5,185 Sex Crimes Against Children According to the Social Welfare and Development, there were a total of 5,185

sex crimes committed against children in the Philippines in 2000, and 3,980 cases in 2001. Sex crimes refer to rape, incest, and acts of lasciviousness.

Two-Thirds of Young Workers Had Premarital Sex A survey conducted by the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) in 2002 showed that 30 percent of the country's young workforce claimed to be sexually active, with 10 percent of the single male respondents claiming to have casual sex. The study titled "Issues Affecting Young Filipino Workers" also showed that 37 percent of young males have had sex with more than one partner - usually with prostitutes - prior to marriage while two-thirds of married female and male workers said they had premarital sex with the people they eventually married. In a separate report, a study conducted by the University of the Philippines Population Institute in the year 2000 showed that 23 percent of 16.5 million Filipinos aged between 15 and 24 have engaged in premarital sex. According to the TUCP, about 6.5 million Filipino workers were belonging to the 15 to 24 year age group as of 2002.

100,000 Child Prostitutes According to the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef), about 60,000 to 100,000 Filipino children were working as prostitutes as of 1997. Prostitution was present in 37 provinces then. The major child prostitution dens were found in Manila, Angeles City, Puerto Galera, Davao City and Cebu City. The Philippines has reportedly become a favorite destination of pedophiles from the US, Australia and Europe. The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has documented 8,335 cases of child abuse from 1991 to 1996. http://www.txtmania.com/trivia/social.php

Commentary: Sex and Filipino youth

By Mong Palatino Column: Peripheries Published: November 20, 2007

Font size: Manila, Philippines The Philippines has a very young population. Adolescence is thought to be the healthiest stage of the life cycle, but in this country statistics defy this common observation.

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A study by Dr. Corazon M. Raymundo reveals that at least one-third of the 475,000 abortions in the country are attributed to women aged 15-24 years old. Three out of four maternal deaths are from the adolescent group. Many of the health problems of adolescents are lifestyle-related. About 13 percent of adolescents have thought of committing suicide. More than half of unsuccessful suicide incidents involved the slashing of wrists. About 11 percent of the youth have tried illegal drug substances. The most commonly used illegal drugs are marijuana, rugby, shabu, ecstasy and cough syrup. According Dr. Raymundo, reproductive health is an important aspect of adolescent health. Threats to adolescent reproductive health include early and unprotected premarital sexual activity, early pregnancy and childbirth, abortion, rape, violence and sexual harassment. Premarital sex is increasing in the Philippines. The study shows that 20 percent of premarital sex occurs among high school students. Many first sexual encounters are not planned or wanted. Most sexual experiences are unprotected. Substantial numbers of young people have reproductive health problems but they are not seeking medical help. Painful menstruation among girls and painful urination among boys are the most commonly reported ailments. Sexually active youth have more such problems. One-third of these boys and girls have experienced sexually transmitted infections. Dr. Raymundo notes that those who smoke, drink, and use drugs are more likely to have sex. Premarital sex is most strongly linked with drug use. This shows that risky behaviors do not occur in isolation, rather they are interconnected. It is also alarming that many teenagers think AIDS can be cured and still a large percentage thinks they are not vulnerable to AIDS. The government should also look into persistent rumors that AIDS cases are on the rise among call center workers. Dr. Raymundo reminds the public that teenage pregnancy is another cause for concern because of the special situation of young women in society. By age 18, about 10

percent of teenagers have been pregnant already. The figure rises to 25 percent by age 20. There is a higher risk that a teenage pregnancy will lead to miscarriage, premature birth, stillbirth and low birth weight. The baby of a teenage mother is four times more likely to die. Dr. Raymundo appeals to various stakeholders to help in reducing teenage pregnancy and the negative outcomes of such pregnancy. There is need to create a physical and cultural environment favorable to the promotion of adolescent health. This should lead to a decentralized structure, reduction of mortality and morbidity caused by early sexual activity, sexually transmitted infections, drug use and other risky behaviors. The government should draft a program on adolescent reproductive health that will integrate sexuality education and fertility awareness in the school curriculum. It should tackle teenage pregnancies and HIV/AIDS, among other issues. If the government is amenable to including climate change in the curriculum, why does it continue to object to reproductive health education for students? Unwanted pregnancy and other adolescent problems are serious threats to the well-being and future of the people. Amending the AIDS Law is important too, since it is silent on the rights protection and provisions for children affected by HIV and AIDS. Girl children are the most affected by these diseases. The amendment should incorporate concerns for special treatment of children with HIV. Stakeholders should motivate the youth, communities, opinion leaders, political and religious authorities to adopt favorable attitudes vis a vis promotion of youth health. Initiatives should promote the idea that sexual development is an inevitable, normal and important part of adolescent development. Extra effort should be applied in engaging the powerful Catholic Church and other conservative forces in the "pro-life" camp. Many sectors of Philippine society still consider sex and sexuality as taboo issues. Dr. Raymundo is frustrated that healthy adolescent sexuality is still regarded as promiscuity. She also identified the "moral panic" about sexuality especially with regards to sexuality education and homosexuality. The Catholic hierarchy is the single biggest stumbling block as to why the Philippines has not yet legislated a comprehensive reproductive health program that would greatly benefit women, youth, children and the people in general. Political parties are afraid to

antagonize the influential clerics who could instruct the faithful to disobey public officials and even defeat the electoral chances of obstinate politicians. There is a shortage of condoms and political will in the Philippines. Politicians and civil society groups should reject the fundamentalist position of the Catholic Church by addressing the rights and needs of the people. Government should provide free reproductive health services, improve maternal health care, offer contraceptive choices and promote fertility education. This is the more genuine "pro-life" position with regards to the population issue. -(Mong Palatino is a Filipino youth activist, news editor of Yehey!, a Philippine-based web portal and a Global Voices correspondent. His Web site is www.mongpalatino.motime.com, and he can be reached at mongpalatino@gmail.com. Copyright Mong Palatino.)

