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Is sex turning into children’s pastime?


At first, they seemed to be just two innocent children — a boy and a girl whose ages could be seven or eight — playing under a canopy in the parking lot of a grocery store in Quezon City. But Emerson Leste saw something odd in the kids’ behavior. An assistant cameraman by profession, he used his cell phone camera to shoot video of the scene. His video starts with the two kids showing each other their genitals. A short while later, the boy plays with his private parts while the girl watches, and then both move together, simulating the sex act. They perform these acts in a public, open area in broad daylight. “It is depressing. They are very young children but are already aware of sex," says Leste in Filipino. Alarming For the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the video is not only depressing but “very alarming" as well. While it is not easy to determine if the two kids are street children, DSWD–National Capital Region Director Thelsa Biolena says that children are vulnerable and if rescue doesn’t come fast, these kids could end up in any of these miserable conditions – prostitution, unwanted pregnancy, or sexually transmitted diseases. “They may get more exposed to these activities. It could be that later on, some adults would take advantage of their innocence," Biolena says in a worried tone. She stressed that the kids don’t exactly know what they’re doing. "This could just be playing for them," she adds. The police immediately set up a surveillance operation in a bid to rescue the kids. But after one week, their efforts proved fruitless; the kids were no longer seen in the area. Chief Supt. Yolanda Tanigue, head of the Women and Children Protection Center of the Philippine National Police (PNP), says her office has been receiving similar reports. Some of these cases have even reached the courtroom. Tanigue recounts the case of a seven-year-old boy who was charged with multiple counts of rape after the mother of the six-year-old victim caught the children having sex. The boy told the police that he and the girl were just playing bahay-bahayan (playing house) after watching a pornographic video. The boy admitted having sex with the girl many times already. At the time, the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act had not yet been legislated, and so the boy spent a year in jail. The law, enacted in 2005, exempts children ages 15 and below from criminal liability, providing juvenile intervention programs for the offenders instead. Natural imitators Child psychologist Marie Labajo surmises that the kids in Leste’s video may have seen adults doing the same sexual acts and were only imitating them. “Children are naturally curious and natural imitators," she says. Labajo says it is common for many large or extended families with low incomes to live and sleep together in congested dwellings. In such a setting, children waking up in the middle of the night and seeing their parents having sex is common. Such was the case, a few years ago in Zambales, of several children ages 8 to 12 who had set up a hideout where they'd rendezvous to engage in group sex. The case was brought to the attention of Labajo, who at that time was spearheading a livelihood program for mothers in the area. The regular sessions of the mothers’ group came to a halt while the children went through a series of counseling sessions with Labajo's team. Labajo also blames the media, to which the public has unparalleled access these days. There are pornographic websites on the Internet, tabloids and CDs displayed on sidewalks showing naked men and women and sometimes even sexual acts, noontime television shows that feature scantily dressed women, primetime soap operas that highlight torrid kissing, and advertisers — mostly cigarette and liquor companies — that employ women as sex objects, mere come-ons for their mostly male consumers. Allowing children to absorb a steady barrage of these sensitive materials, on their own and without supervision, can be dangerous. Labajo says a responsible parent must carefully explain when a child starts asking questions. And sex, she hastens to add, must not be explained by metaphors like birds, bees or flowers, but must be taught like a subject in schools. “The problem is that sex is taboo in typical Filipino family discussions with children. Many parents react violently when a child asks about it," says Labajo. Sex education So if sex cannot be discussed at home, then the discussion must be in schools. This is where sex education comes in, Labajo says. In many countries worldwide, sex education is taught formally in schools by trained teachers. But sex education has been a controversial issue for years in this predominantly Catholic nation. Few educators even dare call it that, preferring the less provocative "reproductive health" and other labels without "sex" in it. Plans to introduce it in public schools since 2005 have been met with protests and criticisms by the politically influential Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and other conservative religious groups. This time, however, the Department of Education (DepEd) seems determined to finally push through with the program. Funded by the United Nations Population Fund, sex education modules will be pilot-tested starting this school year in 79 public secondary schools and 80 elementary schools across the country, starting with grade five pupils ages 11 and 12.

