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94–692PDF 2015

TO DIRECT THE PRESIDENT TO DEVELOP A STRATEGY TO

OBTAIN OBSERVER STATUS FOR TAIWAN IN THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL POLICE ORGANIZATION; THE GIRLS

COUNT ACT OF 2015; THE UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL

COMMUNICATIONS REFORM ACT OF 2015; CONDEMNING THE

APRIL 2015 TERRORIST ATTACK AT THE GARISSA UNIVERSITY COLLEGE IN GARISSA, KENYA; AND EXPRESSING DEEPEST CONDOLENCES TO AND SOLIDARITY WITH THE PEOPLE

OF NEPAL FOLLOWING THE DEVASTATING EARTHQUAKE ON

APRIL 25, 2015

MARKUP

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

ONE HUNDRED FOURTEENTH CONGRESS

FIRST SESSION

ON

H.R. 1853, H.R. 2100, H.R. 2323, H. Res. 213 and 

H. Res. 235

MAY 21, 2015

Serial No. 114–56

Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Affairs

(

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.foreignaffairs.house.gov/ or

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/

(II)

COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

EDWARD R. ROYCE, California, Chairman 

CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey 

ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida 

DANA ROHRABACHER, California 

STEVE CHABOT, Ohio 

JOE WILSON, South Carolina 

MICHAEL T. MCCAUL, Texas 

TED POE, Texas 

MATT SALMON, Arizona 

DARRELL E. ISSA, California 

TOM MARINO, Pennsylvania 

JEFF DUNCAN, South Carolina 

MO BROOKS, Alabama 

PAUL COOK, California 

RANDY K. WEBER SR., Texas 

SCOTT PERRY, Pennsylvania 

RON DESANTIS, Florida 

MARK MEADOWS, North Carolina 

TED S. YOHO, Florida 

CURT CLAWSON, Florida 

SCOTT DESJARLAIS, Tennessee 

REID J. RIBBLE, Wisconsin 

DAVID A. TROTT, Michigan 

LEE M. ZELDIN, New York 

DANIEL DONOVAN, New York 

ELIOT L. ENGEL, New York 

BRAD SHERMAN, California 

GREGORY W. MEEKS, New York 

ALBIO SIRES, New Jersey 

GERALD E. CONNOLLY, Virginia 

THEODORE E. DEUTCH, Florida 

BRIAN HIGGINS, New York 

KAREN BASS, California 

WILLIAM KEATING, Massachusetts 

DAVID CICILLINE, Rhode Island 

ALAN GRAYSON, Florida 

AMI BERA, California 

ALAN S. LOWENTHAL, California 

GRACE MENG, New York 

LOIS FRANKEL, Florida 

TULSI GABBARD, Hawaii 

JOAQUIN CASTRO, Texas 

ROBIN L. KELLY, Illinois 

BRENDAN F. BOYLE, Pennsylvania

AMY PORTER, Chief of Staff THOMAS SHEEHY, Staff Director

JASON STEINBAUM, Democratic Staff Director 

(III)

C O N T E N T S 

Page

MARKUP OF 

H.R. 1853, To direct the President to develop a strategy to obtain observer 

status for Taiwan in the International Criminal Police Organization, and 

for other purposes ................................................................................................ 3

H.R. 2100, To authorize the Secretary of State and the Administrator of 

the United States Agency for International Development to provide assistance to support the rights of women and girls in developing countries, 

and for other purposes ......................................................................................... 8

H.R. 2323, To enhance the missions, objectives, and effectiveness of United 

States international communications, and for other purposes ......................... 15

Amendments to H.R. 2323 offered by: 

The Honorable Joaquin Castro, a Representative in Congress from 

the State of Texas ...................................................................................... 83

The Honorable Michael T. McCaul, a Representative in Congress from 

the State of Texas ...................................................................................... 84

The Honorable Edward R. Royce, a Representative in Congress

from the State of California, and chairman, Committee on Foreign

Affairs ......................................................................................................... 85, 87

H. Res. 213, Condemning the April 2015 terrorist attack at the Garissa 

University College in Garissa, Kenya, and reaffirming the United States 

support for the people and Government of Kenya, and for other purposes .... 88

H. Res. 235, Expressing deepest condolences to and solidarity with the people 

of Nepal following the devastating earthquake on April 25, 2015 ................... 92

Amendment in the nature of a substitute to H. Res. 235 offered by the 

Honorable Matt Salmon, a Representative in Congress from the State 

of Arizona .......................................................................................................... 96

Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to H. 

