[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 75 (Wednesday, June 8, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1176]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 INTRODUCTION OF THE ``REPAIRING YOUNG WOMEN'S LIVES AROUND THE WORLD 
                                 ACT''

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 8, 2005

  Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, today, I, along with Representatives 
Crowley and Rush, am reintroducing the ``Repairing Young Women's Lives 
Around the World Act,'' which would ensure that the entire $34 million 
U.S. contribution to UNFPA would be dedicated to the prevention, repair 
and treatment of obstetric fistula.
  Obstetric fistula is a devastating condition that results when young 
adolescent girls are left to deliver their babies unassisted or with 
limited medical intervention. After several days of painful labor, the 
baby is delivered stillborn and the young mother's insides are 
literally ripped apart leaving tears or fistulas in her rectum and 
bladder. Without medical treatment, these young girls are relegated to 
a life of shame and misery as they are no longer able to control their 
bodily functions and are left unable to have another child. They are 
almost always abandoned by their husbands and shunned by their 
families. About two million women suffer this condition worldwide.
  The good news is that fistula is preventable and treatable. A 
preventive Caesarean section costs a mere $60. Surgery to repair 
fistula has a 90 percent success rate even after a woman has had the 
condition for several years. Once cured, a woman can reclaim her life.
  Since its launch in 2003, the UNFPA-led Campaign to End Fistula has 
grown remarkably to include more than thirty countries. The Campaign 
works to prevent fistula from occurring, treat women who are affected, 
and support women after surgery. It is imperative that we in Congress 
support these efforts to eradicate the devastating condition of 
obstetric fistula.

                          ____________________