Adolescent sexual habits a taboo for most Filipinos despite high teen pregnancy rates

Defense of family values and regulation of teenage sexuality have only made “a little dent” on the growing rate of teenage pregnancy in the Philippines.

 

WomanHealth Philippines, a non-government agency focused on women’s health rights, wrote in a statement on Friday that the low success rate is due to the lack of dialogue between adults and adolescents on their sexual health, rights, and responsibilities.

 

"We are surrounded by sexual innuendos, (yet) we are not comfortable discussing it. Both children and adults are negotiating these sexual scripts, our context without understanding their bodies, their rights, and their responsibilities," said Young Women Collective Coordinator May-yi Fabros in an email to GMA News Online.

 

She said that every discussion or negotiation of policies regarding sexual health and reproduction focused on protection rather than "extending and strengthening" the rights of teenagers.

 

"Seemingly, what our policies—which illustrate our understanding—is that rights begin at 18. And not just the legal kind," Fabros said.

 

Understanding the magnitude of teenage pregnancy

 

According to an infographic by WomanHealth, citing studies from the National Statistics Office and the Young Adult Fertility and Sexuality Study, 11% of pregnant women in the Philippines were children, with one out of 10 girls aged 15 to 19 already identifying as mothers.

 

At least 78 percent of these adolescents reported having unprotected sex during their first sexual encounter, with women reporting higher rates than men.

 

In 2010, 15 to 19-year-olds accounted for 174,085 births, but also comprises 10 percent of maternal deaths.

 

Fabros said that adolescents they interviewed confessed that they didn't know that "sexual intercourse was not their only option" to get close with fellow adolescents.

 

“When asked even further about why they had sex, kids would say that all they wanted was to kiss or to hold hands or just [have] company,” she added.

 

Challenging policies

 

To this end, WomanHealth presented a paper with the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) challenging present assumptions on teenage pregnancy on Aug. 27.

 

Titled "Rethinking Adolescent Sexuality, Reframing Teen Pregnancy: Upholding Sexual Rights and Citizenship of Young People," WomanHealth hopes that its presentation with PETA contributed to policies currently being developed to strengthen and expand the rights of minors when it comes to their sexual health.

 

The presentation was supported by Save the Children and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, and part of a project on children's participation in public health finance with WomanHealth, Social Watch Philippines, and the Alternative Budget Initiative. — Rie/Takumi/VC, GMA News