[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 490 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 490

 Urging the United Nations to establish a commission on the prevention 
            of slavery, human trafficking, and exploitation.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 7, 2005

 Ms. Millender-McDonald submitted the following resolution; which was 
          referred to the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Urging the United Nations to establish a commission on the prevention 
            of slavery, human trafficking, and exploitation.

Whereas trafficking and exploitation of vulnerable people is a problem that 
        affects virtually every country in the world;
Whereas the globalization of the world economy has increased the movement of 
        people across borders, legally and illegally, especially from poorer to 
        wealthier countries;
Whereas an overwhelming majority of those trafficked and exploited are women and 
        children;
Whereas trafficking in people, especially women and children, for prostitution 
        and forced labor is one of the fastest growing areas of international 
        criminal activity and one that is of increasing concern to the United 
        States Administration, Congress, and the international community;
Whereas the fear of HIV infection among customers has driven traffickers to 
        recruit younger women and girls, some as young as seven, erroneously 
        perceived by customers to be too young to have been infected with HIV;
Whereas according to the most recent Department of State estimates, between 
        600,000 and 800,000 people are trafficked across borders each year 
        worldwide and combined with trafficking within countries, the total 
        figure is estimated at between 2,000,000 and 4,000,000;
Whereas international organized crime has taken advantage of the freer flow of 
        people, money, goods and services to extend its own international reach;
Whereas there is no single victim stereotype; a majority of trafficked women are 
        under the age of 25 and many are in their mid to late teens;
Whereas like global terrorism, and global catastrophes, human trafficking and 
        exploitation is the responsibility of the global community and should be 
        addressed by the United Nations through the establishment of a 
        commission;
Whereas the international community began meeting in 1999 to draft a Protocol to 
        Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women 
        and Children in conjunction with the United Nations Convention Against 
        Transnational Organized Crime;
Whereas the United States, along with Argentina, introduced the draft protocol 
        in January 1999 and negotiations were concluded in 2000 on a revised 
        draft;
Whereas on November 15, 2000, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the 
        Convention on Transnational Crime, including the Protocol on 
        Trafficking, and the Convention and Protocols formally signed in 
        Palermo, Italy, in December 2000, were designed to enable countries to 
        work together more closely against criminals engaged in cross-border 
        crimes;
Whereas the United States signed the United Nations Protocol on Trafficking in 
        December 2000, but has not yet ratified it; and
Whereas the increased threat of global terrorism, ongoing wars and natural 
        catastrophes such as tsunamis, hurricanes, earthquakes, and the 
        international community's response to these occurrences has a direct 
        impact on human trafficking, slavery, and exploitation: Now, therefore, 
        be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives 
that--
            (1) the President should direct the United States Permanent 
        Representative to the United Nations to use the voice, vote, 
        and influence of the United States to urge the United Nations 
        to establish a commission on slavery, human trafficking, and 
        exploitation; and
            (2) the commission described in paragraph (1) should work 
        to develop recommendations regarding measures to be implemented 
        in carrying out humanitarian efforts to prevent, and treat the 
        adverse effects of, human trafficking and exploitation in 
        regions of war, terrorism, and natural disaster, and in regions 
        subject to any other circumstance that renders susceptible 
        populations vulnerable to human trafficking and exploitation.
                                 <all>