Turks contact organ donation campaign to sell their kidneys

People experiencing economic problems in Turkey want to sell their kidneys by applying to the Turkish Kidney Foundation via social media and telephone, Diken reported.

“Even though we aim to raise awareness by conducting highly systematic campaigns on organ donation, we cannot reduce the number of applicants who want to sell their organs,” said Timur Erk, President of the Turkish Kidney Foundation, the most important institution in Turkey working on kidney health since 1985.

Erk said people in financial difficulties who ignore the law that bans organ trade seek to earn money by selling their kidneys.

“The people who dream of making money and supporting their family this way carry the risk of committing a crime,” he said.

According to Erk, a TV ad titled "Donate Me", which began to broadcast recently drew attention to organ donation, failed to reduce the number of people who applied to the foundation to sell their kidneys.

The foundation tried to inform and discourage people who call, sometimes it took hours to persuade them.