Background:
Dignity Cambodia for Gender Equality is an annual artistic and informative event begun in 2015, initiated by a documentary artist, Mona Simon. Dignity Cambodia is an ongoing creative project of NGO-CEDAW using art as a vehicle to reveal the truth, raise awareness, create new perspectives on the topic of gender-based violence, promote women and girls ‘ empowerment and gender equality. NGO-CEDAW sponsors artists in commissioning artist work up to USD1,000 to create unique projects, using their own tools and imagination, talents, and ideas to create artwork as a reflection on the topics of gender-based violence and promote gender equality. It should be noted that the Dignity Cambodia is held annually to contribute to the celebration of the 16-Day of Activism Against Gender-based violence and International Human Rights Day, which will be held between November to December.
About artist:
Roun Chanthou, a sculpture art student, is passionate about creating symbolic artworks on paper using a mix of colored pencils, watercolors, and other decorative materials. Her artwork called: “If she was your relative?” reflects different problems women and girls face, including abandonment, feelings of insecurity, or being the target for attack.
This work serves as a call to society to stop victim-blaming and to eliminate violence against women and girls. It emphasizes the importance of respecting, valuing, and ensuring both the physical and mental safety of women and girls. The artist particularly calls for a change in the mindset of those who commit acts of violence against women and girls and inspires survivors to speak about their experiences.
Watch the short video of the event: https://youtu.be/-vari_Qiq8o