The Act designates millions of dollars in U.S. foreign assistance to build the capacity of Central American governments to protect women and children from sexual assault, domestic violence, and other crimes and to deter violence by bringing perpetrators to justice. The Act instructs the Secretary of State to enter into individual agreements with the governments of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador to achieve specific, measurable protection outcomes. These “compacts” will focus the attention of both the local authorities and the U.S. government and increase both political will and capacity to address violence against those most vulnerable.

The House bill, H.R.2836, authorizes $20 million/year for 3 years. The Senate bill, S.1781, authorizes $10 million per year. The differences will be negotiated between the two sides at the end of the legislative process.

The legislation addresses a key driver of migration from Central America to the U.S.: violence. It does not address apprehension and detention of migrants at the border or other aspects of U.S. immigration policy. Congress is addressing the U.S. side of the border in other legislation, such as the Emergency Border Supplemental, enacted on July, 2019.

If the Central American Women and Children Protection Act becomes law, it won’t take effect until 2020. The U.S. will restore aid to Central America at some point. When it does, the need to address violence against women and children is much more likely to be a priority because of this legislation.

Once the legislation is enacted, the State Department will develop collaborative strategies with one or more of the Central American governments. Once those agreements (“compacts”) are adopted, the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development will issue requests for proposals. IJM will have the opportunity to apply and will be judged on its merits, as will other NGO’s and government contractors.

All three Central American governments have issues with corruption and misuse of funds. Accordingly, the legislation prohibits direct aid to governments; the assistance will be disbursed through NGO’s like IJM, which work directly with governments to increase capacity to prosecute perpetrators of abuse and protect those vulnerable to it.

Vulnerable people in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador are experiencing extraordinarily high rates of violence, including domestic abuse of women and children. This kind of violence is a factor in pushing children and adults fleeing their homelands for safer places. Doctors Without Borders surveyed Central American refugees in Mexico and found more than 40 percent had a relative killed in the past two years, 31 percent knew someone who was kidnapped, and 17 percent knew someone who disappeared. We must act now.

With a limited number of legislative days between now and the 2020 election, we must ask Congress to pass this bill now to protect vulnerable women and children. As we get closer to November 2020, lawmakers will increasingly direct their attention to the campaign trail – we want to make sure they hear from us before then.

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