June 1, 2004: Headlines: Congress: Legislation: Safety and Security of Volunteeers: Dayton Daily News: House OKs bill to boost Peace Corps safety

Peace Corps Online: Peace Corps News: Headlines: May 2004 Peace Corps Headline: June 1, 2004: Headlines: Congress: Legislation: Safety and Security of Volunteeers: Dayton Daily News: House OKs bill to boost Peace Corps safety

By Admin1 (admin) (pool-151-196-236-201.balt.east.verizon.net - 151.196.236.201) on Wednesday, June 02, 2004 - 6:36 am: Edit Post

House OKs bill to boost Peace Corps safety

House OKs bill to boost Peace Corps safety

House OKs bill to boost Peace Corps safety

House OKs bill to boost Peace Corps safety

Action follows 'News' series on assaults on volunteers

By Mei-Ling Hopgood

mhopgood@coxnews.com

WASHINGTON | The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a bill that aims to improve the safety of Peace Corps volunteers worldwide.

The Health, Safety, and Security of Peace Corps Volunteers Act of 2004 passed by a voice vote. The bill, introduced by House International Relations Committee Chairman Henry Hyde, R-Ill., and co-sponsored by the committee's ranking minority member, Rep. Tom Lantos, D-Calif., would create an ombudsman who would respond to safety, medical and other concerns of volunteers and former volunteers.

The bill would also establish an independent inspector general, who would be nominated by the president and approved by the Senate and would submit reports to Congress. Currently the inspector general, who is charged with investigating crimes against volunteers and critiquing the agency's operations, is appointed by and reports to the Peace Corps director.

U.S. Rep. Christopher Smith, R-N.J., who managed floor debate on the bill, said volunteers will go into dangerous areas but it is the responsibility of Congress and the U.S. government to "ensure that no stone is left unturned" in trying to make sure volunteers are safe as possible in their environment.

Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., also praised the bill, but cautioned, "We must be careful not to forge shields around our volunteers."

The legislation would waive permanently the Peace Corps' five-year employment limitation for inspector general employees and Peace Corps staff members who deal with the safety of volunteers. Recently, Congress has had to renew that waiver every year. The bill would permanently establish an office of safety, which has existed since 2002 but not by law.

Additionally, the bill requires the Peace Corps to report to Congress about its medical screening procedures and guidelines used to determine whether an applicant is medically and psychologically qualified to serve in the Peace Corps as a volunteer.

Hyde's legislation was introduced in the Senate two weeks ago by Sens. Mike DeWine, R-Ohio, and Richard Durbin, D-Ill. A hearing on the bill before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee tentatively is scheduled for late June.

The legislation followed a Dayton Daily News examination on the safety and security of volunteers and a General Accounting Office report on the topic. The newspaper reported in October that the number of reported assaults from 1991-2002 had more than doubled, yet the agency continued to put many volunteers in danger by sending them to live alone in risky areas without adequate housing, supervision or a job that kept them busy.

Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez assured House members at a hearing in March that safety is the agency's top priority and outlined several initiatives begun by the agency, including establishing the Peace Corps safety office, increasing the number of security staff members by 80 and emphasizing safety and cross-cultural training.

Peace Corps officials could not be reached Tuesday, however the agency released a statement on the legislation recently that said, "The Peace Corps' top priority is the safety and security of its volunteers. The agency has made numerous enhancements over the past two years and will continue to do so."

More than 7,500 Peace Corps volunteers are serving in more than 70 countries. As early as next week, the House may consider legislation that authorizes and funds the expansion of the Peace Corps. President Bush proposed doubling the number of volunteers by 2007, but Peace Corps officials have said they do not have the resources to complete that level of expansion.

Contact Mei-Ling Hopgood in the Washington bureau at 202-887-8328




Some postings on Peace Corps Online are provided to the individual members of this group without permission of the copyright owner for the non-profit purposes of criticism, comment, education, scholarship, and research under the "Fair Use" provisions of U.S. Government copyright laws and they may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner. Peace Corps Online does not vouch for the accuracy of the content of the postings, which is the sole responsibility of the copyright holder.

