We are honoured that you have taken the time to respond and we welcome the opportunity to engage in dialogue, not debate.

Your response reveals that we share the same objectives. Specifically, we agree that the issue of protecting adolescents is paramount. We agree that our sexual relations are in crisis. We agree with you on the asymmetry of power. We agree on the need for comprehensive sexuality education. We agree on the need for law reform. And we agree on the need to empower adolescents.

We disagree on methods – on how we realize these objectives. You seem to lean toward punishment of perpetrators. We focus more on empowering adolescents.

Indeed, we try to avoid the term “teen pregnancy” since 80% of teenage pregnancies result from relations with men 20 years and older, and 55% from young men just 20-24. So we already have hundreds of unapprehended felons many of them people in positions of trust – police, politicians, teachers, and pastors. Raising the so-called age of consent to 18 would simply increase that number.

We are currently conducting a pilot study in Grenada aimed at strengthening HFLE. As you know, not a single country in the region satisfied the minimum international standards for Comprehensive Sexuality Education. The teaching material is being digitized to make learning easier for students, instruction easier for teachers and lessons readily accessible to parents. One of our hunches is that parental engagement is pivotal. We are trying to learn what we can do there.

And that is a monumental challenge; because more than 90% of Caribbean parents do not speak to their children about sex, far less responsible sex. This is abominable negligence and it leaves adolescents vulnerable.

Yet it gets far worse: while less than 10% speak to the children about sex, 17-19% of women visiting public health clinics report being sexually abused as children.

In our families, there is twice as much sexual abuse as there is education about sex. Our construct of parenting and parental consent is out of alignment with our lived reality.

That is why we focus on empowering adolescents. The Government must finally act on its promise of 1984 when it reduced the age of access to health care to 16. But, given the crisis we know prevails, we propose a total removal of any minimum age.

Guyana has done this for HIV testing. And Argentina has also done this in a graduated form in three age groups. They treat those 16 and older as full adults. They encourage those 13-15 to involve an adult, but healthcare workers can make their assessment of the adolescent and provide care. And those under 13 are required to have an adult chosen by the child.

This is what empowerment looks like. The result? Between 2015 and 2021 Argentina reduced its adolescent fertility by 56%.

Law 26,061 (Integral Protection of Rights) and the Civil Code.

We know you appreciate that this is a gross oversimplification. Reducing adolescent pregnancy requires all hands on deck. It is an intersectoral challenge. We have found one review of almost 70 articles on the subject very helpful. It examines risk factors and protective factors.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6284104/

I don’t believe even one of articles identified raising the age of lawful sex to 18 as a protective factor.

Once more, Senator, we are deeply grateful for your engagement.

Sincerely,

ASPIRE

This article was originally published by Antigua News Room. Read the original article here: LETTER: Senator Parker: We are Honoured by Your Response.