SEXUAL RIGHTS

WHAT ARE SEXUAL RIGHTS?


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Sexual Rights are based on fundamental human rights. We need to recognise, respect and defend sexual rights if we want to improve the sexual health of all South Africans.
We currently have one of the highest rates of HIV/AIDS infections in the world, which is an indication that we still have a lot of work to do in the promotion of sexual rights in our country. The following list of sexual rights has been adapted from the Universal Declaration of Sexual Rights from The World Association for Sexology. (www.worldsexology.org)

Sexual rights:

  1. The Right to Sexual Freedom: This is the right to achieve your full sexual potential without any coercion, exploitation and abuse.

  2. The Right to Sexual Autonomy, Sexual Integrity, and Safety of the Sexual Body: This is the right to make your own decisions about you sex life based on your personal beliefs and ethics. It recognises your right to enjoy your sexuality without the fear of violence and mutilation by others.

  3. The Right to Sexual Privacy: This is your right to choose what sexual behaviours and relationships you want as long as they do not violate the sexual rights of others.

  4. The Right to Sexual Equality: This is the freedom to enjoy your sexuality without fear of discrimination.

  5. The Right to Sexual Pleasure: T his should not infringe on the rights of anyone else.

  6. The Right to Emotional Sexual Expression: People have a right to express their sexuality through communication, touch, emotional   expression and love.

  7. The Right to Establish and to Dissolve Sexual Relationships:This includes the right to decide to marry or not, to divorce or to establish any other responsible sexual relationship.

  8. The Right to Make Free and Responsible Reproductive Choices:This is the right to decide whether or not to have children, how many to have, how to space them and what contraception to use.

  9. The Right to Scientifically Accurate Information on Sex: This is the right to access appropriate scientifically accurate information and implies that you have the right to be protected from misleading information in any form.

  10. The Right to Sex Education: This is the right to receive sex education that is accurate, age appropriate, and understandable to you.

  11. The Right to Sexual Health Services: This is the right to access healthcare practitioners for contraception, treatment of sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS and for any other sexual problems.

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