[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5927 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 5927
To combat international violence against women and girls.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 30, 2008
Mr. Berman (for himself, Ms. DeLauro, and Mr. Marshall) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To combat international violence against women and girls.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``International
Violence Against Women Act of 2008''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Statement of policy.
Sec. 4. Definitions.
TITLE I--COORDINATION AND POLICY PLANNING
Sec. 101. Official positions and institutional changes.
Sec. 102. Policy and programs.
Sec. 103. Inclusion of information on violence against women and girls
in human rights reports.
TITLE II--OTHER PROVISIONS
Sec. 201. Amendments to Foreign Service Act of 1980.
Sec. 202. Support for multilateral efforts to end violence against
women and girls.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Violence against women and girls is rooted in multiple
causes and takes many forms, including physical, sexual, and
psychological. It affects all countries, social groups,
ethnicities, religions, and socioeconomic classes and is a
global health, economic development, and human rights problem
of epidemic proportions.
(2) According to the World Health Organization--
(A) approximately 1 in 3 of the women in the world
will experience violence in her lifetime, with rates of
up to 70 percent in some countries; and
(B) 1 in 5 of the women in the world will be the
victim of rape or attempted rape in her lifetime.
(3) According to the 2006 United Nations Secretary
General's report entitled Ending Violence Against Women, 102
member states have no specific laws on domestic violence.
(4) Women and girls face many different types of gender-
based violence, including forced or child marriage, so-called
``honor killings'', dowry-related murder, human trafficking,
and female genital mutilation. The United Nations estimates
that at least 5,000 so-called ``honor killings'' take place
each year around the world and that more than 130,000,000 girls
and young women worldwide have been subjected to female genital
mutilation.
(5) The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief 2006
Report on Gender-Based Violence and HIV/AIDS reports that
violence against women is a public health and development
problem that significantly increases susceptibility to HIV/
AIDS. A United Nations study on the global AIDS epidemic found
that in sub-Saharan Africa, women who are 15 to 24 years old
can be infected at rates that are up to 6 times higher than men
of the same age.
(6) Recent studies in Africa indicate that between 16 and
47 percent of girls in primary and secondary school report
sexual abuse or harassment by male teachers or classmates.
Girls who experience sexual violence at school are also more
likely to experience unintended pregnancies or become infected
with sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS.
(7) Rape and sexual assault are weapons of war used to
torture, intimidate, and terrorize women and communities.
Amnesty International reports that women have suffered from
sexual violence during conflicts in Rwanda, the former
Yugoslavia, Sierra Leone, and most recently in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, where women have suffered from brutal
and systematic sexual assaults.
(8) Displaced, refugee, and stateless women and girls in
humanitarian emergencies, conflict settings, and natural
disasters face extreme violence and threats because of power
inequities, including being forced to exchange sex for food and
humanitarian supplies, and being at increased risk of rape,
sexual exploitation, and abuse.
(9) According to the United States Agency for International
Development (USAID)--
(A) 70 percent of the 1,300,000,000 people living
in poverty in the world are women and children;
(B) \2/3\ of the 876,000,000 illiterate adults in
the world are women;
(C) \2/3\ of the 125,000,000 school-aged children
who are not in school are girls;
(D) more than \3/4\ of the 27,000,000 refugees in
the world are women and children; and
(E) 1,600 women die unnecessarily every day during
pregnancy and childbirth.
(10) In 2003, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on
Violence Against Women concluded that violence against women
violates the basic human rights of women, results in
``devastating consequences for women who experience it,
traumatic impact on those who witness it, de-legitimization of
States that fail to prevent it and the impoverishment of entire
societies that tolerate it.''.
(11) Violence against women is an impediment to the health,
opportunity, and development of women and their societies.
According to an October 2006 study of the United Nations
Secretary General entitled Ending Violence Against Women,
``Violence against women impoverishes women, their families,
communities and nations. It lowers economic production, drains
resources from public services and employers, and reduces human
capital formation.''.
(12) The World Bank recognizes that women's health,
education, and economic opportunities directly impact the
development and well being of their families and their
societies. A 2001 World Bank Report, entitled Engendering
Development, reports that greater gender equality leads to
improved nutrition, lower child mortality, less government
corruption, higher productivity, and reduced HIV infection
rates.
(13) Increased access to economic opportunities is crucial
to the prevention of and response to domestic and sexual
violence. Both microfinance-based interventions and increased
asset control have been shown to reduce levels of intimate
partner violence in addition to providing economic independence
for survivors.
(14) Campaigns to change social norms, including community
organizing, media campaigns, and efforts to engage and educate
men and boys, have been shown to change attitudes that condone
and tolerate violence against women and girls and reduce
violence and abuse.
