It is regrettable that the Ministry has seen a need to make this move. However, we recognise that the ministry has been under considerable pressure from some parents on the matter and we can understand why it has taken this action.

AWARE still believes our Comprehensive Sexuality Education programme is a much needed resource for youths. It was drawn up by professionals and, during the two years it was run in schools, there was no negative feedback. During the furore of recent weeks, many parents made a point of saying they would be keen for their children to benefit from the objective and frank approach AWARE’s programme takes to sexuality. We will continue with our review of the programme, and this will be done in consultation with parents, teachers, counsellors and other relevant parties. At the appropriate time we may offer it again to the Education Ministry.

The CSE programme, however, is just one of AWARE’s activities. It has been given disproportionate publicity in recent weeks. It is unfortunate if there are now people in Singapore who associate AWARE only with sex education.

AWARE has three areas of activity – research and advocacy, direct services, and public education. The first, research and advocacy, has been AWARE’s hallmark from the start. The work goes on with the CEDAW shadow report, and research into issues such as sexual harassment at work, work life balance, the challenges faced by singles in Singapore, and the trafficking of women and children.

The AWARE helpline, along with our counselling service and the Legal Clinic, continues to be invaluable to women in distress. With our newly expanded membership, we have many new members who are offering to help in these areas and we hope to improve and expand these services in the course of this year.

We also plan to step up our efforts in public education, including reviving the talks and forums that we used to hold in the early years at public libraries and other community locations. The EGM on 2 May showed very clearly that the women of Singapore have strong views on many matters and that they want to stand up and speak out. AWARE will organise forums and other opportunities for them to do so. We will make greater use of new media to reach out to members and to create channels for them to express their views and to network with each other.

Dana Lam,
President

Related:

• May 7, 2009 -- Standing by the CSE
• May 4, 2009 -- We All Won!
• May 3, 2009 -- Open Letter: The euphoria and the reality
• April 30, 2009 -- Open Letter by Martha Lee
• April 30, 2009 -- Open Letter: Setting the record straight

Released today:

Related:

• July 7, 2009 -- Siew Kum Hong is not reappointed as NMP
• May 28, 2009 -- Sin Boon Ann: AWARE & Failure of the Media
• May 28, 2009 -- Koo Tsai Kee: Tolerance & Diversity
• May 28, 2009 -- Thio Li-ann: Religion & the Secular State
• May 21, 2009 -- Response to MOE Decision

Letter to Dr John Chew, Anglican Bishop of Singapore

Dear Dr Chew,

We note with some concern that in your pastoral letter of 10 May 2009 you appear to be perpetuating the misconception that AWARE has an agenda ‘for redefining mainstream sexual ethics and social norms’. You say that ‘unfolding revelations’ have shown that the concerns of Dr Thio Su Mien and her mentees about AWARE’s direction were ‘not misplaced’.

The truth, Dr Chew, is that the concerns were misplaced. AWARE has never promoted homosexuality. In our 24 years of existence, our stand on homosexuality has been identical to that of the government. We agree that the heterosexual family is the norm for our society. But homosexuals are also part of our society and they should be able to live freely and happily, free of any discrimination.

Yesterday we issued a statement to the media in response to DPM Wong Kan Seng’s Q&A with the media. We said it is most regrettable that some people in Singapore now have the impression that AWARE has a ‘gay agenda’ as this is totally unfounded.

The allegation of a ‘gay agenda’ was made by Dr Thio Su Mien, and the team of women she handpicked to join AWARE and take over its leadership, on the strength of bits of information taken out of context and strung together to create an imaginary and inaccurate picture of AWARE’s activities.

This unhappy episode, and the many wrongful allegations made during it, have damaged AWARE’s reputation and insulted the many women and men who, over the last 24 years, have worked so hard to improve the lives of women in Singapore and our society as a whole. Sadly, the allegations and the misperceptions continue in online forums and other channels.

