III 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 97 

Supporting the goals of International Women’s Day. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 4, 2015 

Mrs. SHAHEEN (for herself, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. KIRK, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mrs. 

BOXER, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. CARDIN, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, and 

Mr. WHITEHOUSE) submitted the following resolution; which was referred 

to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

MAY 5, 2015 

Committee discharged; considered, amended, and agreed to with an amended 

preamble 

RESOLUTION 

Supporting the goals of International Women’s Day. 

Whereas there are more than 3,500,000,000 women in the 

world as of March 2015; 

Whereas women around the world have fundamental rights, 

participate in the political, social, and economic life of 

their communities, play a critical role in providing and 

caring for their families, contribute substantially to the 

growth of economies and the prevention of conflict, and, 

as farmers and caregivers, play an important role in advancing food security for their communities; 


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Whereas the advancement of women around the world is a 

foreign policy priority for the United States; 

Whereas on September 24, 2014, the President highlighted 

the United States’ support for the advancement of 

women, noting: ‘‘Where women are full participants in a 

country’s politics or economy, societies are more likely to 

succeed. And that’s why we support the participation of 

women in parliaments and peace processes, schools, and 

the economy.’’; 

Whereas women remain underrepresented in conflict prevention and conflict resolution efforts, despite proven success 

by women in conflict-affected regions in moderating violent extremism, countering terrorism, resolving disputes 

through nonviolent mediation and negotiation, and stabilizing societies by improving access to peace and security 

services, institutions, and decisionmaking venues; 

Whereas on December 19, 2011, the Obama Administration 

launched the first United States National Action Plan on 

Women, Peace, and Security (referred to in this preamble 

as the ‘‘National Action Plan’’) that includes a comprehensive set of national commitments to advance the 

active participation of women in decisionmaking relating 

to matters of war and peace; 

Whereas the National Action Plan states the following: 

‘‘Deadly conflicts can be more effectively avoided, and 

peace can be best forged and sustained, when women become equal partners in all aspects of peace-building and 

conflict prevention, when their lives are protected, their 

experiences considered, and their voices heard.’’; 

Whereas the National Action Plan requires the National Security Council staff to coordinate a comprehensive review 


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of, and update to, the National Action Plan in 2015 with 

consultation from international partners and civil society 

organizations; 

Whereas according to the Bureau of International Narcotics 

and Law Enforcement Affairs of the Department of 

State, the full and meaningful participation of women in 

security forces vastly enhances the forces’ effectiveness; 

Whereas the ability of women and girls to realize their full 

potential is critical to the ability of a country to achieve 

strong and lasting economic growth and political and social stability; 

Whereas according to the International Monetary Fund, ‘‘focusing on the needs and empowerment of women is one 

of the keys to human development’’; 

Whereas according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 2⁄3 of the 781,000,000 

illiterate people in the world are female; 

Whereas according to the United States Agency for International Development, compared to uneducated women, 

educated women are less likely to marry as children and 

more likely to have healthier families; 

Whereas according to the Food and Agriculture Organization 

of the United Nations, the majority of women living in 

rural areas of the developing world are heavily engaged 

in agricultural labor, yet they receive less credit, land, agricultural inputs, and training than their male counterparts; 

Whereas according to the United Nations, women have access 

to fewer income-earning opportunities and are more likely 

to manage the household and engage in agricultural 

work, making women more vulnerable to economic insecuVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:06 May 06, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR97.ATS SR97

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rity caused by natural disasters and long-term changes in 

weather patterns; 

Whereas according to the World Bank, women own or partly 

own more than 1⁄3 of small and medium-sized enterprises 

in developing countries, and 40 percent of the global 

workforce is female, yet women entrepreneurs and employers have disproportionately less access to capital and 

other financial services compared to men; 

Whereas despite strides in recent decades, women around the 

world continue to face significant obstacles in all aspects 

of their lives, including underrepresentation in all aspects 

of public life, denial of basic human rights, and discrimination; 

Whereas despite achievements by individual female leaders, 

women around the world are still vastly underrepresented 

in high-level positions and in national and local legislatures and governments and, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, women account for only 21.9 percent 

of national parliamentarians; 

Whereas it is estimated that 1 in 3 women around the world 

has experienced some form of physical or sexual violence; 

Whereas according to the United Nations Office of Drugs 

and Crime’s 2012 Global Report on Trafficking in Persons, women account for between 55 and 60 percent of 

all trafficking victims detected worldwide, and women 

and girls together make up approximately 75 percent of 

all known trafficking victims; 

Whereas 603,000,000 women live in countries where domestic 

violence has not been criminalized; 

Whereas according to the World Health Organization, approximately 800 women die from preventable causes reVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:06 May 06, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR97.ATS SR97

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lated to pregnancy and childbirth every day, with 99 percent of all maternal deaths occurring in developing countries; 

Whereas on August 10, 2012, the President announced the 

United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence Globally, the first interagency strategy to address gender-based violence around the world; 

Whereas violence against women and girls impedes progress 

in meeting many international global development goals, 

including efforts to stem maternal mortality and the 

spread of HIV/AIDS; 

Whereas on October 11, 2013, the President strongly condemned the practice of child marriage; 

Whereas according to the International Center for Research 

on Women, 1⁄3 of girls in the developing world are married before the age of 18, and 1 in 9 girls is married before the age of 15; 

Whereas according to the World Health Organization, suicide 

is the leading cause of death for girls ages 15 to 19, followed by complications from pregnancy and childbirth; 

Whereas it is imperative to alleviate violence and discrimination against women and afford women every opportunity 

to be full and productive members of their communities; 

Whereas 2015 marks the 20th anniversary of the Fourth 

World Conference on Women, where 189 countries committed to integrating gender equality into all dimensions 

of society; 

Whereas 2015 marks the deadline for meeting the United 

Nations Millennium Development Goals, and progress towards meeting the targets for gender equality and women’s empowerment remains uneven; and 


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Whereas March 8 is recognized each year as International 

Women’s Day, a global day to celebrate the economic, political, and social achievements of women past, present, 

and future, and to recognize the obstacles that women 

still face in the struggle for equal rights and opportunities: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) supports the goals of International Women’s 

3 Day; 

4 (2) recognizes that the empowerment of women 

5 is inextricably linked to the potential of countries to 

6 generate economic growth, sustainable democracy, 

7 and inclusive security; 

8 (3) recognizes and honors individuals in the 

9 United States and around the world, including 

10 women who are human rights defenders, who have 

11 worked throughout history to ensure that women are 

12 guaranteed equality and basic human rights; 

13 (4) reaffirms the commitment to ending dis14 crimination and violence against women and girls, to 

15 ensuring the safety and welfare of women and girls, 

16 to pursuing policies that guarantee the basic human 

17 rights of women and girls worldwide, and to pro18 moting meaningful and significant participation of 

19 women in all aspects of their societies and commu20 nities; 


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1 (5) supports efforts to establish a sustainable, 

2 measurable and global development framework that 

3 seeks to achieve gender equality and women’s em4 powerment; and 

5 (6) encourages the people of the United States 

6 to observe International Women’s Day with appro7 priate programs and activities. 

Æ 


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