Tep Vanny is one of the many housewives who are protesting against the government in Cambodia to stop forced evictions. Forced evictions has moved up and become of the most serious forms of human rights abuse in certain countries. Vanny was presented with an award called the Vital Voices leadership in public life award for all of her efforts with this issue. The government is trying to focus on poverty eradication rather than what may be best for the people, their homes, and lives. Considering that women seem to be the glue to the household and its functions in traditional societies, they are the ones who are taking actions against the evictions. They are the caretakers, the mothers, and wives who are attempting to defend their homes, families, and lifestyles. To the government, they view the women as “easy” targets and not someone who would cause a problem during the eviction. Housewives across Cambodia are engaging nonviolent protests to stop these forced evictions from happening. These women are not justing protesting for their houses, but also in what they believe in for the whole society and spreading awareness of what is happening internationally. One nonviolent approach these women took was coming out bare and exposed in order to get the message across that this is what it would be like if the government were to take everything away from them. They have taken action further than the Cambodian government and submitted their opinions and complaints to the World Bank, which agreed with the women and ended the loans they were providing to Cambodia. These women are reaching political leaders, governments, and others across the world in order to end this rare and inconceivable issue of forced eviction. The battle has not quite ended however, both the housewives and the government are still fighting for what they believe in.
These actions that are being taken for women shows that women are capable of much more than people accredit them for. They are typically seen as pushovers, soft, or defenseless. I’m sure the government didn’t see this kind of intervention and protest resulting in their forced evictions. These housewives are not only defending themselves and their homes, but they are striving to protect their whole society who is being affected by this. They are standing vulnerable in the streets risking what they have to stop the government from taking other people’s properties. These women are trying to defend their families, everything they own, their income, and everything else in their current lifestyle. Forced eviction would take away everything these families have been working for, and it may not be much in the first place. The government is setting back these families who may already be struggling to make ends meet and making things worse and harder for them. Reading about these inspirational women leaders are an example of the power of women and the capabilities that they do have.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/apr/02/cambodia-activists-housewife
Lauren Doss, 4/8/2013 11:40am
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