Cambodia: Women at Work: I am Powerful

By Chandara Tith.

“I am Powerful!” What does it mean? Is it a political action? No, it is a new brand of CARE, a campaign that put the focus on women`s empowerment.

The CARE campaign "I am powerful" portrais women from different contries. Here a Cambodian woman shows that with her vegetable garden she can feed the family. (Photo:CARE Australia)

It really caught my attention. Since the beginning of my internship, I saw it many times, both on the CARE website and in many information leaflets.

Women in Cambodian Society

Have you ever heard about the norm and the belief of Khmer people in the past?

Cambodia in the past believed that girls should not study at a high level because the only future they have will be one as a housewife. They should stay at home, learning how to be a good housewife rather than wasting time by going to school. Like an old Cambodian Proverb said “Girls cannot go far away from the stove.”
But still today, it is a common practice in the family that the elder girl’s labor is needed to work at home to support the household and to take care of the younger siblings from day-to-day.

Even though education is free in Cambodia, families who are too poor prioritize their son for education. Because when all children go to school, families have large expenses for school materials like books and pens and so forth.
Look at my family: I have five siblings, among the three sisters. I am the only son who can study in the university with the financial support of my oldest sister. My sisters did quit their studies in order to earn money for our family and to support their brother to school.

For some women in Cambodia in the past time, their responsibilities seemed to be a double burden. They had to take care of everything in the house and help to earn money to support their family. Most of them had to wake up at dawn to prepare for house work, making food, laundry and some other tasks before they left to the rice field and work till dusk.

Majority-Minority

Women are the majority of garment workers in Cambodia. Most of them come from provinces where they find it hard to get a job. So they move to the capital city Phnom Penh to search for work. The average income of a garment worker is about 50 to 80 U.S dollars per month. But, in the city women have to face higher cost of living. Until now, the discussion between garment workers and the entrepreneurs about increasing salaries is still being on the line.
I don’t want to say that working in the factory is bad, but I think we have to share the working place and position. Women should have more chances to work in a higher position and to earn more money.

Women do not only form the majority of garment workers, they also play a large role in migration. Many migrate to other countries to find work, for example as housekeepers. In several cases, some of them were cheated and forced to work as prostitution. As the newspaper Phnom Penh Post writes: “Last month, [an] employment firm was the target of a raid in which officials discovered 232 women and girls living in a squalid condition.”

Breaking the barrier

It seems however, as though the situation is changing. Most parents understand the importance of education and they let their daughters go to school.
Now, more and more women try to break the barrier. They enroll in schools and work in government offices. Women stand to be strong and change their world.

As you can see I'm the only man - the majority of my colleagues are women. (Photo: Chandara Tith)

My current work in the press office of CARE Germany-Luxemburg is a good example. I am the only man among six colleagues within the office. Sometimes, I felt a bit isolated working with a majority of women. Is it because of CARE is working to empower women?

Now you can see the gap of women`s workforce in Cambodia compared to Germany. Cambodian men still have an image in mind of a woman who has to be a housewife and stay at home, whereas men are the ones to work and to earn money. Women receive less education than men. Therefore fewer women work in a higher position.
The situation has to be changed. Like some people said, women are playing an important role in the society. They are the human force for social movement. A Cambodian proverb says: “No water, no fish” brings to understanding “No women, no Men.”

CARE is working to improve the living conditions for women and help them to strengthen their capacity building and economic development. “I am Powerful” will be a bridge to break gender inequity and gender discrimination. In this context you can also see the video: “I’m a Roma Woman- I’m a European Woman-I’m a Women”.

What do you think women will be in the future? Do you feel you are powerful if you are a woman?