15 Pct Of Unmarried Youngsters In Indonesia Have Had Sex. What About Malaysia?

At least 15 per cent of 62 million unmarried youths in Indonesia, aged between 10 to 24, were reported as having had sexual intercourse before marriage, the state media reports Saturday.

"This fact is very saddening as most of them are teenagers," Chairman of the Indonesian Family Planning Association (PKBI) Rizal Malik was quoted as saying to Antara news agency.

He said that the result of a survey by PKBI covering Palembang, Kupang, Tasikmalaya, Cirebon and Singkawang in 2005, also indicated that the number of unmarried youths who had sex was quite high.

The result also showed that 9.1 percent of the unmarried youths were involved in sex and 85 percent had their first experience at the age of 13 to 15 at their own home with girl friends.

According to him, this condition is quite alarming considering it may produce in unwanted pregnancy and may eventually lead to an abortion.

Fact sheets issued by PKBI, the United Nations Family Planning Agency (UNFPA) and the National Family Planning Coordinating Agency (BKKBN) said that each year around 15 million young girls mostly aged 15 to 19, had given birth to babies.

Each year, according to the fact sheets, at least 2.3 million abortion cases were also found in Indonesia, including 20 percent on young people.

"With regard to moral values, we can draw our own conclusion from the fact sheets, but more important to note is that such behaviour would affect the reproduction system of the young girls," Rizal said.

Therefore, he added, this serious issue is expected to prompt the government and the community to take preventive measures, such as access to information and health reproduction services. (Bernama)

****** I wonder if the statistics here in Malaysia will be any different from Indonesia's. Basically I feel that our religious movements of every creed and denomination are fighting losing battles in this 'moral value' game. Young people especially adolescents don't play by the rules which society puts in place. They live by their own needs and demands of the moment. Adults can only stand aside and fret. That may sound a trifle pessimistic but that's life.

Image - cboyle