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It is the policy of the United States--
(1) to promote women's political, economic, educational,
social, cultural, civil, and human rights and opportunities
throughout the world;
(2) to condemn and combat violence against women and girls,
and to promote and assist other governments in preventing and
responding to such violence;
(3) to promote ending violence against women and girls
around the world, whether the abuse is committed directly by a
foreign government, is implicitly committed by such government
through hostile laws or de jure mandates to disenfranchise
women, or is committed by private actors and the government
fails to address the abuse;
(4) to encourage foreign governments to enact and implement
effective legal reform to combat violence against women and
girls, and to encourage access to justice, true accountability
for abusers, and meaningful redress and support for victims;
(5) to systematically integrate and coordinate efforts to
prevent and respond to violence against women and girls into
United States foreign policy and foreign assistance programs,
and to expand implementation of effective practices and
programs;
(6) to fully implement the comprehensive international
strategy set forth in section 300G of the Foreign Assistance
Act of 1961, as added by this Act, which provides assistance to
eligible countries to reduce and prevent gender-based violence
with coordinated efforts in the criminal justice, health,
education, and economic sectors;
(7) to support and build capacity of indigenous
nongovernmental organizations that are working to prevent and
respond to violence against women and girls, particularly
women's nongovernmental organizations, and to support and
encourage United States organizations working in partnership
with such nongovernmental organizations;
(8) to prevent and respond to violence against women and
girls through multisectoral methods, working at individual,
family, community, local, national, and international levels
and incorporating service, prevention, training, and advocacy
activities and economic, education, health, legal, and
protective intervention services;
(9) to coordinate activities with recipient country
governments, as appropriate, and with other bilateral,
multilateral, nongovernmental, and private sector actors active
in the relevant sector and country;
(10) to foster international and regional cooperation with
an aim towards defining regional strategies, as appropriate,
for preventing and responding to violence against women and
girls, and exchanging data and successful strategies;
(11) to work through international organizations of which
the United States is a member, including the United Nations and
its specialized agencies, funds and programs to encourage,
promote, and advocate for stronger efforts and policies to
prevent and end violence against women and girls;
(12) to enhance training and other programs to prevent and
respond to violence against women and girls in humanitarian
relief, conflict, and post-conflict operations;
(13) to enhance training by United States personnel of
professional foreign military and police forces and judicial
officials to include specific and thorough instruction on
preventing and responding to violence against women and girls;
(14) to press for the implementation of policies and
practices in global peace and security efforts, including
United Nations peacekeeping and policing operations, that
prevent and respond to violence against women and girls and
hold personnel accountable for the full implementation of these
policies and practices.
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Violence against women and girls.--The term ``violence
against women and girls'' has the meaning given the term in
section 300A(1) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as added
by this Act.
(2) Eligible countries.--The term ``eligible countries''
has the meaning given the term in section 300A(2) of the
Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as added by this Act.
TITLE I--COORDINATION AND POLICY PLANNING
SEC. 101. OFFICIAL POSITIONS AND INSTITUTIONAL CHANGES.
Chapter 2 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22
U.S.C. 2166 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``TITLE XIII--INTERNATIONAL PREVENTION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND
GIRLS
``SEC. 300A. DEFINITIONS.
``In this title:
``(1) Violence against women and girls.--The term `violence
against women and girls'--
``(A) means any act of gender-based violence
against women or girls committed because of their
gender that results in, or is likely to result in,
physical, sexual, or psychological harm or suffering to
women, including threats of such acts, coercion, or
arbitrary deprivations of liberty, whether occurring in
public or private life; and
``(B) includes--
``(i) physical, sexual, and psychological
violence occurring in the family, including
battering, sexual abuse of female children in
the household, dowry-related violence, marital
rape, female genital mutilation and other
traditional practices harmful to women,
nonspousal violence, and violence related to
exploitation;
``(ii) physical, sexual, and psychological
violence occurring within the general
community, including rape, sexual abuse, sexual
harassment and intimidation at work, in
educational institutions and elsewhere,
trafficking in women, and forced prostitution;
and
``(iii) physical, sexual, and psychological
violence perpetrated or condoned by the state,
wherever it occurs.
``(2) Eligible countries.--The term `eligible countries'
means countries that are not classified as high-income
countries in the most recent edition of the World Development
Report for Reconstruction and Development published by the
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
``Subtitle A--Official Positions and Institutional Changes
``SEC. 300B. OFFICE OF WOMEN'S GLOBAL INITIATIVES.
``(a) Establishment.--There is established in the Office of the
Secretary of State in the Department of State, the Office of Women's
Global Initiatives. The office shall be headed by the Coordinator of
the Office of Women's Global Initiatives (referred to in this title as
the `Coordinator'), who shall be appointed by the President, by and
with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Coordinator shall report
directly to the Secretary and shall have the rank and status of
Ambassador at Large.
``(b) Purpose.--The Office of Women's Global Initiatives shall be
the sole office coordinating all efforts of the United States
Government regarding international women's issues and is intended to
replace the Office of International Women's Issues in the Office of the
Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs in the Department of
State.
``(c) Duties.--The Coordinator shall have the following
responsibilities:
``(1) In general.--The Coordinator shall--
``(A) design, oversee, and coordinate activities
and programs of the United States Government relating
to international women's issues; and
``(B) direct United States Government resources
to--
``(i) prevent and respond to violence
against women and girls throughout the world;
and
``(ii) develop the comprehensive
international strategy described in section
300G to reduce violence against women and
girls.
``(2) Principal advisor.--The Coordinator shall serve as
the principal advisor to the Secretary of State regarding
foreign policy matters relating to women, including violence
against women and girls.
``(3) Coordinating role.--The Coordinator shall--
``(A) oversee and coordinate all resources and
activities of the United States Government to combat
violence against women and girls internationally,
including developing strategies for the integration of
efforts to prevent and respond to gender-based violence
into United States assistance programs;
``(B) coordinate all policies, programs, and
funding related to violence against women and girls
internationally of the Department of State, including--
``(i) the Bureau of Population, Refugees,
and Migration;
``(ii) the Bureau of Democracy, Human
Rights, and Labor;
``(iii) the Bureau for International
Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs;
``(iv) the Bureau of Education and Cultural
Affairs;
``(v) the Bureau of Political Military
Affairs;
``(vi) the Bureau of International
Organizations Affairs;
``(vii) the Bureau of Economic and Business
Affairs;
``(viii) the Foreign Service Institute;
``(ix) the Office of the Coordinator for
Reconstruction and Stabilization;
``(x) the Office to Monitor and Combat
Trafficking in Persons;
``(xi) the Office of the United States
Global AIDS Coordinator; and
``(xii) all regional bureaus and offices;
``(C) coordinate all policies, programs, and
funding related to violence against women and girls
internationally in the Department of Justice, the
Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human
Services, the Department of Defense, and the Department
of Homeland Security;
``(D) coordinate all policies, programs, and
funding relating to violence against women and girls
internationally in the United States Agency for
International Development (USAID), including the
Women's Global Development Office;
``(E) monitor and evaluate all such gender-based
violence programs administered by the entities listed
in subparagraphs (B) through (D), as necessary;
``(F) coordinate all policies, programs, and
funding of the Millennium Challenge Corporation
relating to violence against women and girls
internationally;
``(G) design, integrate, and, as appropriate,
implement policies, programs, and activities related to
women's health, education, economic development, legal
reform, social norm changes, women's human rights, and
protection of women in humanitarian crises, including
those identified pursuant to section 300G(c); and
``(H) encourage departments listed in subparagraph
(C) to create agency-specific programmatic guidelines
on addressing violence against women and girls
internationally and monitor implementation of those
guidelines.
