has reportedly been resorting to this brutal 
practice to finance their nefarious activities and strike fear in the 
hearts of innocent people.
  Late last year, ISIS released a religious edict stating that taking 
organs from a living captive to save a Muslim's life was permissible, 
making religious minorities all over the Middle East, like the 
Chaldeans and the Assyrians, even more vulnerable.
  Other helpless groups of people, like refugees, have reportedly been 
selling their organs on the black market through dealers who then sell 
the organs to foreign countries in what is quickly becoming an 
unchecked and lucrative business.
  Mr. Speaker, it is time for the United States to take a leading role 
in combatting this heinous crime and standing with the world's most 
vulnerable. We must ensure that our country is doing everything within 
our power to destroy any revenue stream that ISIS relies on to further 
its terrorist activities.
  My bill is a start to this lengthy process, and I urge my colleagues 
to vote in support of this timely legislation.
  Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Smith).

                              {time}  1745

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Chairman Royce 
again for bringing this important bill to the floor, and to Eliot Engel 
for his leadership and Mr. Deutch, and especially to Mr. Trott, the 
sponsor of H.R. 3694, the Strategy To Oppose Predatory Organ 
Trafficking Act. This legislation recognizes and seeks to more 
effectively combat what is a growing manifestation of trafficking in 
persons for the sole purpose of organ removal, often for great profit 
for the traffickers.
  Mr. Trott's legislation requires the Department of State to develop a 
robust strategy to combat this heinous practice. We have long heard 
rumors and horror stories of migrants held captive in sub-Saharan 
Africa and the Sinai Peninsula, their organs taken

[[Page H3724]]

and their bodies dumped because their families could not afford the 
ransom.
  Twenty years ago, I chaired a human rights hearing in my subcommittee 
with a Chinese security official who testified that he and his other 
security agents were executing prisoners--with doctors, of course, 
there and ambulances--in order to steal their organs for transplant. 
Since then, this horrific practice has skyrocketed.
  Recent evidence from researchers Ethan Gutmann and David Matas shows 
that organ transplants in China have increased almost exponentially, 
not decreased. There is a bizarre availability of organs in Chinese 
military hospitals and China's transplant apparatus that can often 
issue a tissue match and find an organ transplant within 2 weeks for 
any foreign tourist with cash.
  This initiative by Mr. Trott will require the State Department to do 
a more thorough analysis of trafficking in persons for the purpose of 
organ removal in China and elsewhere around the world, informing a 
strategy to stop this crime against humanity.
  Any American, Mr. Speaker, traveling to China for an organ transplant 
in 2016 should now be on notice that they may be participating in human 
trafficking of a vulnerable person or of a prisoner. Americans must not 
turn a blind eye to the ambiguous origins of a proffered organ. H.R. 
3694 will help ensure that Americans are certain that they are 
receiving transplants only in countries that prohibit and actively 
suppress organ harvesting from trafficking victims.
  I thank the gentleman for his legislation.
  Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume to 
close.
  Mr. Speaker, in recent years, the United States has made tremendous 
progress shining a light on poorly understood problems around the world 
and working to find solutions: human trafficking, the advancement of 
women and girls, the importance of protecting our oceans, and combating 
climate change. A generation ago, no one considered these foreign 
policy issues, but today we are prioritizing every single one of them.
  That is what we are trying to do now with respect to organ 
trafficking. This legislation will give us a fuller understanding of 
this problem so that we can act in the most effective way possible. 
This is, again, a great bipartisan measure. I thank Mr. Trott and Mr. 
Deutch and Chairman Royce. I am happy to support this measure.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  The scourge of illegal organ trafficking has been pretty well 
documented, and you heard, here, Congressman David Trott explain the 
fatwa that has now been put out by ISIS that not only excuses the 
effort to go after Yazidis and Christians and others that they call 
apostates, but all captives are open to losing a kidney or forced organ 
transplant. The intention here is to make a market in this in the 
Middle East.
  But it does not just occur there, within the boundaries of ISIS' 
caliphate. This is a crime that reportedly occurs in some 20 countries, 
in all regions of the world.
  So I thank Mr. Trott and Mr. Deutch for introducing this legislation. 
I also thank Mr. Engel, and I want to commend Sarah Blocher of the 
Committee on Foreign Affairs professional staff for years of excellent 
work on this issue and her assistance to the authors.
  The STOP Organ Trafficking Act addresses a critical challenge to 
human rights, to our national security, to our public health, and it 
deserves our unanimous support.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 3694, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________