IV 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 261 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States 

should work with the Government of Nepal to ensure that the unique 

needs, vulnerabilities, and capacities of women and girls are considered 

and addressed in efforts to provide humanitarian relief and assistance 

in reconstruction in the aftermath of the April 25, 2015, earthquake. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 13, 2015 

Mr. HONDA (for himself, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Ms. NORTON, Ms. 

SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, Ms. BORDALLO, Mr. 

MCGOVERN, Ms. LEE, Ms. PLASKETT, Mr. AL GREEN of Texas, Mr. TED

LIEU of California, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California, 

Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. POLIS, Mr. FARR, Mr. RANGEL, and Mr. GRAYSON) 

submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 

on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 

the United States should work with the Government 

of Nepal to ensure that the unique needs, vulnerabilities, 

and capacities of women and girls are considered and 

addressed in efforts to provide humanitarian relief and 

assistance in reconstruction in the aftermath of the April 

25, 2015, earthquake. 

Whereas a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck the country of 

Nepal on April 25, 2015; 


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•HRES 261 IH 

Whereas millions of Nepali citizens have been displaced and 

reside in temporary shelters and the earthquake has affected an estimated 126,000 pregnant women; 

Whereas women and girls are disproportionately impacted by 

natural disasters and that displacement settings exacerbate preexisting inequalities, render women and girls even 

more vulnerable, and create greater barriers in their ability to benefit from relief, recovery, and long-term reconstruction and development efforts; 

Whereas humanitarian response in previous emergencies has 

shown that gender-based violence (GBV)—particularly 

sexual violence—increases in the immediate aftermath of 

an emergency, in addition to sexual exploitation and 

abuse, human trafficking, forced prostitution, and forced 

marriage, and must therefore be prioritized at the onset 

of the response; 

Whereas the United Nations and other humanitarian response organizations have reported inequitable distribution of assistance to displaced populations based on identity factors including gender; 

Whereas the United Nations and other humanitarian response organizations have reported a lack of sanitary 

pads and clothing for women and girls across the affected 

districts and indicated the need for dedicated spaces for 

women in internal displacement camps to provide protection and special services including psychosocial support; 

Whereas the United Nations Office for the Coordination of 

Humanitarian Affairs reported that the Government of 

Nepal’s Central Child Welfare Board has received reports 

of sexual and other GBV cases in the Kathmandu camps; 


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•HRES 261 IH 

Whereas the Government of Nepal has made significant efforts to combat violence against women such as the introduction of the Domestic Violence Act and National Strategy and Plan of Action on violence against women; 

Whereas the Interim Constitution of Nepal (2007) prohibits 

physical, mental, or any other form of violence against 

women and declares that such acts shall be punishable by 

law and the Gender Equality Act of 2006 established sexual violence as a crime punishable by varying years of imprisonment, depending on the age of the victim; 

Whereas evidence demonstrates that empowering women 

through post-disaster reconstruction can benefit recovery 

outcomes and increase women’s social, economic, and political rights; 

Whereas girls’ educational opportunities in emergencies are 

more limited than boys’ and ensuring that girls are able 

to continue their education in post-disaster and displacement settings is vital to economic recovery and reconstruction; 

Whereas the United Nations and donor countries, including 

the United States will continue to play a significant role 

in post-earthquake stabilization and reconstruction of 

Nepal; 

Whereas the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has prioritized the prevention of and response to GBV in its work across all sectors and as an 

explicit goal of the USAID Gender Equality and Female 

Empowerment Policy; 

Whereas USAID and the United States Department of State 

have been directed by Executive orders of the President 

to implement an interagency United States Strategy to 


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•HRES 261 IH 

Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence Globally 

and a National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security; and 

Whereas it is the policy of the United States to implement 

the Safe from the Start initiative to prevent and respond 

to GBV in humanitarian emergencies worldwide to reduce 

the incidence of GBV by ensuring quality services for 

survivors from the very onset of emergencies through 

timely and effective humanitarian action: Now, therefore, 

be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) expresses deep sympathy to the people of 

3 Nepal for the terrible loss of life, displacement, and 

4 massive destruction as a result of the earthquake; 

5 (2) expresses solidarity with the people of Nepal 

6 and continued commitment to provide essential as7 sistance to help Nepal recover from this tragedy; 

8 (3) expresses continuing support for relief and 

9 reconstruction assistance provided by relief agencies 

10 and the international community; 

11 (4) urges the treatment of the issues of gender 

12 equality, female empowerment, and preventing and 

13 addressing gender-based violence (GBV) against 

14 women and children as a priority for the United 

15 States Government’s humanitarian relief and recov16 ery efforts in Nepal; 


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•HRES 261 IH 

1 (5) recognizes the commitment of the United 

2 States Government to the promotion of local solu3 tions and building the capacity of grassroots organi4 zations, particularly those led by women and other 

5 marginalized groups, through activities including the 

6 meaningful participation of women and girls in 

7 needs assessments, program design and implementa8 tion, and monitoring and evaluation; 

9 (6) recognizes that GBV is a human rights vio10 lation that must be effectively addressed; 

11 (7) affirms that prioritizing safe educational 

12 and economic opportunities for Nepali women and 

13 young and adolescent girls that enable them to lift 

14 themselves and their families out of poverty is a 

15 cost-effective way to help reduce GBV; 

16 (8) recognizes the absolute necessity of 

17 prioritizing the protection and empowerment of 

18 women, young children, and adolescents in the post19 disaster setting through efforts of the United States 

20 Government, relief agencies, and the international 

21 community; 

22 (9) recognizes the urgent opportunity to fully 

23 and effectively implement the interagency Safe from 

24 the Start program and the policies that inform it, 

25 including the United States Agency for International 


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•HRES 261 IH 

1 Development (USAID) Gender Equality and Female 

2 Empowerment Policy, United States Strategy to 

3 Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence 

4 Globally, and National Action Plan on Women, 

5 Peace, and Security; 

6 (10) urges implicated United States agencies to 

7 fund and implement programs that are consistent 

8 with the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Guide9 lines on Gender-Based Violence in Humanitarian 

10 Settings and build on best practices and lessons 

11 learned in implementation of Safe from the Start 

12 and related protection; and 

13 (11) affirms a deep commitment to the pro14 motion of gender equality and the empowerment of 

15 women and girls through United States-led post-dis16 aster recovery and reconstruction activities to pro17 mote equitable economic recovery and the realization 

18 of social, economic, and political rights. 

Æ 


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