Res. 235 offered by: 

The Honorable Gerald E. Connolly, a Representative in Congress 

from the Commonwealth of Virginia, the Honorable Karen Bass, 

a Representative in Congress from the State of California, the 

Honorable Brad Sherman, a Representative in Congress from 

the State of California, and the Honorable Alan S. Lowenthal, 

a Representative in Congress from the State of California ............ 100

The Honorable Brad Sherman .............................................................. 101

APPENDIX 

Markup notice .......................................................................................................... 114

Markup minutes ...................................................................................................... 115

Markup summary .................................................................................................... 117

The Honorable Christopher H. Smith, a Representative in Congress from 

the State of New Jersey: Prepared statement ................................................... 118

The Honorable Brad Sherman, a Representative in Congress from the State 

of California: Prepared statment of the Honorable Michael M. Honda, a 

Representative in Congress from the State of California ................................. 119

The Honorable Karen Bass, a Representative in Congress from the State 

of California: Prepared statement ...................................................................... 120

(1)

TO DIRECT THE PRESIDENT TO DEVELOP A STRATEGY TO 

OBTAIN OBSERVER STATUS FOR TAIWAN IN THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL POLICE ORGANIZATION; THE GIRLS 

COUNT ACT OF 2015; THE UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS REFORM ACT OF 2015; CONDEMNING THE APRIL 2015 TERRORIST ATTACK AT THE 

GARISSA UNIVERSITY COLLEGE IN GARISSA, KENYA; AND 

EXPRESSING DEEPEST CONDOLENCES TO AND SOLIDARITY WITH THE PEOPLE OF NEPAL FOLLOWING THE 

DEVASTATING EARTHQUAKE ON APRIL 25, 2015

THURSDAY, MAY 21, 2015

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS,

Washington, DC. 

The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:08 a.m., in room 

2172, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Ed Royce (chairman of 

the committee) presiding. 

Chairman ROYCE. This committee will come to order. 

Pursuant to notice, we meet today to mark up several bipartisan 

measures that were provided to members earlier this week. 

Without objection, all members may have 5 days to submit statements for the record and any extraneous material that they might 

want to include on today’s business. 

According to the expedited procedures shared with members yesterday, we intend to call up and approve today’s measures en bloc 

at the outset because of the voting, and afterwards I will recognize 

myself and the ranking member and any other members who 

would like to make remarks on the record. 

Members have all of the items, which were provided to your offices previously, in the packets in front of you. And so, without objection, the following items will be considered en bloc and are considered as read: H.R. 1853, this is regarding observer status for 

Taiwan in INTERPOL; H.R. 2100, the Girls Count Act of 2015; 

H.R. 2323, the U.S. International Communications Reform Act of 

2015, along with the following amendments to that bill: Castro 

Amendment 51, McCaul Amendment 33, Royce Amendment 41, 

Royce Amendment 901; House Resolution 213, condemning the terrorist attack at the university in Kenya and reaffirming U.S. support for Kenya; House Resolution 235, expressing condolences to 

and solidarity with the people of Nepal following the devastation 

that came with the recent quakes. And we have the Salmon 

Amendment 70 in the nature of a substitute, reflecting the subcommittee-adopted changes to House Resolution 235. We have the 

Connolly-Bass-Sherman-Lowenthal Amendment; that is AmendVerDate 0ct 09 2002 17:08 Jul 29, 2015 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 F:\WORK\_FULL\052115M\94692 SHIRL
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ment 54 to Salmon Amendment 70. And we have the Sherman 

Amendment 10 to Salmon Amendment 70. 

[The information referred to follows:]

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Chairman ROYCE. The Chair now moves that the items being 

considered en bloc be adopted by the committee. 

All those in favor, say aye. 

All those opposed? 

In the opinion of the Chair, the ayes have it, and the items considered en bloc are agreed to. 

Without objection, each of those underlying measures, as amended, is ordered favorably reported as a single amendment in the nature of a substitute. 

Staff is directed to make technical and conforming changes. The 

Chair is authorized to seek consideration under suspension of the 

rules. 

Having concluded the operative portion of today’s business, I will 

now recognize members who wish to make statements on the 

adopted measures, beginning with myself and the ranking member 

when he arrives here. 

So we begin with H.R. 2323. This is the International Communications Reform Act. 

And today U.S. international broadcasting must contend with a 

new era of what is often called weaponized information, where 

groups like ISIS or Hezbollah and Putin are subverting stable regimes, spreading conspiracy theories intended to incite violence. 

