RT Article
T1 Beneath the organ trade: a critical analysis of the organ trafficking discourse
JF Crime, law and social change
VO 63
IS 1/2
SP 21
OP 47
A1 Columb, Seán
LA English
YR 2015
UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/1853882569
AB This paper critically examines how the organ trade fits into the human trafficking discourse. The organ trade involves diverse actors and consists of various practices, i.e. organ trafficking, transplant tourism, organ sales and organ harvesting. Nevertheless the organ trade is predominantly defined in terms of organ trafficking. Although organ trafficking is a major concern it is not representative of the phenomenon as a whole. Evidence based research indicates that the organ trade is better characterised by organ sales and transplant tourism. This paper argues that co-opting the organ trade into the ‘meta- narrative’ of human trafficking resists a wider critique of the phenomenon linking the emergence of a global market in organs to broader socio-economic conditions. Further it is argued that the organ trade is not a direct consequence of the global shortage of organ supplies, but is rather linked to the transfer of transplant capabilities to the global South. The rhetorical positioning of the organ trade as an object of crime control diverts critical attention away from the transplant industry and frames the phenomenon within a narrow criminal paradigm. Formulaic criminal responses follow which overlook important intersections of agency, identity, culture and politics.
NO Literaturverzeichnis: Seite 42-47
K1 Crime Control
K1 Criminal Network
K1 Human Trafficking
K1 Organise Crime
K1 Trafficking Victim
DO 10.1007/s10611-014-9548-0