Each day, women and girls are raped, beaten, burned, trafficked and subjected to other forms of horrendous violence.
Approximately one out of three women worldwide has been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime, and in some countries rates of domestic violence are as high as seventy percent. No country is immune – the violence crosses all borders and affects women of all ages, social groups, religions and classes.
The United States Congress now has an opportunity to address these horrifying abuses. Senators Kerry (D-MA), Boxer (D-MA), Snowe (R-ME) and Collins (R-ME) and Representatives Delahunt (D-MA) and Poe (R-TX) have introduced the International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA), a comprehensive piece of legislation, which will integrate violence prevention in U.S. foreign policy. I-VAWA is desperately needed and long overdue. Congress should move quickly to make it law.
The International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA) will support innovative programs, which have been shown to effectively reduce acts of violence.
These include programs, which create economic and educational opportunities for women, challenge public attitudes that permit violence, improve health services for survivors and bring perpetrators of violence to justice.
Working through the international assistance that the U.S. already provides, this new bipartisan bill will support the best practices to combat violence aimed at women and girls.
It would expand our government’s ability to prevent violence against women caught in conflict, support non-governmental organizations that are combating violence on the ground, and put the U.S. unequivocally on the record with countries around the world in saying that ending violence against women and girls is a national priority.
I-VAWA is especially important because it incorporates training, protection and services for women across a range of situations, from the fight against HIV-AIDS, to schools and health clinics, to court systems, to refugee camps.
It also emphasizes long-term prevention efforts like increasing women’s economic security and expanding access to good jobs.
In a world where tensions and violence within communities can jeopardize national and international security, it is critical that the United States takes action to end atrocities committed against women and girls in their homes and in their communities, during times of peace and times of conflict.
Violence takes the lives of millions of women and girls, and denies countless others their dignity and chance to live safe, productive lives. We urge Senators John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison to take action today and become a cosponsor of the International Violence Against Women Act.
We applaud Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson for demonstrating her commitment to ending violence against women by co-sponsoring the International Violence Against Women Act.
SMU Amnesty International is an active chartered organization on the SMU campus that promotes human rights activism and education. They can be reached for comments or questions at [email protected].
