Baseline Survey on Domestic Violence To Support Legislation

On Domestic Violence in Cambodia

Violence against women is one of the most widespread and serious problems of Cambodian society.   The Cambodian Millennium Development Goals  (CMDGs) commit the Government to collecting statistics on the incidence of domestic violence, increasing the number of Cambodians aware that domestic violence is a crime, and increasing the proportion of cases counseled by qualified personnel.

The survey, conducted by Cambodia-based Indochina Research, is specifically designed to provide evidence to support legislation due to be considered by the Cambodian government in April 2005.

It will:

• Inform initiatives to strengthen law enforcement and service provision at the local level for women experiencing violence.
• Provide baseline data on and knowledge about, attitudes towards and prevalence of domestic violence including the incidence of physical violence, emotional abuse and rape.
• Assess attitudes to and incidence of rape in marriage for the first time in a Cambodian study.
• Examine key influences, help-seeking and the economic and psychological impacts of violence and
• Investigate awareness of and attitudes towards rights and human rights violations.

Fieldwork was conducted in thirteen provinces, with a representative sample of 3000 Cambodian women and men.  A small sample of police and local authorities was also included.  The findings are due to be reported in April 2005 and will also be made available on the UNIFEM site.

Prior to this, no country-wide survey on domestic violence has yet been conducted in Cambodia.  The survey will update key findings from the 1996 study done by Project Against Domestic Violence (PADV), a non-governmental organization.

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Updated: 16 March 2005