“Good Wives”: Women Land Campaigners and the Impact of Human Rights Activism

During the last decade tens of thousands of Cambodians have been forcibly removed from their homes or their farmland and many more threatened with displacement. In the majority of cases, the Cambodian authorities are involved in the disputes, through the granting of land concessions or the use of state forces to intimidate people, remove them from their land and destroy homes. In response, many affected communities have organized themselves to resist eviction or to seek proper redress for what they have lost. Cambodian women have been at the forefront of these campaigns with many becoming effective community leaders and human rights advocates.