Laws often need to be changed when it comes to dealing with crimes so serious that no one ever thought of creating a law to prevent them. That is certainly what we are facing when it comes to stopping organ crimes in China today.
This just happened in Kosovo. As reported in the New York Times:
“The Kosovo Parliament has amended the country’s Constitution to allow for the creation of a war crimes court, which is expected to try ethnic Albanians accused of war crimes…
The court, which is to be made up of international judges and based in The Hague, is expected to hear war crimes cases, including accusations of organ harvesting committed against Serbs.”
This case sends an important message to the perpetrators of similar crimes happening today, as in the case of forced organ harvesting in China, that they will also be eventually tried and brought to justice.
Of course there is some opposition to the creation of the court, claiming it would be “detrimental to the country’s image”. Former Kosovo prime minister and former guerillla leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army, Ramush Haradinaj, was quoted in the New York Times article: “By approving this court, we are turning ourselves into a monster.”
In the case of organ harvesting crimes in China, laws need to be changed throughout the world to stop and prevent the crimes. Some countries, like Israel have already done so, and others will no doubt follow.
Can monstrous crimes like organ harvesting be ignored for fear of the impact on a nation’s image? Is it better to face them, accept responsibility for them, and allow all to learn from them? What do you think?