I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5267 
To prevent international violence against women, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 26, 2019 
Ms. SCHAKOWSKY (for herself, Mr. ENGEL, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. MCGOVERN, 
Ms. SPEIER, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mrs. DEMINGS, Mr. LARSEN of Wash-
ington, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. PAYNE, Ms. MOORE, Ms. 
MENG, Ms. LEE
of California, Mr. DEUTCH, Ms. TITUS, Ms. 
VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. MOULTON, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. 
HASTINGS, Mr. RUSH, Ms. NORTON, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. 
RASKIN, Mr. CONNOLLY, Ms. BROWNLEY of California, Mr. POCAN, Mr. 
COOPER, Mr. SUOZZI, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of 
New York, Mr. RICHMOND, Ms. PINGREE, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. BLU-
MENAUER, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. CICILLINE, Ms. DEGETTE, 
Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Miss RICE of New York, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. SCHNEI-
DER, Mr. GOMEZ, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Ms. FRANKEL, Ms. HOULAHAN, 
Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mr. LUJA´N, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. DELBENE, 
Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. SOTO, Mr. KILMER, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. 
DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Mrs. BEATTY, Ms. JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. 
WELCH, Mr. TED LIEU of California, Mr. O’HALLERAN, Ms. KUSTER of 
New Hampshire, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. KIND, Mr. 
KRISHNAMOORTHI, Ms. WILD, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Mrs. HAYES, 
Mr. CLAY, Mr. FOSTER, Mr. COHEN, Mr. CASTEN of Illinois, Ms. 
CLARKE of New York, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. BEYER, Mr. SERRANO, Ms. 
WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. HUFFMAN, 
Mrs. LAWRENCE, Ms. FUDGE, Ms. LOFGREN, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mr. LEVIN 
of Michigan, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Mr. DAVID 
SCOTT of Georgia, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Ms. WEXTON, Ms. MUCARSEL-POW-
ELL, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Mr. BERA, Mr. YARMUTH, Mr. COX of 
California, Mr. MCEACHIN, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. 
COSTA, Mrs. LURIA, Mr. PAPPAS, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. 
EVANS, Mrs. BUSTOS, Mr. PASCRELL, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Mr. TONKO, 
Mr. MEEKS, Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Ms. HAALAND, Mr. CUELLAR, Mr. 
LYNCH, Mr. TRONE, Mr. MALINOWSKI, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. CA´RDENAS, 
Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Ms. OMAR, Ms. ADAMS, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Ms. 
JACKSON LEE, and Mr. CISNEROS) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
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A BILL 
To prevent international violence against women, and for 
other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘International Violence Against Women Act of 2019’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Findings. 
Sec. 3. Statement of policy. 
Sec. 4. Definitions. 
TITLE I—STRATEGY, POLICY, AND PROGRAMS 
Sec. 101. United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Vi-
olence Globally. 
Sec. 102. Implementation of the United States Strategy to Prevent and Re-
spond 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 and assessment. 
Sec. 204. Addressing violence against women and girls in humanitarian relief, 
peacekeeping, conflict, and postconflict settings. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) An estimated one out of every three women 
throughout the world will be beaten, coerced into 
sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime. 
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(2) Up to 70 percent of women in some coun-
tries report experiencing gender-based violence at 
some point in their lives. 
(3) Intimate partner violence is the most preva-
lent form of violence against women, preventing 
them from playing more active roles in the social, 
economic, and political development of their commu-
nities. 
(4) Sexual violence among adolescents and pre- 
adolescents is alarmingly high. National surveys in 
Swaziland, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Haiti 
have found that between 28 and 38 percent of girls 
and between 9 and 18 percent of boys report experi-
encing sexual violence before reaching 18 years of 
age. 
(5) Adult male respondents in six countries who 
had experienced violence as children were signifi-
cantly more likely to report perpetrating intimate 
partner violence themselves according to the Inter-
national Men and Gender Equality Survey dataset. 
Analysis by the International Center for Research on 
Women further shows that men who witnessed vio-
lence against their mothers are consistently and sig-
nificantly more likely to report perpetrating sexual 
violence. Further, sexually aggressive behaviors start 
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young for these men, and overlap significantly with 
other forms of physical violence. 
(6) Gender-based violence harms economies and 
the workers that fuel them. Despite under-reporting, 
striking statistics document prevalent forms of gen-
der-based violence 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, re-
course to justice, and access to legal, medical, and 
psychosocial services. 
