Prevention of Corruption in the Area of Illegal Transplantation of Bodies and Tissues

Today, it is important to address the issue of illicit transplantation of human organs and tissues, as Ukraine is the last-place transplant in other countries. Unfortunately, there are no other methods currently available to save the lives of individuals, so it is very important to investigate and find out all the causes and ways to counteract corruption in this area. It should also be noted that one of the components of corruption in this area is the abuse of special subjects by the norms stipulated by the legislation that lead to socially dangerous consequences. This article provides statistics on organ transplantation needs in the world as a whole, as well as in Ukraine. Also, the article gives the main reasons for the illegal transplantation of human organs and tissues. The studies concerning this topic are analyzed and the most important theses are highlighted. A number of anti-corruption measures have also been proposed in this area. The author proposes to strengthen the control over the medical institutions that transplant organs and tissues; improve the mechanism of law enforcement interaction, migration and border control; to develop an effective unified system for keeping records of transplantation and to make sure that persons in need of transplantation are properly prioritized. It should be noted that it is difficult for law enforcement agencies to deal with the illegal transplantation of human organs and tissues, since police officers do not have sufficient knowledge in the field. The author underlines that the following state law enforcement agencies should counteract corruption in the mentioned sphere: the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, the National Agency for Prevention of Corruption and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecution under the Prosecutor General’s office.
One of the most effective counteraction to corruption in this area is the legalization of organ and tissue transplants to those in need. Legislation in this area should be amended and changes should be made to persons who may be transplanted. That is, organ transplantation can be performed not only by close relatives, but also by contractors with a donor.