Story Source: Dayton Daily News

This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Congress; Legislation; Safety and Security of Volunteeers

PCOL11728
17

.

By Daniel (63.159.136.16) on Thursday, June 03, 2004 - 10:41 am: Edit Post

To Chairman Hyde and staff,

I want to express my sincere gratitude to you and your staff for having the courage to present concerns of safety of volunteers in your committee hearing and for enabling this legislation. It provides hope to all volunteers for the furture.

Thank you Marty Meehan, Bill Delahunt, and other members of the international committee for your help. You must know passing this bill will make Peace Corps a better place to work.

Mr. Poirier, I was proud of you speaking in Congress. You had alot of courage speaking before the committee. You articulated the sentiments many family members of volunteers feel on the responses by Peace Corps on safety issues. I thank you. I feel for you and your wife. I hope someday you get the ansewers you seek. God Bless you

Sheila Jackson Lee, thank you too.

To anyone I did not mention who was an instrumental part of this bill being written we are truly grateful.

Thanks Daniel

By Daniel (63.159.136.16) on Thursday, June 03, 2004 - 10:46 am: Edit Post

To Chairman Hyde and staff,

I want to express my sincere gratitude to you and your staff for having the courage to present concerns of safety of volunteers in your committee hearing and for enabling this legislation. It provides hope to all volunteers for the furture.

Thank you Marty Meehan, Bill Delahunt, and other members of the international committee for your help. You must know passing this bill will make Peace Corps a better place to work.

Mr. Poirier, I was proud of you speaking in Congress. You had alot of courage speaking before the committee. You articulated the sentiments many family members of volunteers feel on the responses by Peace Corps on safety issues. I thank you. I feel for you and your wife. I hope someday you get the ansewers you seek. God Bless you

Sheila Jackson Lee, thank you too.

To anyone I did not mention who was an instrumental part of this bill being written we are truly grateful.

Thanks Daniel

By nijma (p115503.cuppa.uic.edu - 131.193.91.137) on Thursday, June 03, 2004 - 9:51 pm: Edit Post

The elimination of the five-year rule, or eight-and-a-half-year rule, continues to be the problem area of this bill. The Peace Corps' lack of transparency and attempts to discredit those who have spoken out about safety issues indicates an attitude that is not limited to a few staff members. The culture of hostility towards volunteers has become institutionalized throughtout the agency. Now we will reward them by giving them even more discretion over who is retained? It would be better to strengthen the position of those who have been quietly swimming upstream to work for safety within the organization. That the current director had to create a separate office to move forward with safety and security issues speaks for iself.

Other problems remain with implementation. The medical service needs to come out from under the thumb of the country directors. How many medical officers did not have their one-year contracts renewed because they worked too hard for safety and security?

What tools are the volunteers given to solve their own safety problems, which the PC office often does not want to solve or even acknowledge? Every volunteer needs to have an official introduction to the mayor of their village. While some volunteers are able to make these contacts on their own, others are not. One volunteer went to her mayor's office to report a safety problem and found the mayor had not even been informed of her presence there. I was able to make contacts in the mayors' offices of my supervisor's town and my counterpart's town, but to this day, I don't even know if the village where I was assigned, a transportation corridor with no stores or services, even has a mayor.

Finally, we should not forget to exercise our freedom of religion. When I returned to the U.S., I was moved to find my name on a prayer list on the front page of my neighborhood newspaper, along with the names of those serving in the armed forces. As the new volunteers prepare to go to their assignments, this is a good time to remember the 250 volunteers who have died and others who are missing, and ask for public prayers for the safety of the departing volunteers.


Add a Message


This is a public posting area. Enter your username and password if you have an account. Otherwise, enter your full name as your username and leave the password blank. Your e-mail address is optional.
Username:  
Password:
E-mail: