● 2.1. Human rights and sexual rights
To enjoy safe, positive, pleasurable and happy sexual lives, young people need to have the knowledge, the capacity and the power to exercise their basic human rights. Sexual rights are in essence human rights and are derived from the same principles. Promoting sexual rights encourages young people to build a personal sense of agency[1] and to
- make informed decisions for themselves;
- develop sexual autonomy and a sense of ownership of their own bodies and sexualities;
- reclaim their own personal narrative about their sexual selves;
- take responsibility for their own sexual wellbeing and that of others.
Only when young people can exercise their rights can they freely
- express their gender identity, sexual orientation and sexuality;
- choose whether, how, with whom and when to have sex;
- seek information and appropriate services;
- negotiate their own desires, and what they like in their sexual encounters;
- and build healthy, positive and safe relationships, based on equality and respect.
Delivering sexuality education based on human rights seeks to reinforce young people’s understanding of their rights and the rights of others. It promotes equal rights for all.
What does that mean in practice[2]? How can we integrate a human rights approach in learning?
- Using a rights-based language instead of needs-based language (i.e. ‘young people have the right to freely express their gender identity’)
- Using a participatory learning process that engages young people in critical thinking about their sexuality and sexual choices
- Providing opportunities to examine, question, discuss and challenge how young people’s enjoyment of their sexual and reproductive rights are negatively impacted by harmful gender norms, social views on sexual orientation, social and structural inequalities and power imbalances
- Empowering young people to assert their rights by standing up to unhealthy, toxic and abusive behaviours in their lives and providing them with the capacities to freely express their sexualities in an environment of respect and equality
- Ensuring that all young people have equal access and participation during delivery of educational programs – fostering an inclusive environment where young women, LGBTIQ+ youth and marginalized groups can participate and be empowered to share their views and experiences
Sexual rights[3]
For young people, the right to control their own bodies and their sexuality without any form of discrimination, coercion, or violence is critical for their empowerment. Sexual rights allow them to realize their rights to self-determination and autonomy, and also to be control of other aspects of their lives. Indeed, sexual rights underpin the enjoyment of all other human rights and are a prerequisite for equality and justice. Sexual rights embrace certain human rights that are already recognized in national laws, international human rights documents, and other consensus documents and include (according to the World Health Organization definition[4]):
- the rights to equality and non-discrimination;
- the right to be free from torture or to cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment;
- the right to privacy;
- the right to the highest attainable standard of health (including sexual health);
- the right to marry and to found a family and enter into marriage with free and full consent of the intending spouses, and to equality in and at the dissolution of marriage;
- the right to decide the number and spacing of one’s children;
- the rights to information and education;
- the rights to freedom of opinion and expression; and
- the right to an effective remedy for violations of fundamental rights.
Yogyakarta Principles
Although the Yogyakarta Declaration and the Yogyakarta Principles are not binding, they are a very useful reference for how states respond to ensuring human rights for all. Below is a summary of the principles:
Rights to universal enjoyment of human rights, non-discrimination and recognition before the law:
Principles 1 through 3 establish the universality of human rights and their application to all, without discrimination. All people have a right to recognition before the law, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Forced medical procedures, like sterilization or sex reassignment surgery, cannot be required for legal recognition.
Rights to human and personal security
Principles 4 through 11 address the fundamental rights to life, freedom from violence and torture, privacy, access to justice and freedom from arbitrary detention and human trafficking.
Economic, social and cultural rights:
Principles 12 through 18 elaborate on non-discrimination in the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights. This covers the rights to employment, housing accommodations, social security and education, as well as sexual and reproductive health rights that include the right to informed consent and gender confirmation services.
Rights to expression, opinion and association:
Principles 19 through 21 set forth the freedom to express oneself, one’s identity and one’s sexuality based on sexual orientation or gender identity, without State interference. Along with this right to free expression, everyone also has the right to freely participate in peaceful assemblies and organised groups.
