II

105TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1606

To fully implement the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and to provide a comprehensive program of support for victims of torture.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

FEBRUARY 4, 1998

Mr. WELLSTONE (for himself, Mr. KENNEDY, and Mr. HARKIN) introduced

the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee

on the Judiciary

A BILL

To fully implement the Convention Against Torture and

Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and to provide a comprehensive program of support for victims of torture.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Torture Victims Relief

5 Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 Congress makes the following findings:
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1 (1) The American people abhor torture by any

2 government or person. The existence of torture cre3 ates a climate of fear and international insecurity

4 that affects all people.

5 (2) Torture is the deliberate mental and phys6 ical damage caused by governments to individuals to

7 destroy individual personality and terrorize society.

8 The effects of torture are long term. Those effects

9 can last a lifetime for the survivors and affect future

10 generations.

11 (3) By eliminating leadership of their opposi12 tion and frightening the general public, repressive

13 governments often use torture as a weapon against

14 democracy.

15 (4) Torture survivors remain under physical

16 and psychological threats, especially in communities

17 where the perpetrators are not brought to justice. In

18 many nations, even those who treat torture survivors

19 are threatened with reprisals, including torture, for

20 carrying out their ethical duties to provide care.

21 Both the survivors of torture and their treatment

22 providers should be accorded protection from further

23 repression.

24 (5) A significant number of refugees and

25 asylees entering the United States have been victims
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1 of torture. Those claiming asylum deserve prompt

2 consideration of their applications for political asy3 lum to minimize their insecurity and sense of dan4 ger. Many torture survivors now live in the United

5 States. They should be provided with the rehabilita6 tion services which would enable them to become

7 productive members of our communities.

8 (6) The development of a treatment movement

9 for torture survivors has created new opportunities

10 for action by the United States and other nations to

11 oppose state-sponsored and other acts of torture.

12 (7) There is a need for a comprehensive strat13 egy to protect and support torture victims and their

14 treatment providers, together with overall efforts to

15 eliminate torture.

16 (8) By acting to heal the survivors of torture

17 and protect their families, the United States can

18 help to heal the effects of torture and prevent its use

19 around the world.

20 (9) The United States became a party to the

21 Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhu22 man, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment on

23 November 20, 1994, but has not implemented Arti24 cle 3 of the Convention.
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1 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

2 As used in this Act:

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro4 vided, the terms used in this Act have the meanings

5 given those terms in section 101(a) of the Immigra6 tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)).

7 (2) TORTURE.—The term ‘‘torture’’ has the

8 meaning given the term in section 2340(1) of title

9 18, United States Code, and includes the use of rape

10 and other forms of sexual violence by a person act11 ing under the color of law upon another person

12 under his custody or physical control.

13 SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON INVOLUNTARY RETURN OF PER14 SONS FEARING SUBJECTION TO TORTURE.

15 (a) PROHIBITION.—Notwithstanding any other provi16 sion of law, the United States shall not expel, remove, ex17 tradite, or otherwise return involuntarily an individual to

18 a country if there is substantial evidence that a reasonable

19 person in the circumstances of that individual would fear

20 subjection to torture in that country.

21 (b) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the

22 term ‘‘to return involuntarily’’, in the case of an individ23 ual, means—

24 (1) to return the individual without the individ25 ual’s consent, whether or not the return is induced
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1 by physical force and whether or not the person is

2 physically present in the United States; or

3 (2) to take an action by which it is reasonably

4 foreseeable that the individual will be returned,

5 whether or not the return is induced by physical

6 force and whether or not the person is physically

7 present in the United States.

8 SEC. 5. IMMIGRATION PROCEDURES FOR TORTURE VIC9 TIMS.

10 (a) COVERED ALIENS.—An alien described in this

11 section is any alien who presents a claim of having been

12 subjected to torture, or whom there is reason to believe

13 has been subjected to torture.

14 (b) CONSIDERATION OF THE EFFECTS OF TOR15 TURE.—In considering an application by an alien de16 scribed in subsection (a) for refugee status under section

17 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, asylum under

18 section 208 of that Act, or withholding of removal under

19 section 241(b)(3) of that Act, the appropriate officials

20 shall take into account—

21 (1) the manner in which the effects of torture

22 might affect the applicant’s responses in the applica23 tion and in the interview process or other immigra24 tion proceedings, as the case may be;
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1 (2) the difficulties torture victims often have in

2 recounting their suffering under torture; and

3 (3) the fear victims have of returning to their

4 country of nationality where, even if torture is no

5 longer practiced or the incidence of torture is re6 duced, their torturers may have gone unpunished

7 and may remain in positions of authority.

