KUALA LUMPUR: The lack of early sex education is among the contributing factors in the rise of baby dumping cases.
Women, Family and Community Development Deputy Minister Hannah Yeoh said parents should educate their children about sex from as young as four to stop the continuous rise in the number of child pregnancy and baby dumping cases.
She said, while the government was working on developing early sex education, parents must teach their children about the difference between a “good touch” and a “bad touch”. She said sex education should no longer be considered a taboo subject.
“If you don’t teach your child about sex education, someone else will. This is even more dangerous because we won’t know if they have any ulterior motives while doing so. Parents can find a lot of materials online to teach their children,” Yeoh said after launching the largest Origami Jalur Gemilang at Damansara City Mall here today. She was commenting on three recent baby dumping cases.
The Segambut member of parliament said parents must talk to their children about their private parts, who could touch them and the limits that should be set.
“In the past, a child was only exposed to sex education in their late teens, probably 17. So, very often, they are caught offguard.
“They do not have adequate knowledge of the subject and accidentally slip into becoming a statistic. This is a very worrying matter, but we cannot blame them entirely because the government failed to incorporate early sex education.”
Yeoh said the ministry was identifying and mapping baby dumping hot spots to conduct awareness, rehabilitation and counselling programmes.
She said the ministry was also working with the Education Ministry to push for the subject to be included in the primary school syllabus more quickly.
“The ministry is also sourcing for materials and options on how to conduct sex education awareness programmes without having to go through the schools,” she said.
The origami Jalur Gemilang, which comprised 6,084 origami pieces, measured 10.3m by 5.06m. A brainchild of Origami Academy’s founder Kenneth Ch’ng, it was recognised by the Malaysia Book of Records today as the “Biggest Jalur Gemilang Made From Cranes Design Origami”.
The orgami pieces were designed and folded by 412 primary school students from 23 schools, including Nexus International school.