Members of the Falun Gong hold protest against China's ban on organ harvesting. (Photo : Getty Images)
The Vatican's Pontifical Academy of Science invited the director of the National Human Organ Donation and Transplant Committee to speak at the Summit on Organ Trafficking and Transplant Tourism.
Huang Jiefu, a former vice-minister of health, will speak at the summit in the Vatican to speak about the "China model" in organ donation and transplant management after the effectivity of the ban on organ harvesting.
"This is the first time that China has been invited to a summit on organ transplanting held by an authoritative international organization," he said.
Other transplant surgeons welcomed the good news and said that the invitation was "a New Year gift for us Chinese transplant surgeons who have been gradually recognized by international peers."
It was in 2005 when the organ harvesting from inmates was made public in China and the practice was terminated in 2015.
There was a total of 28,000 organs harvested by the end of 2015. Almost 10,000 donors have died, according to the National Health and Family Planning Commission.
However, a non-government organization called Doctors Against Forced Organ Harvesting (DAFOH) is refuting China's claims that organ harvesting has stopped.
In a press statement published on the group's website, they claimed, "China's participation in an organ trafficking summit hosted by the Vatican science group comes despite no evidence that past practices of forced organ harvesting have ended; alleged reforms in China remain unverified due to lack of transparency."
Dr. Torsten Trey, the group's Executive Director, said, "Without accountability, there is no reason to trust the government of China's claim that forced organ harvesting of prisoners has come to an end."
The group is calling for the Beijing government to release the data of transplant procedures done in 20 licensed hospitals.
They are also asking for confirmation from the government that activities of the Falun Gong have ended along with organ harvesting from inmates.
