Noticias

Gary Galván, representing the Paraguayan LGBT Federation, participated at the hearing on public policies for the protection of human rights of LGBTI children and adolescents in Paraguay during the public hearings of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in Washington, USA on Friday March 28. The IACHR is an autonomous organ of the Organization of American States (OAS) responsible for the promotion and protection of human rights in the Americas.

During the presentation, SOMOSGAY noted the lack of public policies to protect the human rights of LGBTI children and adolescents in the Paraguayan state.

There is a real and political diagnosis on the subject, supported and exposed from the experiences and the quali-quantitative data that exists in Paraguay so far. Analyzing the fact that the Catholic Church comes directly to take place in advocacy, it is recognized that much of this was due to the failure of civil society, mobilizing schools, churches, groups and media.

This assessment clearly shows that adolescents and young people are not receiving sexual health education in the formal spaces. Analysis data of the Ministry of Public Health in conjunction with the Population Fund United Nations: 1 in 6 young people aged 15 to 24 comes to the clinic with syphilis, 20 percent of pregnancies in Paraguay corresponds to 2 teens of the daily deliveries  recorded in the country are for teens ages 10 to 14.

These data showed that there are no public policies for adolescents and youth about sexuality. Nevertheless, there are attempts of proposals from the civil society, however you can not talk about the agenda on sexuality proposals from political parties and groups representing the citizens and, far from the state, as an initial response to problems that are quite clear.

Ironically, the candidates for elective offices of the traditional political parties recognize that the problem is the mediocre education and that it is the answer to all problems, while adamantly refusing to address the sexuality component as a theme of pedagogical development, also ignoring a reality that puts us in the midst of brutal media provocations that generate sexual impulses.

Adolescents and young LGBT occupy the last place of care in public policy, because the field of adolescence and youth is not a priority for the Paraguayan State, and even less in those agendas driven by the traditional parties. All this evidence leads to an even harder stigma against the LGBT community, as a social sector overdetermined by the lack of public policies on sexuality for adolescents and youth in a generic sense of belonging to the LGBT community in a sexist and homophobic society.

During the hearing also was highlighted the work of the Youth Area in SOMOSGAY, that through the training program of Community Agents in Human Rights and Health, provides services that focus on empowerment and training to help break the isolation experienced by many young LGBT because of homophobia.