We at AWARE are already moving on and putting together our programmes for the year. We assure you that none of the programmes have anything to do with promoting or even endorsing homosexuality.

Dr Chew, we would like to invite you and the heads or representatives of other Christian churches in Singapore to join us at the AWARE Centre for lunch sometime in the near future. It would be a chance for us to give you an accurate picture of AWARE’s agenda and our programmes. It would also be an opportunity for you to meet some AWARE members and dispel any notion you might have that we are a bunch of radicals out to promote ‘revisionist sexuality norms’.

There is another matter we would like to address in this letter. In the last two weeks or so, highly confidential documents about our Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) programme have been appearing online at various online file storage sites. I attach a screen capture of the list of files available for download at MediaFire, one such service.

These documents include the list of schools where the CSE was conducted and the list of CSE trainers and auditors, which gives their mobile numbers and email addresses as well as the results of the tests they sat for as part of their training as CSE trainers.

These documents are kept in the AWARE office and are only available to Executive Committee (Exco) members, the members of the CSE subcommittee and relevant staff. In the two years that we ran the CSE programme, these documents were kept strictly confidential. But during the short tenure of the Exco led by Ms Josie Lau, these documents have been put online. Note that along with the CSE files, there is one titled ‘AWARE HOMO SLANT’. This is the PowerPoint document that the previous Exco used at its press conference at Raffles Town Club on 23 April.

We can only conclude that the previous Exco either put these documents online themselves, or gave access to the files to someone who then put them online. In either case, this is a serious breach of the confidentiality of our programme and the privacy of our volunteers and clients. Whatever the objections to the CSE programme, this is irresponsible, unethical and reprehensible behaviour. If, as you say in your letter, the previous Exco’s ‘takeover’ actions raised ‘ethical and propriety difficulties’ in the minds of many Christians, this breach of confidentiality is just as bad if not worse.

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, Dr Chew. I will call your office next week to arrange for a suitable date for you to visit the AWARE Centre.

Yours sincerely,

Related:

• May 8, 2009 -- Open Letter to MOE by Leon Ryan
• May 21, 2009 -- Response to MOE Decision
• May 19, 2009 -- ST Forum: Reaction to DPM Interview
• May 11, 2009 -- ST Forum: Lessons from AWARE
• May 4, 2009 -- Open Letter: Lessons for our Secular Nation

In order to understand this problem better, a Focus Group discussion was conducted at a post-secondary education institute. We learnt that they had received a lot of factual information, but did not have the skills to actually use this information. Of further concern was the fact that students got most of their information from three sources – the internet, friends and magazines. Given the potential risks inherent in sexual activity, we believe we owe it to young people to help them safeguard their own futures. A sexuality education programme was the best way to get accurate, reliable information to youths.

A literature review was carried out to examine the different kinds of sexuality programmes available both nationally and internationally. This included a review of the existing sex-education programme guide produced by MOE in Singapore. We found that research consistently showed when given accurate information, young people are more likely to make wise, realistic, and informed decisions. Some studies have found that young people who have been through comprehensive sexuality education have sexual intercourse later, and have fewer sexual partners. Given this information, AWARE went ahead and developed a comprehensive sexuality education programme, as it was proven to be effective in providing young women with the tools, knowledge, skills, attitude, and values to make responsible choices about their sexual health.

AWARE’s CSE Programme draws on established international programmes and has been developed over a course of a year in consultation with parents, youth social workers, teachers, and academics from a range of institutions. As with all other AWARE programmes, it has been through a rigorous process of internal and external auditing and pilot testing. This process has been a continuous one, and in June – July 2008, we reviewed the CSE Basic programme and made appropriate improvements based on trainer and student feedback.

A good CSE programme is much more than a simple sex education programme. A CSE programme empowers young women to develop a healthy and positive attitude towards sexuality. AWARE’s CSE programmes consists of a Basic and Advanced workshop which are each conducted by certified trainers for small groups of young women. Each workshop consists of games, role-play, discussions, and a presentation.

