110th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 147
To empower women in Afghanistan, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 4, 2007
Mrs. BOXER (for herself, Mr. BIDEN, and Mr. DODD) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
A BILL
To empower women in Afghanistan, 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.
This Act may be cited as the `Afghan Women Empowerment Act of 2007'.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Under the oppressive rule of the Taliban, the women of Afghanistan
were denied the most basic human rights and fundamental freedoms, including
the rights to life, work, education, health care, movement, expression,
and religion.
(2) Many women who attempted to assert their rights under the Taliban
regime were subjected to beatings and imprisonments, and many suffer from
the long-term consequences of such oppression.
(3) Women in Afghanistan have one of the highest maternal mortality rates
in the world, with an estimated 1,600 deaths per every 100,000 live births.
(4) Despite efforts by the United States Government and the international
community to improve the lives of women and girls in Afghanistan, many
women and girls continue to lack access to basic services, including health
care and education. Approximately 80 percent of Afghan women are illiterate.
(5) Today, women and girls in Afghanistan still face oppression resulting
from violence and intimidation by the Taliban, other religious extremists,
and militia groups within their communities. In recent months, there has
been a significant increase in the number of attacks against girls' schools
in an attempt to prevent women and girls from regaining their rights and
freedoms.
(6) According to the United States Commission on International Religious
Freedom, the absence of clear protections for the right to freedom of
religion or belief for individual Afghan citizens has resulted in a growing
number of criminal prosecutions and other official actions against individuals,
including women, for exercising their basic rights.
(7) The strengthening of institutions and other actors, such as nongovernmental
organizations, in Afghanistan is essential to building a civil society
and holding the Government of Afghanistan to its international obligations
under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and other
international instruments to protect and ensure the rights of women.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON WOMEN'S RIGHTS IN AFGHANISTAN.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the protection of the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan and
their full participation in the reestablishment of democracy is essential
to the reconstruction of a stable and democratic Afghanistan, and to achieve
such a reconstruction, the United States Government must continue to commit
resources to advance the rights of women throughout Afghanistan;
(2) the United States Government should provide strong support for the
Afghan Ministry of Women's Affairs and the Afghan Independent Human Rights
Commission, both of which were created by the Agreement on Provisional
Agreements in Afghanistan Pending the Establishment of Permanent Governing
Institutions, done in Bonn, December 5, 2001 (commonly known as the `Bonn
Agreement') to remedy past violations of women's rights and human rights
and to establish institutions and programs to ensure policies that advance
such rights;
(3) the United States Government should make it a priority to provide
assistance to Afghan-led nongovernmental organizations, particularly Afghan
women-led nonprofit organizations; and
(4) grants and assistance to Afghanistan should be conditioned upon the
Government of Afghanistan adhering to international standards for women's
rights and human rights, including the internationally recognized right
to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief.
SEC. 4. ASSISTANCE TO WOMEN AND GIRLS.
Section 103(a)(7) of the Afghan Freedom Support Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 7513(a)(7))
is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking clauses (i) through (xii) and inserting
the following:
`(i) to provide equipment, medical supplies, and other assistance
to health care facilities for the purpose of reducing maternal and
infant mortality and morbidity;
`(ii) to establish and expand programs to provide services to women
and girls suffering from mental health problems, such as depression,
anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder;
`(iii) to expand immunization programs for women and children;
`(iv) to protect and provide services to vulnerable populations, including
widows, orphans, and women head of households;
`(v) to establish primary and secondary schools for girls that include
mathematics, science, and languages in their primary curriculum;
`(vi) to expand technical and vocational training programs to enable
women to support themselves and their families;
`(vii) to maintain and expand adult literacy programs, including economic
literacy programs that promote the well-being of women and their families;
`(viii) to provide special educational opportunities for girls whose
schooling was ended by the Taliban and who now face obstacles to participating
in the normal education system, such as girls who are now married
and girls who are older than the normal age for their classes;
`(ix) to disseminate information throughout Afghanistan on the rights
of women and on international standards for human rights;
`(x) to provide information and assistance to enable women to exercise
property, inheritance, and voting rights, and to ensure equal access
to the judicial system;
`(xi) to provide legal assistance to women who have suffered violations
of their rights;
`(xii) to increase political and civil participation of women in all
levels of society, including the criminal justice system;
`(xiii) to provide information and training related to women's rights
and human rights to military, police, judicial, and legal personnel;
`(xiv) to provide assistance to the Ministry of Women's Affairs and
the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission for programs to advance
the status of women; and
`(xv) to develop and implement programs to protect women and girls
against sexual and physical abuse, abduction, trafficking, exploitation,
and sex discrimination, including providing emergency shelters for
women and girls who face danger from violence.'; and
(2) by restating subparagraph (B) to read as follows:
`(B) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS- For each of the fiscal years 2008 through
2010--
`(i) $5,000,000 is authorized to be appropriated to the President
to be made available to the Afghan Ministry of Women's Affairs for
the administration and conduct of its programs;
`(ii) $10,000,000 is authorized to be appropriated to the President
to be made available to the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission
for the administration and conduct of its programs; and
`(iii) $30,000,000 is authorized to be appropriated to the President
for grants to Afghan women-led nonprofit organizations to support
activities including the construction, establishment, and operation
of schools for married girls and girls' orphanages, vocational training
and human rights education for women and girls, health care clinics
for women and children, programs to strengthen Afghan women-led organizations
and women's leadership, and to provide monthly financial assistance
to widows, orphans, and women head of households.'.
SEC. 5. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON ASSISTANCE.
It is the sense of Congress that, in providing assistance under section
103(a)(7) of the Afghan Freedom Support Act (22 U.S.C. 7513(a)(7)), as amended
by section 4, the President should--
(1) condition the provision of such assistance on the recipient adhering
to international standards for women's rights and human rights; and
(2) ensure that Afghan women-led nongovernmental organizations throughout
Afghanistan receive grants without ethnic, religious, or any other discrimination.
END