``(4) Diplomatic representation.--Subject to the direction
of the President and the Secretary of State, the Coordinator is
authorized to represent the United States in matters relevant
to violence against women and girls internationally in--
``(A) contacts with foreign governments,
nongovernmental organizations, the United Nations and
its specialized agencies, and other international
organizations of which the United States is a member;
and
``(B) multilateral conferences and meetings
relevant to violence against women and girls.
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 through 2013,
under the heading `Diplomatic and Consular Programs', to carry out
activities under this section. Funds appropriated pursuant to this
subsection shall be under the direct control of the Coordinator.
``SEC. 300C. WOMEN'S GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT OFFICE.
``(a) Establishment.--There is established, within the United
States Agency for International Development, the Office of Women's
Global Development. The Office of Women's Global Development shall be
headed by the Director of Women's Global Development (referred to in
this title as the `Director'), who shall be appointed by the President,
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Director shall
report directly to the Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development and shall consult regularly with the
Coordinator of the Office of Women's Global Initiatives.
``(b) Purpose.--The Office of Women's Global Development shall be
the sole office coordinating all efforts of the United States Agency
for International Development (USAID) regarding international women's
issues and is intended to replace the Office of Women in Development in
USAID in existence on the date of the enactment of this title.
``(c) Duties.--
``(1) In general.--The Director shall--
``(A) integrate gender into all policies, programs,
and activities of the United States Agency for
International Development to improve the status of
women, increase opportunities for women, and support
the overall development goals of United States programs
and assistance;
``(B) ensure that efforts to prevent and respond to
violence against women and girls are integrated into
United States Government foreign assistance programs at
the strategic planning and country operational plan
levels; and
``(C) monitor the manner in which such activities
are integrated, programmed, and implemented in each
country plan.
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 through 2013 to
carry out activities and collaboration related to preventing and
responding to gender-based violence. Funds appropriated pursuant to
this subsection shall be under the direct control of the Director. Such
funds are in addition to amounts otherwise available for such purposes.
``SEC. 300D. ADVISORY COMMISSION ON INTERNATIONAL VIOLENCE AGAINST
WOMEN.
``(a) Establishment.--There is established within the Department of
State an Advisory Commission on International Violence Against Women
(in this section referred to as the `Advisory Commission').
``(b) Membership.--
``(1) Appointment.--The Advisory Commission shall be
composed of--
``(A) the Coordinator of Women's Global
Initiatives, who shall serve as chair, and the Director
of the Women's Global Development Office, both of whom
shall serve ex officio as nonvoting members of the
Advisory Commission;
``(B) 8 members appointed by the Secretary of State
who are not officers or employees of the Federal
Government;
``(C) 3 members appointed by the President pro
tempore of the Senate on the joint recommendation of
the majority and minority leaders of the Senate; and
``(D) 3 members appointed by the Speaker of the
House of Representatives on the joint recommendation of
the majority and minority leaders of the House of
Representatives.
``(2) Selection.--Members of the Advisory Commission shall
be selected from among--
``(A) distinguished individuals noted for their
knowledge and experience in fields relevant to the
issue of international violence against women and
girls, including foreign affairs, human rights, and
international law;
``(B) representatives of nongovernmental
organizations and other institutions having knowledge
and expertise related to violence against women and
girls; and
``(C) academics representative of the various
scholarly approaches to the issue of international
violence against women and girls.
``(3) Time of appointment.--The appointments required under
paragraph (1) shall be made not later than 120 days after the
date of the enactment of this title.
``(4) Terms.--The term of each member appointed to the
Advisory Commission shall be 3 years. Members shall be eligible
for reappointment to a second term.
``(c) Duties.--The Advisory Commission shall--
``(1) annually make recommendations to the Secretary of
State regarding best practices to prevent and respond to
violence against women and girls internationally and the
effective integration of such practices into the foreign policy
of the United States, including assistance programming; and
``(2) consult with members of the United States Government
and with private groups and individuals on the prevention and
response to international violence against women and girls.
``(d) Hearings.--In carrying out this section, the Advisory
Commission may conduct such hearings, sit and at such times and places,
take such testimony, and receive such evidence, as the Advisory
Commission considers appropriate.
``(e) Funding.--Members of the Advisory Commission shall be allowed
travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence at rates
authorized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57
of title 5, United States Code, while away from their homes or regular
places of business in the performance of duties for the Advisory
Commission.
``(f) Report of the Advisory Commission.--Not later than May 1 of
each year, the Advisory Commission shall submit a report to the
President, the Secretary of State, the Committee on Foreign Relations
of the Senate, and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives that sets forth its findings and recommendations for
United States policy and programs.
``(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated $300,000 for each of the fiscal years 2009 through 2013 to
carry out this section.''.
SEC. 102. POLICY AND PROGRAMS.
Chapter 2 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22
U.S.C. 2166 et seq.), as amended by section 101, is further amended by
adding at the end the following:
``Subtitle B--Policy and Programs
``SEC. 300G. COMPREHENSIVE INTERNATIONAL STRATEGY TO REDUCE AND PREVENT
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS.
