Fanaticism vs sex-ed as teen pregnancies soar

IN PANAMA we have a serious and growing problem with pregnant girls and adolescents because governments echo fanaticism and absurd dogmas that prevent our youth from receiving an adequate sexual education.

Thus, before the indolent gaze of officials and parents, every year, thousands of teenagers see their future unfold in their ignorance and, surely, that of the baby on the way.

What can an uneducated teenager do to feed a baby in her arms? What can she do to guarantee a promising future? Where will the livelihood of mother and child  come from? The circle of poverty – that governments intend to fight with subsidies – is enlarged and deepened with every pregnant teenager. This reality is the purest expression of hypocrisy. No allowance repairs the damage of a stolen childhood or compensates for the illusions left behind in the face of an unplanned pregnancy.

Governments are responsible for our youth having the opportunity to move forward, even over a collective irresponsibility that denies their right to access an education that guarantees their right to make informed decisions.- LA PRENSA.  Mar 1