Argentina's National Network of Adolescents towards free and formed sexual and reproductive lives. (Youth).

Introduction

Throughout the world, there is a general consensus regarding the need for sex education for youths and adolescents of both sexes and the respect for their right to free and informed sexual and reproductive lives. Nonetheless, most adolescents in Argentina do not have sufficient information about sexuality, and sex education is still not offered in all the country's schools.

In Argentina, there are no national laws or policies on sex education, and there are serious taboos on speaking about sexuality, both in society at-large as well as in the media. On the other hand, sexual stereotypes are promoted continuously, and consumer products are often eroticized.

And even though the need to educate adolescents and raise their awareness regarding these issues is generally agreed upon, neither teachers nor parents know how to meet this need due to their own lack of information, to their taboos and prejudices. As a result, young people try to fill the vacuum with information from their peers. The resulting knowledge is often incomplete, erroneous or tainted by prejudice. While adolescent women and men are bombarded constantly with contradictory messages, they lack other models or perspectives which would allow them to evaluate this information.

In Argentina, public policy on adolescent sexual and reproductive health has been spotty and insufficient. For example, there are no programs for the prevention of STDs or HIV/AIDS or to confront unwanted and/or inopportune pregnancy, and only a few provinces have addressed the diverse needs of this section of the population.

In the face of this virtual absence of state policy, the NGOs have played a fundamental role in the defense of adolescents and youths' sexual and reproductive rights in the context of human rights. NGOs have not only trained young people in sexuality and HIV/AIDS but also have developed activities designed to raise public awareness, advise policy-makers, monitor the fulfillment of public policies that protect youths and adolescents and publicize information in the media.

On the other hand and despite the fact that most youths and adolescents are ignorant of their sexual and reproductive rights, they have a tremendous potential for developing peer education on sexuality and HIV/AIDS in a human rights framework. This provides a fundamental tool for disseminating knowledge through a common language, promoting preventive behavior and facilitating nondiscriminatory attitudes towards sexual minorities and people living with HIV/AIDS.

Peer Education

Since 1991, the Fundacion para Estudio e Investigacion de la Mujer (FEIM, Women's Studies and Research Foundation) has trained over 4,000 youth and adolescents in issues of sexuality, adolescent pregnancy and HIV/AIDS prevention. These activities showed FEIM the need for information and opportunities for exchange and debate, not only for young people, but also for their parents and teachers. This experience also allowed FEIM to discover with whom adolescent women and men discussed these issues, what they knew about them, and the taboos and myths that condition their behaviors and attitudes.

One of the principal lessons we learned in these activities was that young people talk about sexuality mostly with their peers, other adolescents. When this communication occurs among young people who don't have adequate information, serious consequences for their health and quality of life can be the result.

Based on this observation, with the support of national and international, agencies, FEIM has developed training and consciousness-raising workshops since 1996 to prepare adolescents as "peer educators in sexuality, adolescent pregnancy and HIV/AIDS prevention." These young people were trained to undertake prevention and promotion activities on these issues with their peers, especially in high schools and elementary schools.

The adolescent women and men who were trained as peer educators were advised, supported and supervised by FEIM in the development of their educational activities. For the most part, these activities focused on prevention and mobilization for promoting and raising awareness about the issues in their communities or institutions.

This approach proved to be quite effective because through their training the adolescent women and men become more aware of their own vulnerability and gained the tools with which to promote prevention and nondiscrimination regarding HIV/AIDS among their peers. This approach also facilitated the adolescents' development of commitment.

In Argentina, young people are demanding information for the healthy and enjoyable exercise of their sexuality. But they also are asking for an analysis of the social and community aspects involved in human rights in relation to the AIDS epidemic in order to be able to transform the rigid and stereotyped social and sexual models and to facilitate the creation of more inclusive and friendly environments. Therefore, discrimination against adolescents of both sexes, unemployment, the lack of health services, the absence of government action, taboos about sex and gender stereotypes all need to be addressed from the context of young people's human rights.