``(a) Development and Implementation of Strategy.--Not later than 1
year after the date of the enactment of this title, the President, with
the assistance of the Coordinator of Women's Global Initiatives and
Director of Women's Global Development, shall develop and commence
implementation of a comprehensive, 5-year international strategy to
prevent and respond to violence against women and girls
internationally, and shall submit it to the Committee on Foreign
Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the
House of Representatives.
``(b) Collaboration.--In developing the strategy under subsection
(a), the President, with the assistance of the Coordinator, shall
consult with--
``(1) the Secretary of State, including the offices and
bureaus listed in section 300B(c)(3)(B), other executive
agencies listed in section 300B(c)(3)(C), United States aid
agencies and offices as listed in section 300B(c)(3)(D), the
Millennium Challenge Corporation listed in section
300B(c)(3)(F), and Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat
Trafficking; and
``(2) nongovernmental organizations with demonstrated
expertise working on violence against women and girls, women's
health, or women's empowerment issues internationally.
``(c) Content.--The strategy developed under subsection (a) shall--
``(1) identify between 10 and 20 eligible countries that
are geographically, ethnically, and culturally diverse, and
have severe levels of violence against women and girls;
``(2) describe the nature and extent of violence against
women and girls in each country;
``(3) identify how and to what extent the violence against
women and girls in each country is negatively affecting goals
of improving the health, education, economic, democracy and
civic participation, criminal justice, and internally displaced
persons and refugee management sectors in such country and its
region;
``(4) assess the efforts of the government in each country
to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls and
assess the potential capacity of each country to manage 2 or
more of the gender violence-based program activities identified
under subsection (d);
``(5)(A) describe the programs to be undertaken in
cooperation with the governments of each country in specific
areas for progress in preventing and responding to violence
against women and girls;
``(B) identify resources to help implement programs; and
``(C) encourage development of national action plans;
``(6) for each country, identify 2 or more of the program
activities listed in subsection (d) and describe how the
selected programs will prevent and respond to the problem of
violence against women and girls, including--
``(A) increasing legal and judicial protections;
``(B) enhancing the capacity of the health sector
to respond to such violence;
``(C) increasing opportunities for women and girls
in education and economic development; or
``(D) promoting societal awareness and changing
social norms;
``(7) include, as appropriate, strategies designed to
accommodate the needs of stateless, internally displaced,
refugee, or religious or ethnic minority women and girls;
``(8) project general levels of resources needed on an
annual basis to achieve the stated objective in each country,
taking into account activities and funding provided by other
donor country governments and other multilateral institutions
and leveraging private sector resources;
``(9) include potential coordination with existing
programs, initiatives, and expertise on preventing and
responding to violence against women and girls that exist
within nongovernmental organizations, including in-country,
civil society organizations, particularly women's organizations
and community-based groups;
``(10) identify the Federal departments and agencies
involved in the execution of the relevant program activities;
and
``(11) describe the monitoring and evaluation mechanisms
established for each country and how they will be used to
assess overall progress in preventing and responding to
violence against women and girls.
``(d) Program Activities Supported.--Assistance provided under this
section shall be used to carry out, in each of the countries identified
in the strategy required pursuant to subsection (a), 2 or more of the
following program activities:
``(1) Increasing legal and judicial protections by--
``(A) supporting programs that strengthen a
coordinated community response to violence against
women and girls, including through coordination between
judges, police, prosecutors, and legal advocates to
enhance prospects for perpetrator accountability;
``(B) supporting efforts and providing resources to
provide training and technical assistance to police,
prosecutors, forensic physicians, lawyers, corrections
officers, judges, and judicial officials, and where
appropriate, to nonlawyer advocates and traditional
community authorities on violence against women and
girls;
``(C) supporting efforts to reform and revise
criminal and civil laws to prohibit violence against
women and girls and create accountability for
perpetrators;
``(D) enhancing the capacity of the justice sector,
including keeping official records of all complaints,
collecting and safeguarding evidence, systematizing and
tracking data on cases of violence against women and
girls, and undertaking investigations and evidence
gathering expeditiously;
``(E) helping women and girls who are victims of
violence gain access to the justice sector and
supporting them throughout the legal process, including
establishing victim and witness units for courts and
promoting support for survivor services, including
hotlines and shelters;
``(F) promoting civil remedies in cases of domestic
violence that--
``(i) prioritize victim safety and
confidentiality and offender accountability;
``(ii) grant women and children
restraining, protection, or removal orders with
appropriate criminal sanctions for violations
against perpetrators of violence;
``(iii) strengthen and promote women's
custodial rights over children and protect
children; and
``(iv) grant courts authority to provide
specific relief pursuant to a restraining or
removal order, including restitution, spousal
maintenance, child support, payment of debt, or
return or equitable distribution of property;
``(G) reducing the incidence of violence against
women and girls committed by government officials by
developing confidential mechanisms for reporting
violence against women and girls committed by
government officials and institutions and developing
laws to punish the perpetrators and remove immunity
from state officials;
``(H) promoting broader legal protection for women
and girls against all forms of violence against women
and girls, such as female infanticide and female
genital mutilation, and practices that are associated
with higher rates of violence against women and girls,
such as child and forced marriage; and
``(I) increasing the number of women advocates
trained to respond to violence against women and girls
at police stations, including the creation of domestic
violence units and increasing the number of women
police.
