The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2007” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Senate section on pages S10388-S10390 on Oct. 1, 2008.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2007
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 903, S. 1703.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. 1703) to prevent and reduce trafficking in persons.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill, which had been reported from the Committee on the Judiciary, with an amendment to strike all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu thereof the following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Trafficking in Persons Accountability Act of 2007''.
SEC. 2. JURISDICTION IN CERTAIN TRAFFICKING OFFENSES.
(a) In General.--Chapter 77 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 1596. Additional jurisdiction in certain trafficking offenses
``(a) In General.--In addition to any domestic or extra-territorial jurisdiction otherwise provided by law, the courts of the United States have extra-territorial jurisdiction over any offense (or any attempt or conspiracy to commit an offense) under section 1581, section 1583, section 1584, section 1589, section 1590, or section 1591 of this title if--
``(1) an alleged offender or victim of the offense is a national of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence (as those terms are defined in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101)); or
``(2) an alleged offender is present in the United States, irrespective of the nationality of the alleged offender.
``(b) Limitation on Prosecutions of Offenses Prosecuted in Other Countries.--No prosecution may be commenced against a person under this section if a foreign government, in accordance with jurisdiction recognized by the United States, has prosecuted or is prosecuting such person for the conduct constituting such offense, except upon the approval of the Attorney General or the Deputy Attorney General (or a person acting in either such capacity), which function of approval may not be delegated.''.
(b) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 77 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``1596. Additional jurisdiction in certain trafficking offenses.''.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, few issues in the world today raise as many human rights implications as the insidious practice of human trafficking. According to International Labor Organization estimates, there are over 12 million people in forced or bonded labor, forced child labor, or sexual servitude at any given time around the globe. Human trafficking truly represents commerce in human misery.
The U.S. Government has been increasingly vigilant in addressing this global scourge. In 2000, Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, which gave our government important new tools to better protect trafficking victims, prosecute traffickers, and prevent future trafficking crimes in this country and abroad. In 2003 and again in 2005, Congress reauthorized the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, and I am proud to cosponsor the latest reauthorization bill--the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008--which Senators Biden and Brownback introduced in May.
I chair the Senate Judiciary Committee's new Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law, created at the beginning of the 110th Congress. Our subcommittee's second hearing, in March 2007, considered legal options to stop human trafficking.
The hearing shed light on a legal loophole in current law. The U.S. government is allowed to prosecute human traffickers who commit crimes in the United States, but it is not permitted to prosecute traffickers who commit crimes abroad and then come to our shores.
In June 2007, Senator Coburn and I introduced a bill to close this loophole. The Trafficking in Persons Accountability Act would permit the U.S. Government to go after human traffickers who are present in the United States, regardless of whether their heinous acts took place in this country or elsewhere. Our bill says to the traffickers: You cannot come to the United States and use us as a zone of impunity and as a safe haven for your ill-gotten gains. Closing this loophole would serve as another tool in the global fight against human trafficking.
The Trafficking in Persons Accountability Act follows on other human rights legislation I have introduced with Senator Coburn, the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law. We introduced similar legislation to allow the U.S. Government to prosecute individuals found in the United States who have recruited children for combat or deployed child soldiers in another country. Congress recently approved this bill, and it awaits the President's signature.
And last year, Congress approved a bill to permit the U.S. Government to prosecute those present in the United States who have committed the human rights atrocity of genocide anywhere in the world.
The Trafficking in Persons Accountability Act is supported by the International Justice Mission, the Chicago-based National Immigrant Justice Center, the Break the Chain Campaign, the Urban Justice Center, Mosaic Family Services, Global Rights, the Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center, Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach, and the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network.
We cannot discuss the issue of human trafficking without acknowledging the visionary leadership of the late Senator Paul Wellstone, who called the trafficking of human beings ``one of the most horrendous human rights violations of our time.''
On the day Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act on October 11, 2000, Senator Wellstone went to the Senate floor and said the following: ``I believe with passage of this legislation . . . we are lighting a candle. We are lighting a candle for these women and girls and sometimes men forced into forced labor. . . . This is the beginning of an international effort to go after this trafficking, to go after this major, god-awful human rights abuse.''
