Organ donation is a very benevolent act but, unfortunately, a lot of people in our country consider it wrong and haram (forbidden) in Islam. This misunderstanding is leading to other problems related to organ donation. For example, it is hard to find organs in case of transplants, and consequently, people have to get organs on high rates or they have to wait for long to get an organ transplant.
According to some Islamic scholars including Dr Shabeer Ally, Dr ZakirNaik and Shaykh DrYasir Qadhi, there are no clear-cut instructions regarding organ donation in Quran as organ donation is a modern technique, and it did not existed in olden times. The topic of organ donation has been raised in a few Islamic conferences where scholars from various countries expressed their views and came to a conclusion. So in case of organ donation, there are three areas: white, black and gray.
The ‘white area’ is the halal domain, which says that organ donation is not haram as long as the organ donator is donating his/her organ through his/her own will, and donating that organ is not providing any kind of harm to the donator, and the donator can survive properly without that organ. If somebody wants to donate one kidney to someone,it is halal to do so. It is also halal if somebody has written in his/her will that his/her mentioned organ shall be donated after death. An organ can be donated to a non-Muslim as well.
Now we come towards the ‘black area’. This means says that an organ cannot be donated for the sake of money. You cannot sell your organ. It is strongly prohibited. Also, reproductive organs cannot be donated.
The ‘gray area’covers topics that are yet obscure. Some people say that a man dies when his brain dies, and some claim that death occurs when heart dies. So if somebody’s brain is working but heart is not or vice versa, can we take out the organ of that particular person considering him/her dead? The query is yet to be answered by scholars.
Law constituting bodies and religious scholars should sit together and sort out this issue once and for all so that people could easily and ethically get and donate organs
Also, autopsy is not a favourable act as per Islam, but if the concerned authorities permit or the situation demands it, it can be done.
In general, organ donation is very much like an ongoing charity. If somebody is able to live a normal life once again because of your organ donation then it is parallel to doing something that will be ameliorating your good deeds even after your death.
Regrettably, organ donation in Pakistan is not appreciated due to some other reasons as well, including the issue of human organ trade. According to a report by the Journal of Pakistan Medical Association, Pakistan “is one ofthe favourite resorts worldwide as far as ‘transplant tourism’ is concerned.”
According to Pakistan government’s Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Bill 2007, “Every donation has to be evaluated by a committee of medical experts that would determine that donation is fully voluntary. The bill proposes a 10-year jail sentence for anyone found guilty of being involved in the commercial trading of organs.”
There should be proper laws regarding organ donation in our country as it is a generous act and a need of the hour. Law constituting bodies and religious scholars should sit together and sort out this issue once and for all so that people could easily and ethically get and donate organs. A proper procedure should be offered by the administration of every hospital so that if somebody is interested in donating an organ, he/she should be able to do it ethically and hygienically. Don’t forget: “Saving one life is like saving humanity.”
The writer is a freelancer