``(2) Carrying out health care initiatives, including--
``(A) promoting the integration of programs to
prevent and respond to violence against women and girls
into existing programs addressing child survival,
women's health, family planning, mental health, and
HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment;
``(B) training of health care providers, including
traditional birth attendants, on methods to safely and
confidentially assess women and girls seeking health
services for intimate partner, family, and sexual
violence;
``(C) developing and enforcing national and
operational women's health, children's health, and HIV/
AIDS policies that prevent and respond to violence
against women and girls, with accompanying resources,
including through cooperative efforts with ministries
of health;
``(D) developing information gathering systems
within the health care sector that, consistent with
safety and confidentiality concerns, collect and
compile data on the type of violence experienced by
women and girls, access to care, age of victims, and
relationship of victims to perpetrators;
``(E) working with governments to develop
partnerships with civil society organizations to create
referral networks systems for psychosocial, legal,
economic, or other support services; and
``(F) integrating screening and assessment for
gender-based violence into HIV/AIDS programming and
other health programming into all country operation
plans, and increasing women's access to information,
strategies, and services to protect themselves from
HIV/AIDS.
``(3) Conducting public awareness programs to change social
norms and attitudes, including--
``(A) supporting women survivors of violence to
educate their communities on the impacts of violence;
``(B) engaging men, including faith and traditional
leaders;
``(C) providing funding and programmatic support
for mass media social change campaigns; and
``(D) supporting community efforts to change
attitudes about harmful traditional practices,
including child marriage, female genital mutilation,
and so-called `honor killings'.
``(4) Improving economic opportunities for women and girls,
including--
``(A) supporting programs to help women meet their
economic needs and to increase their economic
opportunities, in both rural and urban areas, including
through support for--
``(i) the establishment and development of
businesses (micro, small, and medium-sized
enterprises) through access to financial and
nonfinancial services; and
``(ii) education, literacy, and numeracy
programs, leadership development and job skills
training, especially in nontraditional fields
and expected growth sectors;
``(B) supporting programs to help increase property
rights, social security, and home ownership and land
tenure security for women by--
``(i) promoting equitable extension of
property and inheritance rights, particularly
rights to familial and marital property;
``(ii) promoting legal literacy, including
among faith and traditional leaders, about
women's property rights; and
``(iii) helping women to make land claims
and protecting women's existing claims and
advocating for equitable land titling and
registration for women, including safeguards
for women title-holders in the case of domestic
violence disputes;
``(C) integrating activities to prevent and respond
to violence against women and girls into existing
economic opportunity programs by--
``(i) integrating education on violence
against women and girls into women's
microfinance, microenterprise, and job skills
training programs; and
``(ii) training providers of economic
opportunity services and programs in
sensitivity to violence against women and
girls; and
``(D) addressing violence against women and girls
in the workplace.
``(5) Improving educational opportunities for women and
girls, including--
``(A) supporting efforts and providing resources to
provide training for all teachers and school
administrators on school-related violence, in
particular increasing awareness of violence against
women and girls, and to improve reporting, referral,
and implementation of codes of conduct;
``(B) working to ensure the safety of girls during
their travel to and from school and on school grounds;
``(C) including programs for girls and boys on the
unacceptability of violence against women and girls;
and
``(D) conducting national and baseline surveys to
collect data on school-related violence against women
and girls.
``SEC. 300H. ASSISTANCE TO REDUCE INTERNATIONAL VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
AND GIRLS INTERNATIONALLY.
``(a) Coordinating Existing Aid Programs.--The Coordinator of the
Women's Global Initiatives, working with the Director of the Office of
Women's Global Development, shall ensure that existing programs,
contracts, grants, agreements, and foreign assistance under this Act,
the Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962 (22 U.S.C. 2601 et
seq.), the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7101
et seq.), the United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis,
and Malaria Act of 2003 (22 U.S.C. 7601 et seq.), the Support for East
European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989 (22 U.S.C. 5401 et seq.), the
FREEDOM Support Act (22 U.S.C. 5851 et seq.), and other Acts
authorizing foreign assistance incorporate, as applicable, measures to
prevent and respond to violence against women and girls.
``(b) Authority.--To implement and execute the comprehensive
international strategy developed pursuant to section 300G, the
President is authorized to provide assistance to nongovernmental
organizations, multilateral institutions, and foreign countries for
program activities described in section 300G(d).
``(c) Allocate New Funding.--The Coordinator of the Office of
Women's Global Initiatives is authorized to allocate funds to implement
and execute the comprehensive international strategy developed pursuant
to section 300G.
``(d) Use of Funds.--Any funds made available under this section to
nongovernmental organizations must be designated to organizations that
have demonstrated expertise regarding violence against women and girls
internationally, or that are in partnership with such organizations and
that have demonstrated capabilities or expertise in a particular
program activity described in subsection 300G(d).
``(e) Grants to Women's Nongovernmental Organizations and
Community-Based Organizations.--Not less than 10 percent of the funds
awarded in a fiscal year under this section shall be awarded to women's
nongovernmental organizations and community-based organizations.
``(f) Award Process.--Funds awarded under this section shall be
provided through an open, competitive, and transparent process where
possible.
``(g) Conditions.--Entities receiving funds awarded through the
grant program established under this section--
``(1) should include the collection of data and the
evaluation of program effectiveness;
``(2) should be responsible for developing and reporting on
outcomes related to preventing and responding to violence
against women and girls;
``(3) should gather input from women's nongovernmental
organizations or community-based organizations, including
organizations with expertise in preventing and responding to
violence against women and girls; and
``(4) shall consider the safety of women and girls as a
primary concern in deciding how to design, implement, monitor,
and evaluate programs.
``(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated
to the Office of Women's Global Initiatives $175,000,000 for
each of the fiscal years 2009 through 2013 to carry out this
section and section 300G.
``(2) Availability of funds.--Amounts appropriated pursuant
to paragraph (1) shall remain available until expended.
``(3) Nonsupplantation.--Funds authorized and appropriated
under this Act shall supplement, not supplant, existing funds
otherwise available for activities under this title.
``SEC. 300I. ANNUAL REPORT ON UNITED STATES EFFORTS TO END
INTERNATIONAL VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS.
