User:Whatever-kun/sandbox

Sex education in the Kyrgyz Republic refers to the set of topics relating to sexual and reproductive health, sexuality that includes sexual intercourse, age of consent, sexual and reproductive rights, safe sex, birth control and sexual abstinence. It can also included the emotional relationship between people, issues of domestic violence and abuse.

Current situation of sex education
The rate of abortion among people age up to 20 has been high for the last nine years. Among youth many are diagnosed with gonorrhoea and syphilis.

According to WHO, national laws support a number of rights that are key to SRH and HIV, such as reproductive rights (guaranteed in the Constitution), equal rights for men and women and the right to assistance for victims of violence. The law on reproductive rights guarantees, among other things, access to contraception (although in practice such access is not universal, due to high costs). Termination of pregnancy is permitted under Kyrgyz law, although the requirement of parental approval means that young people can feel forced to seek unsafe abortions.

In terms of laws specifically related to HIV, concealment from a spouse of HIV or another STI can be used as grounds for annulment of marriage, and reckless transmission of HIV is a criminal offence. However, discrimination on the grounds of HIV status is prohibited, and other positive legal changes include the abolition of laws against sex between men and sex work.

In 2013, NGO “Alliance of human reproductive health” issued a brochure dedicated to sex education of young people. A few organisations opposed the brochures, including the Russian Orthodox Church, Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Kyrgyzstan, and think-tank “Religion, Law and Politics” led by theologian Kadyr Malikov.

With the emergence of internet, there’s virtually no need for first-hand information. If young people want to find out anything about intimate things, the last person they will go to will be either a doctor or a teacher. It’s easier to ‘google’ the question they want to ask as they will get the answer immediately. However, not everything that can be found on forums is true.

Advocacy organisations
The Reproductive Health Alliance Kyrgyzstan (RHAK) was established in 2001, and its services are available in all 7 regions of the Kyrgyz Republic (Osh, Jalal-Abad, Talas, Chui, Naryn, Batken, Issyk-Kul). 

From its inception, RHAK has enjoyed strong youth support and input into its organization, policy-making and delivery. As a result, its youth work is a distinctive strength.

RHAK has developed information materials for adolescents which cover critical sexual and reproductive health (SRH) issues such as contraception and the prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted infections (STIs, including HIV and AIDS). A significant contingent of national and international trainers have been involved in training health professionals and volunteers who’ve subsequently trained groups of all sorts in SRH. Particular interest groups include refugees and internal migrants, injecting drug users (IDUs), sex workers, children in care and homeless children.

RHAK is an active member of collaborative, central Asian initiatives to address the particular SRH needs and challenges of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and repatriates. This work has included the publication and circulation of a substantial range of written materials, and the creation of 3 clinics located expressly to serve migrant communities.