What we do
The CCHR is a non-political, independent, non-governmental organizationwhich works to promote and protect democracy and respect for human rightsthroughout Cambodia. We focus primarily on civil and political rights, althoughwe work on a variety of interlinked human rights issues.
Members of our staff are grouped into four specialist Units that reflect thescope of our work: Freedomof Expression; FairTrials; Land Rights; and Democracy.They work through our three Programs: Community Empowerment; Monitoring, Research, Documentation & Information; and Advocacy.
Why we do it
We believe that every Cambodian has the right to participate in democracyand to have their fundamental human rights respected. We work to giveCambodians a voice.
The CCHR logo shows a white bird flying out of a circle ofsky blue. This symbolizes Cambodia’s claim for freedom.
Our approach
Thefollowing approaches underlie our work:
Dialogue andengagement
Human RightsNGOs in Cambodia sometimes operate on a short-term case-by-case basis only,being reactive to human rights abuses rather than proactive in pushing fordialogue and broader policy and legislative changes. We want to engage innon-aggressive dialogue with all stakeholders including the government to bringabout change.
Collaboration
We aim toencourage civil society to take a more sophisticated and collaborativeapproach. We want to see collaboration rather than duplication, specializationinstead of non-strategic cover-all work, comprehensive recording and analysisof rights data rather than uncoordinated and incomplete documentation, and moreinnovative dissemination of information. We want to change the approach ofcivil society in order to provide a solid foundation on which to basecollaborative advocacy and bring about change.
Communityengagement
We want toensure that marginalized communities are at the heart of our work. We want toempower Cambodians at the grass-roots level, enabling them to understandprinciples of democracy and human rights and giving them the voice andopportunities to set the rights and development agenda.
Organizationaldevelopment and capacity building
We want to make the CCHR more democratic,transparent, efficient and therefore effective. We are developing ourdecision-making processes and accountability, internal and externalcommunications, internal polices, program and project management, staffappraisal and training, and results-based reporting. We want to pass on ourknowledge in this area to the other NGOs with which we work, maximising themultiplier-effect and sustainability of any assistance we are given in thisarea.