Given the importance of peers in young people's lives and especially in the development of adolescent sexuality, training young people as peer educators is an excellent strategy for promoting increased awareness, prevention, the discussion of gender stereotypes and the end of discrimination related to HIV/AIDS.

The Network: Meeting Adolescents' Needs

The peer educators trained in 1997 and 1998 were invited to take part in the events organized around World AIDS Day in December 1998. On November 29, the campaign "Cuidate" (Take Care) was launched with the help of nearly 300 young peer educators who distributed pamphlets and discussed HIV/AIDS prevention in neighborhoods throughout the Buenos Aires metropolitan area. Later, the trained peer educators designed and produced a flyer and sticker for May 28, International Day of Action for Women's Health under the slogan "Defend Adolescents' Sexual and Reproductive Rights." Encouraged by this campaign, the peer educators organized a variety of activities including discussion groups and video-debates. They also participated in student fairs and organized other activities to discuss and promote adolescents' rights.

These experiences generated the idea of creating a Red Nacional de Adolescentes en Salud Sexual y Reproductiva (National Network of Adolescents for Sexual and Reproductive Health) to bring together the most committed groups of peer educators trained by FEIM since 1997 and others to support and encourage the young people to continue their activities. The Network provided a constant exchange of experiences in the area of sexual and reproductive health developed by NGOs and groups of adolescents throughout the country. The Network also incorporated adolescents from other initiatives. One of the most active groups in the Network is involved in the UNICEF student parliaments project. This group presented a proposal for a law on sex education in their city, Parana, in the Entre Rios province of northeast Argentina.

The general objective of the Network is to link adolescent peer educators and other groups trained in issues of sexuality, reproduction and HIV/AIDS throughout the country so that they can better defend their rights and exercise their citizenship through monitoring and advocacy. The creation of the Network also guarantees the continuation of the training efforts.

In 1999, FEIM presented the Ford Foundation with a project to organize the National Network, which was approved in August 1999. In September 1999, all schools and groups of adolescents trained in peer education throughout the entire country were contacted. They were encouraged to join the network and to promote this idea with other adolescents from the trained groups.

Ten meetings were held in 1999 with interested peer educators in the Buenos Aires area. In the final two meetings of that year, young people from throughout the country also participated. Participants analyzed and discussed: adolescents' rights as set forth in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, especially in regard to sexual and reproductive health and physical integrity; the importance of education in citizenship through monitoring the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development, the Declaration and Programme of Action from the Vienna World Conference on Human Rights and the Platform for Action from the Fourth World Conference on Women; the need to strengthen young people's participation as a guarantee of democracy; and the goal of reaching the greatest number of adolescents possible with education and consciousness-raising in order to facilitate their exercise of a healthy and enjoyable sexuality.

In celebration of Students' Day on September 21, 1999, the first groups of peer educators involved in the Network organized an event in Parque Avellaneda in Buenos Aires. Located in a densely-populated neighborhood of Buenos Aires, this park is a popular hangout for local adolescents. In order to attract large groups of young people, the peer educators planned day-long activities in the park, including a number of imaginative games: sack races (with an explicit reference to condom use); a version of "hangman" focused on words associated with sexuality, HIV/AIDS and reproduction; and a creative display of slogans about sexuality and HIV/AIDS prevention painted on a wall-sized canvas. The event was a great success, with many adolescents visiting the park and joining the activities.

The Network's first formal activity was planned for December 1. The network members designed and printed brochures--one for young men and another for young women--especially for the campaign. The peer educators who planned this activity also decided to participate in the Latin American and Caribbean Women's Health Network's Call to Action for November 25, International Day Against Violence Against Women in a week-long campaign culminating on December 1, World AIDS Day.

During these seven days, the young people of the network organized workshops and stands in high schools and other areas of their communities where they were available to talk with other adolescents and children about domestic violence and its relationship with sexuality and HIV/AIDS. They confronted the many issues of adolescent pregnancy and sexual violence experienced by young women and men today. During the week-long campaign, the network members distributed brochures to other young people in local high schools and elsewhere in their communities, explaining the rights of adolescents. They discussed these issues with their peers and presented oral or written messages on adolescents' rights to the schools. These activities culminated on December 1 in a meeting of all the peer educators in Plaza Francia, in Buenos Aires. This group of some 40 adolescents used various techniques to attract a large crowd: a murga, a carnival-like event with music, songs and dance, mime, and acrobats and other entertaining methods to share information about young people's rights and HIV/AIDS. Brochures and condoms were also distributed.

