PHNOM PENH, Cambodia, Oct. 11 (UPI) -- Women who had been raped, forced into marriage and beaten under the Khmer Rouge told their stories at a hearing in Cambodia.
About 400 people were in the audience Wednesday for the second Asia-Pacific Regional Women's Hearing, The Phnom Penh Post reported.
Chum Ly Ly, 62, described being beaten by her village unit chief until she was forced into a marriage. When that husband left her, she was once more at the mercy of the unit chief. She was also raped by guards, something she never talked about until recently.
A coordinator from the Cambodian Defenders Project said Ly Ly was inspired by tell her story by hearing other women testify last year.
"She hid her story for a long time," Doung Savorn said. "All the stories just came out when we prepared her to talk."
Savorn said the Khmer Rouge leaders charged with war crimes have not specifically been charged with violence against women.
