Thursday 05.04.07

New sexual health report fails once again to address the real issues

A report on youth sexual health issued earlier this week by The Group on Population and Development, a cross-party group of New Zealand MPs, has once again failed to address the real problems with the state of youth sexuality in New Zealand.

"This report completely fails to address the fact that despite years of tax-payer funded sex education classes from the Family Planning Association (FPA) and others, our young people are now much worse off in the area of sexual health" says Family Life International media spokesperson; Brendan Malone.

"This report prescribes more of the same failed sex education policies, and a raft of new recommendations that even further remove the rights of parents to control the content of the sexuality education and information that is being given to their children."

Among other things this report recommends that sexuality education about "contraceptives and condom use" and "sexual orientation" should be given to young children "before they become sexually active"; that there "must be a nationwide approval or monitoring system" for external agencies providing sexuality education, and it supports the current framework which allows children to have abortions without parental consent or notification.

"This report is a damning indictment which highlights once again that taxpayer funds are being wasted without any form of serious accountability, and instead of offering real solutions this report recommends that more money, more of the same failed policies and even greater power to control this important health issue be given to the very groups most responsible for this mess."

"New Zealand young people are being given information by the FPA and others that is woefully inadequate and denies them the full facts about human sexuality and the risks associated with the methodologies and ideologies being promoted by groups like the FPA. Until that issue is addressed the current sexual health problems will simply continue" says Mr Malone.

ENDS

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