The Project Against Domestic Violence (PADV) is taking advantage of the Water Festival celebration to spread its message of anti-domestic violence.
PADV president Hor Phally said her local NGO gave away 500 long sleeve T-shirts and fliers to peddicab drivers, the motocycle drivers, and the boats racers from the provinces to promote the fight against domestic violence. Ms. Hor Phally said the message on the shirt: "I don't use violence, do you?" can remind people not to resort to violence in the family.
She said the water festival is a good occasion because there are so many participants.
The anti-violence campaign is funded by the US Embassy in Phnom Penh, and a number of organizations. US Embassy spokesman Jeff Daigle said the US wants to help Cambodia reduce domestic violence in Cambodia. He said the US is concerned that children who are the victims of domestic violence will in turn grow up to carry out domestic violence.
He said the embassy has funded a number of workshops to eradicate domestic violence. The peddicab drivers and other men who received the free shirt at the festival said that they support the campaign to end domestic violence and that they will help spread the message to their friends.
Ms. Hor said that she hopes domestic violence will subside when the anti-domestic violence law goes into effect in the near future.