I was recently alarmed by the statistics released by the Department of Heath revealing the gradually growing number of young people aged between 10-14 years giving birth in South Africa.
The statistics revealed that KwaZulu-Natal saw 194 young girls giving birth between 2017 and 2018. It was followed by Limpopo with 98, Western Cape 81. Gauteng stands at 81.
In other findings, a great number of pregnant girls are said to be living with the HIV.
For any responsible citizen, this is a cause for concern.
While lying in the comfort of my bed, I tried to understand how these young girls could have been lured into unprotected sex, and in the process to have contracted a life-threatening virus in the midst of all the information available to the girls on a daily basis.
I mean, every second advertisement on the radio or TV is about some form of sex education, and what to do to avoid contracting the virus.
Aren’t these children still in primary schools? Who are they sleeping with? Are these people they sleep with their peers as 10 to 14 years, or are they sleeping with elderly men?
If the latter is the reason, that would mean statutory rape has been committed, and perpetrators would need to face the might of the law.
I have been out of school for more than eight years, and I know for a fact there is a subject called lfe orientation.
The subject is said to teach the learners about sex, contraceptives and help them understand their bodies better, but I am still confused how these children are still falling pregnant at that age with so much information at their disposal.
The other day while browsing through my Facebook account, I came across a picture of a young girl who was proudly pregnant flaunting her very visible bulging stomach.
I went through her timeline. She had countless pictures of herself showing off her bulge and calling herself maka boy (losely translated as boy’s mother).
Her peers and followers were congratulating her and wishing her and the baby good health.
I wondered how we got to this point where young people who fall pregnant do not feel embarrassed or show remorse for their actions.
Have we shifted our focus from grooming young children to focus on VAT and the forever increasing petrol prices?
Are we at the stage where we as a society are saying it is okay for them to fall pregnant; what type of conversations do we have with our children?
Do we now have very few extramural activities to the point that these children are forced to pass time by engaging in sex?
Believe me, I am trying so hard not to judge them. I mean who am I to judge them? I am as much a sinner.
I am more concerned about the life-changing decisions they are taking more than anything else. Do they understand that they have to live with the results for the rest of their lives?
I am hereby calling on teen organisations, life orientation teacher to come forward and help fight this scourge. I don’t think it is too late to step in to rescue these young girls.
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