Displaying items by tag: kidney donors

Struggling with debt and rising costs after the 2021 coup in Myanmar, farm worker Zeya decided to sell his kidney, believing it was his only way out of poverty. He found a broker who arranged his travel to India, where illegal organ sales thrive through forged documents. The broker falsified records to present Zeya as a relative of the recipient, bypassing India’s legal requirements. After a brief interview, the surgery was approved, and Zeya received about $2,700. He recovered without major complications but now fears the legal consequences of his actions. Myanmar’s economic collapse has driven many into desperation, fueling a black market in organ sales. Brokers exploit the vulnerable, deceiving them into risky, illegal surgeries. The global demand for transplants far exceeds supply, pushing the impoverished into dangerous choices. In 2007, the WHO estimated that 5-10% of transplanted organs came from the black market, but the figure may be higher.