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Cambodia

Writer's picture: ThriveThrive

Population Size:

16,756,968.[1]

Number of People Experiencing Domestic Abuse Each Year:

21% of women reported having experienced physical and/or sexual violence from an intimate partner in their lifetime,[2] while 8% reported having experienced such in the last 12 months.[3]

No research on male victims or other gender identities.

Cost of Domestic Abuse to the Economy Each Year:

No research.

Estimated % Change due to COVID-19:

No research.


Current Law and Policy:

Cambodia is committed to ending violence against women through both legislation and national action plans that set out strategies by which the government, national institutions, civil society and development partners can work together to prevent and eliminate violence against women and provide protection to victims.

On 16th September 2005, Cambodia passed The Law on The Prevention of Domestic Violence and The Protection of Victims. Article 35 of this Law provides that the perpetrator can be charged under the Cambodian Penal Law. However, the criminal law does not clearly state that rape, physical violence, and mental abuse against a spouse are crimes and partners who do not live together are not covered, nor is stalking nor abuse from former spouses.

In 2015, Cambodia launched its second National Action Plan for 2014-2018. This second Plan follows the 2009 - 2012 Initial Plan to Prevent Violence Against Women, which emphasised the importance of promoting awareness and changing social behaviours. These Plans identified 3 priority issues with regard to violence: (i) domestic violence, (ii) rape and sexual violence, and (iii) violence against women with increased risk, such as those with disabilities, HIV, sex workers etc. The second Plan’s primary objectives concern prevention of violence, the provision of legal services and multi-selectorial services, the formulation and implementation of policies and laws to combat the issue, capacity building, and the establishment of systems by which to review, monitor and evaluate the issue.


Frontline Services:

 

Sources


[1] Worldometer, “Cambodia Population (Live)”, (worldometers.info).

[2] Ministry of Women's Affairs, “National Survey on Women's Health and Life Experiences in Cambodia”, (2015), Report.

[3] ibid.


Further Reading


[1] Partners for Prevention, “Cambodia Launches Second National Action Plan to Prevent Violence Against Women 2014-2018”, (partners4prevention.org, 9 March 2015).

[2] Royal Holloway University, ESRC, UK Department for International Development and GADC, “Domestic Violence Law: The Gap Between Legislation and Practice in Cambodia and What can be Done About It”, (2014), Preliminary Research Report.

[3] The Cambodian NGO Committee on CEDAW, “Amending the Laws on Domestic Violence”, (ngocedaw.org).

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