One very important aspect identified by the adolescents was the need to hold a national meeting to exchange experiences with other groups. At the beginning of 2000, the adolescent participants of the Network and different groups throughout the country were invited to take part in this meeting. The need to decentralize the activities concentrated in Buenos Aires was emphasized, and as a result, there was greater participation by all the provinces.

The First Meeting

The First Meeting of the National Network of Adolescents for Sexual and Reproductive Health was held May 20-21, 2000, in the city of Jesus Maria, in Cordoba Province and hosted by Adolescentes contra el SIDA (A.C.E.S., Adolescents Against AIDS), which has worked for eight years in sex education and STD and HIV/AIDS prevention. Initially, between 20 and 30 young people were expected to participate, but the actual turn-out was 115 participants between 12 and 33 years of age. These young people came from provinces in the north (Salta) northeast (Entre Rios and Corrientes), center (Cordoba, Santa Fe, Buenos Aires Province), and south (Rio Negro), as well as the city of Buenos Aires. The goals of the meeting were to develop, debate and approve a draft of a Mission Statement, to formulate a one-year action plan, and to consolidate the Network.

At the beginning of the meeting, the Coordinator of the Network Project explained how FEIM discovered the young people's profound need to be better informed, connected and organized in a network and then presented the Network project with its objectives and goals. Next, divided into five groups, the young people introduced themselves and gave a brief history of their group and their activities, experiences and expectations. After their introductions and exchange, the participants began to draft the Mission Statement, based on a preliminary text which had been given to each participant. Each group discussed the goal, purpose and objectives of the Network. In a plenary discussion, each group then presented its conclusions, and the coordinators led a process to clarify and include these ideas into the final Mission Statement.

Saturday afternoon in the city's library, the members of Jesus Maria's A.C.E.S. presented their play "Por ser humano," (For Being Human), which they have staged at national events and conferences over the past five years. After the performance, the young people hosted a farewell party which proved to be an excellent bonding experience.

Sunday morning, some groups debated different proposals for a Network slogan. They also studied a plan of activities for 2000, and participants agreed on important dates for developing educational and promotional activities: September 21, Students' Day; November 25, International Day Against Violence Against Women; and December 1, World AIDS Day. Local groups would also mobilize around other dates that are of special importance to their city or region.

All in all, the first meeting fulfilled the expectations and objectives that FEIM had proposed, both in the way in which the participants worked as well as in the final results. The testimony of the Grupo "El Galpon," from Viedma, was typical: "Knowing that we are not alone, that we have support, a group that will hold us together, encourages us to keep on working." The meeting allowed the groups to see other realities, to better understand the different areas of the country, and to learn about actions that had been carried out in other communities.

All the participants shared the same expectations, and each group was thankful for the invitation to take part in the meeting and for the possibility of participating in the Network. It led them to re-appraise their local participation in issues related to sexual and reproductive health and to strengthen their group. "We plan on remaining in contact with the other groups and playing an active part in the Network," said the Cordoba-based group CECOPAL. The approach used in the working groups in the meeting encouraged the integration of all the participants, such as Grupo Joel (OFES) in Rosario and Antigona, Necochea, who commented on the "importance of meeting each other face to face," which facilitated the collective development of the work agenda and increased the feelings of belonging to the Network.

Also recognized was the need to strengthen links among the members and incorporate new groups of adolescents and youths who are working in the areas of sexual and reproductive health throughout the country. As participants from the Colegio San Gregorio in Vicente Lopez stated, "We were very surprised to learn that this issue is being addressed in so many areas of Argentina and that so many activities are being carried out. Sharing all of this was very useful for us since we are just starting. Thanks to this meeting, we learned a great deal about the different ways in which we can undertake these efforts."

