Gender crimes at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal

A trans woman has been the first person to submit a gender related crime complaint to the Khmer Rouge Tribunal. Very little has been written on sexual violence under the Khmer Rouge but hopefully Som Southevy's complaint will inspire other women to come forward and make formal complaints.

Som Southevy’s story also highlights the contemporary situation with regard to sexual violence in Cambodia, which many observers and human rights organisations believe is getting worse.

Southevy told a press conference this week she had been accused of so-called ‘moral crimes’ and acting like a woman by the Khmer Rouge and incarcerated in several detention centres.

Weeping as she spoke, Southevy said that while she was in these prisons she was repeatedly sexually assaulted and gang raped by Khmer Rouge officials and cadres.

Although she cannot reveal all of the details, many of which are the subject of the official complaint to the tribunal, she was also forced to have her hair cut and wear men’s clothing.

"If I had not followed these orders I would have been killed," she said. "I was forced to marry a woman and after ten days they [the Khmer Rouge] investigated whether it was a genuine marriage -- that is they tested whether we had had sexual intercourse."

Whether by accident or design sex crimes were not included in the law establishing the KRT but all Cambodians have the right to bring complaints to the tribunal. It seems an incredible oversight given the high levels of rape, domestic violence and child sexual abuse present in Cambodia today.

Rape, forced marriage and violence was part of daily life under the Khmer Rouge but it did not end with them. There is gender based and domestic violence reported every day. Som Southevy's complaint will at the very least prompt an investigation into gender based and sexual violence under the KR, which may lead to a more equitable society in the future.