[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 723 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 723
Encouraging all nations to end sexual violence against girls through
in-country data-driven reforms as demonstrated by multiple African
nations.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 20, 2019
Ms. Wild (for herself, Ms. Frankel, Ms. Norton, Mr. Sensenbrenner, Ms.
Velazquez, Mr. Pappas, Mr. Payne, Ms. Lee of California, Ms. Brownley
of California, Ms. Houlahan, Mr. Keating, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Ted
Lieu of California, Ms. Wilson of Florida, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Trone,
Ms. Escobar, Mrs. Dingell, and Mr. Costa) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and
in addition to the Committee on Education and Labor, for a period to be
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration
of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee
concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Encouraging all nations to end sexual violence against girls through
in-country data-driven reforms as demonstrated by multiple African
nations.
Whereas the 2006 United Nations World Report on Violence Against Children
galvanized many nations in their commitment to face the challenge of
ending all violence, including sexual violence, against children in
stating, ``No violence is justifiable, and all violence is
preventable.'';
Whereas sexual violence against girls is a domestic and international plague
that spares no culture, country, race, religion, or ethnicity;
Whereas data from United Nations Children's Fund indicate up to 50 percent of
sexual assaults worldwide are committed against girls under 16 years of
age;
Whereas sexual violence against girls and the lifelong consequences impede their
potential contributions to society and present a major obstacle for
nations in the journey to self-reliance with political and economic
stability;
Whereas the African population is predicted to double by the year 2050,
resulting in the increased potential of an estimated population of
2,500,000,000 with more than 50 percent of the population 18 years of
age or younger;
Whereas realizing the full potential of all Africans requires eliminating gender
inequities in education;
Whereas sexual violence against children and adolescents perpetuates
intergenerational poverty through factors including increased school
absenteeism, decreased years in school, and early childbearing;
Whereas the economic growth of Africa is around 3 percent per year, and 4 of the
top 10 countries with the fastest growing economies are on the African
continent including Ethiopia, Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire, and Mozambique;
Whereas Africa could realize a 2 percent to 2.5 percent growth in the annual per
capita gross domestic product through a 1-year increase in the average
education attained per child;
Whereas sexual violence during childhood is associated with serious immediate
and long-term health impacts including but not limited to higher rates
of pregnancy, maternal mortality, suicide, depression, substance abuse,
heart disease, obesity, and HIV/AIDS;
Whereas girls ages 15 through 19 have the highest risk of experiencing sexual
violence and currently account for 75 percent of new HIV infections in
sub-Saharan Africa totaling 1,000 newly infected young women each day;
Whereas complications of pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of death
among girls 15 to 19 years of age in sub-Saharan Africa where 90 percent
of adolescent pregnancies are associated with child marriage;
Whereas female genital mutilation/cutting (referred to in this resolution as
``FGM/C''), an invasive procedure with no medical necessity, represents
a form of gender-based discrimination, is recognized internationally as
a violation of the human rights of girls and women and can be recognized
as sexual violence;
Whereas over 200,000,000 women and girls living today endured the irreversible
procedure FGM/C and according to the World Health Organization, over
3,900,000 additional girls are at risk of suffering FGM/C each year;
Whereas FGM/C causes irreparable deformation, pain, bleeding, and increased risk
of HIV infection, and can result in complications such as shock,
fistulas, complications of childbirth, and death;
Whereas sexual violence against children, as defined by the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (referred to in this resolution as the ``CDC''),
includes all forms of sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children.