Challenges

This year, the Network plans to produce a pamphlet explaining its history and objectives. In addition, each group will organize mobilizations and activities in their communities on the key dates in sexual and reproductive health mentioned above. The members of the Network also have agreed that the general coordination will remain in the hands of FEIM during 2000 and that Cecilia Correa will be the Network's General Coordinator. As more groups are incorporated, it will be necessary to divide by regions in order to facilitate the functioning of the Network. At the end of the year 2000, a Second Meeting of the National Network of Adolescents for Sexual and Reproductive Health will be held to evaluate the advances and setbacks of the Network and to establish a new course of action for the upcoming year.

Currently, the adolescent peer educators are implementing a survey of public hospitals which they prepared themselves. This study will examine the reproductive and sexual health education services available for adolescents and youth locally. One objective of the survey is to discover what kind of demands young people make on the health services (such as information, education, provision of contraceptive methods or HIV testing) and if young women or young men are more likely to use health services. The results from these nationwide surveys will be compiled, organized and analyzed, and this material will serve as the basis for future action by adolescents as they become actively involved in policy discussions in the defense of their rights at all levels of government, including the provincial and national parliaments.

Another challenge that the Network is undertaking is the publication of an informational newsletter and the creation of a web page. The groups are asked to contribute regular reports on their activities that will be used to prepare the newsletter. The newsletter and web page will allow the members of the Network to remain in constant contact and will facilitate national coordination of local and/or provincial needs in the defense of adolescents' and youths' human rights as well as the development of lobbying and advocacy activities with policy-makers. In this effort, the Network will participate in the processes of development and approval of laws, especially those related to sexual and reproductive rights.

For example, this year the members of the Network in the city of Buenos Aires participated in monitoring the progress of the "Law on Sexual and Reproductive Health," which was finally approved. This law provides for a "Comprehensive System of Sexual and Reproductive Health" in all public health facilities, which guarantees the prescription, placement and administration of reversible and temporary contraceptive methods, as well as preliminary and follow-up exams. These services are free of charge for those who cannot pay.

This law also guarantees equal opportunity for the women of the city of Buenos Aires, the power to decide freely on whether or not they wish to become mothers, and the exercise of a fulfilling and safe sex life. This law seeks to reduce maternal deaths, decrease the number of abortions and unwanted pregnancies, guarantee family planning and decrease the rates of sexually transmitted diseases, especially HIV/AIDS. The passage of this law was a triumph which encouraged the Network members to continue their efforts with the health services survey because now there is a significant tool for defending the sexual and reproductive rights of adolescents and youth.

Youths and adolescents have the right to freely decide regarding their sexuality and life goals without having to depend on the decisions of their elders or their partner. They have the right to develop their ability to care for themselves, to have access to high-quality sexual and reproductive health-care services that are accessible, friendly, respectful and that protect their privacy, confidentiality and informed consent. Young people also have the right to participate the in design and development of sexual and reproductive health programs for adolescents and young people. Above all, they have the right to live in a social setting that allows their full development. In the effort to ensure these rights, the National Network of Adolescents for Sexual and Reproductive Health has undertaken the challenge of raising public awareness about the needs of adolescents and youths.

Bibliography

"Adolescencia y Maternidades." In Conciencia Latinoamericana, vol. XI, no. 3, November 1999.

"Beijing + 5. Women's Rights are Non-Negotiable." In Women's Health Journal (LACWHN), 1/ 2000.

Bianco, Mabel; Teresa Durand, Maria Alicia Gutierrez and Cristina Zurutuza (1998). Mujeres sanas, Ciudadanas libres (o el poder para decidir). Argentina.

Center for Reproductive Law and Policy and DEMUS, Estudio para la Defensa de los Derechos de la Mujer (1997). "Argentina." In Mujeres del Mundo: Leyes y Politicas que Afectan sus Vidas Reproductivas. America Latina y el Caribe. USA: CRLP, DEMUS.

"Ciudadania del Mundo: el ejercicio de los derechos sexuales y reproductivos como parte de la identidad politica." In Avances en la Investigacion Social en Salud Reproductiva y Sexualidad. Proceedings from the Third Workshop of Social Research on Sexual and Reproductive Health. Argentina: Asociacion de Estudios de Poblacion de Argentina, Centro de Estudios de Estado y Sociedad and Centro de Estudios de Poblacion, 1998.

