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[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 713 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 713

    To prevent international violence against women, and for other 
                               purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 11, 2015

Mrs. Boxer (for herself, Mr. Menendez, Ms. Collins, Mr. Kirk, and Mrs. 
   Shaheen) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
    To prevent international violence against women, and for other 
                               purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``International 
Violence Against Women Act of 2015''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Statement of policy.
                TITLE I--STRATEGY, POLICY, AND PROGRAMS

Sec. 101. United States strategy to prevent and respond to gender-based 
                            violence globally.
Sec. 102. Implementation of the United States strategy to prevent and 
                            respond to gender-based violence globally.
Sec. 103. Monitoring the United States strategy to prevent and respond 
                            to gender-based violence globally.
                 TITLE II--OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY

Sec. 201. Office of Global Women's Issues.
Sec. 202. Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women's 
                            Empowerment.
Sec. 203. Briefing.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) An estimated 1 out of every 3 women throughout the 
        world will be beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused in 
        her lifetime.
            (2) Up to 70 percent of women in some countries report 
        experiencing gender-based violence at some point in their 
        lives.
            (3) Intimate partner violence is the most prevalent form of 
        violence against women, preventing them from playing more 
        active roles in the social, economic, and political development 
        of their communities.
            (4) Sexual violence among adolescents and pre-adolescents 
        is alarmingly high. National surveys in Swaziland, Tanzania, 
        Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Haiti have found that 28 to 38 percent of 
        girls and 9 to 18 percent of boys report experiencing sexual 
        violence before the age of 18.
            (5) Adult male respondents in 6 countries who had 
        experienced violence as children were significantly more likely 
        to report perpetrating intimate partner violence themselves 
        according to the International Men and Gender Equality Survey 
        dataset.
            (6) Gender-based violence (GBV) harms economies and the 
        workers that fuel them. Despite underreporting, striking 
        statistics document prevalent forms of GBV globally that affect 
        the world of work. Worldwide, women are concentrated in low-
        wage, insecure jobs in workplaces where they lack bargaining 
        power, protections against gender-based violence, safe and 
        confidential reporting systems, recourse to justice, or access 
        to legal, medical, and psychosocial services. Conservative 
        estimates of lost productivity as a result of gender-based 
        violence range from 1.2 percent of GDP in Brazil and Tanzania 
        to 2 percent of GDP in Chile.
            (7) Women living in poverty are particularly vulnerable to 
        gender-based violence. Lack of economic opportunities often 
        compels women to use desperate and dangerous means to provide 
        for themselves and their families, risking significant exposure 
        to sexual exploitation and abuse. These women often cannot 
        afford critical social and medical services.
            (8) Research conducted in India, Colombia, South Africa, 
        and Uganda indicates that when women have greater control of 
        assets, they are less likely to experience intimate partner 
        violence. Additionally, when women participate in the economy, 
        they are able to develop a wider support network, which allows 
        them to more easily escape intimate partner violence.
            (9) Gender-based violence impacts livelihoods and food 
        security by reducing work capacity and productivity, including 
        the ability to grow food for consumption. Studies have shown 
        that women affected by gender-based violence are exposed to 
        illnesses and injuries that hamper their ability to work 
        productively and care for their families. Diminished food 
        production consequently increases hunger and women's 
        vulnerability to further violence.
            (10) Country studies indicate that the risk of HIV among 
        women who have experienced violence may be up to 3 times higher 
        than among those who have not. The World Health Organization 
        found that women who experience intimate partner violence are 
        at over 50-percent greater risk of HIV infection, and in some 
        instances their risk increases four-fold. Women living with HIV 
        are more likely to experience violence than other women, and 
        fear of violence can prevent women from accessing HIV/AIDS 
        information and receiving treatment and counseling.
            (11) Addressing gender norms and inequities is essential to 
        reducing HIV risk and increasing access to HIV prevention, care 
        and treatment services for women and men. The President's 
        Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) supports significant 
        work in the field to incorporate efforts to prevent and respond 
        to gender-based violence into existing HIV treatment and 
        prevention programs. In fiscal year 2012, PEPFAR investments 
        reached 720,000 people in 11 countries with services or 
        interventions that explicitly addressed gender-based violence 
        and coercion.
            (12) Prevalence of sexual violence is higher among persons 
        with disabilities, particularly for adolescents and intimate 
        partners with disabilities, and for men and women with 
        intellectual impairments living in institutions. The World 
        Health Organization reports that rates of gender-based violence 
        are 4 to 10 times greater among persons with disabilities than 
        non-disabled persons.
            (13) Displaced, refugee, and stateless women and girls in 
        humanitarian emergencies, conflict settings, and natural 
        disasters face extreme violence and threats, including--
                    (A) being forced to exchange sex for food and 
                humanitarian supplies; and
                    (B) being at increased risk of rape, sexual 
                exploitation, and abuse.
            (14) Rape and sexual assault against women and girls are 
        used to torture, intimidate, and terrorize communities. Rape 
        and sexual assault are used as tools of war in conflict zones, 
        including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, Syria, 
        Afghanistan, Colombia, and South Sudan. A 2011 study found that 
        48 women were raped every hour in the Democratic Republic of 
        Congo.
            (15) Early and forced marriage of girls--
                    (A) is a harmful practice that deprives girls of 
                their dignity and rights and creates barriers to 
                development for communities and countries;
                    (B) is projected to affect more than 140,000,000 
                girls who will become brides between 2011 and 2020;
                    (C) can prematurely end girls' education, increase 
                vulnerability to gender-based violence, and 
                significantly raise the risk of maternal and infant 
                morbidity or mortality, including the risk of obstetric 
                fistula and sexually transmitted diseases, including 
                HIV/AIDS; and
                    (D) is perpetuated by poverty, a lack of 
                educational or employment opportunities for girls, and 
                religious, cultural, and social factors related to 
                girls' perceived lack of value, factors which become 
                particularly acute in conflict and disaster settings 
                where fears of sexual violence often drive early, 
                child, and forced marriage.
            (16) Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is carried 
        out most often on girls between infancy and age 15 and has 
        impacted more than 125,000,000 girls and women alive today. 
        FGM/C can cause long-term health problems, including 
        infertility, complications in childbirth, and increased risk of 
        newborn deaths.
            (17) World Bank data shows that gender inequality directly 
        corresponds to increased levels of political and economic 
        instability within states. Gender-based violence impedes 
        women's meaningful participation in social, political, and 
        economic spheres, which is essential to the stability and 
        democratization of a country. Since women disproportionately 
        experience gender-based violence during conflict and post-
        conflict reconstruction, they can play a pivotal role in 
        preventing, mitigating, and resolving conflict, and countering 
        extremism, evidenced in contexts including Northern Ireland and 
        Liberia.
            (18) Gender-based violence is a contributing factor to 
        human trafficking. Experts in the field have reported that 
        women and girls who have experienced gender-based violence and 
        live in societies that tolerate severe gender discrimination 
        appear to be more vulnerable to being trafficked. Comprehensive 
        efforts to reduce human trafficking must include efforts to 
        prevent and respond to gender-based violence due to the 
        intertwined relationship of the two crimes.
            (19) Faith-based organizations and faith leaders have an 
        important role to play in the ongoing efforts to prevent and 
        respond to gender-based violence. Where engaged as genuine 
        partners and equipped with knowledge and resources, they can 
        yield great gains. In countries that lack effective legal 
        frameworks to address gender-based violence, they have the 
        standing and authority to address harmful practices such as 
        acid throwing.

SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    It is the policy of the United States--
            (1) to take effective action to prevent and respond to 
        violence against women and girls around the world, as a matter 
        of basic human rights as well as to promote gender equality, 
        economic growth, and improved public health;
            (2) to systematically integrate and coordinate efforts to 
        prevent and respond to violence against women and girls 
        internationally into United States foreign policy and foreign 
        assistance programs, including peace-building efforts and 
        humanitarian relief and recovery;
            (3) to support and build local capacity in developing 
        countries, including of governments at all levels and 
        nongovernmental organizations, especially women-led 
        organizations, to prevent and respond to violence against women 
        and girls;
            (4) to consult, cooperate, coordinate, and collaborate with 
        a wide variety of nongovernmental partners with demonstrated 
        experience in preventing and responding to violence against 
        women and girls, including faith-based organizations and women-
        led organizations;
            (5) to employ a multisectoral approach to preventing and 
        responding to violence against women and girls internationally, 
        including activities in the economic, education, health, 
        nutrition, legal, and judicial sectors;
            (6) to work at all levels, from the individual to the 
        family, community, local, national and international levels, to 
        prevent and respond to violence against women and girls around 
        the globe;
            (7) to enhance training by United States personnel of 
        professional foreign military and police forces and judicial 
        officials to include specific and thorough instruction on 
        preventing and responding to violence against women and girls 
        around the world;
            (8) to engage men and boys as partners, as an essential 
        element of making sustained reductions in violence against 
        women and girls;
            (9) to include the prevention of early and forced marriage 
        as an important part of United States Government efforts to 
        prevent violence against girls and promote gender equality and 
        global health;
            (10) to require that all United States contractors and 
        grantees establish appropriate policies and take effective 
        measures to prevent violence against women and girls and sexual 
        exploitation and abuse within their workforce;
            (11) to exert sustained international leadership to prevent 
        and respond to violence against women and girls, including in 
        bilateral and multilateral fora;
            (12) to implement the United States Strategy to Prevent and 
        Respond to Gender-based Violence Globally; and
            (13) to implement the United States National Action Plan on 
        Women, Peace and Security.