Freedom of movement and asylum:
Principles 22 and 23 highlight the rights of persons to seek asylum from persecution based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
Rights of participation in cultural and family life:
Principles 24 to 26 address the rights of people to have afamily life and to participate in public affairs and the cultural life of their communities without discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
Rights of human rights defenders:
Principle 27 establishes the right to defend and promote human rights without discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as the obligation of States to ensure the protection of human rights defenders working in these areas.
Right of redress and accountability:
Principles 28 and 29 elaborate on holding rights violators accountable and ensuring appropriate redress for those who face rights violations.
Additional recommendations:
The Principles establish 16 additional recommendations to national human rights institutions, professional bodies, funders, nongovernmental organizations, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, United Nations agencies, treaty bodies, Special Procedures and others.
● 2.2. Sex positive approach
Sex positivity acknowledges that young people have the right to control over their own bodies and their own sexuality; they also have the right to experience desire, pleasure and happiness in their lives, independently of whether they are sexually active or not. A sex positive approach to sexuality strives towards achieving ideal experiences, rather than solely working to prevent negative ones[5].
Being sex positive, connotes that people reclaim their personal narrative about sex and have sufficient information and skills to consciously make their own decisions about how they want to lead their sexual lives (or not). Towards this end, young people make autonomous choices about their sexuality based on enjoyment and pleasure; empowerment and agency; sexual literacy; confidence; meaningful consent; body positivity and self-determination. These concepts are explained in more detail in chapter 9: ‘Sex Positivity’.
● 2.3. Gender transformative approach
A Gender-transformative approach is one that examines, questions, challenges and ultimately transforms structures, norms and behaviours that reinforce gender roles and gender inequality[6]. Creating an enabling environment for gender transformation, means to also address power inequities between persons of different genders and identify how these imbalances of power lead to discrimination, marginalization, exclusion and gender-based violence. By transforming harmful, inequitable gender norms and values into positive ones, we shift gendered perspectives and social relationships towards perspectives of equality; we also prevent gender-based violence and ensure that all people, regardless of gender identity and sexual orientation, fully enjoy their sexual rights and are empowered to achieve their full potential.
Transforming gender norms and gender relations can be done through:
- Encouraging a critical awareness of gender roles and gendered norms
- Cultivating empathy so that young people can understand and respond to other people’s realities
- Exploring power dynamics and identifying how inequitable gender norms are restricting and even harming people’s expression and positive experiences of sexuality
- Making the link between harmful gender norms and gender-based violence, discrimination and marginalization. Towards this end, identifying how the attempts to control women’s and girls’ sexuality result in many human rights violations, including gender-based violence, forced marriage and forced pregnancy, female genital mutilation, and limitations on their mobility, dress, education, employment, and participation in public life. Similarly, it is important to explore the impact of social norms on LGBTIQ+ individuals, sex workers, and other people who challenge sexual and gender norms and who are at greater risk to experience violence, stigma, and discrimination as a result[7].
- Helping young people to develop awareness, capacities and skills to transform harmful gender norms through applying sexual literacy, confidence, personal agency, assertive communication, negotiation and displaying gender-equitable behaviour
- Empowering women, girls and people with diverse gender and/or sexual identities or orientations to assert their rights and to not tolerate any unhealthy or unpleasurable behaviours
- Strengthening models of gender equality in the learning environment – e.g. by using inclusive language, making sure young people with diverse gender identities and/or sexual orientations have equal opportunities to participate
- Making explicit the advantages of changing these norms and striving towards social justice
- Having the freedom and capacity to make your own decisions and to act as you choose, own your own body and define your sexuality by the choices that you make for yourself. The concept is explained in more detail in chapter 9 ‘Sex Positivity’
- Adapted from: IPPF(2017). DELIVER+ ENABLE TOOLKIT: Scaling-up comprehensive sexuality education (CSE)
- Source: International Women’s health coalition, https://iwhc.org/
- https://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/topics/sexual_health/sh_definitions/en/
- Adapted from: IPPF(2017). DELIVER+ ENABLE TOOLKIT: Scaling-up comprehensive sexuality education (CSE)
- Source: IPPF(2017). DELIVER+ ENABLE TOOLKIT: Scaling-up comprehensive sexuality education (CSE)
- Source: International Women’s Health Coalition
