GLOBAL SCENERIO ON YSRHR

The youth population of the world (from the ages of 15 to 29) is estimated at about 2 billion people. Thus the advocacy and protection of their rights is of great importance for the future of the world. Their sexual and reproductive rights is of as much importance as is their other rights.

There are several organizations all over the world that advocate the sexual and reproductive rights for the youth. The World Health Organization even advocates the right of all individuals to attain the highest standard of sexual and reproductive health irrespective of their age. The youth have the right to legal or safe abortion, the right to control their reproductive functions, the right to access quality reproductive healthcare and the right to education and access in order to make reproductive choices free from coercion, discrimination and violence.

There are other important organizations that advocate the sexual rights of the youth like the Canadian Youth for Choice Federation, basic rights Oregon, International Union of Socialist Youth, Junior Chamber International, National Youth Rights Association, etc. These organizations play a vital role in making the youth aware of their sexual rights and in promoting sex education. They also raise their voice against and actively counter elements in society that against the ethics of science ignore numerous studies and comment that same sex marriages should not be allowed or that the number and genders of the parents are of primary importance for a child’s welfare and development. What these organizations want to do basically is to conduct adequate study in the field of children’s sexual rights and to make them aware of their sexual and reproductive rights by encouraging sex education which is often regarded to be taboo in society.

• Presently same sex marriages are available only to the residents of Netherlands, Spain, Canada.
• The state of Vermont allows gays and lesbians to enter into civil unions.
• Several provinces in Canada allow gay and lesbian couples to receive all the rights, privileges and obligations that the state gives to married couples.
• The Gallup Organization conducted a study in March 1996 which showed that 68% of American adults opposed gay marriages and 27%were in favour of gay marriages.
• The Women In Technology International conducted a poll within it’s organization itself which showed that 80% of them were in favour of same sex marriages and 18% were against it.
• A Newsweek magazine survey of 1998 showed that young adults(18-29yrs) were “significantly more accepting of gay marriages” than people above the ages of 30.
• A 2002 poll conducted by KRC Communications Research for Globe/WBZ showed that within the age group of 18-39 yrs 62% were in favor of same sex marriages, 33% were not in favour and 5% had no opinions regarding the same.
• A 2003 New Jersey poll indicated that among 18-29 year olds 71% were in favour of same sex marriages.
• The 2006 Boston Globe poll showed that 39% of subjects between 18 and 34 opposed same sex marriages as compared to 46% between the ages of 35 to 49 and 51% between 50 to 64.
  
  All these surveys and polls give a clear indication that majority of the youth of the world support same sex marriages and thus their sexual rights are of utmost importance.
  
  Though the global scenario on the reproductive and sexual rights of the youth is still a very narrow area of thought, the development in this field and the rising awareness of the youth with respect to the same is broadening its circumference of the aforementioned rights.