France Shuts Down Popular Bodies Show
French Judge Ruled That Exhibiting Human Bodies For Profit is Against the Law
20/20 Investigation
A spokesman for Rep. Todd Akin (R-Missouri), who introduced the bill to ban Chinese bodies from coming into the US, said the Congressman agreed with the judge's decision and maintains that such exhibitions, especially without the individuals' consent, is a violation of basic human rights and remains concerned that the documentation coming out of China that individuals did donate their bodies is not valid.
Akin introduced the bill following an ABC News 20/20 report last year on an American company, Premier Exhibitions, that puts on the "BODIES…the Exhibition" show displaying plastinated Chinese bodies across the country, in Europe and in Asia.
The 20/20 report disputed the company's account that all of the bodies came from a medical school in Dalian, China.
Click here to watch the 20/20 investigation.
School officials told 20/20 it was "not true" that the school provides bodies for display in the United States. Instead, the report found the bodies were provided by a private company run by a professor from the medical university which initially supplied the bodies but had pulled out because of bad publicity.
The 20/20 report discovered a thriving black market in Chinese bodies, and a self-admitted dealer in the bodies black market described "body runs" to a location where bodies, including those of executed prisoners, were sold for $200 to $300.
Following ABC News' report, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo launched an investigation.
Premier settled with Cuomo's office last May, and the terms of the settlement required the company to prove that any new bodies on display were from consenting individuals.
Premier was forced to post a sign at its New York exhibit and state clearly on its website that it cannot disprove the allegations that bodies on display come from executed prisoners. The company is also required to refund tickets of customers who would not have seen the show if they had known what was going on behind the scenes. Cuomo also requires that the company be monitored by an independent entity for two years to ensure that the new business practices are enacted.
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