[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 861 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 861

To establish in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the 
   Department of State a Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTI 
                    Peoples, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 25, 2019

Mr. Markey (for himself, Ms. Warren, Mr. Blumenthal, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. 
 Durbin, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Casey, Ms. Klobuchar, Ms. Smith, Ms. Baldwin, 
   Mr. Merkley, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Wyden, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Reed, Mrs. 
  Gillibrand, Mr. Sanders, Ms. Harris, and Mr. Murphy) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                           Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To establish in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the 
   Department of State a Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTI 
                    Peoples, 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 ``International Human Rights Defense 
Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                Representatives.
            (2) Gender identity.--The term ``gender identity'' means 
        the gender-related identity, appearance, or mannerisms or other 
        gender-related characteristics of an individual, regardless of 
        the individual's designated sex at birth.
            (3) LGBTI.--The term ``LGBTI'' means lesbian, gay, 
        bisexual, transgender, or intersex.
            (4) Intersex.--The term ``intersex'' means individuals born 
        with sex characteristics (including genitals, gonads, or 
        chromosome patterns) that vary from typical binary notions of 
        male or female bodies and is an umbrella term used to describe 
        a wide range of natural bodily variations.
            (5) Sexual orientation.--The term ``sexual orientation'' 
        means actual or perceived homosexuality, heterosexuality, or 
        bisexuality.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Around the world, LGBTI people face violence, 
        discrimination, hatred, and bigotry.
            (2) Sixty-nine countries criminalize same-sex relations and 
        at least three countries prohibit the public support of the 
        LGBTI community. That is equal to 35 percent of United Nations 
        member states.
            (3) In several countries, homosexuality is a crime that is 
        punishable by death.
            (4) Intersex people experience prejudice and discrimination 
        because their bodies do not conform to other people's 
        expectations about sex and gender, including the common 
        performance of medically unnecessary surgeries without the 
        consent or approval of intersex individuals.
            (5) Violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation 
        and gender identity are documented in the Department of State's 
        annual Human Rights Report to Congress. The 2017 report 
        continues to show a clear pattern of human rights violations in 
        every region of the world based on sexual orientation and 
        gender identity. These violations include murder, rape, 
        torture, death threats, extortion, and imprisonment, as well as 
        loss of employment, housing, access to health care, and other 
        forms of societal stigma and discrimination. The report further 
        documents LGBTI-specific restrictions on basic freedoms of 
        assembly, press, and speech in every region of the world.
            (6) In Jamaica and other countries, discrimination against 
        LGBTI people, including ``corrective rape'' of lesbian women, 
        occurs all too frequently and with relative impunity.
            (7) In 2013, the Russian Duma passed a law banning so-
        called ``homosexual propaganda'', which effectively makes it a 
        crime to publicly support LGBTI equality or even discuss 
        homosexuality. This pernicious law is the basis for similar so-
        called ``antipropaganda'' legislation in countries across 
        Eastern Europe and Central Asia, including in Moldova, 
        Kyrgyzstan, and Belarus.
            (8) In December 2013, the Government of Nigeria adopted a 
        law that further criminalized same-sex relations and support 
        for LGBTI people, endangering neighbors, friends, doctors, and 
        landlords of LGBTI people.
            (9) Several countries in South Asia continue to have 
        draconian laws that criminalize homosexual acts, which place 
        LGBTI people in danger and undermine their ability to live free 
        from persecution.
            (10) In February 2014, the Government of Uganda adopted a 
        law making ``aggravated homosexuality'' a crime punishable with 
        life imprisonment and concurrently, the Government of Uganda 
        also passed laws severely limiting the basic freedoms of speech 
        and assembly for LGBTI citizens. While the Constitutional Court 
        overturned the Anti-Homosexuality Act on a technicality in 
        August 2014, LGBTI Ugandans continue to be subjected to 
        discrimination and violence, and their government has in recent 
        years forcibly shut down even private Pride celebrations in 
        Kampala.
            (11) On April 1, 2017, the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta 
        reported that the government of the autonomous republic of 
        Chechnya had been arresting, detaining, and torturing gay and 
        bisexual men in secret prisons since early 2017. International 
        human rights groups and Russian LGBTI rights activists estimate 
        that as many as 20 people may have been murdered thus far and 
        potentially over 200 people were detained during the purge. An 
        OSCE factfinding report released in December 2018 confirmed the 
        atrocities, documenting ``several waves of violations of human 
        rights abuses of persons based on their sexual orientation and 
        gender identity''. Reports from early 2019 suggest the purge 
        has continued.
