TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
'Let’s talk about sex': Jakarta urges parents to introduce sex education at home
Sex education has long been considered a taboo in many families, but the city is stepping up its efforts to improve teen sexual health by encouraging parents to talk openly about sex and sexuality with their children.
Change Size
The Jakarta administration has held a discussion on sex education to mark National Family Day on Saturday, urging parents to talk to their children as early as possible in an effort to tackle the taboos surrounding sex education. (Shutterstock/File)
I
n the past, most parents have probably avoided talking about “the birds and the bees” with their children because of taboos or because of their own discomfort. Today, the city administration is urging parents to openly broach the topic as early as possible, to provide better knowledge on sex and sexual reproduction to curious young minds.
In an era where information is only a click away, experts and participants agreed during a discussion that it was high time that parents had “the talk” with their children to offer sufficient and correct understanding.
Siti Ranito had traveled all the way from Bogor, West Java, to the Jakarta City Hall to attend the discussion on sex education on Saturday morning, held to commemorate National Family Day and organized by the Jakarta branch of the Indonesian Planned Parenthood Association (PKBI). She said she felt the need to arm herself with sufficient knowledge on the topic for her students. A 28-year-old Bogor schoolteacher, Siti said that the experience of a fellow teacher had motivated her to seek more information.
“My colleague teaches fifth-graders. One day, one of her male students approached her and asked, 'Ma'am, why does my penis become erect whenever I see you?’” she recalled on Saturday at City Hall.
“It seems that children nowadays are exposed to sexuality at a very young age. I think it's because of the internet. They could accidentally, or perhaps intentionally, become consumers of lewd content," Siti said.
Although she believed that children should should first be introduced to sex education in the family, Siti felt that she had a responsibility to supplement this in her role as a teacher. To do so, she and fellow teachers had started attending discussions on sex education for children and teenagers on a regular basis.
Ira Intasari, a sex education teacher at Al Izhar School in Pondok Labu, South Jakarta, urged parents not to be afraid of talking about sex with their children as early as possible.
