US House passes long-awaited Violence Against Women Act

The bill — a reauthorization of legislation first enacted in 1994 but which includes new protections — passed the House of Representatives 286-138, with 87 Republicans joining a united Democratic front in support of the legislation.

The Republican-led House had first sought to greenlight a weakened version of VAWA similar to one they passed last year.

But when that failed on Thursday, they turned around and passed the Senate version, which includes expanded protections for Native Americans, gays and undocumented immigrants.

It now goes to the White House for the signature of President Barack Obama, who applauded the bipartisan passage.

“This law has saved countless lives and transformed the way we treat victims of abuse,” Obama said in a statement, adding that the bill will also provide “critical support for both international and domestic victims of trafficking.”

VAWA funds police training, domestic violence prevention clinics and hotlines, rape prevention programs, shelters for battered women, and help for teens caught in abusive relationships, among other provisions.

A key sticking point for some Republicans had been the bill's introduction of new groups of individuals, a move conservatives said appeared to infringe on the rights of states to determine just where the assistance was to go.

A bill passed by the House last year, months after the Senate's version passed with broad bipartisan approval, stripped out the specific mention of gays, Native Americans and illegal immigrants.

However, the two chambers failed to reconcile their bills, and Republicans stood accused of essentially letting the clock run out on the protections which VAWA supporters say have helped millions of women across the country.

That triggered a backlash from Democrats like Senator Patty Murray, who said last month that “the House Republicans' decision to pointedly discriminate against these groups of women was stunning.”

SHARE CLOSE
Blogger		Google+
Live Journal		Plurk
Stumble Upon

Tweet

	PREVIOUS ARTICLE
	Gadhafi PM in 'decent' condition in Libya: UN

NEXT ARTICLE
Man gets 20 years for beheading UK citizen in Spain: charity group

Write a Comment

Terms

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

 Receive China Post promos
 Respond to this email

Submit