Cambodia will teach sexual diversity in schools
11 December 2019 - The Cambodian Ministry of Education has decided students of 13 and older will receive sexual education from 2020 on. The course will consist of seven modules and include attention to bullying and LGBT discrimination. The move puts Cambodia at the forefront of LGBT education in Southeast Asia. Thailand was the first Asian nation to include sexual diversity in the curriculum.
Acceptance is rising
Over 3000 Cambodian teachers have been trained to deliver the new material, says Srun Srorn, an LGBT+ activist who developed the modules with the Education Ministry. He said there was some resistance among very homophobic teachers, but the program was generally received with enthusiasm. Five teachers had come out during the training, which is special is a conservative country like Cambodia.
Sexual diversity in Cambodia
Cambodia has no legislation that deals specifically with LGBT people. Same sex marriages are not officially recognized by the state. But there to is no repression either. Still, the mostly rural population is quite conservative. Some LGBT are forced by parents into marriages or into conversion therapy.
Acceptance of LGBT people in Cambodia is increasing. But one-third of LGBT report harassment in the workplace, according to a research by the Cambodian Center for Human Rights.
Source: Openly News by the Thomson Reuters Foundation.