Petition for progressive sex education in Ukraine
Pencils left at "Rus'ki Tishkovsky Lyceum" school, in the town of Ruski Tyshky, Kharkiv region, Ukraine. Photo EPA, Atef Safadi
Eastern Europe
Members of the LGBT community in Ukraine have gathered signatures for a petition to introduce mandatory sex education in Ukrainian schools. It gathered thousands of votes.
The petition demands an introduction "of a mandatory sex education course based on the culture of consent in primary education, secondary school, as well as in higher and vocational educational institutions", Rodyna, a Ukrainian family organisation, writes. Last week, the initiative gained 25,000 signatures. That means that the Ukrainian Parliament has to consider it.
The organisation Gender in Detail is behind the petition. According to Rodyna, that is concerning because the organisation is "a well-known mouthpiece for the promotion of LGBT ideology and feminism in Ukraine." Thus, even though the wording of the petition mainly contains general phases, Rodyna worries about the content of the sexual education the initiator of the petition has in mind.
Rodyna points out that Gender in Detail promotes publications that contain "anti-religious rhetoric, ridicule of traditional values, assertions about the need to introduce LGBT ideas into school education, neglect of the right of parents to raise their children independently, and calls to take an example from those countries in which "sex education" programs actually involve the molestation of minor children."
Textbooks
In response to the petition, the website Baptyst has presented recommendations to parents regarding sexual education. One of them is keeping a close eye on the content of the curriculum. "Carefully analyse textbooks and programs at the selection stage", the website reads, pointing out that the information can be found on the website of the Ministry of Education and Culture.
Another suggestion for parents is to collaborate with other parents and actively participate in discussions about the content of school programs. Baptyst also emphasises that it is important to keep in touch with the teachers and tell them about specific wishes for pro-family programs.
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