            (12) On May 23, 2017, and again on July 13, 2018, gay men 
        were publicly caned in the Indonesian province of Aceh, while 
        thousands of spectators snapped pictures outside a mosque as 
        the brutal punishment was meted out. Several times in 2017, 
        police in Indonesia have arrested men at private parties, 
        sometimes releasing their photographs to the news media, 
        endangering their lives.
            (13) In September 2017, reports emerged from Azerbaijan 
        that authorities had begun a crackdown on gay men and 
        transgender women, arresting more than 60 and subjecting them 
        to beatings, harassment, torture, and blackmail.
            (14) From September through December 2017, over 70 LGBTI 
        individuals were arrested in Egypt, with dozens receiving 
        prison sentences of up to six years. In late 2017, authorities 
        in Egypt instructed local media to delete any positive 
        references to LGBTI people, and lawmakers proposed a bill that 
        would criminalize LGBTI people and their allies. The arrests 
        continued in 2018, with a Cairo-based LGBTI rights organization 
        documenting 76 arrests for alleged same-sex conduct in 2018.
            (15) Anti-LGBTI laws not only endanger all LGBTI 
        individuals, but also pose serious risks for those associated 
        with or caring for LGBTI people. Studies have shown that when 
        LGBTI people, especially LGBTI youth, face discrimination, they 
        are less likely to seek HIV testing, prevention, and treatment 
        services.
            (16) According to the Trans Murder Monitoring Project, 
        which monitors homicides of transgender individuals, there were 
        at least 369 cases of reported killings of trans and gender-
        diverse people between October 2017 and September 2018, an 
        increase over previous years. The organization reports that a 
        ``majority of the murders occurred in Brazil (167), Mexico 
        (71), the United States (28), and Colombia (21), adding up to a 
        total of 2982 reported cases in 72 countries worldwide between 
        1st of January 2008 and 30th of September 2018''.
            (17) According to the International Guidelines on HIV/AIDS 
        and Human Rights, as published by the United Nations High 
        Commissioner for Human Rights, and according to the July 2017 
        report of the Independent Expert on protection against violence 
        and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender 
        identity, countries should review and reform criminal laws and 
        correctional systems to ensure that they are consistent with 
        international human rights obligations and are not misused or 
        targeted against vulnerable groups.
            (18) Removing institutionalized discrimination and targeted 
        persecution against LGBTI people around the world is a critical 
        step in the promotion of human rights and global health 
        internationally.
            (19) Anti-LGBTI laws and discrimination pose significant 
        risks for LGBTI youth who come out to their family or community 
        and often face rejection, homelessness, and limited educational 
        and economic opportunities. These factors contribute to 
        increased risks of substance abuse, suicide, and HIV infection 
        among LGBTI youth.
            (20) On December 6, 2011, President Barack Obama released 
        the ``Presidential Memorandum--International Initiatives to 
        Advance the Human Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and 
        Transgender Persons''. The memorandum directed all Federal 
        agencies engaged abroad to ensure that United States diplomacy 
        and foreign assistance promote and protect the human rights of 
        LGBTI persons.
            (21) On February 23, 2015, Secretary of State John Kerry 
        appointed senior diplomat Randy Berry as the Department of 
        State's first-ever Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTI 
        Persons. Secretary Pompeo pledged to re-fill that position 
        during his April 2018 confirmation hearing, but has yet to do 
        so.
            (22) On June 30, 2016, the United Nations Human Rights 
        Council passed a resolution cosponsored by the United States 
        that established an independent expert on violence and 
        discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity 
        to help monitor and track discrimination and violence 
        experienced by LGBTI persons around the world.
            (23) In November 2016, the Government of Tanzania placed a 
        ban on all HIV and AIDS outreach projects aimed at gay men, 
        including those funded by the President's Emergency Plan for 
        AIDS Relief. This forced the closure of United States-funded 
        programs providing testing, condoms, and care to gay men, 
        exacerbating the health needs of gay men in Tanzania, about 30 
        percent of whom are HIV positive. In 2018, various government 
        officials have announced crackdowns on the LGBTI community, 
        including a threat by the governor of the largest city, who 
        announced a purge on LGBTI individuals and asked the public to 
        report them. Reports suggest that many people have been 
        arrested and more are in hiding.
            (24) In February 2017, three transgender women were 
        murdered in El Salvador with impunity, leading the United 
        Nations to call for an investigation into crimes against sexual 
        and gender minorities in that country. A 2016 report noted that 
        transgender women in El Salvador have an average life 
        expectancy of less than 35 years due to violence, 
        discrimination, and femicide.