``(a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the submission of
the comprehensive international strategy developed under section 300G,
and annually thereafter, the Secretary of State, assisted by the
Coordinator of Women's Global Initiatives, shall submit to Congress a
report to be entitled the `Report on International Violence Against
Women and Girls'.
``(b) Content.--The report required under subsection (a) shall
include the following:
``(1) The goals and objectives of the comprehensive
international strategy developed under section 300G(a).
``(2) The specific criteria used to determine the
effectiveness of the strategy.
``(3) A description of the coordination of all United
States Government resources and international activities to
prevent and respond to the problem of violence against women
and girls, including--
``(A) an identification of the Federal agencies
involved;
``(B) a description of the coordination between
Federal agencies and departments, including those
acting in the eligible countries; and
``(C) a description of the coordination with non-
United States Government entities, including the
governments of eligible countries, multilateral
organizations and institutions, and nongovernmental
organizations.
``(4) A description of the relationship between efforts to
prevent and respond to violence against women and girls
internationally and other United States assistance strategies
in developing countries and diplomatic relationships.
``(5) A description of efforts to include gender-based
violence in United States diplomatic and peacemaking
initiatives.
``(6) A description of any significant efforts by bilateral
and multilateral donors in support of preventing and responding
to international violence against women and girls.
``(7) A description of the implementation of the agency-
specific guidelines described in section 300B(c)(3)(H).
``(8) A description of the activities of, and funding
provided for programs that prevent and respond to violence
against women and girls in humanitarian relief, conflict and
post-conflict operations, including violence perpetrated by
humanitarian workers.
``(9) A description of United States training of foreign
military and police forces, judicial officials, and
humanitarian relief grantees to prevent and respond to violence
against women and girls.
``(10) A description of data collection efforts conducted
under this title.
``(11) Identification of all contractors, subcontractors,
grantees, and subgrantees receiving United States funds for
preventing and responding to violence against women and girls.
``(12) Recommendations related to best practices, effective
strategies, and suggested improvements to enhance the impact of
efforts to prevent and respond to violence against women and
girls.
``(13) A description of efforts to evaluate the
accountability and efficacy of the programs funded pursuant to
section 300H(g).
``(14) A compilation of the descriptions on the nature and
extent of violence against women and girls included in the
annual Human Rights Reports required under section 116(d) of
this Act.
``(15) The identification of countries or regions with
critical outbreaks of violence against women and girls
described in subsection 300L(h), including--
``(A) an analysis of the situations, including the
factors driving the violence, the role of government,
militia, rebel, or other armed forces in the violence;
and
``(B) an analysis of United States and other
multilateral, bilateral, or governmental efforts to
prevent or respond to the violence, assist survivors,
or hold the perpetrators accountable.
``(16) A description of United States resources that are
being used--
``(A) to assist in efforts to prevent or respond to
the critical outbreaks of violence described in section
300L(h);
``(B) assist survivors of such violence;
``(C) hold perpetrators accountable for such
violence; and
``(D) encourage all parties to the armed conflict
to protect women and girls from violence.
``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to the Secretary of State to meet the reporting
requirements under this section--
``(1) $2,500,000 for fiscal year 2009; and
``(2) $500,000 for each of the fiscal years 2010 through
2013.
``SEC. 300J. DATA COLLECTION.
``(a) In General.--The Coordinator of Women's Global Initiatives,
assisted by the Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development and the Director of the Women in Development
Office, shall be responsible for researching, collecting, monitoring,
and evaluating data related to efforts to prevent and respond to
violence against women and girls internationally.
``(b) Use of Funds.--Funds made available under this section may be
used for the following purposes:
``(1) To collect and analyze data on the scope and extent
of all forms of violence against women and girls, including
under-documented forms of violence and violence against
marginalized groups. This work may include original research or
analysis of existing data sets.
``(2) To help governments of countries systematically
collect and analyze data on violence against women and girls,
including both national surveys and data collected by service
providers.
``(3) To use internationally comparable indicators, norms,
and methodologies for measuring the scope, prevalence, and
incidence of violence against women and girls.
``(4) To include data on violence against women and girls
in national and international data collection efforts,
including those administered and funded by the United States
Agency for International Development, the Millennium Challenge
Corporation, and the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention.
``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated $20,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2009 through 2013
to carry out the activities under this section.
``SEC. 300K. ENHANCING UNITED STATES TRAINING OF FOREIGN MILITARY AND
POLICE FORCES ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS.
``(a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to ensure that
United States programs to train foreign military and police forces and
judicial officials include instruction on preventing and responding to
violence against women and girls internationally.
``(b) Covered Programs.--The programs covered under this section
include--
``(1) activities authorized under this Act; and
``(2) activities under section 1206 of the National Defense
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006 (Public Law 109-163; 119
Stat. 3456) to build the capacity of foreign military and
police forces to conduct counterterrorist operations or support
military and stability operations in which the United States is
participating.
``(c) Authorization.--The Secretary of State and the Secretary of
Defense, in consultation with the Coordinator of Women's Global
Initiatives, shall--
``(1) incorporate training on how to prevent and respond to
violence against women and girls into the basic training
curricula of foreign military and police forces and judicial
officials; and
``(2) ensure that United States assistance to units
involved in regional or multilateral peacekeeping operations
includes training on preventing and responding to violence
against women and girls internationally.
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated $8,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2009 through 2013
to carry out the activities under this section.
``SEC. 300L. ADDRESSING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS IN
HUMANITARIAN RELIEF, PEACEKEEPING, CONFLICT, AND POST-
CONFLICT OPERATIONS.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section, the term `Inter-Agency
Standing Committee' means the committee established in response to
United Nations General Assembly Resolution 46/182 (1991).
