Indigenous Women Situation In Cambodia

Prepared and coordinated by: Mr. Pheap Sochea, President of CIYAMs. Ly Savy Ms. Lat Sok Em

Education: ◦ Formal education has improved

for the new women generation. But the curriculums are not appropriate to their culture, tradition, and language.

◦ Older Women generation has been less educated because they lived in the war period and the formal education has not yet been spread out through their area (remote area).

Health: ◦ General indigenous peoples still believe in spiritual and

traditional treatment rather than to the public service or local health services when they are sick. This reason comes from: Lack of belief with the new modern treatment Lack of health post in their area (sometime there is, but

no medicine and treatment materials) Lack of accessing to modern health service/health post Discrimination of using service from the health worker

◦ Poverty and lack of food security has threatened some indigenous women health to the worst form.

◦ Pregnant women are sometimes banned to go to Health Centre for delivery due to traditional beliefs and the woman has to delivery in a special house built just for delivery. This leads indigenous women to lack of nutrition and lack of preventing vaccine to protect their health and baby.

Health (cont’.): ◦ Illness that indigenous women in Cambodia

usually have: Diarrhoea Malaria Cold/cough (URI)/Tuberculosis swollen limbs – don’t know cause Skin problems (scabies) Seizures/convulsions – maybe epilepsy, not sure Paralysis – think caused by high blood pressure /

diabetes Hepatitis Malnutrition in Children – swollen belly, very thin

children, large eyes Women anaemia – very pale Maternal health care very poor – no birth spacing,

women very lethargic/ anaemia

Economy/income/livelihoods/traditional economy ◦ Food insecurity: Earlier indigenous

women could find food from forest now this has reduced because of resources become scare and land tenure has been converted to Economic Land Concession.◦ In order to earn income indigenous

women sell their labour to businessmen or companies such as grow tree/plant/rice, clear grass, clear forest, look after the crops. ◦ Diet – even thought now they have

more access to market exchange the crops with rice and food supply, but food for their daily  meal are still remained less. ◦ Indigenous Women are the key

members in generating income, feeding animals, and cultivating agriculture for their family food.

◦ Traditionally men are the key decision making persons in any issues regarding culture, belief, tradition. But women perspectives and concerns are also considered.

◦ Gender promotion by civic societies and government has spread out to indigenous women participation in any local authorities such as commune councils and

◦ Government promote the gender participation in political and decision making process in all level.

Participation in decision making structures – community to national level; indigenous and/or contemporary government structures:

Number of communes

Commune councils members

Women Elected (%)

Chief of commune

First deputy

Second deputy

Members

Mondulkiri 21 107 17(15.95) - 1 3 13

Ratanakiri 49 253 36(14.23) - 4 8 24

Kratie 46 282 49(17.38) 4 5 3 37

Steng treng 34 176 29(16.48) 2 5 2 20

Traditional and changing roles of indigenous women ◦ All works are done by indigenous women:

House work: cooking, caring children, etc. Farm work: grow rice, harvesting, grass clearing, etc. Income generation: selling product, traditional weaving,

selling labor, resin tapping, etc. Livestock: Feeding animals such cow, buffalo, pig, chicken,

etc.

Household: ◦ Domestic violent: overuse of

alcohols, lack of sympathy, and lack of gender understanding in house work. ◦ Poverty: lack of innovation in farming and

income generation.

◦ Discrimination and lack of encouragement: after married, most of husband give no encouragement for women to participation in any community /society works and politics especially for major decision making process.

◦ Workload: As wife house, women do most of works in family. This workload will be increased after their husband die.

◦ Health: Health issues is the big issues with any indigenous women.

Society: ◦ Discrimination and Lack of

encouragement: As social perspectives indigenous women give little value to any kind of work such in household and decision making process.

◦ Lack of participation in all level of politics and decision making process: even though there is gender promotion principle but practically there is less indigenous women participated in this all process and quality of participation is limited.

◦ Land and natural resources loss: loss of land and natural resources put more pressure indigenous women to overcome their livelihood and survival.

◦ Climate change: The impact of climate change such as flood, drought, insect infestation affected severely indigenous crops and farming. As the result this lead indigenous women to meet additional challenges for their livelihood and society.

Environment protection: Indigenous women have actively participated in community forestry establishment, Land management, Disaster Risk Reduction Committee.

Case in Mondulkir i and Ratanakir i: Most IP women at commune level actively participated in claiming back their land and forest from rubber plantation companies for their next generation survival through advocacy activities.

Dialogue: IP women attended in any workshop discussing on the impact of hydropower dam establishment at Vietnam and economic concession.

Raising Voice and Advocacy: indigenous women actively participate in any advocacy efforts at the community to national level such during Indigenous Peoples Forum, International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. Raising through media such as interviewing. Forming indigenous women institution to their specific women issues.

To make communities have their representatives To bring voice of IP communities through their representatives

into the meetings at all levels. To identify the needs and issues of communities and prepare

the strategic plan to cope with them. To bring the Rights for IP communities through trainings or

workshops and encourage women participation in the decision making.

To conduct awareness raising on client’s health rights and needs

To help communities in the correct way of conducting advocacy .

IPHIA found many issues through the PAR and other communities survey like:

Low participation of women in political, social and economic issues.

Low understanding of women related to human rights, Health Rights and Advocacy.

Many activities still be needed to continue: To improve IP’s health Rights. To act as the voice for IP To work as a bridge between IP and health staff To bring the Health Rights understanding to

communities To empower the women participate into Political,

economic and social issues at commune, district and provincial level.

Indigenous Institution: There is good respect to each other of indigenous leaders. And mostly all of issues they want to address they need all of perspectives and inputs from all level regardless genders and age.

Government Institut ion: All though there is some policies and political will to promote indigenous women in state works or politics in practice there is still lack of indigenous women number in state sector. This because of indigenous women capacity to get those position and some time lack of encouragement for women to be involved.

In order to address this gender balance: Government and civil societies have play key role in promoting gender balance in any of their works. But. the result is less to address the indigenous women issues.

Indigenous Women Rights Violation/Abuse: ◦ Call for data disaggregation of indigenous women should be done in

order to find how difference the women rights abuse between mainstream women and indigenous women.

Capacity building: training and consultation should be widely supported UN Agencies, Governments and NGOs in order to mainstream gender balance at all level the themes included: ◦ CEDAW ◦ UNDRIP ◦ Women Rights particularly indigenous women

Call for addressing the indigenous women issues such as in public services, livelihood, political participation, and decision making process.