Civil Coalition: Stop to Risky Sexual Education

Hrvatska udruga za oboljele od HIVa

The CESI Association called met on January 11, 2007, to present its concern over the decision of the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports to approve the use of the experimental curriculum in health education prepared by the GROZD Association, in ten schools in Croatia. The GROZD programme awaits the approval by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.

Concerned citizens, representatives of a number of networks, associations � among the HUHIV and the Croatian Youth Network - institutions and political parties took part in the meeting. They all believe that GROZD�s curriculum is unconstitutional and presents risks to public health, since it promotes views towards sexuality and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases contrary to the principle of contemporary public health and international standards of children and human rights.

GROZD�s programme, in the sections covering human sexuality, promotes extremely conservative, faith based morality. Thus, it presents masturbation as �turning inwards to one�s self�, while contraception is judged as preventing a complete intercourse and that none of the recognized means of prophylactics is safe enough. The sexual intercourse is defined exclusively as a relationship between members of the two opposed sexes, treating homosexuality as unnatural abomination. Finally, the programme states that divorces result from inability to experience true love.

The participants in the meeting founded the Stop to Risky Sexual Education Civic coalition. The coalition aims to suspend and prevent the experimental implementation of topics on human sexuality under the auspices of health education curriculum in Croatian schools; prevent the failed public policy of reproductive and sexual health youth rights, implemented by the Government over the past two years; and insure the implementation of a single standard education programme on human sexuality, based on scientific facts and international conventions and treaties.

Over the coming months, the Coalition will inform the public and take action on national in international levels to prevent the implementation of this programme that could cause more harm than good to children and youth. The Coalition invites all concerned citizens, members of academic and experts community, associations and institutions join its efforts.