This encompasses a range of acts, including completed nonconsensual sex
acts (such as rape), attempted nonconsensual sex acts, abusive sexual
contact (such as unwanted touching), and noncontact sexual abuse (such
as threatened sexual violence, exhibitionism, verbal sexual harassment,
and use of explicit images);
Whereas recognizing the need for data and evidence to guide actions to end
violence against children, the CDC partnered with United Nations
Children's Fund (referred to in this resolution as ``UNICEF'') Swaziland
(now Eswatini) and the Government of Eswatini to develop and implement
the scientifically sound surveillance tool, Violence Against Children
and Youth Surveys (referred to in this resolution as ``VACS'');
Whereas VACS are nationally representative household surveys designed to define
the magnitude, nature, and consequences of sexual, physical, and
emotional violence among children and adolescents;
Whereas the governments of 22 nations including 14 African nations (Botswana,
Cote d'Ivoire, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia,
Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe) demonstrated
leadership in addressing the pandemic of sexual violence against girls
through the implementation of VACS with technical support from the CDC
and coordination from multistakeholders including UNICEF, Together for
Girls, and others;
Whereas VACS data from over 30,000 respondents in Africa revealed--
(1) over 25 percent of girls and 10 percent of boys experienced sexual
violence before the age of 18 years;
(2) for 1 in 4 girls, their first sexual intercourse experience was
forced or coerced;
(3) the most common perpetrators of sexual violence are people known to
the victims;
(4) only about half of the victims of childhood sexual violence tell
anyone;
(5) fewer than 10 percent of assaulted girls and 7 percent of assaulted
boys sought care services and received them;
(6) 1 of 3 girls who experienced unwanted sex became pregnant before
the age of 18 years;
(7) two-thirds of boys who experience sexual violence report mental
distress later in life; and
(8) sexual violence against children and adolescents was associated
with a 370-percent increase in the incidence of HIV infection, a 350-
percent increase in the incidence of unwanted pregnancies, and a 200-
percent increase in attempted suicide;
Whereas country-specific surveillance data from VACS were analyzed by scientists
at the CDC and presented to the government-led, public and private
multistakeholder, in-country team to catalyze the formation of the
individual nationwide action plans;
Whereas the formation of data-driven action plans utilizes INSPIRE, a World
Health Organization technical package of proven strategies to reduce
violence, including--
(1) implementation and enforcement of laws;
(2) norms and values;
(3) safe environments;
(4) parent and caregiver support;
(5) income and economic strengthening;
(6) response and support services; and
(7) education and life skills;
Whereas INSPIRE guided action plans resulting in significant progress in
strengthening protection for youth included--
(1) in response to a 38-percent prevalence of childhood sexual violence
among girls, the Government of Eswatini drafted the first law in their
country making sexual abuse of minors illegal;
(2) several countries used the data to improve services for victims by
establishing advocacy centers where health, legal, and social services
could be accessed;
(3) countries such as Tanzania and Nigeria, where violence in schools
was noted to be high, developed policies, codes, and protective guidelines
for teachers and schools; and
(4) reforms in Uganda, including expansion of the No Means No! program
to 20,000 adolescent girls and implementation of the Coaching Boys into Men
program, contributed to a significant decrease in the incidence of rape;
Whereas the followup household surveillance, VACS, thus far completed in Kenya
and Zimbabwe, revealed a significant decrease in sexual violence among
children and adolescents after data-driven reforms were instituted;
Whereas sexual violence, common in the United States and around the globe at
times of peace, occurs with increased incidence in settings of conflict,
migration, internal displacement, and institutionalization where it is
known to be used to intimidate, subjugate, and instill fear;
Whereas survivors in these adverse settings commonly experience collective
abandonment and an entrenched impunity of their perpetrators; and
Whereas the strong association between experiencing violence in childhood and
later perpetrating violence highlights the importance of comprehensive
interventions for both survivors and perpetrators: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that
the United States--
(1) recognizes that sexual violence against girls remains a
devastating global health, human rights, and economic problem
that is both unjustifiable and preventable and impedes peace
and security;
(2) recognizes the leadership of African nations using
data-driven, in-country, government-led, multisector reform to
end sexual violence against girls;
(3) encourages the commitment of all nations to address the
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals including goal
16.2, ``End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of
violence against and torture of children'', goal 5, ``Achieve
gender equality and empower all women and girls'', and goal
5.3, ``Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early
and forced marriage and female genital mutilations'';
(4) encourages all nations to put into place proven methods
and tools such as VACS, a proven household surveillance tool,
and INSPIRE, an evidence-based technical package of strategies,
to generate and implement government-led, data-driven,
comprehensive, multisector response plans to end sexual
violence against girls;
(5) encourages the establishment of multidisciplinary and
integrated systems in every country to ensure that laws are put
into place to protect girls and that these laws are enforced by
a trained and supported criminal justice system;
(6) encourages increased global and domestic efforts to
eliminate FGM/C;
(7) encourages funding for further research on the global
magnitude, scope, consequences including health, social and
economic burdens, and prevention of sexual violence among all
children including more vulnerable populations such as children
who are disabled, institutionalized, or homeless, children
living as refugees, or internally displaced persons, and
children living in areas of conflict;
(8) encourages the establishment of safe, survivor-centered
spaces, and advocacy centers for coordination of health,
psychologic, and other services for survivors and their
families;
(9) encourages the adaptation and application of the VACS
technique in humanitarian contexts to acquire relevant data for
analysis to drive planning; and
(10) encourages domestic use of the proven survey and
technical tools VACS and INSPIRE to address sexual violence
against girls in the United States.
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