In the Press...
Ocean County Leader article on Smith letter to Sec. Rubio'Smith urges State Department action against forced organ harvesting in China'By Ocean County Leader “For far too long, China’s state-sanctioned organ trafficking empire has been overlooked and operated unchecked,” said Smith. “As a result, Uyghurs, Falun Gong practitioners, and other prisoners of conscience have suffered the consequences, having their organs brutally removed and sold for profit by CCP officials. “The State Department already has the funds and the authority to offer rewards for actionable intelligence; it is time that we deploy them to dismantle this illegal and gruesome billion-dollar industry and deliver justice to those whose lives have been mercilessly stolen.” Smith is also known as the author of the Stop Forced Organ Harvesting Act (HR 1503), which passed the House in May 2025 with bipartisan support by a margin of 406-1. The legislation would allow targeted sanctions such as asset freezes, visa bans, and export restrictions against individuals or entities found to be involved in funding or facilitating forced organ harvesting or trafficking. It also calls for detailed State Department reporting on these practices both in China and globally. “While we continue to push the Senate to bring HR 1503 to a vote—which I am hopeful will occur in September—the State Department must use all of the tools at its disposal to disrupt this illicit global market for human organs, hold perpetrators to account, and deter future atrocities and human rights violations.” Chris Smith has represented New Jersey’s 4th district in Congress since 1981 after succeeding Frank Thompson. He was born in Rahway, New Jersey in 1953 and currently resides in Manchester Township. Smith graduated from The College of New Jersey with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1975. This article was published online on August 7, 2025 and can be found at |