Open Letter on Sexuality Education from TARSHI

On the occasion of TARSHI’s 13th anniversary (February 14, 2009), we are
circulating an open letter pressing for the need for sexuality education in
India. Please find the open letter at http://www.tarshi.net/programs/public_edu/open_letter_sexuality.asp
and do sign it! Alternately, you can also find the open letter
on the homepage of www.tarshi.net.

To: the Government of India, All Political Parties and All Citizens

WE MUST RECALL that India is a signatory to the United Nations Convention on
the Rights of the Child, which upholds amongst others, the right of every
child to the highest attainable standard of health, the right to education,
the right to participation and the right to protection from exploitation and
abuse, including sexual exploitation and abuse.

HEALTH COMPRISES SEXUAL HEALTH AS WELL. According to the World Health
Organization, the overall health of a person is not dependent on the absence
of disease or infirmity alone and instead is a state of complete physical,
mental and social well-being. This includes sexual and reproductive health.

WHAT DO STATISTICS SHOW?

According to the National Family Health Survey III, 44.5% of women in India
still get married by the age of 18 years (28.1% in urban areas and 52.5% in
rural areas).

Further, 16% of the women interviewed within the age of 15-19 years were
already mothers or pregnant at the time of the NFHS survey.

According to the HIV Sentinel Surveillance and HIV Estimation, of the 2.5
million people living with HIV/AIDS in 2006, 3.8% were reported to be
children (<15years), with the percentage having increased over 5 years.

According to a study in 2007 commissioned by the Ministry of Women and Child
Development in India, out of a total of 12,447 children, 53.22% reported
having faced one or more forms of sexual abuse that included severe and
other forms. (Among them 52.94% were boys and 47.06% girls)

With statistics such as these, it is imperative that young people’s
sexuality be acknowledged and addressed and they be provided with a
supporting environment to talk about sexuality related concerns. Above all,
it is important that young people be empowered to make responsible decisions
about their own lives.

TARSHI’S HELPLINE EXPERIENCE

43,888 of calls on the TARSHI helpline between February 14, 1996 and October
10, 2007 were analyzed which showed that 42.6% of calls are from people
between the ages of 15 and 24 years.

Young callers are curious about sexuality and most times do not have access
to accurate and reliable information about their own bodies, sexual and
reproductive health issues and relationships.

Calls received from people including young people asking does kissing cause
conception” reflect that they lack very basic and important information on
sexuality.

WE CALL UPON concerned individuals and organizations to join us in appealing
to our political leaders to take action on adhering to the promises made
when ratifying the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in
1992.

WE URGE our political leaders, the Government of India and especially the
Ministry of Human Resource Development, The National AIDS Control
Organisation (NACO) and all concerned authorities to affirm young people’s
rights to information, to the highest attainable standards of health, and
ultimately, their right to life itself.

WE DEMAND the urgent revision of the AEP (Adolescent Education Programme)
curriculum on sexuality education for all children to be reflective of the
“best interests of the child” rather than proscribing narrow notions of
morality, culture and tradition. This would be the first step in creating a
comprehensive sexuality education that is gender-sensitive, age-specific and
free from negative value judgements which is essential to help young people
lead lives free of fear, disease and violence; and to enjoy physical and
mental health and wellbeing.

WE DEMAND more transparency in the process of developing a curriculum, and
the participation of young people in developing the curriculum in accordance
with children’s right to participate in programmes and policies that
directly affect their lives and futures.

WE URGE for a serious show of commitment by the Government by initiating a
systematic process involving various stakeholders including professionals,
parents, young people and educationists, to develop a comprehensive
sexuality education curriculum for children and to include sexuality
education training in the curricula for trainee teachers and healthcare
professionals including doctors and nurses.

We truly hope we can make this initiative count! Please feel free to share
it among your networks, friends, colleagues, press contacts etc because
every signature counts!

Warmly,
Arpita
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