“Girl, 9, sexually abused by 10 and 11 year old boys.”

“Monster Dad’ jailed 48 years and ordered to be whipped 24 times for the charge of sexually abusing his 15 year daughter 623 times.” 

These headlines have created waves upon waves of disbelief and anger in our society; and more than ever, netizens have openly voiced their views on the matter.

Last year, our nation was horrified with the revelation of sexual abuse of the many underage children by paedophile Richard Huckle. But what many fail to understand is that, these reported incidences are just the tip of the iceberg, as many go unreported due to the stigma and fear still attached to this issue.

In the frenzied aftermath of such news, lots of platforms were looked into in developing remedial efforts in combating this phenomenon which is on the rise, especially with young people as victims. But fundamentally, one area which is still left unclear is: has sex education, which was advocated for many years, really achieved its goals?

Are the young people of today in the know of their sexual reproductive health and rights?

At the Federation of Reproductive Health Associations Malaysia (FRHAM), we have pushed this agenda for the longest period of time, as our principles dictate that no child is left behind and denied of his/her access to comprehensive sexuality education (CSE).

However, this can only be achieved with the concerted efforts of various bodies coming together making it a national agenda.

Yes, lots of programmes have been carried out as a remedial effort in overcoming this problem in the past. But the question to ask is, should we be focusing on preventive mechanisms or remedial efforts in dealing with the problem?

Shouldn’t we be providing our young people the full access to CSE first, as a guide for them to navigate relationships, identifying red flag situations, and become empowered citizens, rather than looking at helping a victim who faces a lifetime sentence of trauma?

How many horrific cases need we see until we finally break the barriers that have impeded the implementation of a people-centred, rights-based approach to CSE in schools?