[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 102 (Friday, June 22, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1396-E1397]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE, FOREIGN OPERATIONS AND RELATED PROGRAMS 
                        APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2008

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 21, 2007

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2764) making 
     appropriations for the Department of State, foreign 
     operations, and related programs for the fiscal year ending 
     September 30, 2008, and for other purposes:

  Mrs. MALONEY of New York. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of 
H.R. 2764, the FY08 Department of State, Foreign Operations, and 
related appropriations Act.
  I am pleased that the bill includes $75 million in funding for 
programs that address the needs of Afghan women and girls including the 
Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission, the Afghan Ministry of 
Women's Affairs, and women-led nonprofit organizations in Afghanistan. 
The Committee directs $15 million of these funds to be made available 
as grants to support training and equipment to improve the capacity of 
women-led Afghan NGOs as well as their activities. This funding builds 
upon funding for Afghan women and girls included in an amendment that I 
offered to the FY2004 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill and 
funding included in subsequent appropriations bills.
  During the past several years, the United States has invested in the 
reconstruction and development of Afghanistan both because it is the 
right thing to do and because it is critical to our security. However, 
I, like many of my colleagues, am troubled by the circumstances facing 
women in Afghanistan. We have heard from Dr. Sima Samar, head of the 
Afghan

[[Page E1397]]

Independent Human Rights Commission, that Afghan women are losing 
ground. Many women continue to endure hardships including targeted 
violence, limited mobility, illiteracy, and a high rate of maternal 
mortality. I also am very concerned about reports that schools continue 
to be targeted for violence, including dozens in the past year. 
Clearly, we have more work to do.
  While I hope that all the aid for Afghanistan will help women, I 
commend the Appropriations Committee for continuing to recognize the 
needs of Afghan women.
  I would also like to commend Chairman Lowey for her commonsense 
approach to refining the Global Gag Rule. Though I support a full 
repeal of this harmful policy, the Lowey provision is a first step 
toward eliminating the Gag Rule altogether--it will allow organizations 
to receive contraceptives which are proven to prevent unintended 
pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases, It makes sense and it's 
the right thing to do.
  As a co-chair of the Human Trafficking Caucus and a long-time 
proponent of increased efforts to combat this global human rights 
travesty, I am pleased to note the language regarding trafficking in 
the report that accompanies this bill. Earlier this year, I sent a 
letter to the Department of State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee 
expressing my support for these critical initiatives to combat 
trafficking. The committee report includes a recommendation that the 
Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Office at the Department of State retain 
control of the monies appropriated for TIP programs and not be subject 
to decentralized influence of field posts and to enable the TIP Office 
to disburse the necessary anti-trafficking funding to grantees more 
quickly. The committee also recommends the addition of six full-time 
equivalent (FTE) positions to the TIP office so that it can effectively 
monitor its anti-trafficking grants and can effectively fulfill the 
vital, congressionally assigned responsibility given to the Senior 
Policy Operating Group, which it chairs, of monitoring and coordinating 
the domestic and international anti-trafficking grants and policies of 
all U.S. agencies.
  The committee also has directed $14,000,000 to the Trafficking in 
Persons program, which is $5,300,000 above the President's request, and 
$6,000,000 in INCLE (International Narcotics Control and Law 
Enforcement) funding for activities to prevent trafficking in persons. 
I have worked closely with Ranking Member Wolf on this issue over the 
past few years, and I thank him for his leadership in the fight against 
trafficking and human rights abuses worldwide.
  Finally, as a co-chair and co-founder of the Hellenic Caucus, I am 
pleased that the committee has restored funding for the Greek desk at 
Voice of America. Because Greece is located at the crossroads of 
Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, maintaining this critical program is 
vital to U.S. interests in this important region of the world.
  I commend Chairwoman Lowey and Ranking Member Wolf for their work in 
bringing this bill forward, and I urge my colleagues to support this 
legislation.

                          ____________________