There is widespread agreement that the Broadcasting Board of 

Governors, the agency charged with guiding U.S. international 

broadcasting, is practically defunct. And this is not good news for 

our sole U.S. Government effort to counter the propaganda of both 

terrorists and of dictators. So this measure, the United States 

International Communications Reform Act, carries out much-needed reforms to our international broadcasting, which have been 

championed by a broad coalition of supporters. 

The bill consolidates the now six organizations of the BBG into 

two entities. One, a Federal agency, will house the Voice of America. And the other, a non-Federal entity called the Freedom News 

Network, will run the Radios, or surrogate broadcasters, known as 

Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia, the Middle 

East Broadcasting Network. 

They have two very different missions. The VOA exists to tell 

America’s story abroad. It explains America and American ideals to 

the world. The Radios, the surrogates here, function in closed societies. They do this with a lot more than just radio, obviously, but 

they act as a free press would if one were allowed to operate, and, 

thus, they have that job of irritating dictators and inspiring civil 

society. 

The bill also establishes for both of these organizations a fulltime day-to-day agency head and clear lines of accountability. 

By reforming the BBG, more resources can be spent cutting 

through the misinformation put forward by our foes instead of on 

a broken bureaucracy here in Washington, DC. These reforms are 

long overdue. The longer we wait to act, the further ground we 

cede to those who seek to do us grave harm. 

The next measure, H.R. 1853, that I was going to comment on, 

this directs the President to develop a strategy to obtain observer 

status for Taiwan in INTERPOL. And this, of course, builds upon 

our successful efforts last Congress to ensure U.S. endorsement of 

103

Taiwan’s entry into the International Civil Aviation Organization. 

So I want to thank Matt Salmon, chairman of the Asia Subcommittee, for his leadership on this important issue. 

Since 1984, Taiwan has relied on delayed, secondhand information from the U.S. about international criminals and global crime, 

making it needlessly vulnerable to security threats. Likewise, Taiwan cannot share intelligence it gathers to the benefit of 

INTERPOL members. So Taiwan is the United States’ 10h-largest 

trading partner, a top-20 world economy. This means a large number of people and goods are transiting through Taiwan each and 

every day. Taiwan especially deserves access to INTERPOL’s law 

enforcement infrastructure to improve security for all involved. 

Briefly, I will also tell you about House Resolution 235. This is 

the Nepal resolution. And I thank Matt Salmon for this resolution 

on Nepal and the good oversight that his subcommittee has conducted regarding the U.S. response to its two devastating recent 

earthquakes. 

We have had 8,000 people, 8,000 souls, killed in this disaster, including six brave Marines who sought to bring food and medicine 

and supplies to remote areas that were particularly hard-hit in 

Nepal. This resolution commends U.S. relief efforts, rightfully so. 

Unfortunately, outdated U.S. purchase and shipping requirements under the Food for Peace program have again limited an 

otherwise robust U.S. humanitarian response. We currently have 

tons of U.S. food aid sitting in Sri Lanka. In the meantime, USAID 

has had to rely on other disaster assistance accounts to provide 

much-needed emergency food, meaning those funds cannot be used 

for other necessities. So I am eager to work with my colleagues to 

reform our international food aid program so that, in the future, we 

can get lifesaving assistance to more people in less time for less 

money. 

House Resolution 213, condemning terrorist attacks by alShabaab at the university in Kenya. I want to start by thanking 

Representative Bass for authorizing this important measure. 

Al-Shabaab is getting squeezed in Somalia, losing ground and 

losing important financial lifelines, and this latest high-profile attack seems to be an attempt to tell the world that they are still 

around. But there were 147 students tragically killed simply for 

trying to get an education, you know? Al-Shabaab divided those 

students along religious lines by quizzing them on the Koran. The 

ones who passed lived; those who didn’t were killed. 

This resolution also reaffirms U.S. support for promoting tolerance in Kenya and commends Kenya’s contributions to the African 

Union peacekeeping force that is deployed right now in Somalia. 

And, lastly, H.R. 2100, the Girls Count Act of 2015. I want to 

recognize Representative Chabot for his work on this good, bipartisan bill, which our committee and the House passed in a substantially similar form last Congress. 

One-third of children around the world have never had their 

births registered. Unable to prove their age or their parentage or 

their citizenship, these children are often prevented from attending 

school or receiving health services. 