``(b) Activities of the Department of State and the United States
Agency for International Development.--The Secretary of State and the
Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development
shall--
``(1) in consultation with the Coordinator of Women's
Global Initiatives, provide assistance to programs that prevent
and respond to violence against women and girls in all
humanitarian relief, conflict, and post-conflict operations,
including--
``(A) building the capacity of nongovernmental
organizations to address the special protection needs
of women and children affected by humanitarian,
conflict, or post-conflict operations;
``(B) supporting local and international
nongovernmental initiatives to prevent, detect, and
report violence against women and girls;
``(C) conducting protection and security
assessments for refugees and internally displaced
persons in camps or in communities to improve the
design and security of camps, with special emphasis on
the security of women and girls;
``(D) supporting efforts to reintegrate survivors
of a humanitarian relief, conflict, or post-conflict
operation through education, psychosocial assistance,
trauma counseling, family and community reinsertion and
reunification, and medical assistance; and
``(E) providing legal services for women and girls
who are victims of violence during a humanitarian
relief, conflict or post-conflict operation, including
the collection of evidence for war crime tribunals and
advocacy for legal reform; and
``(2) require that all grantees deployed in humanitarian
relief, conflict, and post-conflict operations--
``(A) comply with the Inter-Agency Standing
Committee's Six Core Principles Relating to Sexual
Exploitation and Abuse;
``(B) train all humanitarian workers in preventing
and responding to violence against women and girls,
including in the use of mechanisms to report violence
against women and girls;
``(C) conduct appropriate public outreach to make
known to the host community the mechanisms to report
violence against women and girls; and
``(D) promptly and appropriately respond to reports
of violence against women and girls and treat survivors
in accordance with best practices regarding
confidentiality.
``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated
to the Department of State and the United States Agency for
International Development $40,000,000 for each of the fiscal
years 2009 through 2011 for programs described in subsection
(b)(1) that prevent and respond to violence against women and
girls in humanitarian relief, conflict, and post-conflict
operations, in addition to amounts otherwise available for such
purposes.
``(2) Funding not at expense of other humanitarian
programs.--Any amounts appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1)
may not be provided at the expense of other humanitarian
programs.
``(d) Activities of the United States Agency for International
Development.--The Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development, in consultation with the Coordinator of
Women's Global Initiatives, shall designate and deploy, as appropriate,
protection officers as an integral part of Disaster Assistance Response
Teams to ensure that programs to prevent and address violence against
women and girls are integrated into humanitarian relief, conflict, and
post-conflict operations.
``(e) Activities of the Department of State.--Not later than 180
days after the date of the enactment of this title, the Secretary of
State shall submit a report to Congress on efforts to--
``(1) require that all private military contracting firms
hired by the Department of State for humanitarian relief,
conflict, and post-conflict operations--
``(A) demonstrate a commitment to expanding the
number and roles of women in such operations;
``(B) train all contractors who will be deployed to
humanitarian relief, conflict, or post-conflict
operations in preventing and responding to violence
against women and girls. including in the use of
mechanisms to report violence against women and girls;
``(C) conduct appropriate public outreach to make
known to the host community the mechanisms to report
violence against women and girls; and
``(D) promptly and appropriately respond to reports
of violence against women and girls and treat survivors
in accordance with best practices regarding
confidentiality; and
``(2) assist women and girls formally involved in, or
associated with, fighting forces as part of any multilateral or
bilateral Disarmament, Demobilization, Rehabilitation and
Reintegration efforts by providing--
``(A) protection and suitable separate facilities
for women and girls in demobilization and transit
centers;
``(B) equitable reintegration activities and
opportunities to women and girls, including access to
schooling, vocational training, employment, and
childcare; and
``(C) essential medical care and psychosocial
support for women and girls who are victims of gender-
based violence.
``(f) Activities of the Department of Defense.--The Secretary of
Defense shall--
``(1) in consultation with the Coordinator of Women's
Global Initiatives and the Director of the Office of Military
Affairs of the Bureau of Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian
Assistance of the United States Agency for International
Development, provide training in preventing and responding to
violence against civilian women and girls to all United States
military personnel, military contractors, military observers,
and military police forces who will be deployed to humanitarian
relief, conflict, and post-conflict operations;
``(2) in consultation with the Coordinator of Women's
Global Initiatives and the Director of the Office of Military
Affairs of the Bureau of Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian
Assistance, establish mechanisms for reporting incidences of
violence against civilian women and girls by United States
military personnel, military contractors, military observers,
and police forces participating in humanitarian relief,
peacekeeping, and post-conflict operations; and
``(3) establish appropriate public outreach to notify the
civilian population of the mechanisms for reporting incidences
of violence against civilian women and girls by United States
military personnel, military contractors, military observers,
and police forces.
``(g) Addressing Violence Against Civilian Women and Girls by
United Nations Peacekeepers.--
``(1) Department of state activities.--The Secretary of
State shall encourage member states of the United Nations--
``(A) to support expanding the number and roles of
female officers in all United Nations peacekeeping
missions, whether as military forces, civilian police,
or military observers; and
``(B) to routinely put forward the names of
qualified female candidates for senior United Nations
military and civilian management positions,
particularly for overseas missions.
