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Sien Sokea is no longer the shy, reserved girl she once was growing up in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. With patience, guidance and support, the 22-year-old has developed skills that help her shine as an empowered change-maker on the public stage.
Sokea is one of AusCam Freedom Project’s 122 scholarship holders. The organization’s development program offers psychological support, university scholarships, and the materials needed to enable students to be successful.
AusCam has supported over 3,000 girls and young women over the past 11 years, helping them undertake life skills education, career counseling, girls’ clubs, and other supplementary support.
Sokea is now a fourth-year student studying Food Engineering at the Institute of Technology of Cambodia in Phnom Penh. “I am so thankful for AusCam, which has helped my family and me so much,” Sokea said. “Since enrolling with AusCam, my life has changed almost unbelievably. I have learned a lot of new things that I never knew before about health, soft skills, and life skills.”
Sokea loves the support of the AusCam program, specifically the Protection and Empowerment teams. The Protection team provided her with emergency and counseling support, including rice for her family and personal consultations.
“They made me so welcomed, warm, and happy,” she said.
AusCam’s social workers often followed up with Sokea, listening to problems and helping her find solutions, while the Empowerment team invited Sokea to several workshops.
“I became braver and started answering questions when I joined the workshops,” Sokea said.
AusCam’s Career Development team invited Sokea to a career planning, resume writing, and career counseling workshop. These skills complemented her university studies in Food Engineering and prepared her for a future professional career.
Sokea believes that the work done by the AusCam Freedom Project to create awareness of Online Sexual Exploitation of Children (OSEC) is essential for girls and young women when using social media.
“I think the girls must know about it because it can help them escape online sexual exploitation. If the girls know about [OSEC], they can increase their vigilance when using social media. When they know more about online child exploitation, they can help other girls and families,” Sokea said. “I will share my knowledge about [OSEC] with other girls and my community. I don’t want to see them become victims of [OSEC].”
While Sokea doesn’t want to see more women and girls become victims of OSEC, the harsh reality is that every day, more and more girls are targeted online by abusers.
When 17 year old Nai received a seemingly random Facebook request from a stranger, 17 year old Nai did what many girls her age would do–she accepted the request. After all, the stranger seemed to be a girl about her age, so what could the harm be?
Through a series of messages, the stranger befriended Nai, listening to her and earning her trust. But one day her new friend sent her a nude photo and asked for one in return. Though she was initially embarrassed and resistant, Nai was worn down by the stranger’s persistence until she finally sent an intimate photo. The stranger’s tone turned from one of friendly support to blackmail, threatening Nai to share the photo if she didn’t send more explicit pictures.
But this wasn’t the end for Nai–she saw some of AusCam’s educational materials and reached out. Through a partnership with Meta, AusCam was able to not only get the abuser’s page shut down, but also was able to remove all explicit images of Nai from the platform. Nai also received education about safer internet practices and counseling.
Horrifically, Nai’s story is repeated day after day with less happy conclusions. OSEC continues to be a pervasive threat to all children using social media. AusCam continues to fight against abuses like Nai experienced, and support young girls like Sokea who are willing to be agents for change.
Learn more about AusCam’s work fighting OSEC by protecting and empowering girls in Cambodia
