Organ donations spread as nation marks 2nd anniversary of Cardinal Kim's death, South Korea

Source: Yonhap News Agency

SEOUL, Feb. 15 (Yonhap) -- As the nation marks the second anniversary of the death of Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, which falls on Wednesday, a government agency said Tuesday that the number of organ donation pledges in South Korea exceeded the 100,000 mark for the second straight year, apparently influenced by a precedent set by the late cardinal.

According to the Korean Network for Organ Sharing (KONOS), a total of 124,300 South Koreans made written pledges to donate their organs after death last year, down from some 185,000 pledges in 2009, the year Cardinal Kim died at the age of 86.

Despite the decrease, the figure is still much higher than the previous data, representing at least a 1.5-fold increase over the previous data of up to 90,000 before 2008, said an official from KONOS.

"Cardinal Kim's donation greatly changed the social atmosphere," said the official. "We expect that the number of donation pledges will be on a steady rise in the long term."

The late cardinal, who was respected by Catholics and non-Catholics alike, had deeply inspired the public by donating his eyes to two patients. He had pledged to donate his organs as early as 1990, desiring to "give everything and leave with nothing."

He established an organ donation group, "One Body, One Spirit," in 1988 with the will to share life with others, and it received 36,500 pledges last year alone, up from some 34,000 in 2009.

The group said the public campaign to promote organ donations will continue its upward trend, powered by Cardinal Kim's choice.

"It's important that sharing of life is a good deed. In line with this, religious circles and private organizations' efforts to increase organ donation will expand the base of donation," said Yoon Kyung-joon from the group.

Meanwhile, the nation will commemorate the second anniversary of the death of the highly admired cardinal.

On Wednesday, a memorial mass will be held at the tomb of Cardinal Kim in Yongin Catholic Park Cemetery, south of Seoul, presided over by Bishop Andrew Yeom Soo-jung from the Archdiocese of Seoul.

At Myeongdong Cathedral, Cardinal Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk will serve a mass in memory of the late cardinal, attended by Catholic priests including Archbishop Osvaldo Padilla, the Vatican's apostolic nuncio to South Korea, and other political heavyweights involving Culture Minister Choung Byoung-gug.

A photo exhibition commemorating the life of the late cardinal opened on Tuesday at a culture center in Daejeon, about 160 kilometers south of Seoul, with 120 pictures of him and videos on display.

During Easter week, a biographic movie about his life will be released on April 21, according to the charity foundation "Babo."