            (25) Extreme violence in El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, 
        and Honduras has driven LGBTI people to flee their countries or 
        origin to the United States for protection. LGBTI people were 
        among the first asylum seekers in the migrant ``caravans'' 
        arriving at the United States-Mexico border.
            (26) At the annual Summit of Commonwealth Nations in April 
        2018, United Kingdom Prime Minister Theresa May issued an 
        apology for discriminatory laws criminalizing same-sex 
        relationships that were imposed on British colonies around the 
        world. She also announced the creation of a fund to support 
        legal reform efforts.
            (27) In April 2018, Trinidad and Tobago's High Court of 
        Justice issued a landmark ruling declaring that laws which 
        criminalize same-sex relationships between consenting adults 
        are unconstitutional.
            (28) In April 2014, the Supreme Court of India recognized 
        transgender people as a third gender, improving the legal 
        rights of transgender people in that country. Though an 
        important step, the decision does not grant full legal rights 
        to transgender people.
            (29) In September 2018, the Supreme Court of India issued a 
        unanimous decision decriminalizing same-sex relationships 
        across the country. The landmark case is likely to support 
        similar legal challenges to colonial-era sodomy laws in other 
        former British colonies, since the Indian sodomy law was the 
        model used for other British colonies.
            (30) Angola decriminalized same-sex relationships in 
        January 2019, and prohibited discrimination against people on 
        the basis of sexual orientation.
            (31) In January 2018, the Inter-American Court of Human 
        Rights issued an advisory opinion declaring that the American 
        Convention on Human Rights, adopted at San Jose November 22, 
        1969, grants the right of transgender people to change their 
        name and gender on public documents, and that same-sex couples 
        must be granted full legal rights, including the right to 
        marriage. This ruling is animating legal reforms and human 
        rights cases across the Americas.
            (32) In September 2018, the legislature in Chile passed a 
        groundbreaking legal gender recognition law, which allows 
        transgender individuals to self-determine their legal gender in 
        official documents without a judicial determination or medical 
        interventions. The Government of Uruguay passed a similarly 
        expansive gender recognition law in 2018.

SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    It is the policy of the United States--
            (1) to take effective action to prevent and respond to 
        discrimination and violence against all people on any basis 
        internationally, including sexual orientation, gender identity, 
        and sex characteristics, and that human rights policy includes 
        attention to criminalization, hate crimes, and other 
        discrimination against LGBTI people;
            (2) to systematically integrate and coordinate into United 
        States foreign policy efforts to prevent and respond to 
        criminalization, discrimination, and violence against LGBTI 
        people internationally;
            (3) to support and build local capacity in countries around 
        the world, including of governments at all levels and 
        nongovernmental organizations, to prevent and respond to 
        criminalization, discrimination, and violence against LGBTI 
        people internationally;
            (4) to consult, cooperate, coordinate, and collaborate with 
        a wide variety of nongovernmental partners, including faith-
        based organizations and LGBTI-led organizations, with 
        demonstrated experience in preventing and responding to 
        criminalization, discrimination, and violence against LGBTI 
        people internationally;
            (5) to employ a multisectoral approach to preventing and 
        responding to criminalization, discrimination, and violence 
        against LGBTI people internationally, including activities in 
        the economic, education, health, nutrition, legal, and judicial 
        sectors;
            (6) to work at all levels, from the individual to the 
        family, community, local, national, and international levels, 
        to prevent and respond to criminalization, discrimination, and 
        violence against LGBTI people internationally;
            (7) to enhance training by United States personnel of 
        professional foreign military and police forces and judicial 
        officials to include appropriate and thorough LGBTI-specific 
        instruction on preventing and responding to criminalization, 
        discrimination, and violence based on sexual orientation and 
        gender identity;
            (8) to engage non-LGBTI people as allies and partners, as 
        an essential element of making sustained reductions in 
        criminalization, discrimination, and violence against LGBTI 
        people internationally;
            (9) to require that all Federal contractors and grant 
        recipients in the United States Government's international 
        programs establish appropriate policies and take effective 
        measures to ensure the protection and safety of their staff and 
        workplace, including from discrimination and violence directed 
        against LGBTI people and those who provide services to them;
            (10) to exert sustained international leadership, including 
        in bilateral and multilateral fora, to prevent and respond to 
        criminalization, discrimination, and violence against LGBTI 
        people internationally;
            (11) to fully implement and expand upon the policies 
        outlined in the ``Presidential Memorandum--International 
        Initiatives to Advance the Human Rights of Lesbian, Gay, 
        Bisexual, and Transgender Persons'';
            (12) to ensure that international efforts to combat HIV/
        AIDS take all appropriate measures to support at-risk 
        communities, including LGBTI people, and to create enabling 
        legal environments for these communities;
            (13) to work with governments and nongovernmental partners 
        around the world to develop and implement regional strategies 
        to decriminalize homosexuality and to counteract the 
        prohibition of public support of LGBTI people; and
            (14) to ensure that those who have a well-founded fear of 
        persecution on account of being LGBTI or supporting LGBTI 
        rights have the opportunity to seek protection in the United 
        States.

