[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 167 (Thursday, November 3, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1989]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        KATE PUZEY PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEER PROTECTION ACT OF 2011

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                               speech of

                           HON. NIKI TSONGAS

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 1, 2011

  Ms. TSONGAS. Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained attending a 
funeral on November 1, 2011 and was unable to cast a vote for the Kate 
Puzey Peace Corps Volunteer Protection Act, a bill which I strongly 
endorse. Had I been present, I would have voted for it on rollcall Vote 
817.
  I strongly support the Peace Corps program. My late husband Paul 
Tsongas served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Ethiopia from 1962-1964, 
and as Peace Corps Country Director in the West Indies in 1967 and 
1968. He went on to become the first former Peace Corps volunteer to be 
elected to the U.S. Senate. Our daughter Ashley served as a Peace Corps 
volunteer in Madagascar.
  Peace Corps volunteers brave many challenges during their service. 
That is why I was proud to be an early supporter of the Kate Puzey 
Peace Corps Volunteer Protection Act, which strengthens the Peace Corps 
and ensures that volunteers have the support and resources they need. 
Volunteers deserve to be treated with dignity, empowerment, and respect 
in the event that they are a victim of a crime like sexual assault. 
And, addressing these challenges will strengthen the Peace Corps as an 
institution and make it a program in which more Americans will want to 
participate.
  One of the challenges when confronting this crime is that victims of 
sexual assault often face blame for their victimization. This is one of 
very few crimes, if not the only crime, where a victim's intentions and 
actions are scrutinized and questioned following an assault. To address 
this, the Kate Puzey Peace Corps Volunteer Protection Act requires the 
Peace Corps to create a sexual assault response team and guarantees 
that victims have access to a Victim Advocate. It further requires that 
volunteers be fully informed of their rights to file a report, for 
treatment, for a forensic evidence examination, for emergency health 
treatment, and for legal representation. The Peace Corps has already 
acted proactively to address many of these issues. This Act further 
codifies these reforms.
  We owe a great debt to anyone who is harmed while serving our 
country. We may never be able to eradicate crimes in other countries 
where our volunteers work, but we can change the way our institutions 
respond to them. These improvements will strengthen the Peace Corps and 
guarantee its success for years to come.

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