``(2) Sense of congress regarding actions of united nations
peacekeepers.--It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary-
General of the United Nations should continue to strengthen the
existing ability of the United Nations Department of
Peacekeeping Operations and the Department of Field Support to
prevent and respond to violence against women and girls by
United Nations military and civilian personnel by--
``(A) requiring that troop contributing countries
properly train all soldiers on the United Nations
guidelines regarding appropriate conduct towards
civilians, in particular those guidelines that address
violence against women and girls, before participation
in United Nations peacekeeping missions;
``(B) supporting the expansion of the role and
number of female officers in all United Nations
peacekeeping missions, whether as military forces,
civilian police, or military observers;
``(C) strongly encouraging all United Nations
member states to routinely put forward the names of
qualified female candidates for senior United Nations
military and civilian management positions,
particularly for overseas missions;
``(D) ensuring appropriate mechanisms are in place
for individuals to safely bring allegations of violence
against women and girls to the attention of United
Nations peacekeeping mission commanders and the United
Nations Office of Internal Oversight;
``(E) ensuring the capability and capacity for the
United Nations Office of Internal Oversight to
investigate all credible allegations of violence
against women and girls timely and efficiently, and in
a manner that protects the whistleblower;
``(F) improving informational programs for all
United Nations personnel on their responsibility to
prevent violence against women and girls and not to
engage in acts of violence against women and girls;
``(G) demanding that troop contributing countries--
``(i) thoroughly investigate allegations of
their nationals engaging in violence against
women and girls while serving on United Nations
peacekeeping missions; and
``(ii) punish those found guilty of such
misconduct; and
``(H) continuing to permanently exclude individuals
found to have engaged in violence against women and
girls as well as troop contingent commanders and
civilian managerial personnel complicit in such
behavior, from participating in future United Nations
peacekeeping missions.
``(h) Emergency Measures for Critical Outbreaks of Violence During
Conflict or Post-Conflict Operations.--
``(1) Emergency response to critical outbreaks.--The
Secretary of State, in consultation with the Coordinator of
Women's Global Initiatives, the Director of National
Intelligence, and the Secretary of Defense, shall identify and
take emergency measures to respond to critical outbreaks of
violence against women and girls in situations of armed
conflict when it is determined that the violence is being used
as a weapon of intimidation and abuse.
``(2) Determination.--Violence against women and girls
shall be determined to be a `critical outbreak' if--
``(A) a United States Government report, allied
government information, or credible non-governmental or
media accounts depict a widespread pattern of violence
against women or girls, particularly rape and other
forms of sexual abuse, that is escalating in the number
of victims or brutality of attacks and that takes place
in an environment of relative impunity; or
``(B) escalating violence against women or girls is
part of an organized campaign by governmental or rebel
forces or militias.
``(3) Emergency measures.--Not later than 180 days after
the identification of a critical outbreak, the Secretary of
State, in consultation with the Coordinator of Women's Global
Initiatives, the Director of National Intelligence, and the
Secretary of Defense, shall develop emergency measures to
respond to the outbreak identified under paragraph (1).
``(4) Consultation.--In developing emergency measures under
paragraph (1), the Secretary of State, with the assistance of
the Coordinator, shall consult with--
``(A) nongovernmental organizations with
demonstrated expertise working on preventing and
addressing systematic violence against women and girls
as a weapon of intimidation and abuse in situations of
conflict and war; and
``(B) international organizations, such as the
United Nations and its subsidiary funds, agencies, and
programs, which are preventing and addressing
systematic violence against women and girls as a weapon
of intimidation and abuse in situations of conflict and
war.
``(5) Content.--The emergency measures developed under
paragraph (1) shall include a description of--
``(A) the bilateral and multilateral diplomatic
efforts that the Secretary of State will take to
address the critical outbreak, including--
``(i) efforts with the government in which
the violence is occurring, governments of the
region in which the violence is occurring, and
other allied governments; and
``(ii) efforts in international fora, such
as the United Nations and its subsidiary
agencies, funds and programs, including in the
United Nations Security Council, as
appropriate; and
``(B) the efforts by the United States Government
to--
``(i) protect women and girls at risk in a
critical outbreak region;
``(ii) urge all parties to the armed
conflict to protect women and girls; and
``(iii) facilitate the prosecution of those
responsible for the violence in a critical
outbreak area.
``(6) Notice.--The Secretary of State shall notify Congress
of efforts to respond to critical outbreaks, including a
description of the bilateral and multilateral diplomatic
efforts of the Department of State.
``(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--In addition to amounts
authorized to be appropriated under subsection (c), there is authorized
to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for emergency
measures, including the expansion of reporting mechanisms and programs,
for each critical outbreak of violence identified under this
section.''.
SEC. 103. INCLUSION OF INFORMATION ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS
IN HUMAN RIGHTS REPORTS.
Section 116(d) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C.
2151n(d)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (10), by striking ``; and'' and inserting
a semicolon;
(2) in paragraph (11)(C), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(12) wherever applicable, the nature and extent of
violence against women and girls, as defined in section 300A of
this Act.''.
TITLE II--OTHER PROVISIONS
SEC. 201. AMENDMENTS TO FOREIGN SERVICE ACT OF 1980.
(a) Performance Pay.--Section 405 of the Foreign Service Act of
1980 (22 U.S.C. 3965) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(f) Promotion of Human Rights.--Service in the promotion of
internationally recognized human rights, including preventing and
responding to violence against women and girls (as defined in section
300A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961), shall serve as a basis for
the award of performance pay.''.
(b) Foreign Service Awards.--Section 614 of the Foreign Service Act
of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4013) is amended by inserting ``and preventing and
responding to violence against women and girls (as defined in section
300A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961)'' after ``religion''.
(c) Foreign Service Training.--Chapter 2 of title I of the Foreign
Service Act of 1980 is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 212. TRAINING FOR FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS.
``The Secretary of State, assisted by the Coordinator of Women's
Global Initiatives, shall include, as part of the standard training
provided for officers of the Service (including chiefs of mission),
instruction on international violence against women and girls (as
defined in section 300A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961),
including domestic and sexual violence against women and girls in
humanitarian relief, conflict, and post-conflict operations.''.
SEC. 202. SUPPORT FOR MULTILATERAL EFFORTS TO END VIOLENCE AGAINST
WOMEN AND GIRLS.
There is authorized to be appropriated to the International
Organizations and Programs Account $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2009 through 2013 to support the United Nations Development Fund for
Women Trust Fund in Support of Actions to Eliminate Violence Against
Women.
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