[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5232]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    BONNIE SCOTT--PEACE CORPS VICTIM

  (Mr. POE of Texas asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, targeted, bullied, and terrorized, 
these are the words that Bonnie Scott used to describe her dismissal 
from the Peace Corps.
  One month after reported allegations that another U.S. Peace Corps 
member had harassed and sexually assaulted two local women, Scott was 
dismissed--interesting. This is not the first time that we have heard 
of these actions.
  In 2015, a report found that one in five Peace Corps volunteers were 
victims of sexual assault. Half of the victims do not report their 
attacks. Many state that they were blamed by the Peace Corps for their 
sexual assaults.
  Even though Congress has passed the Kate Puzey Peace Corps Volunteer 
Protection Act of 2011, the Peace Corps has work to do to protect these 
amazing ambassadors abroad.
  Mr. Speaker, Peace Corps volunteers are the best America has. These 
volunteers must know that America will protect them overseas. If a 
crime occurs against them, America will stand by them, not abandon 
them. And if a crime is committed, they need to know the crime is not 
their fault; it is the fault of the perpetrator.
  And that is just the way it is.

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