Still no sex education in Romania's schools
For years Romania has been debating the introduction of voluntary sex education in schools. In 2020, parliament changed a proposed law at the last minute, making participation only possible with parental consent. President Iohannis then sent the bill back to parliament. The Senate refused to amend it on Tuesday, and the Chamber of Deputies has yet to vote on it.
Prudish and out of touch with reality
The liberal senator Alina Gorghiu was the only member of parliament who voted to amend the law again on Tuesday. In Romania improving sex education is particularly important, she writes in Adevărul:
“In this country, ten percent of women who give birth are underage. One in every ten women who gets an abortion is a minor. We are Europe's frontrunner in the category of teenage mothers. ... What has happened in parliament is an unfortunate but sadly successful attempt to reconcile 'traditional sentiment' with a supposedly modern and progressive parliamentarianism - purportedly for the good of the people. This conservative and prudish law, which in reality restricts children's access to vital information on health and other matters, should have been rejected.”
Parents' dilemma: sex as a sin and a duty
The idea could be to spare parents uncomfortable discussions, Contributors suspects:
“Children might come home and try to talk to their parents about something other than maths homework. ... Meanwhile the parents grew up thinking that sex is a sin on the one hand, but on the other hand also the way to build a beautiful, traditional family. In sex education, children should learn that normal changes occur as they get older. They should understand these things and not be afraid, because fear and ignorance can lead us to make irreparable mistakes.”