(7) Women living in poverty are particularly 
vulnerable to gender-based violence. Lack of eco-
nomic opportunities often compel women to use des-
perate and dangerous means to provide for them-
selves 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. Addi-
tionally, when women participate in the economy, 
they are able to develop a wider support network, 
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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 af-
fected by gender-based violence are exposed to ill-
nesses 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 three times higher than among those 
who have not experienced violence. The World 
Health Organization found that women who experi-
ence intimate partner violence are at more than 50 
percent greater risk of HIV infection, and in some 
instances their risk of HIV infection increases four- 
fold. Women living with HIV are more likely to ex-
perience violence than other women, and fear of vio-
lence 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 
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to HIV prevention, care, and treatment services for 
women and men. 
(12) Prevalence of sexual and physical violence 
is higher among persons with disabilities, particu-
larly for adolescents and intimate partners with dis-
abilities, and for men and women with intellectual 
impairments living in institutions. The World Health 
Organization reports that rates of gender-based vio-
lence are between 4 and 10 times greater among 
persons with disabilities compared to non-disabled 
persons. 
(13) Displaced, refugee, and stateless women 
and girls in humanitarian emergencies, conflict set-
tings, 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 ter-
rorize communities. Rape and sexual assault are 
used as tools of war in conflict zones, including the 
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Syria, Af-
ghanistan, El Salvador, and South Sudan. UNFPA, 
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the United Nation’s reproductive health and rights 
agency, leads the Gender Based Violence Area of 
Responsibility, which is responsible for global coordi-
nation and collaboration on GBV prevention and re-
sponse in humanitarian settings and is a leading 
provider of post-rape care and other reproductive 
health services and commodities in humanitarian 
settings. 
(15) Child and forced marriage of girls— 
(A) is a harmful practice that deprives 
girls of their dignity and rights and creates bar-
riers to development for communities and coun-
tries; 
(B) is projected to affect more than 
150,000,000 girls who will become brides be-
tween 2019 and 2030; 
(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 dis-
eases, including HIV/AIDS; 
(D) is perpetuated by poverty, a lack of 
educational or employment opportunities for 
girls, a lack of legal policies and enforcement of 
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laws, 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 
and overstretched coping mechanisms often 
drive child and forced marriage; and 
(E) child marriage is estimated to con-
tribute, on average, to a loss in earnings of 
about nine percent for women who married 
early, which translates into a loss of about one 
percent in earnings for the entire labor force 
when factoring in all working adults. 
(16) Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/ 
C) is carried out most often on girls between infancy 
and 15 years of age and has impacted more than 
200,000,000 girls and women who are alive today. 
FGM/C can cause long-term health problems, includ-
ing infertility, complications in childbirth, increased 
risk of newborn deaths, and psychological trauma. 
Mental health is one of the least explored domains 
of impact of gender-based violence; indeed, self-harm 
and suicide is the leading cause of death globally for 
adolescent girls aged 15–19. 
(17) World Bank data shows that gender in-
equality directly corresponds to increased levels of 
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political and economic instability within states. Gen-
der-based violence impedes women’s meaningful par-
ticipation in social, political, and economic spheres, 
which is essential to the stability and democratiza-
tion 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. 
(18) Gender-based violence is a contributing 
factor to human trafficking. Experts in the field 
have reported that women and girls who have experi-
enced 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 ef-
forts to prevent and respond to gender-based vio-
lence due to the intertwined relationship of the two 
crimes. 
(19) Health services are among the first places 
survivors of violence seek assistance. Health-focused 
nongovernmental organizations and United Nations 
agencies like UNFPA, the Reproductive Health and 
Rights Agency, have critical opportunities to reach 
affected women and girls. 
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(20) Gender-based violence also manifests on-
line; gender-based cyberviolence is a growing con-
cern, with women and girls disproportionately af-
fected and targeted based on their appearance, activ-
ism, and sexuality. 
(21) Taking meaningful action to address gen-
der-based violence is an imperative acknowledgment 
of a woman’s agency and personal right to leading 
a dignified life. 
(22) 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. 
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 
It is the policy of the United States— 
(1) to take effective action to prevent and re-
spond to violence against women and girls around 
the world as a matter of basic human rights and to 
promote gender equality, economic growth, and im-
proved 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, in-
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cluding peace-building efforts and humanitarian re-
lief and recovery; 
(3) to support and build local capacity in devel-
oping countries, including the capacity of govern-
ments at all levels and nongovernmental organiza-
tions, especially women-led organizations to prevent 
and respond to violence against women and girls; 
(4) to consult, cooperate, coordinate, and col-
laborate 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 pre-
venting and responding to violence against women 
and girls internationally, including activities in the 
economic, education, health, nutrition, legal, and ju-
dicial sectors; 
(6) to work at all levels, from the individual to 
the family, community, local, national, and inter-
national levels, to prevent and respond to violence 
against women and girls around the world; 
(7) to enhance training by United States per-
sonnel of professional foreign military and police 
forces and judicial officials, including specific and 
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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 child 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 contrac-
tors 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; 
and 
(12) to implement the United States Strategy 
to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence 
Globally. 
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
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