Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
The Global Respect Act directs the U.S. government to combat widespread human rights abuses against LGBTQI individuals globally, where roughly one-third of countries criminalize same-sex relationships and 12 impose death penalties. The bill requires the President to create and maintain a public list of foreign government officials responsible for or complicit in serious abuses such as torture, prolonged detention, or forced disappearance, with listed individuals facing visa denials and entry bans to the United States, updated every two years with input from Congress and the public. Additionally, the bill requires the State Department to appoint officials to track violence and criminalization targeting LGBTQI people and mandates that annual human rights reports include documentation of such abuses. The President must report annually to Congress on sanctions enforcement, international coordination efforts, and progress in changing behavior by violators, though exceptions to sanctions exist for national security, international obligations, and family members with documented persecution fears. The legislation establishes a concrete framework for identifying abusers and using visa restrictions as leverage to improve human rights protections for LGBTQI individuals worldwide.
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