[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1416 Introduced in House (IH)]

  1st Session
                                H. R. 1416

 To implement the Convention Against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel, 
Inhuman, and Degrading Treatment or Punishment and to provide a program 
                   of support for victims of torture.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 5, 1995

 Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. Lantos, Mr. Hyde, Mr. Wolf, 
Mr. Rohrabacher, Mr. Yates, Mr. Frank of Massachusetts, Ms. Pelosi, Mr. 
   Sabo, and Ms. McKinney) introduced the following bill; which was 
  referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the 
Committees on International Relations and Commerce, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To implement the Convention Against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel, 
Inhuman, and Degrading Treatment or Punishment and to provide a program 
                   of support for victims of torture.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Torture Victims Relief Act of 
1995''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The American people abhor torture and the use of 
        atrocities by repressive governments. The existence of torture 
        creates a climate of fear and international insecurity that 
        affects all people.
            (2) Torture is the strategic use of pain to destroy both 
        individuals and society. The effects of torture are long term. 
        Those effects can last a lifetime for the survivors and affect 
        future generations.
            (3) By eliminating leadership of their opposition and 
        frightening the general public, repressive governments use 
        torture as a weapon against democracy.
            (4) Torture victims remain under physical and psychological 
        threats, especially in communities where the perpetrators are 
        not brought to justice. In many nations, even those who treat 
        torture victims are threatened with reprisals, including 
        torture, for carrying out their ethical duties to provide care. 
        Both the survivors of torture and their treatment providers 
        deserve, and often require, protection from further repression.
            (5) A significant number of refugees and asylees entering 
        the United States have been victims of governmental torture. 
        Those claiming asylum deserve prompt consideration of the 
        applications for political asylum to minimize their insecurity 
        and sense of danger. Many torture survivors now live in the 
        United States. They should be provided with the rehabilitation 
        services which would enable them to become productive members 
        of our communities.
            (6) Building democratic cultures requires not only legal 
        and political institution-building, but also addressing the 
        physical, psychological, and spiritual damage of repression, in 
        order to foster a climate and opportunity of healing for the 
        victims and for society.
            (7) The development of a treatment movement for torture 
        survivors has created new opportunities for action by the 
        United States and other nations to oppose state-sponsored acts 
        of torture.
            (8) There is a need for a comprehensive strategy to protect 
        and support torture victims and their treatment providers as 
        part of the overall objective of eliminating torture.
            (9) By acting to heal the survivors of torture and protect 
        their families, the United States can move to defeat the 
        actions of torturers.
            (10) The United States has ratified the Convention Against 
        Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or 
        Punishment, but has not implemented all provisions of the 
        convention.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    (a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided the terms used in 
this Act have the same meaning given such terms in section 101(a) of 
the Immigration and Nationality Act.
    (b) Torture.--As used in this Act, the term ``torture'' means any 
act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is 
intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from 
the person or a third person information or a confession, punishing the 
person for an act the person or a third person has committed or is 
suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing the person 
or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any 
kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by, at the instigation 
of, or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other 
person acting in an official capacity. It does not include pain or 
suffering arising only from, inherent in, or incidental to lawful 
sanctions.
    (c) Substantial Grounds for Believing.--As used in this Act, the 
term ``substantial grounds for believing'' means substantial evidence.
    (d) In Danger of Being Subjected to Torture.--As used in this Act, 
the term ``in danger of being subjected to torture'' means 
circumstances in which a reasonable person would fear subjection to 
torture.
    (e) Involuntary Return.--As used in this Act, the term 
``involuntary return'' means to take action by which it is reasonably 
foreseeable that a person will be required to return to a country 
without the person's consent, regardless of whether such return is 
induced by physical force and regardless of whether the person is 
physically present in the United States.

SEC. 4. UNITED STATES POLICY WITH RESPECT TO THE INVOLUNTARY RETURN OF 
              PERSONS SUBJECTED TO TORTURE.

    The United States shall not expel, extradite, or otherwise 
involuntarily return a person to a country in which there are 
substantial grounds for believing the person would be in danger of 
being subjected to torture.

