[Vision2020] Gridlock in Congress stalls anti-human trafficking bill

[Art Deco]

Gridlock in Congress stalls anti-human trafficking bill

By Jonathan Serrie<http://www.foxnews.com/archive/author/jonathan-serrie/index.html>

Published October 02, 2012

FoxNews.com


As many as 27 million people worldwide are victims of human trafficking,
including sex slavery, child prostitution and debt bondage, according to
State Department estimates. Now, partisan gridlock in Congress jeopardizes
efforts to help them.

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) enjoyed strong bipartisan
support when Congress passed it in 2000 and reauthorized it three times
since. But the latest effort has been on hold for more than a year.

"If Congress fails to renew this law, it's going to have a global impact,"
said Jesse Eaves, a senior policy advisor at World Vision, a Christian
humanitarian organization.

The law imposes tough federal penalties on traffickers and funds programs
to detect, arrest and prosecute them. It also supports services for victims
of human trafficking.

According to advocates, the law is designed to be updated every few years
to adapt to the changing methods of traffickers. And they warn if Congress
fails to reauthorize the TVPA before the end of the year, funding for law
enforcement and victims' services could run out next year.

"This is not the time to play partisan games," Eaves said. "You do not play
politics with slavery. This is not a right or left issue. It's a right or
wrong issue."

According to Congressional Quarterly, much of the current dispute is over
women's health issues. But supporters of the TVPA point out Republicans and
Democrats were able to achieve consensus four times in the past.

"Those issues have never really been at the forefront before," Eaves said.
"And the fact that they've been allowed to distract us from the task at
hand really speaks, again, to a failure of leadership on the part of both
parties."

Ironically, the fight against human trafficking is a cause social
conservatives and liberal human rights advocates agree on in general terms.
But when it comes to Democrats and Republicans in today's political
climate, even agreement on areas of common concern can be elusive.

Gridlock over a law that once had the support of strong Democrat and
Republican majorities in Congress is just one example of the increasing
partisan brinkmanship in Washington.  When leaders of one party lose power,
"they think they're only one issue, or one election, away from becoming the
majority again," said Merle Black, a political science professor at Emory
University. "So, there's no incentive to compromise. We've got a political
system right now where we have two minority parties."
______________

Guess who:

 [image: The New York Times] <http://www.nytimes.com/>

<http://www.nytimes.com/adx/bin/adx_click.html?type=goto&opzn&page=www.nytimes.com/printer-friendly&pos=Position1&sn2=336c557e/4f3dd5d2&sn1=86f11b28/f31e8b54&camp=FSL2012_ArticleTools_120x60_1787511c_nyt5&ad=BOSW_120x60_June13_NoText_Secure&goto=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Efoxsearchlight%2Ecom%2Fbeastsofthesouthernwild>

------------------------------
October 1, 2012
To Combat ‘Modern Slavery’

¶<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/02/opinion/to-combat-modern-slavery.html?pagewanted=print#p[TmrTmn]>Though
much remains to be done, the Obama administration has begun
meaningful new initiatives against human trafficking — a worldwide
injustice that exposes more than 20 million poor and vulnerable
individuals, especially women and children, to exploitation and
degradation. The most notable of these is a strong executive order aimed at
ending human trafficking activities by government contractors and
subcontractors.

¶<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/02/opinion/to-combat-modern-slavery.html?pagewanted=print#p[TosTnr]>
The
order<http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/09/25/executive-order-strengthening-protections-against-trafficking-persons-fe>,
signed by Mr. President Obama on Sept. 25, contains an array of simple but
potentially game-changing provisions that will help enforce the
government’s existing zero-tolerance policy. These new rules forbid all
contractors from charging new employees recruitment fees that often lead to
indebtedness to loan sharks, misleading employees about living conditions
and housing, denying access to passports or failing to pay transportation
costs so employees can return home.

¶<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/02/opinion/to-combat-modern-slavery.html?pagewanted=print#p[TsbIwa]>This
should be the first of several steps to bolster the attack on a
scourge that Mr. Obama described as “modern slavery” in a passionate
address on the issue last week at the Clinton Global
Initiative<http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/09/25/remarks-president-clinton-global-initiative>.
Among other things, Mr. Obama should put the weight of his office behind a
bipartisan bill in Congress, the End Trafficking in Government Contracting
Act. The bill would strengthen the administration’s executive initiative by
embedding into law safeguards against substandard wages, abusive working
conditions and sexual and labor exploitation. It would also impose criminal
penalties and create other enforcement tools beyond the scope of an
executive order.

¶<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/02/opinion/to-combat-modern-slavery.html?pagewanted=print#p[TleTle]>The
legislation enjoys broad support among Republicans and Democrats in
both the House and the Senate, and its approval should be on the must-do
list for the lame-duck session following the election.

¶<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/02/opinion/to-combat-modern-slavery.html?pagewanted=print#p[TlsIao]>That
list should also include another critical measure to fight
trafficking, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. This statute, which
also has significant bipartisan support, was enacted in 2000 and
reauthorized in 2003, 2005 and 2008. Central to the nation’s
anti-trafficking efforts, it aids in the prosecution of traffickers,
imposing stiff penalties. It also offers important services and benefits to
help victims rebuild their lives.

¶<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/02/opinion/to-combat-modern-slavery.html?pagewanted=print#p[RtbIhi]>Regrettably,
*the bill’s reauthorization has been stalled in the House by political
wrangling over a separate issue of victims’ reproductive rights.* Continued
delay on this bill would hurt victims and send a terrible message to the
world. If he is re-elected, President Obama will have the enhanced
political muscle he will need to break the logjam.



-- 
Art Deco (Wayne A. Fox)
art.deco.studios at gmail.com
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