8 (c) EXPEDITED PROCESSING OF REFUGEE ADMIS9 SIONS.—For purposes of section 207(c) of the Immigra10 tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157(c)), refugees who

11 have been subjected to torture shall be considered to be

12 refugees of special humanitarian concern to the United

13 States and shall be accorded priority for resettlement at

14 least as high as that accorded any other group of refugees.

15 (d) PROCESSING FOR ASYLUM AND WITHHOLDING

16 OF REMOVAL.—Section 235(b)(1)(A) of the Immigration

17 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(1)(A)) is amended

18 by adding at the end the following new clause:

19 ‘‘(iv) SPECIAL PROCEDURES FOR

20 ALIENS WHO ARE THE VICTIMS OF TOR21 TURE.—

22 ‘‘(I) EXPEDITED PROCEDURES.—

23 With the consent of the alien, an asy24 lum officer or immigration judge shall

25 expedite the scheduling of an asylum
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1 interview or a removal proceeding for

2 any alien who presents a claim of hav3 ing been subjected to torture, unless

4 the evidence indicates that a delay in

5 making a determination regarding the

6 granting of asylum under section 208

7 of the Immigration and Nationality

8 Act or the withholding of removal

9 under section 241(b)(3) of that Act

10 with respect to the alien would not ag11 gravate the physical or psychological

12 effects of torture upon the alien.

13 ‘‘(II) DELAY OF PROCEEDINGS.—

14 With the consent of the alien, an asy15 lum officer or immigration judge shall

16 postpone an asylum interview or a re17 moval proceeding for any alien who

18 presents a claim of having been sub19 jected to torture, if the evidence indi20 cates that, as a result of the alien’s

21 mental or physical symptoms resulting

22 from torture, including the alien’s in23 ability to recall or relate the events of

24 the torture, the alien will require more
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1 time to recover or be treated before

2 being required to testify.

3 (e) PAROLE IN LIEU OF DETENTION.—The finding

4 that an alien is a person described in subsection (a) shall

5 be a strong presumptive basis for a grant of parole, under

6 section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act

7 (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5)), in lieu of detention.

8 (f) EXEMPTION FROM EXPEDITED REMOVAL.—Sec9 tion 235(b)(1)(F) of the Immigration and Nationality Act

10 (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(1)(F)) is amended by inserting before

11 the period at the end the following: ‘‘, or to an alien de12 scribed in section 5(a) of the Torture Victims Relief Act’’.

13 (g) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con14 gress that the Attorney General should allocate resources

15 sufficient to maintain in the Resource Information Center

16 of the Immigration and Naturalization Service current in17 formation relating to the use of torture in foreign coun18 tries.

19 SEC. 6. SPECIALIZED TRAINING FOR CONSULAR, IMMIGRA20 TION, AND ASYLUM PERSONNEL.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall pro22 vide training for immigration inspectors and examiners,

23 immigration officers, asylum officers, immigration judges,

24 and all other relevant officials of the Department of Jus-
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1 tice, and the Secretary of State shall provide training for

2 consular officers, with respect to—

3 (1) the identification of torture;

4 (2) the identification of the surrounding cir5 cumstances in which torture is most often practiced;

6 (3) the long-term effects of torture upon a vic7 tim;

8 (4) the identification of the physical, cognitive,

9 and emotional effects of torture, and the manner in

10 which these effects can affect the interview or hear11 ing process; and

12 (5) the manner of interviewing victims of tor13 ture so as not to retraumatize them, eliciting the

14 necessary information to document the torture expe15 rience, and understanding the difficulties victims

16 often have in recounting their torture experience.

17 (b) GENDER-RELATED CONSIDERATIONS.—In con18 ducting training under subsection (a) (4) or (5), gender19 specific training shall be provided on the subject of inter20 acting with women and men who are victims of torture

21 by rape or any other form of sexual violence.

22 SEC. 7. DOMESTIC TREATMENT CENTERS.

23 (a) AMENDMENT OF THE IMMIGRATION AND NA24 TIONALITY ACT.—Section 412 of the Immigration and
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1 Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1522) is amended by adding

2 at the end the following new subsection:

3 ‘‘(b) ASSISTANCE FOR TREATMENT OF TORTURE

4 VICTIMS.—The Secretary may provide grants to programs

5 in the United States to cover the cost of the following serv6 ices:

7 ‘‘(1) Services for the rehabilitation of victims of

8 torture, including treatment of the physical and psy9 chological effects of torture.

