IV 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 261 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States 
should work with the Government of Nepal to ensure that the unique 
needs, vulnerabilities, and capacities of women and girls are considered 
and addressed in efforts to provide humanitarian relief and assistance 
in reconstruction in the aftermath of the April 25, 2015, earthquake. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 13, 2015 
Mr. HONDA (for himself, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Ms. NORTON, Ms. 
SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, Ms. BORDALLO, Mr. 
MCGOVERN, Ms. LEE, Ms. PLASKETT, Mr. AL GREEN of Texas, Mr. TED 
LIEU of California, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California, 
Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. POLIS, Mr. FARR, Mr. RANGEL, and Mr. GRAYSON) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 
the United States should work with the Government 
of Nepal to ensure that the unique needs, vulnerabilities, 
and capacities of women and girls are considered and 
addressed in efforts to provide humanitarian relief and 
assistance in reconstruction in the aftermath of the April 
25, 2015, earthquake. 
Whereas a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck the country of 
Nepal on April 25, 2015; 
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•HRES 261 IH 
Whereas millions of Nepali citizens have been displaced and 
reside in temporary shelters and the earthquake has af-
fected an estimated 126,000 pregnant women; 
Whereas women and girls are disproportionately impacted by 
natural disasters and that displacement settings exacer-
bate preexisting inequalities, render women and girls even 
more vulnerable, and create greater barriers in their abil-
ity to benefit from relief, recovery, and long-term recon-
struction and development efforts; 
Whereas humanitarian response in previous emergencies has 
shown that gender-based violence (GBV)—particularly 
sexual violence—increases in the immediate aftermath of 
an emergency, in addition to sexual exploitation and 
abuse, human trafficking, forced prostitution, and forced 
marriage, and must therefore be prioritized at the onset 
of the response; 
Whereas the United Nations and other humanitarian re-
sponse organizations have reported inequitable distribu-
tion of assistance to displaced populations based on iden-
tity factors including gender; 
Whereas the United Nations and other humanitarian re-
sponse organizations have reported a lack of sanitary 
pads and clothing for women and girls across the affected 
districts and indicated the need for dedicated spaces for 
women in internal displacement camps to provide protec-
tion and special services including psychosocial support; 
Whereas the United Nations Office for the Coordination of 
Humanitarian Affairs reported that the Government of 
Nepal’s Central Child Welfare Board has received reports 
of sexual and other GBV cases in the Kathmandu camps; 
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•HRES 261 IH 
Whereas the Government of Nepal has made significant ef-
forts to combat violence against women such as the intro-
duction of the Domestic Violence Act and National Strat-
egy and Plan of Action on violence against women; 
Whereas the Interim Constitution of Nepal (2007) prohibits 
physical, mental, or any other form of violence against 
women and declares that such acts shall be punishable by 
law and the Gender Equality Act of 2006 established sex-
ual violence as a crime punishable by varying years of im-
prisonment, depending on the age of the victim; 
Whereas evidence demonstrates that empowering women 
through post-disaster reconstruction can benefit recovery 
outcomes and increase women’s social, economic, and po-
litical rights; 
Whereas girls’ educational opportunities in emergencies are 
more limited than boys’ and ensuring that girls are able 
to continue their education in post-disaster and displace-
ment settings is vital to economic recovery and recon-
struction; 
Whereas the United Nations and donor countries, including 
the United States will continue to play a significant role 
in post-earthquake stabilization and reconstruction of 
Nepal; 
Whereas the United States Agency for International Develop-
ment (USAID) has prioritized the prevention of and re-
sponse to GBV in its work across all sectors and as an 
explicit goal of the USAID Gender Equality and Female 
Empowerment Policy; 
Whereas USAID and the United States Department of State 
have been directed by Executive orders of the President 
to implement an interagency United States Strategy to 
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•HRES 261 IH 
Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence Globally 
and a National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Secu-
rity; and 
Whereas it is the policy of the United States to implement 
the Safe from the Start initiative to prevent and respond 
to GBV in humanitarian emergencies worldwide to reduce 
the incidence of GBV by ensuring quality services for 
survivors from the very onset of emergencies through 
timely and effective humanitarian action: Now, therefore, 
be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) expresses deep sympathy to the people of 
Nepal for the terrible loss of life, displacement, and 
massive destruction as a result of the earthquake; 
(2) expresses solidarity with the people of Nepal 
and continued commitment to provide essential as-
sistance to help Nepal recover from this tragedy; 
(3) expresses continuing support for relief and 
reconstruction assistance provided by relief agencies 
and the international community; 
(4) urges the treatment of the issues of gender 
equality, female empowerment, and preventing and 
addressing gender-based violence (GBV) against 
women and children as a priority for the United 
States Government’s humanitarian relief and recov-
ery efforts in Nepal; 
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•HRES 261 IH 
(5) recognizes the commitment of the United 
States Government to the promotion of local solu-
tions and building the capacity of grassroots organi-
zations, particularly those led by women and other 
marginalized groups, through activities including the 
meaningful participation of women and girls in 
needs assessments, program design and implementa-
tion, and monitoring and evaluation; 
(6) recognizes that GBV is a human rights vio-
lation that must be effectively addressed; 
(7) affirms that prioritizing safe educational 
and economic opportunities for Nepali women and 
young and adolescent girls that enable them to lift 
themselves and their families out of poverty is a 
cost-effective way to help reduce GBV; 
(8) 
recognizes 
the 
absolute 
necessity 
of 
prioritizing the protection and empowerment of 
women, young children, and adolescents in the post- 
disaster setting through efforts of the United States 
Government, relief agencies, and the international 
community; 
(9) recognizes the urgent opportunity to fully 
and effectively implement the interagency Safe from 
the Start program and the policies that inform it, 
including the United States Agency for International 
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•HRES 261 IH 
Development (USAID) Gender Equality and Female 
Empowerment Policy, United States Strategy to 
Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence 
Globally, and National Action Plan on Women, 
Peace, and Security; 
(10) urges implicated United States agencies to 
fund and implement programs that are consistent 
with the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Guide-
lines on Gender-Based Violence in Humanitarian 
Settings and build on best practices and lessons 
learned in implementation of Safe from the Start 
and related protection; and 
(11) affirms a deep commitment to the pro-
motion of gender equality and the empowerment of 
women and girls through United States-led post-dis-
aster recovery and reconstruction activities to pro-
mote equitable economic recovery and the realization 
of social, economic, and political rights. 
Æ 
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