For girls, in particular, a lack of documentation can undermine 

existing legal protections against their being trafficked or against 

104

their being made child brides. And, as they grow up, girls without 

an official identity face especially high barriers to education and to 

entrepreneurship. 

This bill authorizes the State Department and USAID to 

prioritize programs to improve countries’ civil registries and rates 

of birth registration. And the bill encourages the development of 

laws and policies to prevent discrimination against girls and improve property and inheritance rights for women. And I encourage 

all members to support this measure. 

We now go to Mr. Eliot Engel, the ranking member of this committee. 

Mr. ENGEL. Thank you very much for holding this markup, Mr. 

Chairman. And thank you, as always, for working with us in such 

a bipartisan manner on all the measures before us and in all the 

activity of this committee. 

Let me first voice my support for H.R. 1853, the Taiwan 

INTERPOL Act, sponsored by Chairman Salmon. This bill would 

direct the executive branch to help Taiwan receive observer status 

in the International Criminal Policy Organization, known as 

INTERPOL. INTERPOL enhances public safety around the world 

by linking law enforcement agencies and facilitating the smooth 

flow of information. 

Taiwan’s absence from INTERPOL creates a public safety risk 

for the people of Taiwan and, actually, for all of us. This legislation 

will help put Taiwan on a path to observer status in INTERPOL, 

the same status it enjoys in other international organizations like 

the World Health Assembly. 

I urge all of my colleagues to support this. 

Let me next thank Representatives Chabot and McCollum for introducing the Girls Count Act. 

Around the world, over a third of children under the age of 5, 

mostly girls, have no registration of their birth. A lack of documentation creates a dire vulnerability to child labor, human trafficking, and child marriage. Their lives are defined by limited 

choices and opportunities, and the long-term development of their 

communities is also dragged down. The Syrian refugee crisis has 

presented an acute example of this challenge. 

H.R. 2100 will ramp up efforts to get more children registered. 

It authorizes the State Department and USAID to work with local 

governments to expand access to registration programs, helping 

children get off to a good start. So I urge all my colleagues to support this bill, as well. 

I am also glad that Chairman Royce has reintroduced the United 

States International Communications Reform Act, which I am 

proud to cosponsor. This bill, which passed the House unanimously 

last year, would bring a much-needed overhaul to the Broadcasting 

Board of Governors. 

During the Cold War, the Voice of America, Radio Free Europe, 

and other U.S.-backed broadcasters presented honest, unbiased 

news and information in the face of relentless Soviet propaganda. 

Mr. Royce and I both support these kinds of programs. 

Today, America’s rivals spend massive sums to spread violent 

messages and disseminate propaganda. Unfortunately, our ability 

105

to respond has fallen behind the techniques employed by Russia, 

ISIS, and others. 

This bill creates a new management structure to oversee our 

international broadcasting efforts. It streamlines our various broadcasting organizations, eliminates duplication, and clarifies the roles 

of the Voice of America and its so-called surrogates. And it would 

promote the use of new media platforms to complement traditional 

tools like shortwave radio and television. 

I want to thank Chairman Royce for his dedication to this issue, 

and I urge support for this bill. 

I also support H. Res. 213, which condemns the recent attack at 

Garissa University College in Garissa, Kenya, by the brutal terrorist group al-Shabaab. 

Because Kenya’s leaders chose to make their region stronger and 

participate in the African Union mission in Somalia, al-Shabaab 

killed nearly 150 innocent students and teachers and injured more 

than 100 others. 

The resolution offers condolences to the family and friends of 

those killed, recognizes Kenya as an important ally, and commends 

Kenya for working to heal a war-torn Somalia. Let me thank Congresswoman Karen Bass, the ranking member on the Africa Subcommittee, for spearheading this measure, and I urge my colleagues to support it. 

Finally, I want to express my support for H. Res. 235, expressing 

our deepest condolences and solidarity with the people of Nepal following the devastating April 25 earthquake, which left more than 

8,000 dead, several thousand more injured, and has disrupted the 

lives of more than 8 million people. 

But even in such a tragedy, we are inspired by the global response. Partners like India and Japan and, of course, our American 

search and rescue teams have done incredible work, whether first 

responders from a few miles away from here in Fairfax County or 

from the California fire department, along with American Marines, 

including six who lost their lives in a tragic helicopter crash, and 

the Congress paid homage to them yesterday. 

More than 50 aftershocks have shaken Nepal since April 25, and 

there will be more. And that is why we need to work with partners 

to ensure that the people of Nepal are prepared for these kinds of 

natural disasters in the future. This resolution signals our commitment to that goal, and I urge our colleagues to support it. 