SEC. 5. IMMIGRATION PROCEDURES FOR TORTURE VICTIMS.

    (a) In General.--Any alien--
            (1) who presents a credible claim of having been subjected 
        to torture in the alien's country of nationality, or, in the 
        case of an alien having no nationality, the country in which 
        the alien last habitually resided, and
            (2) who applies for--
                    (A) refugee status under section 207 of the 
                Immigration and Nationality Act,
                    (B) asylum under section 208 of that Act, or
                    (C) withholding of deportation under section 243(h) 
                of that Act,
shall be processed in accordance with this section.
    (b) Consideration of the Effects of Torture.--In considering 
applications for refugee status, asylum, or withholding of deportation 
made by aliens described in subsection (a), the appropriate officials 
shall take into account--
            (1) the manner in which the effects of torture can affect 
        the applicant's responses in the application and in the 
        interview process or other immigration proceedings, as the case 
        may be;
            (2) the difficulties torture victims often have in 
        recounting their suffering under torture; and
            (3) the fear victims have of returning to their country of 
        nationality where, even if torture is no longer practiced or 
        the incidence of torture is reduced, their torturers may have 
        gone unpunished and may remain in positions of authority.
    (c) Expedited Processing of Refugee Admissions.--For purposes of 
section 207(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, a refugee who 
presents a credible claim of having been subjected to torture shall be 
considered to be a refugee of special humanitarian concern to the 
United States and shall be accorded priority in selection from the 
waiting list of such refugees based on compelling humanitarian 
concerns.
    (d) Expedited Processing for Asylum and Withholding of 
Deportation.--Upon the request of the alien, the alien's counsel, or a 
health care professional treating the alien, an asylum officer or 
special inquiry officer may expedite the scheduling of an asylum 
interview or an exclusion or deportation proceeding for an alien 
described in subsection (a), if such officer determines that an undue 
delay in making a determination regarding asylum or withholding of 
deportation with respect to the alien would aggravate the physical or 
psychological effects of torture upon the alien.
    (e) Parole in Lieu of Detention.--The finding, upon inspection at a 
port of entry of the United States, that an alien described in 
subsection (a) suffers from the effects of torture, such as depressive 
and anxiety disorders, shall be a strong presumptive basis for a grant 
of parole, under section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality 
Act, in lieu of detention.
    (f) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the 
Attorney General shall allocate resources sufficient to maintain in the 
Resource Information Center of the Immigration and Naturalization 
Service information relating to the use of torture in foreign 
countries.

SEC. 6. SPECIALIZED TRAINING FOR CONSULAR, IMMIGRATION, AND ASYLUM 
              PERSONNEL.

    (a) In General.--The Attorney General shall provide training for 
immigration inspectors and examiners, immigration officers, asylum 
officers, special inquiry officers, and all other relevant officials of 
the Department of Justice, and the Secretary of State shall provide 
training for consular officers, with respect to--
            (1) the identification of the evidence of torture;
            (2) the identification of the surrounding circumstances in 
        which torture is practiced;
            (3) the long-term effects of torture upon the person;
            (4) the identification of the physical, cognitive, and 
        emotional effects of torture, including depressive and anxiety 
        disorders, and the manner in which these effects can affect the 
        interview or hearing process; and
            (5) the manner of interviewing victims of torture so as not 
        to retraumatize them, eliciting the necessary information to 
        document the torture experience, and understanding the 
        difficulties victims often have in recounting their torture 
        experience.
    (b) Gender-Related Considerations.--In conducting training under 
subsection (a)(4) or subsection (a)(5), gender specific training shall 
be provided on the subject of interacting with women and men who are 
victims of torture by rape or any other form of sexual violence.

SEC. 7. STUDY AND REPORT ON TORTURE VICTIMS IN THE UNITED STATES.