SEC. 5. SPECIAL ENVOY FOR THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF LGBTI PEOPLE.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of State shall establish in the 
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL) of the Department of 
State a permanent Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTI Peoples 
(in this section referred to as the ``Special Envoy''), who shall be 
appointed by the President. The Special Envoy shall report directly to 
the Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.
    (b) Purpose.--In addition to the duties described in subsection (c) 
and those duties determined by the Secretary of State, the Special 
Envoy shall direct efforts of the United States Government relating to 
United States foreign policy, as directed by the Secretary, regarding 
human rights abuses against LGBTI people and communities 
internationally and the advancement of human rights for LGBTI people, 
and shall represent the United States internationally in bilateral and 
multilateral engagement on such matters.
    (c) Duties.--
            (1) In general.--The Special Envoy--
                    (A) shall serve as the principal advisor to the 
                Secretary of State regarding human rights for LGBTI 
                people internationally;
                    (B) shall, notwithstanding any other provision of 
                law, direct activities, policies, programs, and funding 
                relating to the human rights of LGBTI people and the 
                advancement of LGBTI equality initiatives 
                internationally, for all bureaus and offices of the 
                Department of State, and shall lead the coordination of 
                relevant international programs for all other Federal 
                agencies relating to such matters;
                    (C) shall represent the United States in diplomatic 
                matters relevant to the human rights of LGBTI people, 
                including criminalization, discrimination, and violence 
                against LGBTI people internationally;
                    (D) shall direct, as appropriate, United States 
                Government resources to respond to needs for 
                protection, integration, resettlement, and empowerment 
                of LGBTI people in United States Government policies 
                and international programs, including to prevent and 
                respond to criminalization, discrimination, and 
                violence against LGBTI people internationally;
                    (E) shall design, support, and implement activities 
                regarding support, education, resettlement, and 
                empowerment of LGBTI people internationally, including 
                for the prevention and response to criminalization, 
                discrimination, and violence against LGBTI people 
                internationally;
                    (F) shall lead interagency coordination between the 
                foreign policy priorities related to the human rights 
                of LGBTI people and the development assistance 
                priorities of the LGBTI Coordinator of the United 
                States Agency for International Development;
                    (G) shall conduct regular consultation with 
                nongovernmental organizations working to prevent and 
                respond to criminalization, discrimination, and 
                violence against LGBTI people internationally;
                    (H) shall ensure that programs, projects, and 
                activities of the Department of State and the United 
                States Agency for International Development designed to 
                prevent and respond to criminalization, discrimination, 
                and violence against LGBTI people internationally are 
                subject to rigorous monitoring and evaluation, and that 
                there is a uniform set of indicators and standards for 
                such monitoring and evaluation that is used across 
                international programs in Federal agencies; and
                    (I) is authorized to represent the United States in 
                bilateral and multilateral fora on matters relevant to 
                the human rights of LGBTI people internationally, 
                including criminalization, discrimination, and violence 
                against LGBTI people internationally.
            (2) Data repository.--The Bureau of Democracy, Human 
        Rights, and Labor shall--
                    (A) be the central repository of data on all United 
                States programs, projects, and activities that relate 
                to prevention and response to criminalization, 
                discrimination, and violence against LGBTI people 
                internationally; and
                    (B) produce--
                            (i) a full accounting of United States 
                        Government spending on such programs, projects, 
                        and activities; and
                            (ii) evaluations of the effectiveness of 
                        such programs, projects, and activities.
    (d) Briefings and Assessments.--Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, the Special 
Envoy shall--
            (1) brief the appropriate congressional committees on the 
        status of the human rights of LGBTI people internationally, as 
        well as on the status of programs and response strategies to 
        address criminalization, discrimination, and violence against 
        LGBTI people internationally; and
            (2) submit to the appropriate congressional committees an 
        assessment of human and financial resources necessary to 
        fulfill the purposes and duties of this Act.
