Lessons Learned by a Youth Peer Educator and A Twist in Her Story

Way back in 2005 – I was a second year high school student and a member of the Supreme Student Government then, I attended a seminar held at Sikatuna Beach Hotel. The participants of the seminar, that Plan International (Occidental Mindoro) sponsored, came from all over the SaMaRiCa area of Occidental Mindoro – that is: San Jose, Magsaysay, Rizal, and Calintaan.

That seminar was the first among a series of workshops, seminars, and fora about being a youth peer educator (YPE) and about the topics that we, as peer educators, must know.

I am very grateful for having been given the opportunity to learn about a lot of topics – topics concerning the youth yet we long remained oblivious to.

It is through YPE’s seminars that I’ve learned of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), Violence against Women and Children (VAWC), and Sexuality Education, among others.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)

The Convention on the Rights of the Child is a legally binding instrument that set out the rights of children. It states that every child has four basic rights: survival, development, protection, and participation. By setting up standards, the convention ensure the child’s rights to health care, education, and legal, civil and social services. Children can only attain their full potential if they are not deprived or denied of any of these rights.

Violence against Women and Children (VAWC)

Violence comes in many forms: physical, sexual, psychological, and economic. Before the seminar, I thought that the only violence against women and children are physical or sexual in nature. Now I know that in addition to bodily or physical harm, and sexual abuse, acts that cause mental or emotional suffering and deeds that compels a woman to become financially dependent on the offender are also forms of violence.

Sexuality Education

Sexuality education covers an extensive number of topics from the anatomy of the reproductive system to sexually transmitted diseases to teenage pregnancy.

Reproductive health is also a part of sexuality education. Yes, we were studying about RH even before it was controversial – so hipster.*

Back then, it is much easier to understand what reproductive health is all about. It maybe because we approached it in a rational way – identifying what should be and juxtaposing it with what is real. We tried to be rational about it. Now, reproductive health becomes a very complicated matter.**

A Twist in My Story

Seven years after I attended my first YPE seminar, who would’ve known that I’d be using what I learned from being a peer educator in my work. I now work for the chair of the Senate Committee on Youth, Women, and Family Relations. It is simply crazy how I can used what I’ve learned as a YPE in my work today. Could it be a twist of fate? Is it my destiny? Maybe.

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*Hipster is an internet slang for a person who does or knows a thing before it became mainstream

**This blog post is not about reproductive health nor the Reproductive Health Bill because I believe that such topic deserves its own blog post.