Women and Children in Conflict Protection Act of 2003

Bill: 108-s-1001
Sponsor: Sen. Biden, Joseph R., Jr. [D-DE]
Introduced: 2003-05-06 in the Senate
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: AIDS (Disease)
Agriculture and Food
Alien labor
Armed Forces and National Security
Boundaries
Business education
Charities
Child abuse
Child health
Child labor
Child nutrition
Child safety
Child sexual abuse
Children's rights
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Civil-military relations
Commerce
Compensatory education
Congress
Congress and foreign policy
Congressional reporting requirements
Counseling
Credit
Credit unions
Crime and Law Enforcement
Crimes against women
Criminal investigation
Criminal justice information
Curricula
Data banks
Democracy
Department of State
Development credit institutions
Directories
Disaster relief
Disasters
Disciplining of employees
Dismissal of employees
Displaced persons
Economic assistance
Economic development
Economics and Public Finance
Education
Elementary and secondary education
Elementary education
Embassies
Emergency Management
Emergency medicine
Employee crimes
Employee selection
Employee training
Entrepreneurs
Ethics
Executive reorganization
Families
Family services
Famines
Finance and Financial Sector
Financial services
Food relief
Forced labor
Foreign Trade and International Finance
Foreign loans
Foreign service
Government Operations and Politics
Government paperwork
Government publicity
Health
Human immunodeficiency viruses
Human rights
Immigration
Infant mortality
Informers
Infrastructure
International employees
International military forces
International relief
Kidnapping
Labor and Employment
Law
Legal education
Legal services
Licenses
Lighting
Maternal health services
Mental health services
Military education
Military personnel
Military training
Nongovernmental organizations
Obstetrics
Orphans
Peacekeeping forces
Personnel records
Photography
Police
Police training
Police-community relations
Political persecution
Prosecution
Prostitution
Public corruption
Rape
Recruiting and enlistment
Refugees
Right of privacy
Saving and investment
Science, Technology, Communications
Secondary education
Security measures
Sex
Sex crimes
Slavery
Small business
Social Welfare
Technical education
Torture
Trauma care
U.S. Agency for International Development
United Nations
United Nations structure
Victims of crimes
Violence
Vocational and technical education
Wages
War crimes
War relief
Water Resources Development
Water supply
Whistle blowing
Women
Women in business
Women in public life
Women soldiers
Women's education
Women's employment
Women's health
Women's organizations
Women's rights

Summary:
action_date: 2003-05-06
text: 
Women and Children in Conflict Protection Act of 2003 - Directs the Secretary of State to: (1) develop a strategy for the protection of women and children who are affected by a complex humanitarian emergency (a situation occurring outside the United States and caused by armed conflict, natural disaster, food shortage, or state-sponsored harassment or persecution, which results in a significant number of refugees, internally displaced persons, or other civilians requiring urgent basic humanitarian assistance) (emergency); and (2) designate coordinators to implement such strategy.
 
Requires such coordinators to: (1) maintain and disseminate a database of information on gender-based violence or exploitation of children during an emergency; (2) assist embassies and consular posts in responding to such risks; and (3) establish a gender-based violence or exploitation reporting and monitoring system for U.S. diplomatic missions and consular posts.
 
Prohibits any State Department refugee or migration assistance from being provided to an organization that has failed to adopt a code of conduct regarding the protection of beneficiaries of humanitarian assistance that incorporates six core principles (established herein) against sexual exploitation and abuse as recommended by the Inter-Agency Standing Committee. Requests all national, multilateral, and nongovernmental agencies to review and revise their administrative, management, and employment practices in refugee and displaced persons camps.
 
Requires each coordinator to: (1) ensure that U.S.-funded organizations that respond to an emergency have the necessary resources to address the specific health needs of women affected by the emergency; and (2) identify an organization or individual to facilitate the coordination and implementation of such activities.
 
Directs the Secretary to urge the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to work with nongovernmental organizations to design and implement a model whistleblower system under which humanitarian workers, refugees, and internally displaced persons can report instances of gender-based violence or exploitation of children.
 
Requires: (1) the State Department to work with certain entities to ensure that, in situations of long-term displacement, refugees and internally displaced persons are granted work permits and other documentation to enable them to generate legitimate income; and (2) a report from the Secretary on the development of protection initiatives for the prevention of gender-based violence and exploitation of children.
 
Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop and implement programs to assist communities that have been affected by an emergency and former combatants (women or children affiliated with an armed group); and (2) report on all current programs to assist nations to reconstitute civilian police authority and capability following an emergency.
 
Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the President to provide assistance to promote the security of, provide equal access to basic services for, and safeguard the human rights and dignity of civilian women and children who are refugees, displaced persons, or inhabitants of areas affected by an emergency. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2003-05-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. (text of measure as introduced: CR S5780-5784)
action_date: 2003-05-06
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S5779-5780)
action_date: 2003-05-06
text: Introduced in Senate