Talking about domestic violence: A handbook for ... - Engagingmen.net

Joint Preface
UNDP Cambodia, Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Justice
In its Rectangular Strategy for Growth, Employment, Equity and Efficiency, the Cambodian
Government recognises that women are the backbone of the economy and society.
The Rectangular Strategy aims to provide Cambodian women with value and hope in life,
while promoting gender mainstreaming. It puts high priority on the enhancement of
the role and social status of Cambodian women by focusing attention on the
implementation of the Gender Strategy, changing of social attitudes that discriminate
against women and ensuring the rights of women to actively participate in nation
building. One way the Government is committed to achieving this is to increase
the percentage of popular awareness that violence against women is a wrongful
behaviour and a criminal act to 100% by 2015.
In light of this, this handbook (Talking about Domestic Violence) has been developed
as part of the Access to Justice Project, implemented jointly with the Ministry of Justice
and the Ministry of Interior with the support of UNDP, for Village Facilitators.
Between 2008 and 2010, Village Facilitators in 89 villages conducted Community
Conversations on domestic violence in their villages in the provinces of
Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Speu, Siem Reap, Rattanakiri and Mondulkiri. Impact
surveys show that the methodology is successful in the sense that the Community
Conversations have increased awareness and understanding of the issue, have been
conducive to creating an environment where the taboo of domestic violence is broken
and discussed more openly, and the people in villages where the discussions took
place even have the perception that the prevalence of domestic violence decreased.
This handbook includes information on different aspects of domestic violence as well as
guidelines of how to undertake each of the ten topics. We hope that the handbook
will assist Village Facilitators to continue to talk about and work to address domestic
violence in their villages.
We also hope that – in light of the closure of the UNDP Project Access to Justice in 2010 –
other organisations will take up the challenge to continue community conversations in
other parts of the country to ensure that human rights of women are respected within
families.
Talking about Domestic Violence
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