ayatoilet1

This past Sunday, like every Sunday since October when I first started my TV show on Rang-A-Rang TV I read the Human Rights report on Iran. I started reading: “Since the beginning of the New Year, the regime in Iran has executed 47 prisoners or an average of about one person every eight hours. Iran executes more people per capita than any other country, and in absolute numbers, is second only to China.On Saturday, 15 January 2011, Iran hanged a Kurdish prisoner identified as Hossein Khazri, a Kurdish political prisoner on the death row in Orumiyeh prison. Khazri’s brother has declared publicly Hossein Khazri had denied charges against him and said he was severely tortured.“The Iranian Judiciary is on an execution binge orchestrated by the intelligence and security agencies,” stated Aaron Rhodes, a spokesperson for the Campaign.

Interestingly on January 13th,  Mr. Elahinia, the head of branch 9 of the Execution of Sentences office of the Orumiyeh Revolutionary Court told Hossein Khazri’s brother “We have an order from the Orumiyeh Prosecutor’s office to carry out Hossein’s death sentence; and that an execution team from Tehran has been sent.”“The execution of Kurdish activists, without fair trials and following torture, increasingly appears as a systematic, politically motivated process,” he said.” I actually read the rest of the report, shared some news analysis on the Arizona shootings, took some calls …and two hours later, as I was stepping out of the studio, my Producer who has his own show told me …you know they are selling live organs from these executions – don’t you? I said: “what?”“Yes,” he said, “they make 20 to 30 Million tomans from every prisoner they kill. I have now had a number of calls on my show with details of how these prisoner’s organs are harvested and sold on the world’s black market for live organs.”I was shocked, astounded and completely thrown a curve. As I and took the beltway home at 1 am – I did the most stupid thing and started searching website on my smartphone to see if what he said could be true. You’re not supposed to play with your phone and drive at the same time….but I could not get this concept out of my mind.And here I am two days later and I just can’t get this issue out of my mind. I am persuaded it’s absolutely true … without any doubt. They are killing prisoners in Iran on false charges for money… for their organs…as they do in China.They used to execute prisoners publicly in Orumiyeh, now they do it privately and they have to wait for the services of a team of executioners from Iran’s capital (Tehran) as mandated by the government to undertake the actual execution. A team of experts no less! Why?

And then once the execution is done, the family is informed of the death many days after the death – by which time (according to Muslim tradition) the body had already been buried. Strange isn’t it?

And notice, the execution was ordered not by a court or a judge, but by public prosecutor’s office.

The government of Iran –the regime – has developed a new vibrant business selling live organs on the world market. It all fits, and leverages an existing thriving business they have had for decades now of selling live kidneys on the world market.

Iran is now number 2, after China in sales of live organs to the world’s Organ black market, joining the top ten ranks of countries like Mozambique, Israel (selling Palestinian Organs), Kosovo, and India. The Black market is huge, and feeds a thriving global demand that simply cannot be filled by legal means. In the United States, the average wait time for a kidney is expected to increase to 10 years by 2010. Most dialysis patients die in half that time, and the desperate don't always play by the rules. In America, the number of people in need of a transplant has nearly tripled during the past decade, topping 100,000 for the first time last October. But despite numerous media campaigns urging more people to mark the backs of their driver's licenses, the number of traditional (deceased) organ donors has barely budged, hovering between 5,000 and 8,000 per year for the last 15 yearsIt's little wonder. The exchange of human organs for cash or any other "valuable consideration" (such as a car or a vacation) is illegal in every country except Iran. Nonetheless, international organ trafficking—mostly of kidneys, but also of half-livers, eyes, skin and blood—is flourishing; the World Health Organization estimates that one fifth of the 70,000 kidneys transplanted worldwide every year come from the black market. To harvest organs and ship them to third party countries like China or India from Iran could be very easily done. And it is well known for example that 52 hospitals have been linked to illegal organ sales.

Iran entered the world market in full force in October 2007. In that year, bowing to international pressure, the Chinese Medical Association agreed on a moratorium of commercial organ harvesting from condemned prisoners, but did not specify a deadline. China agreed to restrict transplantations from donors to their immediate relatives.

Once an organ is harvested it can literally show up anywhere in the world, without a trace of where it actually came from. And yes, these organs do arrive in the U.S. and there have been recent arrests in the US, most recently of a Rabbi in New York, and a host of his neighbors were arrested for operating a black market for Organs from around the world in the U.S.

