Sex Education

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Ani Jilosyan (left), the director of development at the Women’s Support Centre, Tereza Panchoyan (right), girlunmuted on Instagram. Illustration by Mariam Nikuradze.

Armenia

Podcast | Against shame culture: virginity tests and sex education in Armenia

by OC Media

•1 min read

Last week, a bill on domestic violence passed its first hearing in Armenia’s parliament. The changes would classify virginity tests, a controversial practice meant to determine whether a person’s hymen is intact, as a form of domestic violence. This week, we speak to Ani Jilosian of the Women’s Support Centre about what these amendments could mean and to Tereza Panchoyan, or Girlunmuted, an Instagram blogger, about attitudes towards sex in Armenia and the importance of bet

Children's Rights

Georgian sex ed classes will be ‘opt in’, promises author of Child’s Rights Code

by OC Media

•4 min read

Parents in Georgia will have to opt-in to new sex education classes for their children, the head of parliament’s human rights committee Sopo Kiladze has said. Kiladze, who authored the draft Code on the Rights of the Child, promised during the code’s first hearing on Tuesday that there would be no sex education in Georgian schools without parents’ prior approval. The original bill, developed with UNICEF and submitted to parliament in February did not include a requirement for parents t

Armenia

Talking about sex: an unspoken topic in Armenia

by Armine Avetisyan

•6 min read

Sex is a taboo topic in Armenia, and as such, many children turn to the internet for answers about this and other intimate topics. While schools have introduced basic lessons on living a ‘healthy lifestyle’ that touch on the topic, most experts agree they are not fit for purpose. ‘We went on a camping trip at the age of 12. We slept in a very small tent; all of us — girls and boys — slept mixed together. In the morning, my stomach began to hurt, the pain grew and I started to cry. When m

Daghestan

[Voice from Daghestan] ‘I can’t get divorced. I suffer for my children and my parents’

by Volodymyr Soboliev

•7 min read

One resident of Daghestan told Daptar about the importance of trust between parents and children and the need for sex education for teenagers. ‘I got to know my future husband, Marat, while I was still at school. I fancied him straight away and a serious courtship began. For me though, this was a game; I was flattered by the attention of an older boy, a student. Three years passed. We quarrelled, sometimes we didn’t speak for months, then we would make up.’ ‘So I finished school and we

Education

Georgia’s education minister defends citizenship class after protests over ‘sex education’

by OC Media

•2 min read

After a small group of protesters marched in Tbilisi on 10 July against what they claim is ‘sex education’ in schools, Georgia’s Education Minister Aleksandre Jejelava said that the ministry would ensure ‘nothing unacceptable’ would be taught. The protests were sparked by a new citizenship class titled ‘Society and I’, which is due to be taught in schools starting in September. According to the official curricula, the class will discuss family, the school environment, friends, education,