The Centre for Law and Transformative Change (CLTC) has released its report, Gender-Responsive Sentencing Practices: Towards a Gender-Responsive Criminal Justice System in Cambodia, at a pivotal moment. As we commemorate 15 years of the Bangkok Rules, this year’s International Women’s Day theme, For All Women and Girls: Rights, Equality, Empowerment, highlights the pressing need to reform sentencing policies to reflect the lived realities of women in conflict with the law.
Women like Srey Neang, a 29-year-old Cambodian mother of two, illustrate why these reforms cannot wait. Convicted of theft and minor drug offences, acts driven by financial desperation, she feared losing her children. Without legal representation, imprisonment was almost inevitable. In rare cases, Cambodian courts have granted non-custodial sentences, allowing women to remain with their children. If gender-responsive sentencing were the norm, women like Srey Neang could receive rehabilitation instead of incarceration, gaining access to counselling, vocational training, and parenting support to rebuild their lives.
Yet, for most women, this outcome remains uncommon. Many within Cambodia’s justice system are primary caregivers, survivors of abuse, or economically vulnerable. However, courts routinely overlook these circumstances. Instead of addressing the root causes of women’s offences, the system focuses on punishment.
The Bangkok Rules, adopted in 2010, were designed to change this. They call for non-custodial alternatives, judicial training, and rehabilitation-focused sentencing, particularly for pregnant women and mothers with dependent children. Cambodia has taken steps, such as introducing suspended sentences for single mothers, but reforms remain inconsistent.
CLTC’s latest report examines global best practices from Australia, Indonesia, and Singapore, providing a roadmap for Cambodia to align with international human rights standards. Key recommendations include expanding non-custodial alternatives, strengthening judicial training, and ensuring legal protections for mothers and pregnant women. Sentencing must reflect women’s realities, prioritising rehabilitation over rigid punishment.
A justice system that disregards gendered inequalities fails women entirely. Justice must go beyond punishment. It must heal, support, and empower. Fairness is not about leniency; it is about recognising the structural barriers that push women into the criminal justice system and addressing them through dignity-centred solutions. For all women and girls: rights, equality, empowerment must be more than a theme. It must be a guiding principle in shaping a justice system that truly serves everyone.
This report, made possible through collaboration with King & Wood Mallesons, Legal Aid Cambodia, and Pro Publico, reinforces the need for gender-responsive systems change. Women should never have to choose between justice and their families. They deserve a legal system that acknowledges their unique challenges, prioritises rehabilitation over punishment, and upholds their dignity at every stage of the judicial process.
The full report is now available, outlining a clear path toward a justice system that restores rather than harms the lives of women in conflict with the law. A system that fails to consider power dynamics, social structures, and the lived realities of women only reinforces oppression. It is time to move beyond control and discipline toward a justice framework rooted in fairness, agency, and transformation.
Read the Report HERE
Towards a gender-responsive criminal justice system in Cambodia