62pc of 11-15yr old boys exposed to porn

Lack of awareness among parents, as well as inadequate knowledge on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) compel inquisitive 11-15 years old boys to resort to pornography.

Many of them also rely on friends for such information while internet remains a major source of pornographic content. Around 61.65 percent of them are exposed to pornography.

The above findings of a new study were revealed yesterday, in a policy dialogue programme on “Preventing gender-based violence involving youth in Bangladesh” at Dhaka University, organised by Center for Men and Masculinities Studies (CMMS).

The study is part of a campaign jointly initiated by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and CMMS, supported by Dutch Ministry's NWO-WOTRO. The baseline survey was conducted among 900 boys of 15 high schools in Cox's Bazar, Sirajganj and Rangpur.

The study showed 65.75 percent boys feel that distance between them and their parents increased during puberty.

Dr Sayed Saikh Imtiaz, chairperson of CMMS, stressed the need for introducing sex education at school level. Teachers should be given proper training in this regard, he added.

Dr Imtiaz, an associate professor of the department of women and gender studies at DU, said their SRHR education programme has been working towards preventing gender-based violence.

They have come up with initiatives such as an app, “Challenger Mamu”, where a young person can anonymously ask questions regarding sex and sexuality.

He said keeping the young population in mind, they also arranged puppet and television shows focusing on sex education.

Over 10,000 boys and girls were beneficiaries of the initiatives.

As a result of the initiatives, boys' dependency on pornographic materials as a source of learning about SRHR decreased significantly, the study mentioned.

The initiatives also helped increase parents' awareness, it added.

Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu, the chief guest at the programme, stressed the need for safe use of internet and cyber security.

Lawmaker Nahim Razzaq said children should be taught moral values and ethics at schools.

Sharmeela Rasool, chief technical adviser to UNDP's human rights programme, also spoke.