                TITLE I--STRATEGY, POLICY, AND PROGRAMS

SEC. 101. UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO PREVENT AND RESPOND TO GENDER-BASED 
              VIOLENCE GLOBALLY.

    (a) Global Strategy Requirement.--Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for 5 years, 
the Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues at the Department of 
State appointed pursuant to section 201, in consultation with the 
Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment at the 
United States Agency for International Development established under 
section 202, shall develop or update a United States global strategy to 
prevent and respond to violence against women and girls. The strategy 
shall be transmitted to the appropriate congressional committees and 
made publicly available on the Internet.
    (b) Initial Strategy.--For the purposes of this section, the 
``United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based 
Violence Globally'', issued in August 2012, shall be deemed to fulfill 
the initial requirement of subsection (a).
    (c) Implementation Plan.--Not later than 60 days after submission 
of the strategy under subsection (a), the Ambassador-at-Large, in 
consultation with the Senior Coordinator, shall submit to the 
appropriate congressional committees an implementation plan detailing 
how the strategy will be implemented in the upcoming 5 fiscal years, 
including the budget resources requested, and the specific activities 
to be supported, by each Executive agency under the strategy.
    (d) Collaboration and Coordination.--In developing the strategy 
under subsection (a), the Ambassador-at-Large and Senior Coordinator 
shall consult with--
            (1) the heads of relevant Federal agencies;
            (2) the Senior Policy Operating Group on Trafficking in 
        Persons; and
            (3) representatives of civil society and multi-lateral 
        organizations with demonstrated experience in addressing 
        violence against women and girls or promoting gender equality 
        internationally.
    (e) Content.--The implementation plan required under subsection (c) 
shall--
            (1) identify eligible low-income and lower-middle income 
        countries with significant levels of violence against women and 
        girls, including within displaced communities, that have the 
        governmental or nongovernmental organizational capacity to 
        manage and implement gender-based violence prevention and 
        response program activities and should, when possible, be 
        geographically, ethnically, and culturally diverse from one 
        another;
            (2) select 5 to 20 of the eligible countries identified 
        under paragraph (1) in which to develop comprehensive and 
        holistic individual country plans that incorporate at least two 
        of the program activities listed in section 102(b);
            (3) assess and describe the current or potential capacity 
        of the government of each eligible country selected under 
        paragraph (2) and civil society organizations in each such 
        eligible country to address and respond to violence against 
        women and girls;
            (4) identify coordination mechanisms with Federal agencies 
        that--
                    (A) have existing programs relevant to the 
                strategy;
                    (B) will be involved in new program activities; and
                    (C) are engaged in broader United States strategies 
                around development;
            (5) describe the monitoring and evaluation mechanisms 
        established for each eligible country, and their intended use 
        in assessing overall progress in prevention and response;
            (6) project general levels of resources needed to achieve 
        the stated objectives in each eligible country, including an 
        accounting of--
                    (A) activities and funding already expended by the 
                Department of State, the United States Agency for 
                International Development, other Federal agencies, 
                donor country governments, and multilateral 
                institutions; and
                    (B) leveraged private sector resources;
            (7) integrate gender analysis into the strategy for each 
        country; and
            (8) include, as appropriate, strategies designed to 
        accommodate the needs of stateless, disabled, internally 
        displaced, refugee, or religious or ethnic minority women and 
        girls.

