In early January of 2012, three hundred families were forcefully removed from their homes in the Borei Keila district of Phnom Penh, leaving at least 12 people injured and 8 arrested in a confrontation between police forces and residents defending their homes. The women of this community have fought against illegal evictions and 24 of them were detained because they protested the imprisonment of the 8 arrested land rights defenders. Within a month, UAF received a request from former grantee, Strey Khmer (SK), to support the women of Borei Keila through actions and activities that will further educate them about their rights found in the Cambodian Land Law and also through the development of key messages for this organization’s “Women’s Voices Women’s Choices” radio program.
SK conducts leadership and advocacy trainings to empower women’s human rights defenders and they are already collaborating with other organizations throughout Cambodia that have condemned the evictions of Borei Keila residents.
