Consent an issue for all - Bennett
Acting Prime Minister Paula Bennett says consent is already taught in New Zealand schools, and that the issue of a perceived rape culture is not a ‘‘government solution alone’’.
On Monday, hundreds of demonstrators - mostly high school students - turned up to protest at Parliament, calling for the compulsory teaching of consent, and of the rights of women, in all secondary schools.
Bennett said yesterday she supported the protesters, and ‘‘the fact they were here and their voices were being heard, I think that does more for societal change than anything’’.
‘‘We can always be looking at the guidelines ... but this is not a government solution alone.
‘‘This has got to go from our young people to our teachers, to our parents and us parliamentarians, and society in addressing some of the behaviours unfortunately still in pockets in our society,’’ she said.
Consent was already taught as part of sex education through to year 10 but was not compulsory, Bennett said.
‘‘Last year schools asked for better guidelines on how that should be taught, and it was provided to them.’’
The protest came on the back of sexist jokes posted on a Facebook page by Wellington College students, and revelations last week that four year 9 students had been suspended from St Patrick’s College, Silverstream, for inappropriately filming two female teachers.
Labour is calling for consent to be better taught in schools. MP Kelvin Davis, who led a hikoi against sexual violence, said it was great to see so many men supporting the protest at Parliament.
‘‘I think that it shouldn’t just stay there. They need to go back to their schools, sports clubs, and when they’re engaging on social media and speak out and stamp out this sort of talk - it’s just unacceptable at any level.’’
Davis wants teachers to be better resourced to teach consent so if a school wants to put more of a focus on it in the curriculum, it will have the ability to do so.
Labour leader Andrew Little backed that up by saying school was the best place for that sort of education to take place.
‘‘We want to make sure sex education is relevant and not just about the biology,’’ he said.