"Compromiso etico con los jovenes." In Conciencia Latinoamericana, vol. XI, no. 3, November 1999.

"From Latin America and the Caribbean to the United Nations: Lima Consensus." In Women's Health Journal (LACWHN), 1/ 2000.

"Derechos de los Adolescentes." In Conciencia Latinoamericana, vol. XI, no. 3, November 1999.

"Educar para la Vida." In Conciencia Latinoamericana, vol. XI, no. 3, November 1999.

"El desarrollo de la masculinidad, limitaciones frente a la prevencion del VIH/SIDA," In Desidamos (FEIM), ano VII, no. 1, April 1999.

"El varon en las relaciones de genero: reflexiones para la intervencion en sexualidad y reproduccion." In: Avances en la Investigacion Social en Salud Reproductiva y Sexualidad. Proceedings from the Third Workshop of Social Research on Sexual and Reproductive Health. Argentina: Asociacion de Estudios de Poblacion de Argentina, Centro de Estudios de Estado y Sociedad and Centro de Estudios de Poblacion, 1998.

"El Vaticano y las Politicas de Salud Reproductiva." In Conciencia Latinoamericana, vol. XII, no. 2, March 2000.

"Encantadas, convencidas o forzadas: iniciacion sexual en adolescentes de bajos recursos." In: Avances en la Investigacion Social en Salud Reproductiva y Sexualidad. Proceedings from the Third Workshop of Social Research on Sexual and Reproductive Health. Argentina: Asociacion de Estudios de Poblacion de Argentina, Centro de Estudios de Estado y Sociedad and Centro de Estudios de Poblacion, 1998.

Foro Abierto de Salud y Derechos Reproductivos (1996). Calidad de Atencion de los Servicios de Salud Reproductiva. Chile: Foro Abierto de Salud y Derechos Reproductivos.

Foro Abierto de Salud y Derechos Reproductivos (1996). Derechos Reproductivos. Conferencia Internacional de Poblacion y Desarrollo. El Cairo 94. Chile: Foro Abierto de Salud y Derechos Reproductivos.

"Genero y sexualidad adolescente: problemas frente a la reproduccion y la prevencion del VIH/ SIDA." In: Avances en la Investigacion Social en Salud Reproductiva y Sexualidad. Proceedings from the Third Workshop of Social Research on Sexual and Reproductive Health. Argentina: Asociacion de Estudios de Poblacion de Argentina, Centro de Estudios de Estado y Sociedad and Centro de Estudios de Poblacion, 1998.

"La dificil tarea de ser joven hoy." In Desidamos (FEIM), ano VII, no. 2, July 1999.

"?La vida? ?cual vida?" In Conciencia Latinoamericana, vol. XII, no. 2, March 2000.

"Los buenos deseos y sus consecuencias." In Conciencia Latinoamericana, vol. XI, no. 3, November 1999.

"Maternidad forzada en Argentina neoliberal." In Conciencia Latinoamericana, vol. XII, no. 2, March 2000.

"Por que se usa o no el preservativo en Argentina." In Desidamos (FEIM), ano VII, no. 2, July 1999.

"Sexualidad y Paradojas." In Conciencia Latinoamericana, vol. XI, no. 3, November 1999.

"Voces de Mujeres de Iglesias." In Conciencia Latinoamericana, vol. XI, no. 2, July 1999.

The author is a psychologist and member of the Fundacion para Estudio e Investigacion de la Mujer (FEIM, Women's Studies and Research Foundation). She is also the coordinator of Argentina's Red Nacional de Adolescentes en Salud Sexual y Reproductiva (National Network of Adolescents for Sexual and Reproductive Health) and a member of the Red Latinoamericana y Caribena de Jovenes por los Derechos Sexuales y Reproductivos (Latin American and Caribbean Network of Young People for Sexual and Reproductive Rights). Part of the following article was previously published in the Women's Health Journal 1/2000.