Speakers at an advocacy campaign by Lifeline Pakistan on Tuesday expressed concerns over unaddressed physical and emotional challenges faced by the youth of Pakistan despite the presence of a vibrant media.
Lifeline Pakistan launched an advocacy campaign titled ‘HAYAT’ on reproductive health rights of the youth at a local hotel. Speakers at the campaign urged that only 29 percent girls and 41 percent boys in Pakistan had access to correct information regarding puberty and hygiene. They said, “A lack of reliable information is shaping the behaviour and practices of the majority of the youth who do not have the skills and confidence to turn knowledge into decision making”.
Lifeline Chief Executive Omer Aftab said that the campaign aimed to create awareness among the masses to address the physical and emotional challenges of adolescents and to suggest ways to handle them. He mentioned that parents in the Pakistani society avoided addressing questions of the youth which de-shaped their personalities later.
Lamenting the fact that no serious efforts had been made to sensitise the youth, Aftab acknowledged that taking care of emotional, psychological and health aspects of growing children were easier said than done, and despite media emancipation the issue remained taboo for a wide section of the society.
He said that a multimedia campaign would disseminate messages through TV, radio, community theatre and outdoor musical events that would focus on -relevant messages for the youth.
Underlining the importance of acquiring proper information and guidance on the subject, he said that the absence of proper information could lead to self-deduced, half-baked facts that were far removed from reality and may lead to exploitation.