NGO-CEDAW and 50 other groups from civil society, including international and national NGOs, unions, and communities, issued a joint statement condemning sexual violence and arbitrary application of laws against the overwhelmingly female members of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld (LRSU).
The union members have led a peaceful strike demanding reinstatement of laid-off members and adequate compensation. Meanwhile, the government has responded with violence, arrests, and arbitrary fines and charges based on measures intended to prevent COVID-19, despite the union’s full compliance with those measures.
Civil society demands that all detained strikers be unconditionally released and that all violence and mistreatment stops at once. CEDAW as interpreted in General Recommendations Nos. 30 and 35 guarantees women the right to exercise fundamental freedoms and to live without violence.
