[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6193 Introduced in House (IH)]
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115th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6193
To direct the Secretary of State to help keep Central American families
together, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 22, 2018
Mr. Engel (for himself, Mrs. Torres, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. Sires, Mr.
Crowley, Mr. Gutierrez, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Ms. Norton, Mr. Raskin,
Mr. Meeks, Mr. Huffman, Mr. Deutch, Mr. Correa, Mr. Khanna, Ms. Lee,
Mr. Soto, Mr. Lewis of Georgia, Mr. Pallone, Ms. Velazquez, Mr.
Gonzalez of Texas, Mrs. Napolitano, Ms. Titus, Mr. Blumenauer, Ms.
Rosen, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, Mr. Welch, Mr.
Veasey, Mr. Castro of Texas, Mrs. Lowey, Mr. Serrano, Mr. Gallego, Mr.
McGovern, Ms. Barragan, Mr. Pascrell, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Kihuen, Ms.
Roybal-Allard, Mr. Cicilline, Ms. DeGette, Mr. Aguilar, Mr. Danny K.
Davis of Illinois, Mr. Walz, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. Payne, Mr.
Vela, Ms. Frankel of Florida, Ms. Lofgren, Mr. Smith of Washington, Ms.
Shea-Porter, Ms. Matsui, Mr. Keating, and Mr. Vargas) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs,
and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, 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 direct the Secretary of State to help keep Central American families
together, and for other purposes.
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 ``Central America Family Protection
and Reunification Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House
of Representatives; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate.
(2) Northern triangle.--The term ``Northern Triangle''
means the region of Central America that encompasses the
countries of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.
(3) Northern triangle countries.--The term ``Northern
Triangle countries'' means the countries of Guatemala,
Honduras, and El Salvador.
SEC. 3. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The Northern Triangle countries of El Salvador,
Honduras, and Guatemala have among the highest homicide rates
in the world. In 2017, there were 60 homicides per 100,000
people in El Salvador, 43.6 homicides per 100,000 people in
Honduras and 26.1 homicides per 100,000 people in Guatemala.
(2) According to a Small Arms Survey report from 2016,
Central America ranks high among regions of the world for
femicides. The rate of women who have died violent deaths as a
percentage of all violent deaths in El Salvador and Guatemala
ranks among the highest in the world.
(3) Between 2015 and April 2018, 1,003 femicides were
reported in El Salvador, despite enacting a special law in 2011
aimed at reducing violence against women that specifically
includes the crime of femicide.
(4) A United States Agency for International Development
(USAID) study in Honduras in 2015 found that ``40 percent of
women surveyed admitted to having suffered some form of Gender
Based Violence. This number is likely to be understated, as it
is common for individual respondents to deny victimization.''.
(5) Survivors of sexual violence in Northern Triangle
countries do not have access to comprehensive health care.
According to the Department of State's 2016 Country Report on
Human Rights Practices for El Salvador, ``Access to
reproductive health services outside of the capital city San
Salvador, however, was limited.'' In Guatemala, ``Cultural,
geographic, and linguistic barriers hampered access to
reproductive health care, particularly for indigenous women in
rural areas.''. Honduras prohibits the sale, distribution or
use of emergency contraception, per the State Department's 2016
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.
(6) According to a study conducted by the Woodrow Wilson
International Center for Scholars, childhood experiences with
domestic violence in Latin America are a major risk factor for
future criminal behavior. Fifty-six percent of incarcerated
women and 59 percent of incarcerated men surveyed experienced
intra-familial violence during childhood.
(7) According to a Congressional Research Service report,
``Gangs engage in sex trafficking involving women and children,
particularly in Honduras and in Guatemala City. Threats and
harassment by gangs have led thousands of youth to abandon
school, including some 39,000 in El Salvador in 2015.''.
(8) According to the nongovernmental organization Kids in
Need of Defense, ``As gangs have increased their control in El
Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala over the past several years,
they have systematically used sexual violence as a principal
tactic for establishing and maintaining dominance over the
communities and territories in which they operate, similar to
violent tactics used in other contexts of armed conflict.''.
