[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 121 (Monday, September 14, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H7661-H7664]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TORTURE VICTIMS RELIEF ACT OF 1998
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 4309) to provide a comprehensive program of support for
victims of torture, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 4309
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Torture Victims Relief Act
of 1998''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The American people abhor torture by any government or
person. The existence of torture creates a climate of fear
and international insecurity that affects all people.
(2) Torture is the deliberate mental and physical damage
caused by governments to individuals to destroy individual
personality and terrorize society. The effects of torture are
long term. Those effects can last a lifetime for the
survivors and affect future generations.
(3) By eliminating the leadership of their opposition and
frightening the general public, repressive governments often
use torture as a weapon against democracy.
(4) Torture survivors remain under physical and
psychological threats, especially in communities where the
perpetrators are not brought to justice. In many nations,
even those who treat torture survivors are threatened with
reprisals, including torture, for carrying out their ethical
duty to provide care. Both the survivors of torture and their
treatment providers should be accorded protection from
further repression.
(5) A significant number of refugees and asylees entering
the United States have been victims of torture. Those
claiming asylum deserve prompt consideration of their
applications for political asylum to minimize their
insecurity and sense of danger. Many torture survivors now
live in the United States. They should be provided with the
rehabilitation services which would enable them to become
productive members of our communities.
(6) The development of a treatment movement for torture
survivors has created new opportunities for action by the
United States and other nations to oppose state-sponsored and
other acts of torture.
(7) There is a need for a comprehensive strategy to protect
and support torture victims and their treatment providers,
together with overall efforts to eliminate torture.
(8) By acting to heal the survivors of torture and protect
their families, the United States can help to heal the
effects of torture and prevent its use around the world.
SEC. 3. DEFINITION.
As used in this Act, the term ``torture'' has the meaning
given the term in section 2340(1) of title 18, United States
Code, and includes the use of rape and other forms of sexual
violence by a person acting under the color of law upon
another person under his custody or physical control.
SEC. 4. FOREIGN TREATMENT CENTERS.
(a) Amendments to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.--Part
I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et
seq.) is amended by
[[Page H7662]]
adding at the end of chapter 1 the following new section:
``SEC. 129. ASSISTANCE FOR VICTIMS OF TORTURE.
``(a) In General.--The President is authorized to provide
assistance for the rehabilitation of victims of torture.
``(b) Eligibility for Grants.--Such assistance shall be
provided in the form of grants to treatment centers and
programs in foreign countries that are carrying out projects
or activities specifically designed to treat victims of
torture for the physical and psychological effects of the
torture.
``(c) Use of Funds.--Such assistance shall be available--
``(1) for direct services to victims of torture; and
``(2) to provide research and training to health care
providers outside of treatment centers or programs described
in subsection (b), for the purpose of enabling such providers
to provide the services described in paragraph (1).''.
(b) Funding.--
(1) Authorization of appropriations.--Of the amounts
authorized to be appropriated for fiscal years 1999 and 2000
pursuant to chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act
of 1961, there are authorized to be appropriated to the
President $5,000,000 for fiscal year 1999 and $7,500,000 for
fiscal year 2000 to carry out section 129 of the Foreign
Assistance Act, as added by subsection (a).
(2) Availability of funds.--Amounts appropriated pursuant
to this subsection shall remain available until expended.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a)
shall take effect October 1, 1998.
SEC. 5. DOMESTIC TREATMENT CENTERS.
(a) Assistance for Treatment of Torture Victims.--The
Secretary of Health and Human Services may provide grants to
programs in the United States to cover the cost of the
following services:
(1) Services for the rehabilitation of victims of torture,
including treatment of the physical and psychological effects
of torture.
(2) Social and legal services for victims of torture.
(3) Research and training for health care providers outside
of treatment centers, or programs for the purpose of enabling
such providers to provide the services described in paragraph
(1).
(b) Funding.--
(1) Authorization of appropriations.--Of the amounts
authorized to be appropriated for the Department of Health
and Human Services for fiscal years 1999 and 2000, there are
authorized to be appropriated to carry out subsection (a)
(relating to assistance for domestic centers and programs for
the treatment of victims of torture) $5,000,000 for fiscal
year 1999, and $7,500,000 for fiscal year 2000.
(2) Availability of funds.--Amounts appropriated pursuant
to this subsection shall remain available until expended.
SEC. 6. MULTILATERAL ASSISTANCE.
(a) Funding.--Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated
for fiscal years 1999 and 2000 pursuant to chapter 3 of part
I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, there are authorized
to be appropriated to the United Nations Voluntary Fund for
Victims of Torture (in this section referred to as the
``Fund'') the following amounts for the following fiscal
years:
(1) Fiscal year 1999.--For fiscal year 1999, $3,000,000.
