U.S. Policy Initiatives Related to Refugee Women Archive Site for State Department information prior to January 20, 2001. This site is not updated. U.S. Policy Initiatives Related to Refugee Women Fact sheet prepared by the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, March 1997. From Bosnia to Rwanda, from Tajikistan to Liberia, women have fled and continue to flee war and repression, often leaving behind fathers, husbands, sons, and brothers who are fighting or who are in jails or in cemeteries.
Refugee women are vulnerable to violence at every stage of their flight.
Sexual violence, including rape, is one of the most terrible dangers confronting refugee women. These women are often single-handedly responsible for the survival of their children even when their own survival is at stake. Protection Policies to protect and assist refugee women and the implementation of programs which incorporate these policies are major priorities in U.S. refugee policy. Women share the protection problems experienced by all refugees. The United States has long been a leading advocate for focusing attention on the special needs of refugee women.