VAWA Goes Global

Article here. Excerpt:

'Will fourth time be the charm for a piece of legislation seeking to eradicate violence against the estimated one-third of women suffering from abuse worldwide?

On Thursday, the International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA) is set to be reintroduced to the House by Rep. Jan Schakowsky, a Democrat representing Illinois’s 9th district. Since being introduced by Senator Joe Biden in 2007, the act has been through numerous reintroductions in four different Congresses, but advocates hope this year will be the one it makes it into the books.
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Under I-VAWA, both the ambassadorship and the State Department office would become permanent, and the act would implement Obama’s strategy in five at-need countries—factors which are paramount, Soler says. Gender-based programs would also be implemented in the U.S. foreign assistance programs. The key components of the legislation, according to Soler, target local organizations on the ground dealing with gender-based violence, and engage men and boys to do their part in ending violence. “It’s not all about, 'Let’s find bad folks and do something about it after something bad has happened,'” she says. The proven positive domino effect of investing in girls and women would make other U.S. foreign policy goals, like fostering economic and civil society development, easier, Soler says.
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Problems plagued the domestic Violence Against Women Act after the House allowed it to expire earlier this year. But Finch says “their reputation suffered in how long it took them to act” after the the mounted pressure for Congress to finally re-approve the legislation. “We would look to that and say: the people of the United States care deeply against violence against women and any delay in passing this bill is very unwarranted.”'