US Congressman Accuses USAID of Establishing Pro-Prostitution Group in India and Lying About It

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Congressman Accuses USAID of Establishing Pro-Prostitution Group in India and

Lying About It

By C-FAM MichNews.com

Feb 13, 2006

The Chairman of a US House subcommittee on criminal justice has charged the US

Agency for International Development (USAID) with setting up a pro-prostitution

group in India and lying about it to Congressional staff.

In his February 6th letter to Randall Tobias, US Global Aids Coordinator,

Representative Mark Souder, goes on to charge USAID personnel with deliberately

setting up a non-governmental organization (NGO) precisely to hide deliberate

violations of a federal law which forbids US financial support of

pro-prostitution activity.

It came to light some months ago that a group in Indian called Sampada Grameen

Mahila Sansthat (SAMGRAM) was working to stop other groups from helping underage

girls out of prostitution. It was further charged that SAMGRAM was receiving US

financial assistance, a violation of the US Leadership Against HIV/AIDS,

Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003, which forbids US funds from being used

" to promote or advocate the legalization or practice of prostitution of sex

trafficking. " USAID has denied the charge and a USAID staff member told

Congressional staff that such inquiries by the subcommittee were " destructive. "

In his letter, Souder says he has come into possession of documents that " prove

that USAID money financed the pro-prostitution SANRAM though a second

organization called Avert, which was established with the assistance of four

USAID employees as a pass through entity. " He further charged in his letter that

" USAID held the ex-officio Vice-Chairmanship of Avert since its inception. "

The Bush Administration has been in the leadership of global efforts to

eliminate human sex trafficking. The charges demonstrate how there can be a

disconnect between the wishes of an executive administration and the entrenched

bureaucracy.

USAID has refused to publicly comment on the charges leveled by Representative

Souder. USAID did not respond to the Friday Fax's request for comment.

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Copyright 2005 - C-FAM (Catholic Family & Human Rights Institute).

Website: www.c-fam.org

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