BEIJING - China's Ministry of Health said on Monday that it would launch a nationwide campaign to crack down on illegal organ transplants following recent reports of such cases.

The crackdown, which would continue until the end of 2011, would mainly target illegal organ transplants performed by medical institutions without transplant qualifications, the ministry said in a circular, vowing "harsh punishment" and zero tolerance for violators.

Medical institutions involved in illegal organ transplants would face a fine of eight to ten times their illegal gains and would be ordered to conduct an institutional overhaul or risk losing their license, the ministry said.

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Doctors who perform the organ transplants would lose their medical licenses, according to the circular.

Supervisors involved in illegal transplants would face demotion, removal from post, or prosecution in the legal system if they face criminal charges.

The ministry also ordered medical institutions with organ transplant qualifications to enhance supervision of their medical staff and prohibited the staff from performing such operations in hospitals without organ transplant qualifications.

China has been making efforts to improve its regulations on organ transplants.

Earlier in 2007, China's State Council, or Cabinet, issued its first regulations on human organ transplants, banning organizations and individuals from trading human organs in any form.

China's newly revised Criminal Law, which the top legislature adopted in February of this year, is the first to enumerate crimes related to transactions in human organs.

Criminals convicted of "forced organ removal, forced organ donation or organ removal from juveniles" could face punishment for homicide.

Those convicted of organizing people to sell human organs could receive a prison term of a maximum of five years and fine, while those involved in serious cases could serve a term of more than five years.