Cambodia launches "Good Men Campaign" to end violence against women

Cambodia on Friday launched the "Good Men Campaign", aimed at spreading the message of ending all forms of discrimination, violence, and exploitation against women. Speaking at the launch, Sy Define, secretary of state at the Ministry of Women's Affairs, said gender equality in Cambodia would not be possible without the engagement of men. "Men are part of the problem, they should be part of the solution, so it is vital to change attitudes and behavior of men by encouraging them to transform themselves into the men who can respect women's rights and promote greater gender equality to reduce violence against women," she said. Men must adopt positive attitude so that they become role model for their siblings, peers, colleagues and children, she added. The Campaign will be steadily conducting for years through mass media and networking non-governmental organizations, she said. According to the reports of the Ministry of Women's Affairs released in September, the number of domestic violence against women in Cambodia had declined from 42,436 in 2006 to 35,408 in 2010. Taking into consideration the demographic growth, this decrease was equivalent to 24 percent.