(2) Fiscal year 2000.--For fiscal year 2000, $3,000,000.
(b) Availability of Funds.--Amounts appropriated pursuant
to subsection (a) shall remain available until expended.
(c) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress
that the President, acting through the United States
Permanent Representative to the United Nations, should--
(1) request the Fund--
(A) to find new ways to support and protect treatment
centers and programs that are carrying out rehabilitative
services for victims of torture; and
(B) to encourage the development of new such centers and
programs;
(2) use the voice and vote of the United States to support
the work of the Special Rapporteur on Torture and the
Committee Against Torture established under the Convention
Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment; and
(3) use the voice and vote of the United States to
establish a country rapporteur or similar procedural
mechanism to investigate human rights violations in a country
if either the Special Rapporteur or the Committee Against
Torture indicates that a systematic practice of torture is
prevalent in that country.
SEC. 7. SPECIALIZED TRAINING FOR FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of State shall provide
training for foreign service officers with respect to--
(1) the identification of torture;
(2) the identification of the surrounding circumstances in
which torture is most often practiced;
(3) the long-term effects of torture upon a victim;
(4) the identification of the physical, cognitive, and
emotional effects of torture, and the manner in which these
effects can affect the interview or hearing process; and
(5) the manner of interviewing victims of torture so as not
to retraumatize them, eliciting the necessary information to
document the torture experience, and understanding the
difficulties victims often have in recounting their torture
experience.
(b) Gender-Related Considerations.--In conducting training
under subsection (a) (4) or (5), gender-specific training
shall be provided on the subject of interacting with women
and men who are victims of torture by rape or any other form
of sexual violence.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Gilman) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman).
Mr. GILMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
(Mr. GILMAN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
General Leave
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks
on H.R. 4309.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mr. GILMAN. Madam Speaker, this important measure addresses a
critical area of our efforts to combat human rights abuses and
treatment of those individuals who have suffered the effects of torture
at the hands of governments as a means of destroying dissent and
opposition, and I commend the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) for
introducing this bill and the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos)
for his support of this measure.
This resolution rightly recognizes the importance of treating victims
of torture in order to try to combat the long-term devastating effects
that torture has had on the physical and psychological well-being of
those who have undergone this pernicious form of abuse.
Regrettably, torture has been an extremely effective method to
suppress political dissidents, and for those governments which lack the
legitimacy of democratic institutions to justify their power, torture
has provided a bulwark against popular opposition.
It has been pointed out that for political leaders of undemocratic
societies, torture has been useful because it aimed at the destruction
of the personality to rob those individuals who would actively involve
themselves in opposition to oppression of the self-confidence and other
characteristics that produce leadership. And I quote from a recent
speech by Dr. Inge Genefke, who is a founder of the International
Treatment Movement, who we had an opportunity to meet with not too long
ago, and I quote:
Sophisticated torture methods today can destroy the
personality and self-respect of human beings. Many victims
are threatened with having to do or say things against their
ideology or religious convictions with the purpose of
attacking fundamental parts of the identity such as self-
respect and self-esteem. Torturers today are able to create
conditions which effectively break down the victim's
personality and identity and his ability to live a fuller
life later, with and amongst other human beings.
Fortunately there are now available treatment regimes for the types
of disorders a torturer may induce. The resolution before the House
today will help ensure that these treatments are more readily available
to torture victims throughout the world and for those that are in need
of them.
This measure authorizes funding for treatment centers in our Nation
and for our President to provide funding for treatment centers in other
countries. It also authorizes a State Department to contribute $3
million in both fiscal years 1999 and the year 2000 to the United
Nations voluntary fund for victims of torture.
While this measure is similar to one reported out of the Committee on
International Relations, we did make one change in order to accommodate
the Committee on Commerce, changing a specific amount authorized for
the Department of Health and Human Services to, quote, such sums as may
be required, close quote. I ask that correspondence on this matter
exchanged between the distinguished chairman of the Committee on
Commerce, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Bliley) and myself be
included in the Record following my remarks.
I urge my colleagues to join in approving this legislation, an all
important issue, the Torture Victims Relief Act of 1998.
The correspondence referred to is as follows:
[[Page H7663]]
U.S. House of Representatives,
Commerce Committee,
Washington, DC, September 10, 1998.
Hon. Benjamin a. Gilman,
Chairman, House Committee on International Relations,
Washington, DC.
