Organ trading is dehumanising and, if legalised, will inevitably lead to the degeneration of the health-care system to a level where people are treated like commodities.
Some people, however, argue that as long as there are a willing seller and a willing buyer, the market should be left to sort itself out. But if we were to allow the trading of kidneys and livers, it would open the floodgates for the trading of other organs as well, such as hearts.
Also, with organ trading, those who can afford to pay for the organs will get what they want, while those who are less economically productive would be disadvantaged.
It may seem unthinkable now, but once we accept that man and his organs are mere commodities that can be traded like meat, it would not be difficult to imagine Singapore being a version of Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, where Alpha humans are treasured and Epsilon humans are expendable.
Any organ donation other than that by a close family member - spouse, parent or children - should always be suspect. Why should any distant relative, for example, be so altruistic as to donate his kidney if there is no financial gain?
Hence, the Ministry of Health should take over the responsibility of the ethics committee of hospitals because it has more resources to do the necessary checks.
Once the ministry has ascertained that a proposed transplant does not involve organ trading, a hospital's ethics committee can then convene and carry out its duties.
The writer is a surgeon in private practice. He is not involved in organ transplant or related work.
