Chronicle Editor
For some time, a number of citizens and organisations claiming to be child rights activists have been lobbying Government to amend the law so as to provide for legal provision of contraceptives to minors.
The latest push had apparently secured the support of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care whose chairperson Dr Ruth Labode said in November last year that minors are already sexually active and that as many as 70 000 children under the age of 16 years have unwanted pregnancies yearly. Some of them contract sexually transmitted infections (STIs). If minors had access to contraceptives, she said, the teenage pregnancies and STIs would be prevented.
However, as we expected, the Government rejected the idea in keeping with the majority view that frowns upon early sexual debut on moral, social and scientific grounds.
Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga pronounced the Government’s position on this very important matter in Parliament last week. Speaking as Health and Child Care Minister, Dr Chiwenga said girls under the age of 16 cannot be given contraceptives as they, in terms of the law, cannot consent to legal sexual activity. If they required emergency contraceptive treatment this would require parental consent as would any medical treatment.
“Since a child under the age of 16 years cannot consent to sexual intercourse in practice,” he said, “it is presumed that a child under the age of 16 years does not need contraceptives. Emergency contraceptives would be considered a form of medical treatment and therefore, individuals aged under 16 would require parental consent to access them in practice.”
After noting the legal position, he went on to cite the health implications that can arise due to initiation of young girls on contraceptives.
“Anatomy of teenagers is not fully developed to be able to carry the pregnancy and its complications which include obstructed labour, obstetric fistulas, symphysis pubis diastasis and ultimately maternal death. Early sexual debut increases risk of these adolescents to cervical cancer, sexually transmitted infections including HIV, chlamydia and gonorrhoea which have adverse effects on future fertility. Methods of contraception are not 100 percent effective therefore these adolescents remain at a higher risk of complications in case of unwanted pregnancies.”
The Government’s stance as stated by VP Chiwenga is, we argue, what resonates with the majority in our country.
Yes, there are some minors who engage in early sex, some of them falling pregnant. However, the fact that some kids want to grow up before their time must not influence the Government to relax the law to provide for contraceptives to them.
Doing so, in our considered view, would sound like, since some people, including minors, smoke weed, then the Government must come up with a law legalising smoking of weed. That would be wrong as the dangers of weed, as those of unbridled early sex, are known.
Also, approving contraceptives for minors would be dangerous as it would send a message to minors that the Government has no problem with them indulging. The result of this would be far higher numbers of teenage pregnancies and social decay.
In addition, to agree to give children contraceptives would be to create conditions for them to endanger their health and lives. As the VP said, the anatomy of minors isn’t mature enough to carry a viable pregnancy. So for us to have a law that avails contraceptives to them means that they have a choice not to use them, getting pregnant in the end which presents major challenges such as complications to the minor mother and her unborn child.
Children — and by children we refer to minor boys and girls — must be supported to concentrate on their school work, secure good passes, secure a skill and a job. As they learn and train, they would also be growing mentally and physically to be ready to indulge as well as appreciating the possible consequences of sexual activity.
It has to be made clear to minors that society frowns upon them engaging in sex on moral, social and scientific grounds. Society expects them to behave and grow.
We hope that the Government position, as enunciated by VP Chiwenga, will get the so-called child rights activists to reconsider their morally, socially and scientifically dangerous lobby.
Online Reporter