Two women have been found dead at two separate guesthouses in Cambodia in recent weeks. The women were entertainment workers and appear to have been killed by their clients.
One of the murders occurred at a guesthouse in Kampong Cham province, where, according to a report by the police published in a local newspaper, a man brought the woman to the guesthouse to have sex with her. The identity of the murderer is unknown, as is the reason for the killing.
According to the newspaper, the murdered woman is Nam Sreyneang from Kandal province. She was 19 years old.
In a similar case, a woman was found dead in a guesthouse in Phnom Penh. She was also an entertainment worker and believed to have been killed by her client.
Dr. Pum Sophiny, Program Management Officer at KHANA, a national HIV/AIDS organization, said, “I am very sad to hear about the death of the entertainment workers. These women are often from poor families and come here to earn money to support their family. They are exposed to high risks, and sometimes they are subjected to violence by their clients.”
Dr. Sophiny added that “We still face many challenges in protecting the rights of women and children. Lack of equality between women and men, gender stereotyping and violence against women and girls are problems we are dealing with. Especially young girls are at serious risk of being raped or killed when walking home from work alone at night.”
“I plead that government departments, civil society and other stakeholders strengthen collaboration to empower women - to combat violence against women and children, to provide social assistance and legal protection, to promote economic empowerment through skills-training and small-business loans, and to support community mobilization for prevention of gender-based violence and advocacy work at national and international level. All men should take part in reducing violence against women and children in their communities.”