The Federated Sangguniang Kabataan of Tagbilaran City and Safe harbor recently conducted a forum on "Youth and Responsible Sexuality" at the Bohol Cultural Center.
More than 600 fourth year high school students from the following schools who attended: Dr. Cecilio Putong National High School; University of Bohol; Mansasa High School; Manga High School; Bohol Institute of Technology; Holy Spirit School; and Central Visayas State College of Agriculture, Forestry and Technology (CVSCAFT).
The forum was graced by youth leaders and youth welfare and development advocates Betty Torralba, City ABC chair and city councilor Nuevas "Jas" Montes.
The discussion was led by a panel of students who spoke on their views and opinions on matters related to sexuality such as virginity, masturbation, pre-marital sex, too early pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections and rape. The student panelists were Baylani Cabatos and Rotsen Maglajos, CVSCAFT; Jinky Baliog, Manga High School; Gerardo Osabel Jr., Dr. Cecilio Putong National High School; Ma. Shiril Jalad, Holy Spirit School; Margaret Borromeo, Mansasa High School; Irish Stephanie Amizola and Mark Jayson Resus, University of Bohol.
Youth and development workers Mary Grace Granado and Silvia Doron of the Safe Harbor were also part of the panel that gave interpretation on the perceptions of youth on sexuality and deliberately answered questions of the audience.
The panelists were flooded with questions by the students from the audience. According to Mary Grace Granado, the program manager of Safe Harbor and one of the speaker of the forum," We don't take these questions lightly although they seem at face value to be nonsense; for example, the questions on how would we know if the girl is still a virgin, or does the size of penis affect sexual relationships. Safe Harbor believes that there is more to this question than just curiosity.
As behavioral sciences major, I even believe that this is not curiosity but a question born of apprehension. The fear of not being able to distinguish whether or not he is the first and only man with whom his girlfriend or wife had sex with, in the case of virginity. It is an issue of power, an issue of someone conquering his conquest before him.
This is not an issue of virginity being a value but an issue of how men treat women. Evidently, in this scenario, they are treated as properties. This kind of attitude among men needs attention." - 2004 News Archive - Bohol Chronicle