    (a) Study.--The Center for Disease Control shall conduct a study 
with respect to refugees and asylees admitted to the United States 
since October 1, 1987, who were tortured abroad, for the purpose of 
identifying--
            (1) the estimated number and geographic distribution of 
        such persons;
            (2) the needs of such persons for recovery services; and
            (3) the availability of such services.
    (b) Report.--Not later than December 31, 1997, the Center for 
Disease Control shall submit a report to the Judiciary Committees of 
the House of Representatives and the Senate setting forth the findings 
of the study conducted under subsection (a), together with any 
recommendation for increasing the services available to persons 
described in subsection (a), including any recommendation for 
legislation, if necessary.

SEC. 8. DOMESTIC TREATMENT CENTERS.

    (a) Amendment of the Immigration and Nationality Act.--Section 412 
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1522) is amended by 
adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(g) Assistance for Treatment of Torture Victims.--(1) The 
Director is authorized to provide grants to programs in the United 
States to cover the cost of the following services:
            ``(A) Services for the rehabilitation of victims of 
        torture, including treatment of the physical and psychological 
        effects of torture.
            ``(B) Social services for victims of torture.
            ``(C) Research and training for health care providers 
        outside of treatment centers for the purpose of enabling such 
        providers to provide the services described in subparagraph 
        (A).
    ``(2) For purposes of this subsection, the term `torture' has the 
same meaning given to the term in section 3 of the Torture Victims 
Relief Act of 1995.''.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--(1) Of amounts authorized to 
be appropriated to carry out section 414 of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1524) for fiscal year 1996, there are 
authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry 
out section 412(g) of that Act (relating to assistance for domestic 
centers for the treatment of victims of torture).
    (2) Amounts appropriated pursuant to this subsection are authorized 
to remain available until expended.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on October 1, 1995.

SEC. 9. FOREIGN TREATMENT CENTERS.

    (a) Amendments of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.--Part I of 
the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 is amended by adding at the end of 
chapter 1 the following new section:
    ``Sec. 129. Assistance for Victims of Torture.--(a) The President 
is authorized to provide assistance for the rehabilitation of victims 
of torture.
    ``(b) Such assistance shall be provided in the form of grants to 
treatment centers in foreign countries which are carrying out programs 
specifically designed to treat victims of torture for the physical and 
psychological effect of the torture.
    ``(c) Such assistance shall be available--
            ``(1) for direct services to victims of torture; and
            ``(2) to provide research and training to health care 
        providers outside of treatment centers for the purpose of 
        enabling such providers to provide the services described in 
        paragraph (1).
    ``(d) For purposes of this section, the term `torture' has the same 
meaning given to such term in section 3 of the Torture Victims Relief 
Act of 1995.''.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--(1) Of the total amount 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out chapter 1 of part I of the 
Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 for fiscal year 1995, there are 
authorized to be appropriated to the President such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out section 129 of that Act.
    (2) Amounts appropriated pursuant to this subsection are authorized 
to remain available until expended.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on October 1, 1995.

SEC. 10. MULTILATERAL ASSISTANCE.

    (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--Of the amounts authorized to 
be appropriated to carry out section 301 of the Foreign Assistance Act 
of 1961 (relating to international organizations and programs), there 
are authorized to be appropriated to the United Nations Voluntary Fund 
for Victims of Torture (in this section referred to as the ``Fund'') 
the following amounts for the following fiscal years:
            (1) For fiscal year 1996, $1,500,000.
            (2) For fiscal year 1997, $3,000,000.
    (b) Availability of Funds.--Amounts appropriated pursuant to 
subsection (a) are authorized to remain available until expended.
    (c) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress that the 
President, acting through the United States Permanent Representative to 
the United Nations, should--
            (1) request the Fund--
                    (A) to find new ways to support and protect 
                treatment centers that are carrying out rehabilitative 
                services for victims of torture; and
                    (B) to encourage the development of new such 
                centers;
            (2) use the voice and vote of the United States to support 
        the work of the Special Rapporteur on Torture and the Committee 
        Against Torture established under the Convention Against 
        Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or 
        Punishment; and
            (3) use the voice and vote of the United States to 
        establish a country rapporteur or similar procedural mechanism 
        to investigate human rights violations in a country if either 
        the Special Rapporteur or the Committee Against Torture 
        indicates that a systematic practice of torture is prevalent in 
        that country.
                                 <all>