Dear Ben: On August 6, 1998 the Committee on International
Relations ordered reported H.R. 4309, the Torture Victims
Relief Act of 1998. H.R. 4309, as ordered reported by the
Committee on International Relations, provides for the
support and treatment of torture victims through a variety of
sources. As you know, the Committee on Commerce was granted
an additional referral upon the bill's introduction pursuant
to the Committee's jurisdiction over health and health
facilities under Rule X of the Rules of the House of
Representatives.
Because of the importance of this matter, I recognize your
desire to bring this legislation before the House in an
expeditious manner. I also understand that you have agreed to
address this Committee's concern over the authorization of
appropriations in section 5 in a manager's amendment to be
offered on the Floor. Therefore, with that understanding, I
will waive consideration of the bill by the Commerce
Committee. By agreeing to waive its consideration of the
bill, the Commerce Committee does not waive its jurisdiction
over H.R. 4309. In addition, the Commerce Committee reserves
its authority to seek conferees on any provisions of the bill
that are within the Commerce Committee's jurisdiction during
any House-Senate conference that may be convened on this
legislation. I ask for your commitment to support any request
by the Commerce Committee for conferees on H.R. 4309 or
related legislation.
I request that you include this letter as a part of the
Committee's report on H.R. 4309 and as part of the record
during consideration of the legislation on the House floor.
Thank you for your attention to these matters.
Sincerely,
Tom Bliley,
Chairman.
____
Congress of the United States, Committee on International
Relations,
Washington, DC, September 10, 1998.
Hon. Tom Bliley,
Chairman, House Committee on Commerce, Washington, DC.
Dear Tom: I am writing to thank the Committee on Commerce
for its willingness to waive consideration of H.R. 4309, the
Torture Victims Relief Act of 1998. As you correctly note,
the Committee on International Relations and the sponsors of
the bill believe it is important to bring this legislation
before the House as expeditiously as possible.
I am writing to confirm our understanding, upon which your
agreement to waive Committee consideration of the bill was
premised:
First, I will address the Commerce Committee's concern over
the authorization of appropriations in section 5 of the bill
in a manager's amendment that I will offer on the Floor. I
have enclosed a draft of that amendment, which I understand
will meet the Committee's concerns.
Second, although I am hopeful that the Senate will pass the
bill as passed by the House, I agree to support the
appointment of Commerce Committee conferees, should a
conference be convened on this legislation.
Finally, I will gladly include your September 10, 1998
letter in the International Relations Committee's report on
H.R. 4309 and as part of the record during consideration of
the bill by the House.
Thank you again for your prompt attention to this time-
sensitive matter. Do not hesitate to contact me with any
additional questions or suggestions you may have.
With best wishes,
Sincerely,
Benjamin A. Gilman,
Chairman.
____
Amendment to H.R. 4309 Offered by Mr. Smith of New Jersey
On page 6, line 10 and 11, strike ``fiscal years 1999 and
2000,'' and insert ``for each fiscal year'';
On page 6, line 14, strike ``$5,000,000'' and all that
follows through the end of line 15, and insert ``such sums as
may be necessary for each fiscal year.''
Mr. GILMAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. LANTOS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I would like to begin by paying special tribute to my
friend and colleague from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) for taking the lead in
this body on this most important issue. He has been an indefatigable
fighter for many good causes, but this probably is one that deserves
the most serious commendation and respect. I am proud to be the
principal Democratic cosponsor of this legislation.
According to Amnesty International, Madam Speaker, torture is
practiced on a systematic scale in no less than 117 countries across
the globe today. Governments frequently target human rights advocates
and political opposition members for torture to disable them and
instill fear in society in general. Torture is clearly the most popular
and effective weapon employed by rogue nations against democracy.
The main purpose of torture in most cases is not to gain any
information from the victim. Rather, its purpose is to strip the
individual human being of all personal dignity, to destroy all personal
self-control and to reduce a human being to a state of sheer panic,
fear, terror and pain. In other words, the purpose of torture is the
destruction of the character of the victim, not necessarily the
intention to kill him. Long after the physical wounds of those lucky
enough to survive have healed, the embarrassment and the trauma of
their torture persists.
This is why torture renders people silent. This silence, the
inability to reach out, many times increased by our inability to listen
and to believe, is the real goal of torture.
There are no more than 150 treatment programs for victims of torture
in 76 countries. These programs provide invaluable support to the
courageous men and women who are fighting for principles upon which our
country was founded. They enable the survivors of torture to recover
from the effects of torture and to resume their struggle on behalf of
democracy and human rights. This is a long, painful and slow process.
The centers give victims the important hope that somebody is listening,
somebody believes their stories.
