U.S. President Donald Trump signed a bill passed by Congress into law that directs USAID "to establish phychosocial support programs to benefit religious and ethnic minorities affected by ISIS, prioritizing trauma therapy and care for children and survivors of sexual slavery.” Hot off the heels of the New York Times story on the need for more support for Yazidi refugees resettling in Canada, this is great news from the U.S. Capitol.
With 3,200 women and girls enslaved by ISIS still unaccounted for, and thousands struggling to survive in refugee camps in Iraq, the most vulnerable refugees need our support. OFWI will continue our humanitarian relief and advocacy work to ensure victims of ISIS get the support they so desperately need to rebuild their lives. OFWI will be reaching out to U.S. partners in the coming weeks to offer our help to USAID implement this new directive and offer our experience in the field to help in any way we can.
Thank you to all of our supporters who wrote their representatives in Congress being a voice for the voiceless that helped make this possible.
The omnibus bill signed into: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/1625
Pages 74-75 of this document detail the measures: https://www.congress.gov/115/crpt/hrpt253/CRPT-115hrpt253.pdf