A way to make ends meet? remolacha.net fotos
As we mentioned earlier today, European Union unemployment rose to its highest in almost 10 years in April. In Spain, the jobless rate is at 17.4 percent -- the highest in the EU -- and is expected to climb.
According to a Spanish consumer organization, desperate times have caused some to resort to a most desperate measure of making ends meet: selling organs on the black market.
Last month, FACUA found 31 Internet ads for human organs for transplant on thirteen websites. Most ads were by Spanish nationals, but some came from people in Latin American countries.
Until recently, most of the trafficking has been isolated to developing countries, like India, South Africa, and China, where a kidney typically sells for about $2,500 to $3,000.
In a richer country like Spain, organs fetch a higher price. Lungs, kidneys, and even bone marrow were listed for sale online for anywhere from 15,000 to 1,000,000 euros, according to FACUA. Last year, the Transplantation Society, a international body of transplant surgeons and researchers, held a summit on "organ commercialism" and issued a declaration denouncing it.
Spain has the highest organ donation rate in the world, but still has hundreds of people on transplant waiting lists. The report says that the phenomenon is likely to increase as the recession there deepens.
categories: Europe's Financial Crisis
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