The Department of Education will integrate sex education into the students' core subjects, including Science and health, physical education, and Araling Panlipunan. (Photo courtesy of DepEd)
Education Secretary Mona Valisno is quick in stressing that the sex education initiative, which will also be known as Adolescent Reproductive Health program, "is not about sex and is not designed to titillate prurient interest." Valisno also assures everyone that it won't include information about artificial contraceptives — a very sensitive issue for the Catholic Church. She clarifies that classroom discussions on sex education will deal with the science of reproduction, physical care and hygiene, correct values and the norms of interpersonal relations to avoid premarital sex and teenage pregnancy. “Our role here is to educate our young people on issues that directly affect them and empower them to make informed choices and decisions," Valisno says. According to the DepEd, sex education modules will be integrated into the students’ core subjects, including science and health, English, math and physical education. Topics requiring a more mature audience will be discussed in the latter years of high school. “Among those who prepared the modules are psychologists because we want to ensure that specific topics for discussions will be made in the appropriate year levels," Valisno elaborates, adding that DepEd is still open for consultations. Two batches of teachers who will be using the modules have already been trained. A third batch is being prepared for training this year. Parents’ duty But the Catholic hierarchy is strongly protesting the move. It says parents, not the school, should teach children about sex. It asks: Why should the government take away that obligation from parents? If sex education is taught to students, Church leaders say, it should start in college, not any earlier. “That is the time where we could say that the children are more mature about handling such a topic," says Fr. Conegundo Garganta, executive secretary of the CBCP's Episcopal Commission on Youth. Catholic schools have recently clarified their stance, saying they are open to dialogue with government for what they called "age-appropriate" and "value-based" sex education. Last June 16, in an article posted on the CBCP website, the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP) said it is finalizing "enrichment modules" on sex education that will be ready next semester. But Rep. Luzviminda Ilagan of women’s party-list group Gabriela argues that the government cannot wait for Filipino children to reach college before they are given sex education. She believes the program must be given starting with fourth-grade pupils, who are around 9 or 10 years old. “It can begin in grade 4, not earlier, not later. Girls and boys in that level are already undergoing changes physically and biologically," she says. Ilagan also explains that many children who finish elementary grades do not continue to high school. “In the rural areas, many will not proceed to high school. They will not have the chance to receive proper sex education. Many will already get married so it is but right to give correct sex education before puberty sets in," Ilagan insists. Promiscuity Despite the arguments raised by the DepEd and other pro-sex education advocates, Church leaders remain steadfast in their position, opposing sex education in public elementary and high schools. They claim it may only encourage early sex and promiscuity among the youth and sexual activity outside marriage. Fr. Garganta also raises questions about the capacity of schools to effectively teach sex education. He believes there are more powerful factors that could affect the values of the children like peers, media, and other outside influences. But the DepEd says it is precisely the need for efficiency which is the basis for the pilot testing, before the program is implemented on a wider scale. On the matter of promiscuity, the DepEd chief says this is already happening among the youth, and thus must be addressed through sex education. She adds that the modules are specifically designed to make students more aware about the importance of abstaining or delaying their sexual debut. “We will pursue with its implementation because we really need this," says Valisno. One urgent source of the pressure on government to implement sex education is the growing problem of unintended teenage pregnancies. Data from the Quezon City Health Office shows that in 2009, there was one pregnant teenager for every 10 new registered pregnant women—a staggering 10,248 teenage pregnancies in one year alone in just one city. Nationwide, 36 out of 100 births are recorded among young mothers aged 15 to 24, according to the 2008 National Demographic and Health Survey. That’s more than one-third of all annual births. Unwanted pregnancies among the youth have become prevalent as more and more young people engage in premarital sex. The 2002 Young Adult Fertility and Sexuality Survey (YAFSS) conducted nationwide by the University of the Philippines Population Institute shows that the proportion of young Filipinos, aged 15 to 27, engaging in premarital sex increased from 17.8 percent in 1994 to 23.1 percent in 2002. One third of those who engaged in premarital sex also reported having multiple sex partners. According to the survey, the majority of the youth engaged in unprotected sex – 70 percent for men and 68 percent for women. What worries health experts is that 60 percent of these young people believe there is no chance for them to be infected with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) that causes Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). The survey also reveals misperceptions about HIV-AIDS among Filipino youth. Twenty-eight percent of young adults thought that AIDS is curable, while 73 percent thought they are immune to HIV. Anti-HIV campaign Consequently, Valisno says the rising number of cases of sex-related diseases among the youth have now reached an alarming rate. The HIV-AIDS registry of the Department of Health (DOH) shows a dramatic increase of new HIV infections among Filipinos in the 15-24 years old bracket, from 41 in 2007 to 218 in 2009 — a five-fold expansion in just two years. Hence, on top of the sex education program, DepEd and a UN agency have launched an anti-HIV-AIDS program among high school students. It is considered the “soft implementation" of the sex education program since it aims to educate youth on the perils of sex at an early age. With the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) at the helm, the program dubbed as “Power of You" was pioneered in March in 29 high schools across the country. The educational campaign carries an interactive video that follows the story of typical teenagers Francis and Sara. The video uses the telenovela format to encourage young people to forego sexual activities and educate themselves and their peers about HIV and other sexually-transmitted diseases. In a press statement, the UN children’s agency says the project emphasizes children’s right to information as enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which is the most widely signed international treaty safeguarding children’s rights. “UNICEF believes that children have the right to information, at the right time, to enable them to lead happy and healthy lives," the treaty says. The program came a few weeks after the DOH’s widely publicized and controversial action of giving away free condoms on Valentine’s Day as part of its anti-HIV campaign. The DOH, which earned the ire of some Catholic bishops, is pressing for a 400-million-peso program to purchase condoms. DepEd, for its part, has no plans to distribute condoms in schools. Expectedly, the health department fully supports the implementation of sex education in schools. Its head, Secretary Esperanza Cabral, is even suggesting that teaching about sex start with kindergarten pupils — again, to the horror of Catholic bishops. But while clashing parties continue to debate the propriety of sex education, teenage kids, and increasingly even pre-teen children, discover sex on their own, exploring it like a new game or pastime, often rushing headlong into the dark, unmindful of the end results.—JV/HS, GMANews.TV Claire Delfin is a senior correspondent of GMA Network, Inc. She regularly contributes special reports on children, women, education, health and the environment to the network’s official news website, www.gmanews.tv.
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