Organ donation: Reis Kavazović leaves decision to Council of Muftis

Doctors in Bosnia and Herzegovina leading the organ donation project today requested the Islamic Community in BiH to get involved in the campaign, and to inform believers about the importance of organ donation after death.

Signing a donor card, doctors claim, not only saves the lives of many patients but also opens new job opportunities for young experts from Bosnia and Herzegovina who have specialized in this field.

The Head of the Clinic for Surgery at the University Clinical Center in Tuzla and the leader of the organ transplant team at this healthcare institution, Prof. Dr. Zijah Rifatbegović, met today in Sarajevo with the Reis-ul-Ulema Husein ef. Kavazović, from whom he requested that the Islamic Community in BiH help raise awareness about the importance of organ donation after death.

- Transplant medicine and organ transplantation in Bosnia and Herzegovina bring great medical progress, social progress, and consequently enable significant savings of money that would remain in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It also enables the creation of new jobs through this program, which would retain young and capable medical staff – said Dr. Rifatbegović in a conversation with Reis Kavazović.

The issue of organ donation after death is a very sensitive issue from the perspective of Islamic teachings. Islamic scholars have previously stated that organ donation after death is permissible, but it is precisely known which organs can and cannot be donated.

- It is not permissible to donate reproductive organs. It is also not permissible to mutilate a corpse by amputating external organs. Since the so-called donor card does not exclude any organ, it is not permissible to sign that card blank. The organ being donated should be specified – this was the answer provided by the Islamic Community in BiH back in 2007, and it can be found on the website of the Riyaset.

- Reis Kavazović stated that the issue of the donor network and organ transplantation will be placed on the agenda of the Council of Muftis meeting, after which an appropriate fatwa on this issue will be issued, reports Patria.