Background

Cambodian Defenders Project is one of the oldest Cambodian humanitarian NGO’s. Established in 1994 as a project of the International Human Rights Law Group, it became an independent Cambodian non-government organisation in 2001. CDP is operated and staffed by Cambodian nationals with some expatriate technical advisors. We implement two programs: Justice for Survivors of Democratic Kampuchea program and Gender-Based Violence during the Khmer Rouge program.

Value

Equality, freedom and human rights, respect, justice and the rule of law are the basis for a stable democracy. We have championed these rights since our inception, including through the legal defence of high profile humanitarian cases, the training of thousands of legal and police officers, and through breaking the silence about gender-based violence (GBV) during the Khmer Rouge.

Mission

Our mission is to promote the full range of human rights for all Cambodian people by providing legal representation to the poor and vulnerable and by strengthening the institutions required for a liberal democracy and for the rule of law. The access to justice is a right, not a privilege, and must never be a matter of power, kinship or money. As the Constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia states it in Article 31: “Every Khmer citizen shall be equal before the law, enjoying the same rights, freedom and fulfilling the same obligations regardless of race, color, sex, language, religious belief, political tendency, birth origin, social status, wealth or other status”.

Vision

Our vision is for the human rights of all Cambodians to be respected and protected by the institutions of a liberal democracy and the rule of law.

Staff