To be pregnant below the age of 18 in India implies to have been sexually abused, as the age of sexual consent is 18. Nearly half of the girls we took care of at Tejus Home, between 2012-2020, said they were in consensual relationships, but they were between the ages of 13 and 17 yrs.
So how do we deal with this "grey area", when it comes to the POCSO Act and young couples in love (or in lust)?
Statistics show that Sexuality Education is the key but unfortunately, most adults fear that that means we’ll be teaching kids to have sex. This couldn’t be further from the truth.
Throughout childhood we are told by adults to look left and right before crossing the road. We are told to not touch the hot stove or play with matches. We are taught to not run with scissors or to be careful while handling knives. We were given explanations…you could get hit by a car, burn yourself, get cut. We were reminded of these dangers each time we were faced with them, by whichever adult was there with us at the time and most of us still remember.
But when it comes to matters of Sexual Safety, it’s as though kids should figure it out for themselves. We let them get “hit, burnt and cut” because it’s too difficult to talk about and then we end up with teenagers who get into trouble, unaware of the consequences and girls who end up as completely unprepared mothers.
If we give honest, correct and age-appropriate information to children about their bodies, what to expect, what is ok, what is legal, if we talk about gender, consent, boundaries and respect, we’re more likely to have youngsters who know themselves a little better, and who take experimenting and safety a little more seriously. If adults would take it upon themselves to offer this information, it might work in the same way they keep kids safe from cars, candles, and sharp knives. We might keep more of them safe from harm.
If we asked you to crash a car without wearing a seatbelt, would you try?