http://www.upiasia.com/Society_Culture/2007/11/20/commentary_sex_and_filipino_youth/7325/

Teen pregnancies in the Philippines

By Rebecca B. Singson Philippine Daily Inquirer First Posted 00:55:00 06/14/2008 Filed Under: Health, Lifestyle & Leisure, Gender Issues

(First in a series) MANILA, Philippines?The sexual revolution has ushered in a period in which the average adolescent experiences tremendous pressures to have sexual experiences of all kinds. Filipino teens get a higher exposure to sex from the Internet, magazines, TV shows, movies and other media than decades ago, yet without any corresponding increase in information on how to handle the input. So kids are pretty much left to other kids for opinions and value formation when it comes to sex. Sexual misinformation is therefore equally shared in the group. Parents at home and teachers in school feel equally inadequate or uneasy to discuss the topic of sex with youngsters. The problem mounts because the barkada (gang) has a more profound influence than parents do and they exert pressure and expect the adolescent to conform to the rest of them. In fact, female adolescents whose friends engage in sexual behavior were found to be more likely to do the same compared to those who do not associate with such peers. If the teen perceives her peers to look negatively at premarital sex, she was more likely to start sex at a later age. Numbers Statistics in the United States show that each year, almost 1 million teenage women?10 percent of all women aged 15-19 and 19 percent of those who have had sexual intercourse?become pregnant and one-fourth of teenage mothers have a second child within two years of their first.

In the Philippines, according to the 2002 Young Adult Fertility and Sexuality Study by the University of the Philippines Population Institute (Uppi) and the Demographic Research and Development Foundation, 26 percent of our Filipino youth nationwide from ages 15 to 25 admitted to having a premarital sex experience. What?s worse is that 38 percent of our youth are already in a live-in arrangement. The 1998 National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) reveals that 3.6 million of our teenagers (that?s a whopping 5.2 percent of our population!) got pregnant. In 92 percent of these teens, the pregnancy was unplanned, and the majority, 78 percent, did not even use contraceptives the first time they had sex. Many of the youth are clueless that even on a single intercourse, they could wind up pregnant. Risks There are many reasons teen pregnancies should be avoided. Here?s a low down on the facts: ? Risk for malnutrition Teenage mothers tend to have poor eating habits and are less likely to take recommended daily multivitamins to maintain adequate nutrition during pregnancy. They are also more likely to smoke, drink or take drugs during pregnancy, which can cause health problems for the baby. ? Risk for inadequate prenatal care Teenage mothers are less likely to seek regular prenatal care which is essential for monitoring the growth of the fetus; keeping the mother?s weight in check; and advising the mother on nutrition and how she should take care of herself to ensure a healthy pregnancy. According to the American Medical Association, babies born to women who do not have regular prenatal care are 4 times more likely to die before the age of 1 year. ? Risk for abortion Unplanned pregnancies lead to a higher rate of abortions. In the United States, nearly 4 in 10 teen pregnancies (excluding those ending in miscarriages) are terminated by abortion. There were about 274,000 abortions among teens in 1996. In the Philippines, although abortion is illegal, it would shock you to know that we even have a higher abortion rate (25/1,000 women) compared to the United States where abortion is legal (23/1,000 women). For sure, there are more abortions that happen in our country that are not even reported. Backdoor abortions are resorted to with untrained ?hilots? with questionable sterility procedures, increasing the possibility for tetanus poisoning and other complications. ? Risk for fetal deaths Statistics of the Department of Health show that fetal deaths are more likely to happen to young mothers, and that babies born by them are likely to have low birth weight. ? Risk for acquiring cervical cancer The Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is a sexually-transmitted, wart-forming virus that has been implicated in causing cancer of the cervix. This is the most common cancer in women secondary to breast cancer. Women who are at increased risk for acquiring this are those who engage in sex before 18, have a pregnancy at or younger than 18, or have had at least 5 sexual partners, or have had a partner with at least 5 sexual partners. If you start sex at an early age, you have a higher likelihood of going through several sexual partners before you settle down, thus increasing your exposure to acquiring the virus and acquiring cervical cancer. The men can get genital warts from this virus and can certainly pass it on to their partners, thus increasing her risk for cervical cancer. Is that something you would want to gift to your wife with on your honeymoon? There is a way to test women (HPV Digene test) but no test for the man so you can?t know if you have it. Using the condom does not confer protection against acquiring this virus since the condom cannot cover the testes where the warts can grow and proliferate.