10 ‘‘(2) Social and legal services for victims of tor11 ture.

12 ‘‘(3) Research and training for health care pro13 viders outside of treatment centers, or programs for

14 the purpose of enabling such providers to provide

15 the services described in paragraph (1).’’.

16 (b) FUNDING.—

17 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Of

18 the amounts authorized to be appropriated for the

19 Department of Health and Human Services for fis20 cal years 1999, 2000, and 2001, but not from funds

21 made available to the Office of Refugee Resettle22 ment, there are authorized to be appropriated to

23 carry out section 412(g) of that Act (relating to as24 sistance for domestic centers and programs for the

25 treatment of victims of torture), as added by sub-
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1 section (a), the following amounts for the following

2 fiscal years:

3 (A) For fiscal year 1999, $5,000,000.

4 (B) For fiscal year 2000, $7,500,000.

5 (C) For fiscal year 2001, $9,000,000.

6 (2) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts appro7 priated pursuant to this subsection shall remain

8 available until expended.

9 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by

10 subsection (a) shall take effect on October 1, 1998.

11 SEC. 8. FOREIGN TREATMENT CENTERS.

12 (a) AMENDMENTS OF THE FOREIGN ASSISTANCE

13 ACT OF 1961.—Part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of

14 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) is amended by adding at

15 the end of chapter 1 the following new section:

16 ‘‘SEC. 129. ASSISTANCE FOR VICTIMS OF TORTURE.

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The President is authorized to

18 provide assistance for the rehabilitation of victims of tor19 ture.

20 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY FOR GRANTS.—Such assistance

21 shall be provided in the form of grants to treatment cen22 ters and programs in foreign countries that are carrying

23 out projects or activities specifically designed to treat vic24 tims of torture for the physical and psychological effects

25 of the torture.
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1 ‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—Such assistance shall be avail2 able—

3 ‘‘(1) for direct services to victims of torture;

4 and

5 ‘‘(2) to provide research and training to health

6 care providers outside of treatment centers or pro7 grams described in subsection (b), for the purpose of

8 enabling such providers to provide the services de9 scribed in paragraph (1).’’.

10 (b) FUNDING.—

11 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Of

12 the amounts authorized to be appropriated for fiscal

13 years 1999, 2000, and 2001 pursuant to chapter 1

14 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961,

15 there are authorized to be appropriated to the Presi16 dent $5,000,000 for fiscal year 1999, $7,500,000 for

17 fiscal year 2000, and $9,000,000 for fiscal year

18 2001 to carry out section 129 of the Foreign Assist19 ance Act, as added by subsection (a).

20 (2) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts appro21 priated pursuant to this subsection shall remain

22 available until expended.

23 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by

24 subsection (a) shall take effect on October 1, 1998.
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1 SEC. 9. MULTILATERAL ASSISTANCE.

2 (a) FUNDING.—Of the amounts authorized to be ap3 propriated for fiscal years 1999, 2000, and 2001 pursuant

4 to chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of

5 1961, there are authorized to be appropriated to the

6 United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture

7 (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Fund’’) the following

8 amounts for the following fiscal years:

9 (1) FISCAL YEAR 1999.—For fiscal year 1999,

10 $3,000,000.

11 (2) FISCAL YEAR 2000.—For fiscal year 2000,

12 $3,000,000.

13 (3) FISCAL YEAR 2001.—For fiscal year 2001,

14 $3,000,000.

15 (b) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts appro16 priated pursuant to subsection (a) shall remain available

17 until expended.

18 (c) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con19 gress that the President, acting through the United States

20 Permanent Representative to the United Nations,

21 should—

22 (1) request the Fund—

23 (A) to find new ways to support and pro24 tect treatment centers and programs that are

25 carrying out rehabilitative services for victims

26 of torture; and
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1 (B) to encourage the development of new

2 such centers and programs;

3 (2) use the voice and vote of the United States

4 to support the work of the Special Rapporteur on

5 Torture and the Committee Against Torture estab6 lished under the Convention Against Torture and

7 Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or

8 Punishment; and

9 (3) use the voice and vote of the United States

10 to establish a country rapporteur or similar proce11 dural mechanism to investigate human rights viola12 tions in a country if either the Special Rapporteur

13 or the Committee Against Torture indicates that a

14 systematic practice of torture is prevalent in that

15 country.

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