[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 72 (Thursday, May 3, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E940-E941]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        ON PASSAGE OF THE TORTURE VICTIMS RELIEF ACT--H.R. 1678

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MARK UDALL

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 3, 2007

  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Madam Speaker, last week I was pleased to have 
the opportunity to vote to extend the Torture Victims Relief Act 
(TVRA). I have been a cosponsor of this legislation since 2003. In the 
last Congress, the bill became law, but it authorized appropriations 
only through the end of fiscal year 2007. So it's important that 
Congress act to renew it before the current authorization expires. H.R. 
1678 authorizes for two years additional appropriations for domestic 
centers and programs for the treatment of victims of torture, for 
foreign centers for the treatment of victims of torture, and for the 
U.N. Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture.
  There is no question about the need for this funding. Two-thirds of 
the world's countries still practice torture. An estimated 500,000 
torture survivors live in the United States, and about 1,100 refugees 
and 400 asylum seekers enter my state of Colorado alone each year. 
Repressive governments use torture to target the very leaders who share 
our principles of freedom and democracy. Without their voices, 
communities are fearful. But torture treatment can undo the legacy of 
torture and reclaim the leaders who stand with us in promoting human 
rights and the rule of law.
  I am proud that one of the most effective domestic torture treatment 
centers is located in Colorado. This year is the tenth anniversary of 
the Rocky Mountain Survivors Center (RMSC), which has served over 1,000 
survivors of torture from over 53 different countries and regions 
around the world, in 35 languages. The RMSC is working hard to ensure 
that torture survivors in Colorado become functioning members of the 
citizenry through its in-house Legal Services, physical and mental 
healthcare, psychosocial services, and interpreter services. Most 
recently, RMSC introduced a community development effort to bring the 
topic of torture and its impact to newcomer communities in Colorado and 
hear from those newcomers what that impact has been on the larger 
community, the families of survivors and the survivors themselves.
  The Rocky Mountain Survivor Center also educates providers, 
healthcare systems, and community members about torture and how to work 
to heal the wounds of torture, as well as

[[Page E941]]

how to work to ameliorate and eradicate torture itself. The RMSC stands 
firmly as a voice for the voiceless in Colorado and as a beacon of hope 
for those whose hope has been stolen by torture. Domestic centers like 
RMSC receive funding from the Office of Refugee Settlement in the 
Health and Human Services Department and other private sources to 
assist survivors of torture and war trauma and their families. But 
levels of funding for the domestic and international parts of this 
program don't begin to match authorization levels. Domestic torture 
treatment programs were funded at almost $10 million in FY 2007 (and 
have been funded at this same level since 2000), fully $15 million 
short of authorized levels. International torture treatment centers 
were funded at $8.5 million in FY07, $4.5 million short of authorized 
levels. And the U.S. contribution to the U.N. Fund for Victims of 
Torture was funded at $6.5 million in FY07, $1.5 million short of 
authorized levels.

  The Torture Victims Relief Act is vitally necessary for the work of 
rehabilitation in this country, but the domestic portion of the bill is 
woefully underfunded to accomplish this task. There are well over 
500,000 survivors of torture in America today, many of whom do not get 
the services they need because of the shortage of funds. The U.N. Fund 
and international portions of the bill should also be generously funded 
to ensure America's leadership in the fight against torture throughout 
the world through partnerships and building capacity at centers devoted 
to healing of torture victims.
  When Congress adopted the Torture Victims Relief Act last year, we 
made a commitment to ensure our population of victims of torture 
wouldn't be left behind. Now is the time to fulfill that promise and 
demonstrate that survivors of torture won't be forgotten on our watch.
  So I am pleased that this bill passed overwhelmingly in the House, 
and I urge my colleagues to demonstrate the same enthusiasm when 
considering appropriation levels for TVRA programs in the next fiscal 
year.

                          ____________________