[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 8]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 11151]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




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

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Wednesday, May 2, 2007

  Mrs. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, today I am reintroducing the 
bipartisan Repairing Young Women's Lives Around the World Act, a bill 
vital to saving the lives of women and their children around the world. 
This bill funds UNFPA (the United Nations Population Fund) strictly for 
the prevention, treatment, and repair of obstetric fistula.
  More than two million women worldwide have obstetric fistula, which 
results from prolonged labor without medical attention. During 
delivery, the infant's head presses against the woman's pelvis for so 
long that the tissue dies and a hole develops between the woman's 
vagina and rectum, leaving the woman without control of her bladder or 
bowels and often resulting in the death of the infant. In addition, 
many women who have the condition are abandoned by their husbands and 
families because they are considered ``unclean'' and the women are 
often forced to beg or turn to prostitution to survive. The condition 
was once common throughout the world, but over the last century has 
been eradicated in Europe and North America through improved medical 
care. For example, New York's hospital for fistula patients, now the 
site of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, closed in 1895 because of 
diminishing cases.
  Fortunately, UNFPA is working with partners on a global campaign to 
prevent and treat fistula, with the goal of making the condition as 
rare in Africa and Asia as it is in the developed world. In fact, UNFPA 
works in 56 countries, more than the U.S. currently does, countries 
with the severest of problems. Many of the nations where there is no 
USAID presence suffer under political turmoil and poor living 
conditions and serve as breeding grounds for terrorists.
  I believe that this legislation would help to provide a concrete way 
to show that the U.S. cares about women and children around the world. 
Now is the time to allow the U.S. to recommit to the maternal health of 
women and children around the world.

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