[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1068 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1068
Condemning rape and sexual violence against women.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 8, 2024
Mrs. Dingell (for herself, Ms. Tokuda, Ms. Salinas, Mr. Thanedar, Mr.
Goldman of New York, Mr. Vargas, Mr. Doggett, Ms. Wild, Ms. Garcia of
Texas, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Schiff, Ms. Lee of California, Ms. Moore of
Wisconsin, Ms. Lee of Pennsylvania, Mr. Levin, Mr. Espaillat, Mr.
Casar, Mr. Garamendi, Ms. Norton, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. McGovern, and Ms.
Stansbury) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to
the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on
the Judiciary, 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
Condemning rape and sexual violence against women.
Whereas violence against women is a global crisis that causes devastating harm
to women, their children, and their communities;
Whereas there has been greater attention across the world on violence against
women, especially when it is despicably used as a tool of war;
Whereas rape, sexual violence, and gender-based violence are horrific in any
context, but are especially heinous when weaponized during conflicts;
Whereas rape and sexual violence have unjustly been used as weapons of war for
centuries to target ethnic, political, or cultural rivals, torment
civilian populations, and assert and maintain control;
Whereas rape and sexual violence continue to be weaponized during modern
conflicts;
Whereas multiple news organizations have reported accounts of sexual violence
against women perpetrated by Hamas during the October 7th terrorist
attacks on Israel, a report from Physicians for Human Rights Israel has
raised concerns that the October 7 Hamas attacks included many incidents
of sexual assault following repetitive patterns, and photographic and
eyewitness evidence of the sexual violence that was weaponized by Hamas
during the attacks was presented during a United Nations session on
sexual and gender-based violence;
Whereas since fighting began in Sudan between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF)
and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in April 2023, United Nations experts
have raised concerns about the reported escalation of violence against
women, including sexual exploitation, slavery, trafficking, rape, and
forced disappearances that appear to have been racially, ethnically, and
politically motivated, according to the United Nations Office of the
High Commissioner for Human Rights;
Whereas the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine has
evidence that Russian soldiers have raped and committed other forms of
sexual violence against women between the ages of 16 and 83 since the
Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022;
Whereas gender-based violence has been a widespread problem in Myanmar, and
sexual violence has become more brutal and widespread since the 2021
military coup, according to the Karenni National Women's Organization;
Whereas sexual- and gender-based violence against women and girls was highly
prevalent during and since the conflict in Tigray, Ethiopia, that
started in November 2020, according to several studies;
Whereas armed gangs in Haiti have used sexual violence, including collective
rapes, since at least 2018, to instill fear, punish, subjugate, and
inflict pain on local populations to expand their control, according to
the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner;
Whereas abuse and assault targeting women and girls in Yemen has increased 63
percent since the start of the war in 2015, with adolescent girls among
the most vulnerable, according to the United Nations;
Whereas it is estimated that over 25,000 people were victims of sexual- and
gender-based crimes in Uganda during the decades-long conflict with the
Lord's Resistance Army that began in 1987, according to the
International Center for Transnational Justice, and high rates of
gender-based violence across the country continue to jeopardize the
lives of women;
Whereas decades of conflict with Israel have resulted in high levels of poverty,
instability, and deteriorating living conditions in Gaza that have
increased the risk of violence for Palestinian women and girls,
according to the United Nations Population Fund, and the outbreak of war
between Israel and Hamas and worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza is
compounding the risks women and children already faced;
Whereas 59 percent of Palestinian women and girls have reported experiencing at
least one form of gender-based violence, according to the United Nations
Population Fund, and news outlets have reported that Palestinian women
have been harassed at checkpoints and while in custody, according to
testimony submitted to the United Nations;
Whereas conflict-related sexual violence is vastly underreported;
Whereas rape and other forms of sexual violence are prohibited under
international law;
Whereas the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court considers rape,
sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced
sterilization, or any other form of sexual violence of comparable
gravity as crimes against humanity;
Whereas women are disproportionately affected by sexual violence during
conflict;
Whereas sexual violence against the LGBTQIA+ community during conflict is a
component of gender-based violence, linked to the imposition of moral
codes and societal norms that directly target the ability of all sexual
and gender identities to live freely, according to LGBTQIA+ human rights
organizations;
Whereas the consequences of sexual violence affect women beyond the cessation of
conflict, including pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections,
stigmatization, and a lack of access to health care;
Whereas sexual and gender-based violence outside of conflict times continues to
jeopardize the lives of women;
Whereas at least 32 percent of women have experienced physical violence in
Pakistan, according to the United Nations Population Fund, and honor
killings continue to take the lives of hundreds of Pakistani women each
year, according to Human Rights Watch;
Whereas, since the Women Life Freedom protests that erupted in Iran in September
2022, there has been documented widespread use of violence and
mistreatment, including sexual harassment, against those who have been
arrested, according to Human Rights Watch;
Whereas gender inequity and sexual violence are inextricably linked, and gender
inequality can fuel harmful cultural and societal norms that affect
women's economic status and impact women's access to education,
supportive services, and legal protections;
Whereas other inequities caused by poverty, gender identity, disability, sexual
orientation, income, race, and immigration status, among others,
increase women's vulnerability to experiencing sexual violence;
Whereas violence against women continues to be a pervasive issue that extends
across borders, and an estimated 736,000,000 women worldwide have been
subjected to physical or sexual violence at least once in their lives;
Whereas sexual violence remains a serious problem in the United States;
Whereas sexual violence impacts millions of women within the United States every
year, and women from racial and ethnic minority groups are
disproportionately affected;
Whereas gender-based violence is prevalent in settings that are embedded in the
fabric of United States society, including college campuses, the
military, the workplace, and prisons; and
Whereas more must be done to eliminate sexual violence both within the United
States and communities across the world: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) condemns violence against women in all forms, at all
times, and across all circumstances;
(2) condemns the weaponization of rape, sexual violence,
and gender-based violence during conflicts;
(3) stands with survivors of rape, sexual violence, and
gender-based violence in the United States and nations across
the globe;
(4) recognizes and honors individuals and organizations
across the globe who are working to eliminate gender-based
violence;
(5) reaffirms a commitment to eliminating sexual violence
and gender-based violence within the United States and abroad;
and
(6) calls on members of the international community--
(A) to enact laws protecting survivors and holding
perpetrators of violence accountable for their actions;
and
(B) to prioritize the elimination of gender-based
violence in conflict settings.
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