Again, Mr. Chairman, thank you for your work to move forward 

with these important bills. We appreciate very much working together in such a bipartisan manner. 

Chairman ROYCE. Thank you, Mr. Engel. 

I am going to ask if any of the members of the committee seek 

recognition. 

Mr. Smith. 

Mr. SMITH. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will be very brief, and 

I would ask unanimous consent that my full statement be made a 

part of the record. 

Let me just say I am very grateful for this markup, and all five 

of the bills, I think, are outstanding. Again, in the spirit of bipartisanship, each of those come before us having worked out any probVerDate 0ct 09 2002 17:08 Jul 29, 2015 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00109 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 F:\WORK\_FULL\052115M\94692 SHIRL
106

lems that existed between each side of the aisle, and I think that 

is the way we ought to work. 

I want to note that Sam Stratman is here, one of the most distinguished members of Henry Hyde’s—when he was chairman of this 

committee. And it is great to see Sam. He did a wonderful job for 

the committee for so many years. 

Let me just again thank our ranking member, Congresswoman 

Bass, for H. Res. 213 that condemns the horrific attack by Islamic 

radicals from the terror group al-Shabaab at Garissa University 

College in Kenya on April 2. About 150 mostly Christian students 

were segregated from other students and butchered on account of 

their religious faith, the fact that they were Christians. 

And there is a report out right now, 55 minutes old, on the Internet that al-Shabaab took over, at least for about 2 hours, a mosque 

in Garissa, fled back into the woods after spewing out their hatred 

and vitriol, and then went back into the forest with, of course, the 

Kenyans in hot pursuit. 

I want to thank Congressman Chabot for an excellent bill, Girls 

Count. And, you know, if you don’t chronicle the women and the 

girls in this world, it is so much easier for them to be trafficked, 

to disappear. 

And I would also point out to my colleagues that this underscores 

and will help bring additional light and scrutiny to an absolutely 

ominous phenomenon that has taken place over the course of the 

last several years, and that is sex-selection abortion and the missing girls in the world. The estimates are at least 200 million missing females because of sex-selection abortion. It happens here. At 

least 15 countries around the world have seen a gross ascendency 

in this phenomenon of doing ultrasounds at the fifth month, determining the gender of the baby, and destroying her simply because 

she happens to be a girl. 

I held my 51st hearing on human rights in China just 2 weeks 

ago. We heard from Chen Guangcheng, the great blind activist and 

human rights lawyer, who made that daring escape, went to our 

Embassy, and is now here in the United States with his family. He 

testified about how awful the policy is in China with its one-child 

policy and the targeting of little girls. 

Mara Hvistendahl, who has also submitted testimony, wrote in 

her book that, in Asia alone, there are 160 million girls and women 

missing, the girl child being targeted by sex-selection abortion. And 

to put that in perspective, that equals the entire female population 

in the United States of America, killed by sex-selection abortion 

simply because she happens to be a girl. 

This Girls Count legislation—and, Steve, thank you so much for 

this—will help to bring light and scrutiny to the missing daughters 

throughout the entire world. Excellent bill. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN [presiding]. Thank you, Mr. Smith. 

Mr. Sherman is recognized. 

Mr. SHERMAN. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

I have enjoyed working with the chair of the committee, his staff, 

and the ranking member’s staff to include in these bills some important provisions. 

First, as to Nepal, I want to thank the chairman for including 

my amendment to focus on the importance of protecting the women 

107

of Nepal from violence against women and to work for gender 

equality. UNICEF estimates that 7,000 Nepali girls are trafficked 

annually, and this amendment directs the State Department to 

focus on trafficking. 

I would ask unanimous consent to put in the record the statement of——

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Without objection. 

Mr. SHERMAN [continuing]. Mr. Honda, who worked with me on 

that amendment. 

I worked with Mr. Connolly, and, together, we put in an amendment to recognize task forces that have gone to Nepal from his 

area and mine. In particular, California Task Force 2 was made up 

of 57 Los Angeles County firefighters and 6 search and rescue dogs. 

This team carries survival and rescue kits that contain everything 

from heavy concrete cutting equipment, chainsaws, search cameras, 

and SONAR to locate victims. 

