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Tuesday 10 December 2013

JOINT PRESS RELEASE – Phnom Penh, 9 December 2013 Cambodian NGOs promote the rights of LGBT Cambodians on International Human Rights Day

JOINT PRESS RELEASE – Phnom Penh, 9 December 2013
Cambodian NGOs promote the rights of LGBT Cambodians on International Human Rights Day 


On International Human Rights Day – 10 December 2013 – the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR), CamASEAN Youth’s Future, Positive MSM Group, Rainbow Community Kampuchea (RoCK), Cooperation for Social Services and Development (CSSD), Cambodian Network Men Women Development(CNMWD), Men Health Cambodia (MHC), Men Health’s Social Service (MHSS) and KANHNHA are uniting in an event to raise awareness of the LGBT movement in Cambodia and celebrate the human rights of everyone.

The theme for this year’s International Human Rights Day is promoting the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Cambodians and, in particular, the discrimination transgender (TG) people face in accessing health services, especially regarding their right to access correct information. The right to access and receive correct information is necessary to avoid misunderstanding, encourage message sharing among the LGBT community and increase networking between LGBT NGOs. Without such access, many LGBT people may not attend health center checkups, resulting in a lack of awareness of health, which may result in an increased likelihood among TG people of developing serious illnesses, such as cancer.

In addition, discrimination against TG people can often lead to exclusion from education and limited employment opportunities, particularly for those living in rural areas. As a result, TG people often engage in sex work and suffer from problems with drug addiction. A lack of monitoring at the national level and the limited numbers of NGOs working with LGBT people means that there is a lack of awareness of the rights of TG people amongst the public, the authorities and TG people themselves. As a result, many TG people are targeted by the police when carrying out sex work or are assumed to be sex workers by police if found carrying a condom.

Every day in Cambodia, LGBT people face discrimination at work, in school and even within their own communities and families. Discrimination against LGBT people is a violation of their rights and must end.  Everybody has the rights to equality and non-discrimination, which means that everyone is entitled to enjoy all human rights without discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Everyone is entitled to equality before the law and equal protection of the law without any such discrimination whether or not the enjoyment of other human rights is also affected. In Cambodia, this right is protected under a number of international human rights laws and principles, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Yogyakarta Principles on the Application of International Human Rights Law in relation to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, as well as the Cambodian Constitution. Together we can end discrimination against LGBT people by gaining the support of the Royal Government of Cambodia to fully realize and protect LGBT rights.

International Human Rights Day is an occasion to celebrate human rights for all Cambodians.  LGBT people and Positive sex workers do not ask for special rights or extra rights, just the same rights as everyone else - the right to a safe environment, the right to health, the right to a livelihood, the right to love and have a family, the right to be accepted as part of the community and live within a society free of stigma and discrimination.

To celebrate International Human Rights Day, the NGOs will organize an event on 10 December 2013 at Khmer Surin Restaurant 8:00 AM to 12 PM, located at House #9, Street 57, Sangkat Boeung Keng Kang I, Khan Chamkarmon Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Tel: +855 (0) 12 887 320, +855 (0) 12 797 539.  Mr. Nuon Sidara, CCHR SOGI Project Coordinator, Ms. Sou Sotheavy, CNMWD, Mr. Say Seaklay, RoCK activist, and Mr. Horn Bunvirak, PMSM will also deliver presentations on the LGBT movement in Cambodia. Guest speakers from the LGBT community will also be present to discuss their experiences of identifying as LGBT in Cambodia. Finger food will be served. Those who identify as LGBT are encouraged to attend.

For more information, please contact Nuon Sidara via telephone at +855 (0) 97 9666 566 or via e-mail at sidara.nuon@cchrcambodia.org

This press release is endorsed by:


-          Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR)
-          CamASEAN Youth’s Future
-          Positive MSM Project
-          Rainbow Community Kampuchea (RoCK)
-          Cooperation for Social Services and Development (CSSD)
-          Cambodian Network Men Women Development (CNMWD)
-          Men Health Cambodia (MHC),
-          Men Health’s Social Service (MHSS)
-          KANHNHA

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