In Indonesia, there are more than 65 million young people, defined as those between 10 and 24 years of age, representing about 28% of the population (based on UNFPA data 2013). For the next 15 years or so, they will constitute the main driver of economic growth and social change in Indonesia. But unfortunately, many Indonesians youth –especially women and girls- are still struggling to achieve Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR).  The problems they face include unsafe sex, which leads not only to sexually transmitted infections but also unwanted pregnancies. Lack of accurate information and stigma means that these young people believe in many myths about sexuality and are also likely to seek unsafe abortion, which can lead to serious illness or even death.

For example, if we search ‘safe abortion’ on Google, most of them will direct us to anti choice website or black market who sell misoprostol irresponsibly. This lack of information will harm women and girls and about 11 to 14 percent of maternal mortality is caused by unsafe abortions. However, the real number is likely to be much higher, as most unsafe abortions are illegal and unrecorded.

As a Youth Champion, we strive to create something for the betterment of our society. Keeping this in mind I tried to provide information about SRHR to youth through a website. To achieve this goal, we have been conducting a workshop every Saturday from April to May this year for 15 young people who are passionate about gender and sexuality issue and also willing to write about that.

On 11^th April we conduct our first workshop in which talked about basics of sexuality. The Workshop was divided into three sessions: Introduction to sex and gender, Gender based violence, and how media portrays gender-based problem.

Wait for the next post and I will update you on the key outcomes of the workshop!