Moving on to the broadcasting bill, I want to thank the chairman 

for working with me to focus on an issue that I have talked to this 

committee about for the last several years, the importance of 

broadcasting in the Sindhi language. This committee voted to authorize $1.5 million a year for that effort, yet we can’t get BBG to take this seriously. They insist upon 

broadcasting only in Urdu when, if you are going to reach the people of Pakistan, you have to reach them in the language in which 

they are most familiar. And for tens of millions of Pakistanis, that 

is the Sindhi language. 

I have asked VOA to provide me with a cost estimate for broadcasting in Sindhi just 3 hours a day on a radio station that would 

just reach Sindh province and, in particular, the upper portion of 

Sindh province. Instead, they come back with estimates as to what 

it would cost to reach the entire country, and these estimates are 

at least 10 times the cost of what I am currently proposing. I would 

like to propose something grander, but we realize there are budgetary restraints. 

We just need one Urdu/Sindhi speaker who could translate what 

we are already broadcasting in Urdu and broadcast it in Sindhi in 

one station. When you look at our costs in Korea and other places, 

we would realize that this should cost in Pakistan $100,000 or 

$200,000, but we can’t even get an estimate for this. And I want 

to thank the chairman for agreeing to join me with a letter pushing 

BBG to give us a reasonable estimate. 

And given that this is a region of Pakistan that is so important 

to us and where the natural inclination of people is toward a moderate approach to Islam, I think that it is important that we prod 

BBG to give us a reasonable approach rather than, ‘‘Well, this is 

what we are doing, and don’t bother us with any details.’’

I commend the committee for undertaking the other bills that are 

before us. It is important that Taiwan be part of INTERPOL, and 

I joined with Chairman Salmon in introducing that bill. 

And, with that, I yield back to the chair. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. Chabot of Ohio. 

Mr. CHABOT. Thank you, Madam Chair, for calling this markup 

today. 

108

I am supportive of all the measures before the committee, but I 

will focus for just a moment on H.R. 2011, the Girls Count Act of 

2015, which I introduced with the support from 43 of our colleagues, many of whom are members of this committee. 

I want to personally thank Mr. Smith for his impassioned comments about the importance of this legislation. There are a lot of 

reasons for it, but that is one that is particularly close to my heart. 

Every year, approximately 51 million children are not registered 

at their birth. Lacking a birth certificate restricts the ability of 

children across the globe from engaging in a number of fundamental rights that we take for granted here in the United States. 

In order to address this issue, H.R. 2100 directs the Department 

of State and USAID to support efforts aimed at improving birth 

registry through birth certificate programs in developing countries. 

Ensuring that every child has a birth certificate will aid in a host 

of areas, including but not limited to, access to voting rights, land 

tenure rights, health services, education, and on and on. It will 

help support efforts to prevent human and sex trafficking and aid 

in identifying displaced persons. H.R. 2100 would also aid in international adoption cases. 

Despite the fact that almost all countries require some type of 

birth registration prior to the government’s issuance of identifying 

documents, like a birth certificate or a driver’s license, nearly onethird of all children under the age of 5 worldwide have never had 

their births registered—one-third of the children on this earth. 

For girls, in particular, this lack of birth registration increases 

the barriers they face to education, entrepreneurship, civic participation, in addition to increasing their vulnerability to trafficking or 

exploitation. Girls Count would authorize the State Department 

and USAID to support programs that are designed to protect girls’ 

legal rights, particularly economic and property rights, and to build 

legal and policy frameworks to prevent discrimination against 

women and girls. 

Madam Chairman, I want to thank you for considering this important piece of legislation and thank my colleagues for their broad 

bipartisan support in a number of comments they have made this 

morning in favor of this legislation. 

And I yield back. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Thank you, Mr. Chabot. 

Mr. Cicilline. 

Mr. CICILLINE. Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

I want to begin by thanking Chairman Royce and Ranking Member Engel for their continued leadership on this committee and on 

the important bills that we just moved forward. 

I am proud to support the Girls Count Act, which will help improve birth registration around the world, especially in countries 

where girls and women often get left behind, unable to pursue an 

education or work outside the home because the government has 

no official record that they exist. This will complement the work already being done by the State Department and USAID and help us 

pave a road to full gender equality. And I want to thank everyone 

who worked so hard on that piece of legislation. 

I am also pleased that we have passed the Taiwan INTERPOL 

Act this morning. It is important and, of course, in the best interest 

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of the United States to ensure that information about criminals 

and global criminal activities are shared as widely and as efficiently as possible. 