SEC. 102. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO PREVENT AND 
              RESPOND TO GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE GLOBALLY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of State and the Administrator of 
the United States Agency for International Development are authorized 
to provide assistance to prevent and respond to violence against women 
and girls internationally.
    (b) Program Activities Supported.--Assistance provided to each 
country selected under subsection 101(e)(2) should include at least two 
of the following activities:
            (1) Development and implementation of programs that work to 
        change social norms and attitudes so that violence against 
        women and girls is neither condoned nor tolerated.
            (2) Promotion of accessible quality educational, learning, 
        and literacy opportunities for women and girls.
            (3) Promotion of access to economic opportunities, 
        including by increasing distribution, credit, property, and 
        inheritance rights for women and girls.
            (4) Development and enforcement of civil and criminal legal 
        and judicial sanctions, protections, trainings, and capacity.
            (5) Enhancement of the health sector capacity to detect, 
        prevent, and respond to violence against women and girls.
    (c) Building Local Capacity.--Not less than 10 percent of the 
amount of assistance provided to an eligible country under this section 
should be provided to community-based nongovernmental or faith-based 
organizations, with priority given to nongovernmental organizations led 
by women.

SEC. 103. MONITORING THE UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO PREVENT AND RESPOND 
              TO GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE GLOBALLY.

    (a) In General.--In each strategy submitted under section 101(a), 
the Ambassador-at-Large and Senior Coordinator shall include an 
analysis of best practices for preventing and addressing violence 
against women and girls internationally, which shall include--
            (1) a description of successful efforts by foreign 
        governments, multilateral institutions, nongovernmental 
        organizations, educational organizations, and faith-based 
        organizations in preventing and responding to violence against 
        women and girls;
            (2) recommendations related to best practices, effective 
        strategies, and improvements to enhance the impact of 
        prevention and response efforts; and
            (3) the impact of activities funded by the strategy in 
        preventing and reducing violence against women and girls 
        internationally.
    (b) Amendments.--The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 is amended--
            (1) in section 116(d) (22 U.S.C. 2151n(d))--
                    (A) in paragraph (11)(C), by striking ``and'' at 
                the end;
                    (B) in paragraph (12)(C)(ii), by striking the 
                period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(13) wherever applicable, the nature and extent of 
        violence against women and girls.''; and
            (2) in section 502B (22 U.S.C. 2304)--
                    (A) by redesignating the second subsection 
                designated as subsection (i) as subsection (j); and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                subsection:
    ``(k) Inclusion of Information Relating to Violence Against Women 
and Girls.--The report required by subsection (b) shall include, 
wherever applicable, the nature and extent of violence against women 
and girls.''.
    (c) Monitoring and Evaluation.--In coordination with relevant 
officials, and consistent with the monitoring and evaluation policies 
of their respective agencies, the Ambassador-at-Large and the Senior 
Coordinator shall develop a plan for monitoring and independent 
evaluation of programs, projects, and activities carried out under this 
Act. The plan shall--
            (1) apply rigorous monitoring and evaluation methodologies 
        to focus on learning, accountability, and policymaking, 
        choosing from among a wide variety of qualitative, 
        quantitative, summative, and formative methods common in the 
        field of social scientific inquiry, including impact 
        evaluations; and
            (2) be included in the implementation plan required under 
        section 101(c).
    (d) Research and Data Collection.--The Secretary and the 
Administrator shall--
            (1) produce original research or analysis of effective 
        interventions to prevent or respond to violence against women 
        and girls internationally;
            (2) collect and analyze new or existing data on the scope 
        and extent of all forms of violence against women and girls 
        internationally, including under documented forms of violence 
        and violence against marginalized groups;
            (3) conduct research on effective interventions to respond 
        to violence against women and girls internationally, including 
        efforts to scale up effective programming; and
            (4) support systemic data collection using internationally 
        comparable indicators, norms, and methodologies for measuring 
        the scope, prevalence, and incidence of violence against women 
        and girls internationally.

