'Punishing pregnant students is a violation of their rights'
The Alliance for Reproductive Health Rights (ARHR) has noted with dismay, suggestions by a Deputy Director of the Ghana Education Service that: “basic school girls who get pregnant should be punished severely to serve as deterrent to their peers.”
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According to the group, any form of punishment or socially insensitive action against pregnant girls will constitute a violation of their reproductive health rights.
Citing Article 28 (3) and (5) of the 1992 Constitution which respectfully state that “A child shall not be subjected to …inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment” and that “A child is anyone below 18 years”, the group noted that any form of punishment meted out to girls who get pregnant will be an affront against their rights enshrined in the constitution.
Inaugurating a Girls Club Executives at Nadowli in the Upper West Region, Madam Banongwie said government was investing so much into education girls, thus any girl who decided to waste such resources through loose morals should be made to re-pay such investments.
Expressing disappointment in the statement made by the Deputy Director, the Alliance for Reproductive Health Rights noted that should such an action be carried out, the consequences could be dire such as students resorting to unsafe termination of pregnancies to avoid punishment.
“In 2011, the Ghana Health Service reported that 8,382 girls between 10 and 19 went through the process of abortion. Experts in Ghana have posited that nearly 45% of abortions are unsafe and not reported.
Unsafe abortions contribute substantially to lasting health problems and maternal deaths. Is this what Madam Bernadette Banongwie wants to see happen in this country? Essentially, the effect of such punishments will be increased maternal and newborn deaths that will worsen an already bad situation in achieving Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5,” the group said.
Rather, the group proposes that Ghana can adopt to solve teenage and child pregnancy crisis.
Realistic Way Out
There are well tested evidence-based approaches to solving teenage and child pregnancy crisis in countries like Ghana. The World Health Assembly, in May 2011, adopted a resolution that called on countries to improve the health of young people. Among such specific measures is the need to: review and revise policies to protect young people from early child-bearing; provide access to contraception and reproductive health care services; and to promote access to accurate information on sexual and reproductive health.
Accurate sex education for students will make them aware of the consequences of unprotected sexual relations. The right to information and means to do so are tied to the right to attain the highest standard of sexual and reproductive health.
Lack of information and knowledge on reproductive health must be addressed at the school curriculum level and by parents without any further delays. Preventive programmes in sex education must be made a priority in the curriculum.
GES also has the task of ensuring that the educational system protects young girls from sexual predators both within and outside the schools.
There have been many incidents in the past where GES has been accused of glossing over teachers who have sexually abused and impregnated their students.
A case in point is a teacher called, Zackaria Amo, whom Joy FM revealed has been transferred to three different schools in three years by the GES due to his sexual escapades. If such violators are treated with kid gloves, what assurances do citizens have that an issue of this nature will be addressed with dispatch?
Mad. Banongwie further indicated that despite “vigorous” sensitization by the GES, NGOs and religious bodies, “ill practices such as elopement, teenage pregnancy and early marriage persisted in the district”.
Is there adequate coordination between the GES and civil society to address this canker? GES should consider partnering civil society organizations, especially community-based groups, to ensure that all young girls and boys have access to reproductive health services they need to avoid unsafe sex, mistimed and teenage pregnancies.
The crux of our position is that the GES must adequately implement its social support services for the sake of these young girls. The mere institution of punishment against girls who get pregnant WILL NOT have any positive long lasting effect on the case in point. It will only worsen the plight of such young girls and, at worse, increase the mortality from unsafe abortions.
It is risky to jump at cosmetic approaches to deal with such deeply rooted social issues within the educational system. This is a social issue that requires urgent attention to protect the rights of young people.