(9) The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre estimates
that at least 1,000,000 people had been displaced by criminal
violence associated with drug trafficking and gang activity in
El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico as of December
2015. Multiple reports have shown that when women are
internally displaced, they are often at greater risk and more
vulnerable to sexual and gender-based violence.
(10) Pervasive gender-based violence in the Northern
Triangle countries and the inability of justice systems to hold
accountable the perpetrators of these crimes due to extremely
high rates of impunity creates a credible fear for individuals
to return to their home countries after migrating to the United
States.
(11) The American Academy of Pediatrics notes that the
stress caused by the Trump Administration's policy of family
separation could impede children's development and lead to
serious health problems, like heart disease, later in life.
SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) Attorney General of the United States Jeff Sessions's
decision to reverse an immigration appeals court ruling
granting asylum to a Salvadoran woman who was sexually,
physically and emotionally abused by her husband with El
Salvador failing to provide her protection sets a dangerous and
irresponsible precedent which does not take into account the
facts on the ground in the Northern Triangle; and
(2) the Trump Administration's decision to separate
children from their parents at the United States-Mexico border
will cause psycho-social damage to children and families that
will take years to repair.
SEC. 5. STATEMENT OF POLICY ON DEPARTMENT OF STATE ROLE IN IMMEDIATE
FAMILY REUNIFICATION.
(a) In General.--It shall be the policy of the United States to not
separate immigrant families as a deterrent, and to immediately reunite
any families that were separated due to the criminal prosecution of
parents for illegal entry or re-entry.
(b) Support.--It shall be the policy of the Department of State,
including through its embassies in the Northern Triangle countries, to
prioritize supporting governments and citizens of such countries to
help facilitate reunification of any families who were separated by
United States authorities due to the criminal prosecution of parents
for illegal entry into the United States.
(c) Report by Secretary of State.--Not later than 30 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall report
to the appropriate congressional committees on efforts to carry out the
policies described in subsections (a) and (b).
(d) Report by GAO.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States
shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on
efforts to carry out the policies described in subsections (a) and (b).
SEC. 6. REPORTING ON GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE IN THE NORTHERN TRIANGLE.
(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act and annually thereafter for the following five
years, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report on gender-based violence in the
Northern Triangle.
(b) Elements.--Each report required under subsection (a) shall
include the following elements:
(1) Data disaggregated by age on the overall rates of
gender-based violence in the Northern Triangle countries,
including by using victimization surveys, regardless of whether
or not these acts of violence are reported to government
authorities.
(2) Data on incidences of gender-based violence cases
reported to the authorities in the Northern Triangle countries
and the percentage of perpetrators investigated, apprehended,
prosecuted, and convicted.
(3) Descriptions of the obstacles (including capacity gaps
within the criminal justice system) to resolving gender-based
violence cases and deterring violence against women and
children in the Northern Triangle countries.
(4) Descriptions of gender-based violence trends in each of
the Northern Triangle countries.
(5) Information regarding the incidence of violence,
including domestic abuse, against indigenous women.
(6) A breakout of data on and descriptions of domestic
violence in each of the aforementioned categories.
(7) Information on the availability of trauma-informed
legal and social services for victims of gender-based violence
in Northern Triangle countries, including in shelters.
(8) Data on the number of police officers, prosecutors,
court personnel, and specialized units trained in violence
against women and children in Northern Triangle countries.
(9) Data on the time period from first report of crime to
official verdict in gender-based violence crimes in Northern
Triangle countries.
(10) Data on the availability of restoration services
(including shelter, trauma care, and economic support) for
women and child victims of gender-based violence in Northern
Triangle countries.
(11) Data on the capacity of child welfare systems in each
Northern Triangle country to protect unaccompanied children,
including runaways and refugee returnees in Northern Triangle
countries.
(12) Descriptions of barriers to comprehensive health care,
including reproductive health care, for survivors of gender-
based violence in Northern Triangle countries.
