Under current British law, deceased patients can only have their organs removed by having carried an organ donor card or with the permission of a relative, if intent was not previously specified.

However, Gordon Brown has recently announced that he is considering the implementation of a system, whereby, it will be easier for doctors to remove organs from deceased patients, without prior consent.

This is in an effort by the government to close the gap between the amount of transplants needed and the actual number of organs donated. Junior health Minister, Ben Bradshaw said that 90% of the population were in favour of organ donation but only 20% of people were on the organ donation register.

Therefore, the switch to this new ‘opt out’ style, where consent is presumed unless otherwise specified, could save thousands of lives and allow people to help others without being on the register.

But what does this mean for Muslims?

Many Muslims believe that organ donation is forbidden in Islam as it is a means of interfering with Allah’s will, whereas many other Muslims, some who have been directly affected by organ donation and as a result have lost loved ones, who argue that as Muslims we should use what Allah has given us to help others.

Given that 14% of the organ transplant waiting list is Asian, surely there are many Muslims out there who need our help after we have gone.

So, as Muslims, should we be ‘opting out’ or ‘staying in’?

If you have an argument either way on this public discussion, or if you think that there is a better, system could be implemented, then please voice it, by posting your comments here. Alternatively, you can email us at info@mpacuk.org and we will put it up for the public to decide.

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