IV

105TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. CON. RES. 239

Expressing the sense of Congress concerning the worldwide trafficking of

persons, that has a disproportionate impact on women and girls, and

is condemned by the international community as a violation of fundamental human rights.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 10, 1998

Ms. SLAUGHTER submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations, 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

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of Congress concerning the worldwide

trafficking of persons, that has a disproportionate impact

on women and girls, and is condemned by the international community as a violation of fundamental human

rights.

Whereas one of the fastest growing international trafficking

businesses is the trade in women, whereby women and

girls seeking a better life, a good marriage, or a lucrative

job abroad, unexpectedly find themselves in situations of

forced prostitution, sweatshop labor, exploitative domestic

servitude, or battering and extreme cruelty.
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Whereas trafficked women are often subjected to rape and

other forms of sexual abuse by their traffickers and often

held as virtual prisoners by their exploiters, made to work

in slavery-like conditions, in debt bondage without pay

and against their will;

Whereas the President, the First Lady, the Secretary of

State, and the President’s Interagency Council on

Women have all identified trafficking in women as a significant problem and are working to mobilize a response;

Whereas the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing

Conference) called on all governments to take measures,

including legislative measures, to provide better protection of the rights of women and girls in trafficking, to

address the root factors that put women at risk to traffickers, and to take measures to dismantle the national,

regional, and international networks in trafficking;

Whereas the United Nations General Assembly, noting its

concern about the increasing number of women and girls

who are being victimized by traffickers, passed a resolution in 1996 calling upon all governments to criminalize

trafficking in women and girls in all its forms and penalize all those offenders involved, while ensuring that the

victims of these practices are not penalized; and

Whereas numerous treaties to which the United States is a

party address government obligations to combat trafficking and the abuses inherent in trafficking, including such

treaties as the 1956 Supplementary Convention on the

Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade and Institutions

and Practices Similar to Slavery, which calls for the complete abolition of debt bondage and servile forms of marriage, and the 1957 Abolition of Forced Labor Convention, which undertakes to suppress and not to make use
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of any form of forced or compulsory labor: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that—

3 (1) trafficking consists of all acts involved in

4 the recruitment or transportation of persons within

5 or across borders involving deception, coercion or

6 force, abuse of authority, debt bondage or fraud, for

7 the purpose of placing persons in situations of abuse

8 or exploitation such as forced prostitution, sexual

9 slavery, battering and extreme cruelty, sweatshop

10 labor or exploitative domestic servitude;

11 (2) trafficking also involves one or more forms

12 of kidnapping, false imprisonment, rape, battering,

13 forced labor or slavery-like practices which violate

14 fundamental human rights;

15 (3) to address this problem, the Department of

16 Justice Office of Violence Against Women, with the

17 cooperation of Immigration and Naturalization Serv18 ice, should submit a report to Congress on—

19 (A) efforts to identify instances of traffick20 ing into the United States within the last 5

21 years;

22 (B) the successes or difficulties experi23 enced in promoting interagency cooperation, co24 operation between local, State, and Federal au-
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1 thorities, and cooperation with nongovernmental

2 organizations;

3 (C) the treatment and services provided,

4 and the disposition of trafficking cases in the

5 criminal justice system; and

6 (D) legal and administrative barriers to

7 more effective governmental responses, includ8 ing current statutes on debt bondage and invol9 untary servitude;

10 (4) in order to ensure effective prosecution of

11 traffickers and the abuses related to trafficking, vic12 tims should be provided with support services and

13 incentives to testify, such as—

14 (A) stays of deportation with an oppor15 tunity to apply for permanent residency, wit16 ness protection, relocation assistance, and asset

17 forfeiture from trafficking networks with funds

18 set aside to provide compensation due to victims

19 of trafficking; and

20 (B) services such as legal assistance in

21 criminal, administrative, and civil proceedings

22 and confidential health care;

23 (5) the Secretary of State, in consultation with

24 the Department of Justice Office of Violence
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1 Against Women, and nongovernmental organizations

2 should—

3 (A) develop curricula and conduct training

4 for consular officers on the prevalence and risks

5 of trafficking and the rights of victims; and

6 (B) develop and disperse to visa seekers

7 written materials describing the potential risks

8 of trafficking, including—

9 (i) information as to the rights of vic10 tims in the United States, including legal

11 and civil rights in labor, marriage, and for

12 crime victims under the Violence Against

13 Women Act; and

14 (ii) the names of support and advo15 cacy organizations in the United States;

16 (6) the Department of State and the European

17 Union—

18 (A) are commended as to their joint initia19 tive to promote awareness of the problem of

20 trafficking throughout countries of origin in

21 Eastern Europe and the independent states of

22 the former Soviet Union; and

23 (B) should continue efforts to engage in

24 similar programs in other regions and to ensure

25 that the dignity and the human rights of traf-
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1 ficking victims are protected in destination

2 countries;

3 (7) the State Department’s Bureau for Inter4 national Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, to5 gether with the Department of Justice and the De6 partment of the Treasury, should continue to pro7 vide and expand funding to support criminal justice

8 training programs, which include trafficking; and

9 (8) the President’s Interagency Council on

10 Women should submit a report to Congress, not

11 later than 6 months after the date of the adoption

12 of this resolution, with regard to the implementation

13 by the Secretary of State and the Attorney General

14 of the duties described in this resolution.

15 SEC. 2. The Clerk of the House of Representatives

16 shall transmit a copy of this resolution to the President,

17 the Secretary of State, and the Attorney General.

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