Sex Education Ban, Violence to Youth’s Rights

Nowadays, education about health reproduction especially for youth is an urgent matter and need support and participation from many aspects. Whether support and participation from educator such as teacher or parents, from mass media such as magazine, newspaper, radio, television, internet, but also the most important that have to be involved here are youth itself. Youth need to be aware about what had happened at least to themselves first, then to others. This is of great importance because the youth nowadays have greater challenges to face than before. In order to survive in this fast changing world, they have to take up the challenge wisely and boldly.

The influences of foreign culture and information which is readily accessible, especially through internet, could be of pro’s and cons, and the same thing goes to technology which has improved so fast and gives a lot of advantages for us such as mobility, communication and health that gives both positive and negative implications. Used wisely, these facilities can give positive impact to people’s life and nevertheless negative impact if people do not use it appropriately. For example, many years ago, youth communicate with each other using the snail mail and this consumes a lot of time, compared to youth nowadays, whereby communication with each other is simply done via phone or short text messages and this just need few seconds. However, this development in technology also gives negative effect, for example when people use this device to record and save implicit sexual activities such as kissing and others. These cases have been on the rise lately.

Why youth?

Because adolescent phase is started with a term of puberty. Puberty means a phase of rapid change in physic, psychological, social interaction and the maturation of sexual function in which sexual organs begin to take the role as a reproductive organ. Puberty starts when the body begins to produce high levels of sexual hormone to make the reproductive organs function accordingly with growth and development of a person’s body. One of the sexual hormones that influences the maturation of female reproductive organ is estrogen, whereas the testosterone hormone influences the maturation of male reproductive organ.

A person is classified as a youth if he/she is not married, whether female or male and there are many references that classifies youth based on age. WHO classifies the youth if his/her age is between 12-24 years old whereas the Indonesian Health Department’s criteria is from the age of 10 to 19 years. The Badan Kekeluargaan Keluarga Berencana Nasional(BKKBN) defines youth as someone from 10 to 21 years old and the Youth Manifesto considers anyone from 10 to 24 years old as a youth. However the most commonly used criteria (which is also used by KISARA) is from the Youth Manifesto. This age range is a precise age limit to describe a phase of transition from childhood to adulthood, and also can be called as a phase of confusion, in which a youth is in the process of identifying themselves and many are unable to decide on which is right or wrong. And in this vulnerable phase, surroundings are often not supportive towards the development of the youth. This happens because many are still with the opinion that youth are not old enough to know about their body especially in sex education. There are many limitations for the youth in getting information regarding sex. People belief that these are only adult’s talk and are a taboo for teenagers. The saddest part is when a youth wants to know and asks about sex, people judge them as being naughty and mischievous. This surely makes the youth reluctant to know about their body. Thus how can they take care of their body if they don’t know much about the changes in their body. But being a youth who is curious and wanting a challenge, they will not give up easily and always try to get information they needed by their own way. To obtain the necessary information, the do so by asking their “reliable references”. “Reliable references” here means their friends of the same age. This is because they feel most comfortable sharing their personal life to their friends. Another way is find out from mass media (especially the internet that can provide wrong information if not used wisely), and some even learn through their own experiences that with those experiences they make a theory that they are not sure off.

Very few know that they have Rights in Sexual and Reproduction. There are five Rights in Sexual and Reproduction. One of them is Rights to know about the process, the changes that happen in reproductive organ. This is actually a power for the youth to expand their knowledge without fear or shame in getting information. And if everyone (educator, mass media, government, youth itself) realize this and support each other by carrying out their role, certainly the youth can enjoy and exercise their rights, and also together with them everybody would benefit from this. Besides right to know, there is Right to be themselves whether by making their own decision, in expressing themselves and feeling safe. Other rights include Right to protect and to be protected from unexpected pregnancy, unsafe abortion, sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS; Right to get proper health services which are of good quality and which is people- friendly; Right to participate in planning, organizing, monitoring, evaluating youth programs and influence the government in making regulations about youth.
Based on a survey from KISARA (KISARA is a Non-Governmental Organization that concerns in youth problems) on July 2007 with 1412 respondent in the age range of 15-17 years old in six regencies in Bali ( Denpasar, Badung, Gianyar, Tabanan, Bangli, and Klungkung ), it is known that only 28% of youths know the definition of ‘sex’. This indicates the lack of information owned by the youth about sex education. It also showed that only 64% of youth know the definition of AIDS whereas only 68% knows the definition of HIV and only 35% knows the precise risks that can transmit HIV.

From the survey we also got to know on how the youth obtain their sex education. Mostly are from friends that accounts for 95%, then from internet which is 62%. It is also known that 95% consider that the best person to convey this information on sex education is their teachers. From this fact, it will be very helpful if the right information is given by their peers (in correlation with KISARA’s vision that is to produce a responsible youth through a peer approach, from, by and to the youth). But it gives detrimental effects if peers make way for myth and wrongful information.

Although these results of survey with close-ended question can not be used to describe the actual condition that is occurring to the youth population in Bali, because it is not based on right research methodology due to the limitation in logistic, but it is enough to tell us and make us realize and be aware off the current situations involving the youth. And still there are others result from the KISARA survey that needs urgent attention from all of us. About 8,6% youth have had sexual intercourse before marriage. This is further amplified by the results of a research from Persatuan Keluarga Berencana Indonesia (PKBI) whereby it is known that about 15% from the youths in Indonesia (which accounts to about 62 million people) have had sexual intercourse before marriage.
And the data from the Indonesian Health Department shows that every year about 700.000 abortion involve the youth or about 30% from total of the two million cases that are mostly done illegally by doctor (unsafe abortion). PKBI research about abortion in nine towns in Indonesia shows that from 37.685 respondent , 27% abortionist have not married and usually have tried to abort by themselves by drinking medicinal herbs but failed.

Looking at the facts and figures we cannot entirely blame the youth. This is because each and everybody in this country hold an important role in the establishment of youth. And we have to open our eyes widely and pay full attention to problems affecting youth because they are the next generation to participate in the development of this country. And sex education is no longer a taboo and it is a necessity to be given immediately to the youth.
It is hoped that the Rights of Sexual and Reproductive is used wisely as a weapon to protect and educate the youth and others. Often, youth tend to accept all the unjustified treatments given to them without realizing that they have been a victim of the situation. Information and knowledge that should have been obtained freely, easily and with accuracy is halted due to these problems. So one advice from a youth to another youth all there would be, Go youth! Get your right for information now without hesitation and be a hero to yourself.

taken from:www.kisara.org