We have also moved forward this morning a resolution that was 

considered by the Africa Subcommittee last week. The April 2 terrorist attack at the Garissa University College in Kenya was a despicable, evil act of terrorism by al-Shabaab. The victims were innocent men and women attending school, who were targeted for murder because of their religious faith. I thank my friend and colleague 

Congresswoman Bass for sponsoring this resolution to send the 

message that such violence and terrorism will not be tolerated and 

must be condemned in this strongest terms. 

And regarding another tragedy, H. Res. 235 expresses our condolences to the people of Nepal in the wake of the earthquakes that 

have devastated their country. I have supported the international 

disaster response to date, especially U.S. Search and rescue teams 

and humanitarian contributions, and want to recognize the lives 

lost while providing humanitarian assistance. I sincerely hope that 

the United States will honor their sacrifice and continue to do everything we can to help with their reconstruction efforts. 

And, finally, I want to thank Chairman Royce and Ranking 

Member Engel for their leadership on broadcasting issues. When I 

meet with international civil society groups, they consistently raise 

the concern that the media and the information dissemination in 

their country are not free and fair. Too often, propaganda and censorship are used by extremist leaders in an attempt to assert control over a group of people or an entire country. I support this 

country and this committee’s commitment to providing open access 

to news and information around the world, and our passage today 

of H.R. 2323 will advance that goal. 

Finally, I want to thank the chairman and ranking member for 

moving these important pieces of legislation and, again, for always 

working in a bipartisan way, which I think reflects on the best values of our country and hopefully of this Congress. 

And, with that, I yield back. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Thank you, sir. 

And now we will turn to Mr. Salmon, the chairman of the Asia 

Subcommittee. 

Mr. SALMON. Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

I would to express wonderful support to our chairman of the full 

committee, Mr. Royce, and the ranking member, Mr. Engel, for 

their great leadership and support of all of the issues on today’s 

schedule. 

I also want to thank the ranking member on our subcommittee, 

Brad Sherman, for his great work both on H.R. 1853, which is requiring the President to develop a strategy to get Taiwan involved 

in INTERPOL, and then the resolution expressing our deepest 

sympathies and condolences for Nepal, which I think has been 

made very much better through the amendment process. I am very 

excited about what we are voting on today. 

First of all, in the Taiwan INTERPOL issue, H.R. 1853, folks, 

this is a no-brainer, and that is why we are seeing such widespread 

support across the aisle for this measure. It doesn’t make any 

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rorist groups across the globe, that we don’t have all hands on 

deck, that just because of political idiosyncrasies and the flexing of 

muscles by China, that Taiwan isn’t involved at all in any international institutions, that we are doing stupid things and not allowing them to be involved in something as important as this when 

all hands should be on deck. So I appreciate the fact that we are 

moving forward on this. 

Regarding the Nepal condolence measure that we are introducing 

today, we had a hearing yesterday with our folks from State Department, USAID, and our Department of Defense. And I have to 

say, I just couldn’t be prouder of the job that they have done and 

how quickly they responded to not just one but two major earthquakes. And I am so proud of our military folks. 

Just the other day, I had one of the toughest conversations with 

a constituent—actually, not a constituent but somebody from my 

State who lost his beloved son, Lance Corporal Jake Hug, in the 

terrible helicopter accident that happened during the search and 

rescue in Nepal. 

I am so proud of those brave men and women that put on the 

uniform every day and go out to fight for freedom and put the 

United States’ best interests forward. And I am so thankful that 

will we were able to get a measure in that is also thanking them 

and honoring them for the great service that they do for our country. 

Again, this committee I think is the most bipartisan committee 

in the entire Congress, and I just hope that a lot of the media is 

taking note at how well we work together. There is an old saying, 

when the going gets tough, the tough get going. And I am certainly 

proud to serve with the members on both sides of the aisle on this 

committee. It is a great testament of the way things should be. 

Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Thank you, Mr. Salmon. 

Lois Frankel from Florida. 

Ms. FRANKEL. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

And I, too, want to thank the chairman and ranking member for 

this bipartisan approach and how you all run this committee. 

And I also want to particularly thank Mr. Chabot for his leadership on the Girls Count Act, which I am proud to be a cosponsor. 

And I want to reaffirm some of the comments that have been made 

by my colleagues, because I don’t think it can be said enough that 

the more we do for our young girls and women to reach their full 

potential, the more that countries around the world will reach their 

full potential. 

Every year, tens of millions of girls are born in the developing 

world and they do not receive any sort of birth documentation. 

