mr. speaker , i would like to say a word about the gentleman from illinois , also . 
there are probably no two people that are more opposite than the two of us . 
i want the gentleman to know , i am going to miss him when he really does leave the floor . 
mr. speaker , if h.r. 2745 is enacted , it will be a huge step backward for women around the world , because it would end u.s. funding for cedaw . 
cedaw is the u.n . 
convention on the elimination of discrimination against women , which is the u.n . 
treaty on the rights of women around the world . 
cedaw is a united nations treaty that supports international standards to discourage sex-based discrimination and encourages equality in education , health care , employment and all other arenas of public life for all women around the world . 
this treaty serves as a powerful tool for women worldwide as they fight against discrimination . 
it also leads to substantial improvements for women 's lives across the world . 
the impact of cedaw can be seen in countries like australia where the government cited its treaty obligations in passing national legislation against sexual harassment in the workplace based on cedaw , or in pakistan where education for young women was introduced in primary schools after treaty ratification in pakistan , causing sharp increases in female enrollment in their schools . 
to date , 170 countries have ratified cedaw . 
sadly , the united states continues to be the only industrialized nation that has not ratified , leaving us in the company of afghanistan , north korea , and iran . 
it is time to abandon this unfavorable distinction . 
it is time to be a world leader and a champion of human and women 's rights . 
we must ratify cedaw , and we must do it now . 
that is why i urge my colleagues to cosponsor my resolution on cedaw , h. res. 67 , to support the lantos amendment , and to vote against this base bill unless we do something drastically to improve it . 