    (e) United States Policy To Prevent and Respond to Criminalization, 
Discrimination, and Violence Against LGBTI People Globally.--
            (1) Global strategy requirement.--Not later than 180 days 
        after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually 
        thereafter for each of the following five years, the Special 
        Envoy shall develop or update, as the case may be, a United 
        States global strategy to prevent and respond to 
        criminalization, discrimination, and violence against LGBTI 
        people internationally. The Special Envoy shall submit the 
        global strategy to the appropriate congressional committees 
        and, if practicable, make the global strategy available to the 
        public.
            (2) Collaboration and coordination.--In developing the 
        global strategy required under paragraph (1), the Special Envoy 
        shall consult with--
                    (A) mid- and high-level officials of relevant 
                Federal agencies; and
                    (B) representatives of nongovernmental 
                organizations with demonstrated experience in 
                addressing criminalization, discrimination, and 
                violence against LGBTI people internationally or 
                promoting equal rights for LGBTI people 
                internationally.
    (f) Monitoring the United States Strategy To Prevent and Respond to 
Criminalization, Discrimination, and Violence Against LGBTI People and 
Communities Internationally.--
            (1) In general.--In each global strategy submitted under 
        subsection (e), the Special Envoy shall include an analysis of 
        best practices for preventing and addressing criminalization, 
        discrimination, and violence against LGBTI people and 
        communities internationally, including--
                    (A) a description of successful efforts by foreign 
                governments and nongovernmental organizations to 
                prevent and respond to criminalization, discrimination, 
                and violence against LGBTI people and communities 
                internationally;
                    (B) recommendations related to best practices, 
                effective strategies, and improvements to enhance the 
                impact of such prevention and response efforts; and
                    (C) the impact of activities funded by the global 
                strategy in preventing and reducing criminalization, 
                discrimination, and violence against LGBTI people and 
                communities internationally.
            (2) Information required to be included in annual country 
        reports on human rights practices.--
                    (A) Section 116.--Section 116(d) of the Foreign 
                Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151n(d)) is 
                amended--
                            (i) in paragraph (11)(C), by striking ``; 
                        and'' and inserting a semicolon;
                            (ii) in paragraph (12)(C)(ii), by striking 
                        the period at the end and inserting ``; and''; 
                        and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following 
                        new paragraph:
            ``(13) wherever applicable, the nature and extent of 
        criminalization, discrimination, and violence based on sexual 
        orientation and gender identity, including an identification of 
        those countries that have adopted laws or constitutional 
        provisions that criminalize or discriminate based on sexual 
        orientation or gender identity (as those terms are defined in 
        section 2 of the International Human Rights Defense Act of 
        2018), including detailed descriptions of such laws and 
        provisions.''.
                    (B) Section 502b.--Section 502B of the Foreign 
                Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2304) is amended--
                            (i) by redesignating the second subsection 
                        (i) (relating to child marriage status) as 
                        subsection (j); and
                            (ii) by adding at the end the following new 
                        subsection:
    ``(k) Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.--The report required 
under subsection (b) shall include, wherever applicable, the nature and 
extent of criminalization, discrimination, and violence based on sexual 
orientation and gender identity, including an identification of those 
countries that have adopted laws or constitutional provisions that 
criminalize or discriminate based on sexual orientation or gender 
identity (as those terms are defined in section 2 of the International 
Human Rights Defense Act of 2018), including detailed descriptions of 
such laws and provisions.''.

SEC. 6. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO PREVENT AND 
              RESPOND TO CRIMINALIZATION, DISCRIMINATION, AND VIOLENCE 
              AGAINST LGBTI PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES INTERNATIONALLY.

    The Secretary of State and the Administrator of the United States 
Agency for International Development are authorized to provide 
assistance to prevent and respond to criminalization, discrimination, 
and violence against LGBTI people internationally. Such assistance may 
include the following activities:
            (1) Development and implementation of programs, such as the 
        Global Equality Fund of the Department of State, that respond 
        to human rights abuses and economic exclusion of LGBTI people 
        in the workplace and in public.
            (2) Development and enforcement of civil and criminal legal 
        and judicial sanctions, protection, training, and capacity.
            (3) Enhancement of health sector capacity to detect, 
        prevent, and respond to violence against LGBTI people and 
        communities internationally, and to combat HIV/AIDS in the 
        LGBTI community internationally, in close coordination with the 
        Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator and Health Diplomacy of 
        the Department of State.
            (4) Development of a leadership program for international 
        LGBTI activists that will foster collaboration and knowledge 
        sharing across the world.
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