The image served as a promotion for a medical center in Laos, but generated more than just attention in other Asian countries such as Thailand .
The image of a medical center in Laos where three patients show off their new iPhones after selling their kidneys has caused international condemnation on the Asian continent.
The image, which was more of a marketing ploy, drew comment from the Red Cross and officials in Thailand , where the organ trade is growing disproportionately.
Don’t trade a kidney for your iPhone 14
The viral image in networks shows three patients of the Dr. Nith Beauty Center with a bloody bandage in the area of their right kidney. They all smile at the camera with an iPhone in their hands.
The first country where it went viral was in Thailand because it is a graphic representation of a popular internet meme where users sell parts of their body to have a high-end cell phone.
It was real? No, it was a marketing strategy for the clinic.
They donated a kidney to get themselves the iphone 14 😂 pic.twitter.com/ko2InN8OHU
— ZIM COUSIN (@zimcousin) September 12, 2022
Reactions to the image
However, the entities saw fit to start eradicating that thought in the head of more than one user who considers it a good deal.
“There is no organ trade like this. It is prohibited,” said Sophon Mekthon of the Thai Red Cross Organ Donation Center.
“It is inappropriate for trade in organs to be promoted, especially to exchange one for money to buy an iPhone . It is immoral and unethical,” he reaffirmed.
The latest iPhone , now available in Thailand , starts at 32,900 baht, more than five times the minimum wage in the country.