While foreign pedophiles cruising war-ravaged Cambodia spark international outrage, a rise in reported child rapes committed by local men hints at a larger crisis scarring Cambodia's youth, activists say.
Child rape is widespread across mainly agricultural Cambodia, they say, in part due to its bloody history and made worse by the kingdom's poverty, corrupt courts and some entrenched traditional values.
PHOTO: AFP
Reports of rape to respected local rights group Licadho have been rising by up to five percent annually for five years, with 83 victims in the first six months of this year alone, including more than a third of whom were aged under 12.
Cambodia remains a traditional Asian society, where virginity is highly prized and family reputation is typically valued above all else, meaning reporting is a difficult task for both victims and their parents.
They often seek out groups such as Licadho to help them with prosecutions fearing that police will not respond properly to their plight.
The increase in reports does not mean rapes are necessarily rising but hints people are starting to speak up about the long-time silent scourge in their communities, Licadho director Naly Pilorge said.
"With the cases we are seeing, it seems that the age of children is getting younger and younger, so one reason for reports going up could be people are getting more angry with those raping younger children," she said.
Another worrying trend is the perpetrators too are growing younger, with 15 percent of those committing rapes in the first half of this year aged 17 or 18. But older men are also to blame: an 81-year-old was charged last month with raping a girl aged 10.
As project manager at a victim treatment center, he sees girls who are physically and emotionally wrecked and attributes their reaction in part to the high value Cambodians place on chastity.
"Our strict culture is one of the causes -- Cambodians value a girl based on her virginity. My patients think that when their virginity is lost, they are like cotton spoiled by mud and their life is meaningless," he said.
Even when reports are made and prosecutions result, Cambodia's infamously inadequate judicial system fails the victims, activists say.
"Perpetrators give money to the victims' families and the complaint is dropped. This only encourages the crime to continue."
Him Yim was forced to come to terms with such a nightmare when her 15-year-old daughter was abducted and repeatedly raped in central Kandal province over a four-month period last year.
When the girl was finally freed, the accused -- a man she knew from her village -- appeared in a lower court but wanted her to accept compensation instead of putting him behind bars.
"The perpetrator wanted to give us money but I didnt accept it because my daughters reputation is worth more than that," Him Yim said.
Meanwhile the man has been freed while awaiting trial, and Him Yim is now seeking legal advice from Licadho.
Rape carries a prison sentence of 10 to 20 years under Cambodian law, but Licadho says courts often charge defendants with indecent assault instead, which carries a maximum sentence of only three years.
"The psychological impact from decades of war is a problem -- people suffered too much and try to find ways to compensate the losses from those days," he said.
As well, many men misguidedly believe having sex with children can cure diseases, he added.
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