DepEd to review sex education program
The Department of Education (DepEd) will review its existing program on comprehensive sexuality education (CSE), as well as its rules and guidelines, following concerns raised by conservative personalities and groups alleging that it contained provisions teaching lewd activities to children.
Education Secretary Sonny Angara on Sunday said this was their next step amid exchanges between Sen. Risa Hontiveros and former Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, chairperson of the Public Policy Review Commission, one of the groups who raised concerns over the CSE.
Hontiveros filed Senate Bill No. 1979, or the adolescent pregnancy prevention bill. Both of its versions in the Senate and House include CSE, which Sereno first claimed contained a provision on “early childhood masturbation.”
Hontiveros disputed this and said there was no specific term teaching children about masturbation. Sereno eventually retracted her statement and conceded that there were no “actual words” about “childhood masturbation.”
Importance of sex ed
President Marcos himself backed the bill, pointing out the importance of educating the youth about the risks, consequences and challenges brought by early pregnancy.
Angara, for his part, said a review of their existing programs on CSE is underway.
“We are just reviewing the existing CSE program and current department guidelines and rules to ensure they are indeed age-appropriate and compliant with existing laws,” he told the Inquirer in a Viber message.
Angara acknowledged last week the concerns raised by the conservative groups and immediately noted that he did not file any version of it during his time as senator.
He was named as a co-author of the bill being the chairperson of the Senate committee on finance.
Angara also proposed holding consultative dialogues with stakeholders such as health service providers and community organizations.
