Today I heard something interesting on the radio. No, not a new song. It was a short discussion about a book, apparently targeted at teens and young adults, about relationships. I have not read the book. I don't even know its title. But I do remember seeing a post about it on my Facebook timeline (yes, sometimes I still look at it, thank you very much).
The discussion seemed pretty one-sided, in that it seemed to unambiguously judge the book as promoting negative values and endangering young children. They invited a speaker from KPAI (Komisi Perlindungan Anak Indonesia - The Commission for the Protection of Indonesian Children (is it?)) to talk about it, I believe it was because it was viewed as necessary to protect Indonesian children from the perils of the book's contents.
What, exactly, was the book's contents? As I've said two paragraphs ago, I have not read it. But the problematic bit seemed to be that the book appears to condone, even promote, premarital sex. From what I remember, the author said that if your boyfriend/girlfriend asks you to have sex with him/her, or vice versa, it's all very natural, and it simply means that you and your boyfriend/girlfriend are healthy human beings with enough energy available to channel into reproductive acts.
Now, I have my own views on premarital sex. But I don't intend to write about them here and now. I would just like to state my opinion that the book probably wouldn't be so controversial if children had gotten proper sex education at the proper time.
Makes sense, right? For humans, who have survived millennia through sexual reproduction, sex is a part of life, like eating or walking or, more recently, working for wages. It's only logical to educate all humans about the very human thing that is sex. If children (human children, remember) have been taught about sex, then the author of the book would look very simple indeed stating that sex drive is a natural thing. It would be like if I were to tell you that humans need nutrition to survive.
I realize that there are people who are against sex education. Unfortunately, I cannot empathize with those people. Maybe they are the kind of people that say, "In real life, you get the test, then you learn the lesson." While the sentiment is very true, those people seem to forget that every test comes with a price, and it's always cheaper to study beforehand, if the option's available.
If children, teens, and young adults have viewed sex as a natural thing, then we can begin talking about premarital sex. Parents, parents-to-be, teachers, teachers-to-be, take note, because this is the part where you come in to teach them about the values you want taught. If premarital sex is unlawful, then inform these students about the legal ramifications. If premarital sex is indecent, tell them about the socio-political capital they'd have to expend. If premarital sex is in bad taste, show them how bad its taste is. If premarital sex is okay, then say it, and remind them of its risks and possible consequences.
Be brave. Be strong. Be honest.
