Retreating Is Not Safety: How Cambodia Drives Women Out of Civic Spaces

The Diplomat

30-06-2025

In Cambodia, survivors of digital violence are increasingly disengaging from digital platforms or stepping down from leadership in women-led organizations. This retreat from civic space is not a side effect; it is the intended result of technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) against women journalists and human rights defenders. Treating this 'exit from civic space' as a form of safety only reinforces its strategy.
This is the key finding in Asia Centre's baseline study, 'Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence in Cambodia: Impact on the Civic Freedoms of Women Journalists and Human Rights Defenders.' Published on May 20, 2025, the 35-page report incorporated, on the condition of anonymity, the views of 12 women engaged in public advocacy. It sheds light on patriarchal social structures in Cambodia that collectively contribute to the persistence of TFGBV in the country.
The alarming shift in the Cambodian digital sphere, where visibility has become a vulnerability, points to the urgent need for policymakers, civil society, and the public to take remedial action. The severity of TFGBV in the country surpasses the ability of Cambodian legal frameworks to address the fast-evolving nature of digital violence. One informant shared that women in general are reluctant to report such incidents to justice institutions, because 'many interviews (with authorities) contain victim-blaming… discouraging survivors from coming forward.'
With Cambodia ranking 141st out of 142 countries in World Justice Project's 2023 Rule of Law Index, it points to a loss of faith in the justice system, especially when it comes to the protection of women facing online harms. Hence, retreating from the public sphere has become the only remaining exit to safety for women engaged in advocacy.
As such, in Cambodia, TFGBV methodically dismantles women's participation in public discourse, sowing fear in the back of their minds, 'affecting [their] confidence and [making] reporting (such incidents to authorities) much more stressful.'
But the psychological harm inflicted on TFGBV survivors is not limited to personal concerns. Their systemic silencing paves the way for a culture of impunity, where public accountability wanes, investigative journalism suffers, and the truth becomes increasingly difficult to reach. In fact, the whole of Cambodian society self-censors 'difficult' issues, resulting in online harassment faced by women left largely unspoken.
In Cambodia, the defensive response of withdrawing from the public sphere only concedes power to the perpetrator, further entrenching structural inequality. To protect the right to participate, survivor-centered strategies must become the reality. That means developing legal frameworks that go beyond punishment by also providing meaningful protection and digital resilience. Law enforcement, civil society, tech companies, and media must be equipped to respond not just to the violence that has already occurred, but to the new threats on the horizon.
Considering the current prevalence of TFGBV in Cambodia, the region needs to be on the lookout for the growing role of AI in amplifying the issue. The risk is not limited to bots or misinformation. As a 2023 UNESCO report noted, it's also about enhanced surveillance of women's online activity, highly realistic deepfakes, and simulated harassment campaigns designed to discredit, deceive, and destroy. Survivors cannot face these evolving harms alone, and they shouldn't have to.
Collective action is urgent, but it won't happen unless the right solutions are put in place.
For starters, the Cambodian government needs to introduce targeted legislation that defines, criminalizes, and addresses TFGBV, drawing from international standards. These laws must be enforceable and prevented from misuse. Law enforcement officers and judges need training that bridges gender justice with digital literacy. Civil society must be resourced not only to support survivors but to keep pressure on policymakers. And technology companies that are unregulated or diluting fact-checking must be held accountable for content moderation in local contexts, with real transparency around post takedowns and complaints.
That is why more evidence-based research on emerging TFGBV trends in the region and beyond is crucial. Regular capacity-building across all sectors – from judges and police officers to teachers and journalists is also needed. Awareness is the first defense, but it must be backed by legal protections, support mechanisms, and digital literacy tools that equip survivors and potential targets to respond.
Even deeper than this, cultural narratives must be reframed. In a society where power imbalances are masked as 'cultural harmony,' women using digital tools to amplify their voices are not seen as participants in public discourse but as disruptors. As a representative of a female-led organization said, 'Any mistake that happens, we tend to receive a lot of attacks without any specific evidence.'
With these norms framing civic expression, digital tools are distorted into weapons of punishment. As long as public morality is a shield for gender control, laws alone will fail. Cambodia must shift from tolerating online misogyny to a zero-tolerance standard, where the cost of digital violence is borne by the perpetrator, not the survivor.
Safety cannot be granted through silence. The true value of any digital society is whether women can speak, lead, and exist online without being punished for it. If 'exit from civic space' becomes the only protection available, then TFGBV has already won. The future demands that we remain vigilant and act together, not react alone.
This op-ed is based on Asia Centre's report, 'Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence in Cambodia: Impact on the Civic Freedoms of Women Journalists and Human Rights Defenders' Download the full report here. For more information about the Asia Centre, visit https://asiacentre.org