Iran is the only country in the world where there is NO waiting line for kidney transplants. The Charity Association for the Support of Kidney Patients (CASKP) and the Charity Foundation for Special Diseases (CFSD) control the trade of organs with the support of the government. The organizations match donors to recipients, setting up tests to ensure compatibility. The amounts paid to the donor vary in Iran but the average figures are $3000–$5000 for kidney donation. And look at the profit margins. Global price lists quoted for Organs are as follows: $25,000 for livers, $20,000 for kidneys, and corneas and pancreases for $5,000 a pair.” A list of organs from an executed prisoner could very easily generate $100,000 in revenue.

Thus the deaths so far this year (3 weeks) have generate close to $5 Million in revenue for these Bonyads. This year, they could generate as much as $100 Million from this enterprise this year. With this kind of money to be made, there is clearly tremendous incentive to expand political execution in Iran.  According to the Wikipedia site page, these foundations or “Bonyads” (as they are known) are actually run like businesses…and there is absolute profit motivation in how these enterprises operate.  Bonyads are controversial charitable trusts in Iran that dominate Iran's non-petroleum economy, controlling an estimated 20% of Iran's GDP. Exempt from taxes and government control, they have been called "bloated", and "a major weakness of Iran’s economy", and criticized for reaping "huge subsidies from government", while siphoning off production to the lucrative black market and providing limited (real) charity to the poor.

• Bonyad-e Mostazafen va Janbazan (Foundation for the Oppressed and Disabled), one of the largest welfare organization, A semi-public foundation originally founded in 1979 with the assets of the last Shah’s family; it operates a wide variety of charitable activities. With a reported $10 billion in assets (2003).
• Astan Quds Razavi (Imam Reza shrine Foundation), with $15 billion in assets (2003).
• Bonyad Shahid va Isaar-Garaan (Foundation of the Martyrs and the Affairs of Self-Sacrificers),
• Bonyad Shahid va Omur-e Janbazan (Foundation of Martyrs and Veteran Affairs), one of the biggest with over 100 companies. Provides welfare assistance to families of the Martyrs of the Iran-Iraq war.
• Pilgrimage Foundation,
• Housing Foundation,
• Foundation for War Refugees,

Imam Khomeini Relief Committee

, provides sickness, maternity, and work injury One third of the imported goods in Iran are delivered through the black market, underground economy, and illegal jetties. In 2010, Police in Iran estimated about $16 billion worth of goods is smuggled into Iran each year. $12 billion worth of goods are illegal to have or own in Iran, with the remaining $4 billion being legal goods that are legal to own in Iran. Largest black markets in Iran have historically been:

• Drug smuggling ($8.5 billion+). Iran is the largest “re-exporter” of Opium and Heroin in the world. Fully 70% of Afghanistan’s drugs are transshipped through Iran to Europe and the rest of the world.
• Petroleum smuggling (>$1.3 billion),
• Alcohol smuggling ($912.5 million),
• Cigarette smuggling,
• Prostitution,
• Arms trafficking,
• Corruption,
• Pirated movies and software piracy.

And now we can add, Live Organ exports as the newest global black market that these bonyads are active in. Undoubtedly these Bonyads are heavily linked (indeed part of) Iran ruling political establishment. Iran’s borders are controlled by the IRGC (Islamic Republic Guard Corps) and none of this smuggling could be done without full and complete cooperation of the IRGC (which are nominally under the total command of Iran religious leadership and Supreme Leader the Ayatoilet Khamenie).  Goods enter the country through unregistered airports, ports and jetties in the Persian Gulf and are exported to Dubai where they can be quickly transshipped to other global destinations.

The Regime in Iran appears to have modeled their activities on the Chinese model for harvesting organs. China has very strict laws and you can bet your bottom dollar that breaking some laws will result in a quick execution (especially if you are young, and even more especially if you have a highly sought after organs for rare blood types). This is how you end up as an organ donor with proper ‘government’ consent.Why is it that political prisoners – actually almost all prisoners – in Iran do NOT receive medical treatment while in jail. They are tortured, beaten, and abused. But strangely, they get a complete medical check-up (with blood analysis) when they enter jail! Some are processed for executions quickly, others sit there and wait years for prosecutions. Its all very inconsistent. We all know why now. It’s truly sickening.

The sooner we get rid of this bloodthirsty, maddening regime in Iran the better. No decent country, no decent politician, no decent leader outside Iran can surely condone or support this conduct or indeed a regime with this type of record or activity.The Mullahs in Iran are not only destroying Iran, but are corrupting the world with drugs, and now live organs from otherwise innocent Iranian  young prisoners…with valuable bodies. While the world sanctions Iran, the Mullahs seem have continued to expand their economic activities.How ironic. This must end.