The workshops cover topics such as

• Information on STIs, HIV, and contraceptives
• Negotiation skills to resist peer pressure
• Clear communication skills
• Building healthy relationships
• Evaluating one’s needs and wants

The Instructors guide has exercises and games of different levels. The instructors would then, in consultation with the school modify the programme to best meet the needs of their students. AWARE also provided an opt out form for parents to sign, if they did not wish their children to attend the programme.

CSE has been conducted in various secondary schools and welfare homes in Singapore and is well respected as a responsible and appropriate approach to sexuality education. As of November 2008, the CSE programme had reached 12 different schools and welfare homes. It covered just under 500 students over 24 sessions. We have had several schools calling for repeat workshops, and have even had to turn some requests away because of insufficient trainers.

There have been concerns raised about the fact that the CSE programme is promoting homosexuality, or more specifically, lesbianism amongst our young girls. Homosexuality is a complex issue, and there is no consensus as to what causes it. What we do know is that many young women suffer in silence and in shame because they fear social ostracism. They may also engage in unprotected sex and are more likely to have sexual health problems. In teaching about sexual orientation, we are hoping to dispel myths with accurate information, and to protect young women from the risk of violence, discrimination, depression and self-destructive behaviors.

We have therefore chosen to list homosexuality as a neutral issue in an exercise which helps young women understand all the different aspects of their sexuality. The objective of this exercise is to help young women understand that their views are determined by culture, law, mass media, religion, peers and education, amongst others. At no point does the programme try to challenge existing values; it only helps people understand themselves better and be more aware when they take decisions. The ability to rationalize and think through their decisions is one that most parents would want their children to have.

Our programme has been well received by the students in Singapore. The majority rated the programme above-average or excellent.

Statements from students about what they learned from the workshop:

“The steps to protect myself during sexual activity.”
“How to say no to my boyfriend if he wants to have sex.”
“The risks of having sex.”
“We can say no to sex.”
“The consequences of having sex.”
“How to protect ourselves.”
“To practice safer sex.”
“What a healthy relationship is.”
“We have the right to say no and think twice.”
“I know how important it is to talk to be ready and talk to your boyfriend.”

From “before and after” surveys

Before our workshops:

• The majority of participants had average or less knowledge about sex and sexuality before the workshop.
• The top reasons participants think teenagers have sex are: “they want to experiment / they are curious”, “they want to share a close connection with their boyfriend / girlfriend”, and “their boyfriend / girlfriend pressures them to”.
• The top reasons participants think teenagers who have sex but do not use protection are: “they do not think it is important”, “they do not like using them”, “boyfriend / girlfriend does not want to use them”, and “they feel embarrassed to ask their boyfriend / girlfriend”.
• Of those who knew teen friends that were having sex, over 1/3 said protection was not used at all, while many others reported that protection was only used sometimes, or by some friends.
• The majority did not know where to go for confidential consultation with a doctor about sex.
• The majority did not know where to where to go for confidential, low-cost STI/pregnancy testing.
• The majority did not know where to get quality condoms.
• The majority did not know that there is no age requirement to purchase condoms.
• The majority did not feel comfortable talking to their partner or an adult about sex.
• The majority do not know how to use contraception.

After our workshops:

• Almost all of the students said they now knew more about sex and sexuality, the risks of engaging in sexual activity, and protecting themselves.
• Almost all believe they have the right information to protect their sexual health.
• Almost all understand the importance of proper communication, including “no means no”.
• Almost all feel more comfortable talking to their partners and adults about the topic of sex.
• Almost all know how to stay safe if they do decide to engage in sexual activity, and plan to be safe.
• Almost all know where to get safe, accurate information and protection.
• We believe Q10 may have been misunderstood due to the series of previous “yes” answers, and have reworded it for future evaluations.
• The majority rated the program above-average or excellent.