Senator Wellstone's commitment to combating human trafficking and other human rights abuses stands as one of his most enduring legacies. The candle Senator Wellstone lit nearly 8 years ago is burning bright, and we will rekindle it today with the passage of this legislation.
I urge my Senate colleagues to pass the Trafficking in Persons Accountability Act, and I hope the House of Representatives will soon follow suit, so this important bill can be sent to the President and signed into law.
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I am pleased that today the Senate has passed the Trafficking in Persons Accountability Act of 2007, which would improve our efforts to stop the abominable practice of human trafficking in the United States and around the world. This modern-day form of slavery forces, defrauds, or coerces victims into sexual or labor exploitation. It is the world's fastest growing criminal enterprise and generates $9.5 billion annually, $4 billion of which goes to the prostitution industry. Nearly 1 million people, mostly women and children, are trafficked worldwide, including nearly 18,000 persons in the United States.
This legislation would expand the Federal court's jurisdiction over human trafficking cases to include offenses committed abroad by noncitizens that enter our borders. Currently, the Department of Justice can only prosecute human trafficking crimes if they occur within the United States or are committed by a U.S. citizen abroad. This legislation would permit the Department of Justice to prosecute offenders of trafficking crimes abroad if they are present in the United States and punish human traffickers who attempt to seek refuge in this country.
Nowhere on Earth should it be acceptable to deceive, abuse, and force a person into a life of enslavement. We should not tolerate human trafficking across our borders, nor should we allow trafficking offenders to seek a safe haven in our country. I commend subcommittee chairman Senator Durbin for introducing this legislation and for his hard work to combat human rights abuses worldwide. This is an area in which I have worked for many years as the chairman and ranking member of the Foreign Operations Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee.
I was proud to work with Senator Durbin to create the Human Rights and the Law Subcommittee, the first congressional committee to specifically address human rights issues. This subcommittee has held hearings on many important issues, and two important pieces of legislation considered by the subcommittee will become law this Congress. The Genocide Accountability Act closed a loophole that until now allowed those who commit or incite genocide to seek refuge in our country without fear of prosecution for their actions. Soon, the President will sign into law the Child Soldiers Accountability Act, making it a crime to recruit or use child soldiers. I look forward to continuing to work with Senator Durbin to make progress towards eradicating these and other human rights abuses.
This bill is a step forward towards the prevention of human trafficking, protection of victims, and prosecution of traffickers. I hope the House of Representatives acts quickly on this legislation so it can be enacted before Congress adjourns.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Durbin amendment, which is at the desk, be agreed to, the committee substitute, as amended be agreed to, the bill, as amended be read a third time and passed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and any statements related to the bill be printed in the Record.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment (No. 5688) was agreed to, as follows:
(Purpose: To provide a complete substitute)
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Trafficking in Persons Accountability Act of 2008''.
SEC. 2. JURISDICTION IN CERTAIN TRAFFICKING OFFENSES.
(a) In General.--Chapter 77 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 1596. Additional jurisdiction in certain trafficking offenses
``(a) In General.--In addition to any domestic or extra-territorial jurisdiction otherwise provided by law, the courts of the United States have extra-territorial jurisdiction over any offense (or any attempt or conspiracy to commit an offense) under section 1581, section 1583, section 1584, section 1589, section 1590, or section 1591 of this title if--
``(1) an alleged offender is a national of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence
(as those terms are defined in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101)); or
``(2) an alleged offender is present in the United States, irrespective of the nationality of the alleged offender.
``(b) Limitation on Prosecutions of Offenses Prosecuted in Other Countries.--No prosecution may be commenced against a person under this section if a foreign government, in accordance with jurisdiction recognized by the United States, has prosecuted or is prosecuting such person for the conduct constituting such offense, except upon the approval of the Attorney General or the Deputy Attorney General (or a person acting in either such capacity), which function of approval may not be delegated.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 77 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``1596. Additional jurisdiction in certain trafficking offenses.''.
The committee substitute amendment, as amended, was agreed to.
The bill (S. 1703), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, was read the third time, and passed.
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