Without a nationally-recognized birth certificate, girls and women 

are often prevented from participating in the formal economic, 

legal, educational, and political sectors of their economy. And, as 

we have heard, even worse, they are much more susceptible to exploitation, human trafficking, forced labor, and child marriage. 

So I am very pleased that we have come together in a bipartisan 

fashion to help some of the world’s most vulnerable children. And 

it may just be a play on words, but by counting girls, we take a 

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positive step toward making sure that girls do count. And we know 

that when girls flourish, so do their communities. 

And I yield back, Madam Chair. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Thank you, Ms. Frankel. 

And now Chairman McCaul. 

Mr. MCCAUL. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

Let me thank Chairman Royce and Ranking Member Engel for 

their leadership on this bill, the United States International Communications Reform Act. I believe enactment of this bill into law 

will go a long way in improving U.S international broadcasting efforts to strengthen our public diplomacy around the world. 

I am particularly grateful to the committee for accepting my 

amendment to encourage a U.S. international communications 

agency to collaborate with private-sector for-profit and nonprofit 

entities to highlight programming content, including music which 

promotes peace in countries experiencing high levels of terrorism 

and other forms of religious, ethnic, or political violence. 

I just returned from Iraq last week where a car bomb exploded 

in west Baghdad, killing 10 people. And rather than being deterred 

by that terror, the day following the attack, an individual by the 

name of Karim Wasfi, a cellist and former conductor of Iraq’s National Symphony Orchestra, came to the wreckage site and played 

his cello. 

There is a YouTube video out on this that has gone viral over 

the Internet, and it is quite moving to see him in the middle of the 

blast playing the cello. And people came out to this site of horror 

and murder to listen to one of the nation’s most renowned musicians rather than hide from other would-be attackers. 

You know, when I was over there, I had a flak jacket and a helmet on, and I could only think of this man being in the middle of 

a bomb site, playing his cello freely, while others were looking on 

with no protection whatsoever—the courage they demonstrated 

that day in the streets of Baghdad. 

And when asked why he did this, Mr. Wasfi said, ‘‘You know, I’m 

worried that people are losing hope and surrender to the situation. 

And I play—I play my cello to show that life is worth living. I can’t 

beat the bombs with my cello,’’ he said, ‘‘but I can bring respect for 

the dead.’’

So to this committee, I say that I believe music—and I come from 

Austin, Texas, and, sort of, we like to think of ourselves as the 

music capital of the world, in some respects. Some would debate 

that, I suppose. But I believe that music can bring people together 

in bad parts of the world. It can defeat radical Islamists; it can defeat the face of terror, as Mr. Wasfi’s cello did that very day. And 

that is why I think it is important that we highlight music and 

other forms of programming content that promotes peace in places 

like Iraq which are so desperate for it. 

So, with that, let me thank the committee for its support of my 

amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Thank you, Mr. McCaul. 

Do any other members seek recognition? 

Mr. Lowenthal is recognized. 

Mr. LOWENTHAL. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

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First, I would like to thank my colleague, Mr. Connolly, for introducing, with myself and Mr. Sherman and Ms. Bass from southern 

California, the amendment to House Resolution 235 recognizing the 

brave service of search and rescue personnel from both Fairfax 

County in Virginia and from my own home county of Los Angeles 

County in California. These Americans traveled all the way to 

Nepal to help those in need, and we cannot thank them enough for 

their service. 

I also wish to speak in support of Congressman Salmon’s bill, 

H.R. 1853. I believe Taiwan is a vital partner of the United States 

and a responsible global citizen. Taiwan’s participation in 

INTERPOL will serve to make us all safer and promote greater collaboration and cooperation on the international stage. 

Lastly, I would like to express my strong support for the United 

States International Communications Reform Act. This bill will 

provide a much-needed overhaul of our efforts to promote freedom 

of speech and of press across the globe. 

I am personally pleased this legislation again includes language 

I offered as an amendment last year in support of shortwave broadcasting. Shortwave broadcasting is a versatile and effective tool to 

reach many populations, and I continue to support its use in regions where repressive regimes do not allow for independent news 

sources, such as Vietnam. 

I hope the House quickly considers and passes these important 

pieces of legislation. And, again, Madam Chair, thank you, and I 

yield back. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Thank you, Mr. Lowenthal. 

And hearing no further requests for recognition, I again want to 

thank Ranking Member Engel and all of our committee members 

for their contributions and assistance with today’s markup. 

And, with that, the committee is adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 10:47 a.m., the committee was adjourned.] 

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