Currently there are some 400,000 victims who survive torture in many
countries living in the United States. We need to listen to them and to
live up to our responsibilities. In addition to the medical and
psychological services torture treatment centers provide, they also
document irrefutable evidence that torture is being practiced in many
countries, and these centers become effective instruments in pressuring
and changing governments to desist from the practice of torture.
It is my hope that my colleagues across the political spectrum will
unanimously approve this legislation. I strongly urge support of
everyone in this body.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GILMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith).
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Madam Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman
from New York (Mr. Gilman) the chairman of the full committee, for
yielding this time to me, and I also want to thank him for being one of
the principal cosponsors, as well as my good friend, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Lantos). We have had literally dozens of hearings in
the subcommittee over the last several years when he was chair, and now
that I chair the committee and we have heard from a myriad of victims
of torture, from Indonesia, from Cuba, from countries in Africa,
Central America, and the Eastern Bloc countries, including the former
Soviet Union and Russia itself. The issue over and over again is
horrific mistreatment designed to destroy the will and the body and the
spirit of the individuals involved and to destroy whole communities
when it is done systematically to achieve an end.
This legislation, H.R. 4309, the Torture Victims Relief Act has 30
cosponsors. Again, the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) and I
link arm in arm to fight to help those who have been hurt by despotic
governments.
In 1996, Madam Speaker, our subcommittee held a hearing on an earlier
version of this legislation and we heard testimony on the continued and
widespread persistence of torture in the world today, and on what steps
the United States and other free countries should take to do something
about it. Three of our witnesses at that hearing--and, as has been
said, we heard from people from all over the world, and the issue is
always the same, the terrible mistreatment--but three of those people
who were there that day: a native of Uganda who suffered at the hands
of Idi Amin, a Tibetan physician who was tortured by the Chinese
Communists, and an American who became a torture victim in Saudi
Arabia, our ally, after he had a falling out with his employer, the
Saudi government. They told us stories that brought tears to our eyes
about how they were mistreated and how they bear the scars long after
their ordeal.
[[Page H7664]]
Those who suffer horrific cruelty at the hands of despotic
governments, military and/or police, do bear those scars; they are
physical, they are emotional, they are spiritual, they are
psychological, and they carry them for the rest of their lives. For
many, if not most, the ordeal of torture certainly does not end when
they are released from the gulag or the prison.
These victims, and there are millions of them around the world--there
are an estimated 400,000 survivors of torture living right here in the
United States--need our help. To date we have done far too little to
assist these walking wounded. The Torture Victims Relief Act contains a
number of important provisions designed to assist torture victims.
First, it authorizes grants for rehabilitation services for victims
of torture and for related purposes in both foreign and domestic
centers. The bill authorizes such sums as may be needed, subject to the
Department of Health and Human Services, for contributions to centers
for treatment of torture victims here in the U.S., and there are
currently approximately 15 such centers. The precise amount of any
contribution to these centers will be decided each year in the
appropriation process. The ``such sums'' authorization language is
contained in an amendment which is part of this bill today. It was
suggested by the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Bliley) of the Committee
on Commerce which has jurisdiction over HHS, and I do want to thank
Chairman Bliley for his help on this legislation.
The legislation also authorizes $5 million in fiscal year 1999 and
$7.5 million in fiscal year 2000 for international torture victim
centers, and there are currently approximately 175 of those around the
world. Regrettably, all of these centers, domestic and international,
are seriously underfunded. As a matter of fact, the Denmark-based
International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT),
estimates the worldwide need for assisting victims to be $28 million, a
significant portion of which is totally unmet.
{time} 1435
H.R. 4309 also authorizes a voluntary contribution for the United
States to the U.N. Voluntary Fund for victims of torture in the amount
of $3 million in fiscal year 1999 and $3 million in fiscal year 2000. I
am proud to say that our efforts--and it has been bipartisan with the
gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos)--have already had an effect on
the U.S. contributions to the Voluntary Fund. The U.S. contribution to
this fund in 1995 was $1.5 million. At the time when we introduced the
bill in the 104th Congress, the administration had proposed to cut the
fiscal year 1996 contribution to $500,000. Eventually, in response to
our efforts by the supporters of this bill, the administration restored
the full $1.5 million. The bill would bring it up to $3 million.
The bill also provides specialized training for foreign service
officers in the identification of evidence of torture, techniques for
interviewing torture victims, and related subjects.
Finally, the bill contains an expression of the sense of Congress
that the U.S. shall use its voice and vote in the United Nations to
support the investigation and elimination of these heinous practices
which are prohibited by the Convention Against Torture. It is a good
bill, it is a bipartisan bill, and I hope it gets unanimous support.
Mr. LANTOS. Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. GILMAN. Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Morella). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4309, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________