(c) Public Availability.--Each report required under subsection (a)
shall be made publicly available on the website of the Department of
State in English and Spanish.
SEC. 7. STRATEGY TO REDUCE GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE IN THE NORTHERN
TRIANGLE.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in coordination with the
Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues, the Senior Coordinator
for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment at the United States Agency
for International Development, and the President and Chief Executive
Officer of the Inter-American Foundation, shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees a strategy to use a portion of
amounts appropriated or otherwise made available to carry out the U.S.
Strategy for Engagement in Central America to combat gender-based
violence in the Northern Triangle.
(b) Consultation.--In developing the strategy required under
subsection (a), the Secretary of State shall consult with
nongovernmental organizations focused on gender-based violence in the
Northern Triangle and the United States.
(c) Public Availability.--The strategy required under subsection
(a) shall be made publicly available on the website of the Department
of State in English and Spanish.
SEC. 8. REPORTING ON GANG AND ORGANIZED-CRIME RELATED VIOLENCE IN THE
NORTHERN TRIANGLE.
(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act and annually thereafter for the following five
years, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report on gang and organized-crime related
violence in the Northern Triangle.
(b) Elements.--Each report required under subsection (a) shall
include the following elements:
(1) Data disaggregated by age on the overall rates of gang
and organized-crime related violence in the Northern Triangle
countries, including by using victimization surveys, regardless
of whether or not these acts of violence are reported to
government authorities.
(2) Data on sexual slavery scenarios carried out by gangs
and other organized criminal groups.
(3) Data on children and young adults forcibly recruited by
gangs and other criminal groups, including the extent to which
the authorities received reports of forced recruitement.
(4) Data on internal displacement due to gang-related
violence and insecurity, and services provided to those
displaced by violence, including temporary shelters.
(5) Data on the rates of extortion and cases investigated,
prosecuted and convicted.
(6) Data on cases of abuse, including extrajudicial
executions, committed by members of the Northern Triangle
countries' security forces and collusion between members of the
security forces and gangs and other criminal groups, and
percentage of perpetrators investigated, prosecuted, and
convicted.
(7) Descriptions of the strategies being implemented by the
Northern Triangle governments to address forced recruitment of
children and youth by gangs and other criminal groups.
(8) Data on incidences of gang and organized-crime related
violence cases reported to the authorities in the Northern
Triangle countries and the percentage of perpetrators
investigated, apprehended, prosecuted, and convicted.
(9) Descriptions of the obstacles (including capacity gaps
within the criminal justice system) to resolving gang and
organized-crime related violence cases and deterring violence
from these groups.
(10) Data on the time period from first report of serious
crime to official verdict in gang and organized-crime related
violence crimes in Northern Triangle countries.
(c) Public Availability.--Each report required under subsection (a)
shall be made publicly available on the website of the Department of
State in English and Spanish.
SEC. 9. OFFICE OF VICTIMS OF CRIME COMMITTED AGAINST INDIVIDUALS
REMOVED FROM THE UNITED STATES.
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of State shall establish within the Department of
State an office to study serious crimes, including homicide, rape,
kidnapping, domestic violence and extortion, committed against--
(1) aliens who were removed from the United States, during
the first 365 days after being so removed; and
(2) citizens of the United States who departed the United
States as a result of having an alien parent who was removed
from the United States, during the first 365 days after such
departure.
SEC. 10. STRATEGY TO ADDRESS HEALTH IMPACT OF FAMILY SEPARATION.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in coordination with the
Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a
strategy to use a portion of amounts appropriated or otherwise made
available to carry out the U.S. Strategy for Engagement in Central
America to address the damage to the health, development, and well-
being of children and caregivers caused by the policy of separating
children from their families at the United States-Mexico border.
(b) Consultation.--In developing the strategy required under
subsection (a), the Secretary of State shall consult with
nongovernmental organizations focused on the damage to the health,
development, and well-being of children and caregivers caused by child
separation both in the Northern Triangle and the United States.
(c) Public Availability.--The strategy required under subsection
(a) shall be made publicly available on the website of the Department
of State in English and Spanish.
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