The wishes of organ donors should not be overturned by relatives after their death but acknowledged by the law, the Nationalist Party said.

Malta needs to move to a hard opt-in system, whereby relatives could not refuse to donate the organs of someone who had died except in rare circumstances, according to health spokesman Claudette Buttigieg.

At present, organ donors are not recognised by law.

This proposal is among those put forward by the Nationalist Party after an internal consultation process on a government document called Proposal for Legislation on Organ and Tissue Donation.

The party feels that the opt-in system would guarantee that a person’s free choice to become a donor would be respected after death.

It also suggests dropping the minimum age at which a person is permitted to donate their organs from 18 to 16.

The Nationalist Party feels that the opt-in system would guarantee that a person’s free choice to become a donor would be respected after death

Sixteen-year-olds were being given a more respon-sible role in society, and they had the maturity to take the decision to register as organ donors.

The party is also proposing the possibility of organs being donated by the families of people who had expressed a wish to donate their organs but never registered as donors.

To facilitate donor registra-tion, the party is proposing an extensive public awareness campaign.

Donors should be able to register at any healthcare outlet, including hospitals and health centres.

If a donor changes his or her mind, this should also be registered.

Registration should be easy and comprehensive for a donor’s wishes to be clear and respected.

Ms Buttigieg said a clear procedure should be in place after a person became a registered donor.

The party said it would fully participate at all levels of debate on the issue in the legislative process to ensure the person’s will and dignity were respected.