                 TITLE II--OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY

SEC. 201. OFFICE OF GLOBAL WOMEN'S ISSUES.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of State shall establish in the 
Office of the Secretary of the Department of State an Office of Global 
Women's Issues (in this section referred to as the ``Office''). The 
Office shall be headed by an Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's 
Issues, who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice 
and consent of the Senate. The Ambassador-at-Large shall report 
directly to the Secretary and shall have the rank and status of 
Ambassador-at-Large.
    (b) Purpose.--In addition to the duties described in subsection (c) 
and those duties determined by the Secretary of State, the Ambassador-
at-Large shall coordinate efforts of the United States Government as 
directed by the Secretary regarding gender integration and advancing 
the status of women and girls in United States foreign policy.
    (c) Duties.--
            (1) In general.--The Ambassador-at-Large--
                    (A) shall direct activities, policies, programs, 
                and funding relating to gender equality and the 
                advancement of women and girls internationally, 
                including those intended to prevent and respond to 
                violence against women and girls, for all bureaus and 
                offices of the Department of State and in the 
                international programs of all other Federal agencies;
                    (B) shall actively promote and advance the full 
                integration of gender analysis into the programs, 
                structures, processes, and capacities of all bureaus 
                and offices of the Department of State and in the 
                international programs of other Federal agencies;
                    (C) shall direct, as appropriate, United States 
                Government resources to respond to needs for gender 
                integration and empowerment of women in United States 
                Government foreign policies and international programs, 
                including to prevent and respond to violence against 
                women and girls internationally;
                    (D) may design, support, and implement activities 
                regarding empowerment of women internationally, 
                including for the prevention of and response to 
                violence against women and girls internationally;
                    (E) shall conduct regular consultation with civil 
                society organizations working to prevent and respond to 
                violence against women and girls internationally;
                    (F) shall ensure that programs, projects, and 
                activities designed to prevent and respond to violence 
                against women and girls internationally are subject to 
                rigorous monitoring and evaluation, and that there is a 
                uniform set of indicators and standards for such 
                monitoring and evaluation that is used across all 
                Federal agencies;
                    (G) shall serve as the principal advisor to the 
                Secretary of State regarding gender equality, women's 
                empowerment, and violence against women and girls as a 
                foreign policy matter; and
                    (H) is authorized to represent the United States in 
                diplomatic and multilateral fora on matters relevant to 
                the status of women and girls, including violence 
                against women and girls internationally.
            (2) Information sharing and transparency.--The Office shall 
        be the central repository of data on all United States 
        programs, projects, and activities that relate to prevention 
        and response to violence against women and girls, and shall 
        produce a full accounting of United States Government spending 
        on such programs, projects, and activities.

SEC. 202. SENIOR COORDINATOR FOR GENDER EQUALITY AND WOMEN'S 
              EMPOWERMENT.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established in the United States 
Agency for International Development a Senior Coordinator for Gender 
Equality and Women's Empowerment, who shall report to the Administrator 
of the United States Agency for International Development and who shall 
conduct the activities of the Administrator under this Act.
    (b) In General.--The Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and 
Women's Empowerment--
            (1) shall direct activities, policies, programs, and 
        funding of the United States Agency for International 
        Development relating to gender equality and women's 
        empowerment, including those intended to prevent and respond to 
        violence against women and girls;
            (2) shall actively promote and advance the full integration 
        of gender analysis into the programs, structures, processes, 
        and capacities of all bureaus and offices of the Agency as 
        dictated by the United States Agency for International 
        Development Gender Equality and Female Empowerment Policy;
            (3) shall direct Agency resources for gender equality and 
        women's empowerment, including to prevent and respond to 
        violence against women and girls internationally;
            (4) may design, support, and implement activities led by 
        the Agency regarding gender equality and women's empowerment, 
        including for the prevention and response to violence against 
        women and girls internationally;
            (5) shall conduct regular consultation with civil society 
        organizations working to prevent and respond to violence 
        against women and girls internationally;
            (6) shall serve as the principal advisor to the 
        Administrator regarding gender equality, women's empowerment, 
        and violence against women and girls; and
            (7) shall track and analyze monitoring and evaluation data 
        and findings on international prevention and response programs 
        of the Agency, consistent with Agency-wide monitoring and 
        evaluation activities, and in order to assist in the 
        preparation of the comprehensive strategy developed under 
        section 101.

SEC. 203. BRIEFING.

    Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, and annually thereafter, the Ambassador-at-Large and Senior 
Coordinator shall brief the appropriate congressional committees on 
international violence against women and girls prevention and response 
strategies, programming, and associated outcomes, and shall submit to 
the appropriate congressional committees an assessment of human and 
financial resources necessary to fulfill the purposes and duties of 
this Act.
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