Nuon Phaly

Nuon Phaly (; 1942 – 17 November 2012) was a Cambodian woman who advocated for mental health support for female survivors of the Cambodian genocide and their children. Her work has included establishing the Khmer People's Depression Relief Centre and the Future Light Orphanage, the latter of which remains operating. For her commitment to helping traumatised women and children rebuild their lives, Phaly was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership in 1998.

Early life Phaly was born in Kandal Province in 1942. She completed high school and developed proficiency in French and Khmer shorthand, skills that enabled her to work as a senior secretary at the Ministry of Finance in Phnom Penh by 1972. By the same year, she was married to Hem Soeurn, with whom she had two children.

Life under the Khmer Rouge In April 1975, the Khmer Rouge captured Phnom Penh, and Phaly, as well as her husband, twelve-year-old daughter, three-year-old son, and two of her sisters, were forcibly evacuated from the city to the countryside to work in a forced labour camp. Phaly was nine months pregnant at the time, and gave birth to a second son days later. Shortly afterwards, she was separated from her husband, who she would not see again until the fall of the regime.

A few months into their imprisonment at a collective farm, Phaly and her daughter were gangraped by Khmer Rouge soldiers; her daughter was killed. Phaly and her sons were taken to the killing fields, where they were tied up on the edge of a muddy embankment and left to drown, though Phaly was able to convince a soldier that she had previously worked for a high-ranking member of the Khmer Rouge regime, and was untied, allowing her to escape with her children.

Phaly spent the next three years living in the rainforests of north-eastern Cambodia where she and her sons avoided capture, though her youngest son died of starvation. This project made Phaly recognise the high numbers of orphans in the camp, as well as children whose mothers were experiencing mental health difficulties stemming from their experiences, which impacted upon their ability to look after themselves and their children. The KPDRC was supported by the Catholic Office for Emergency Refugee Relief and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. She was survived by her husband, Hem Soeurn, who died in 2021.

Recognition In 1998, Phaly was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership "for her selfless commitment to helping war-traumatised women and children rebuild their spirits and lives in the wake of Cambodia's great national tragedy".

In addition, Phaly also won the Figaro Prize for Humanitarian Service, and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.