Sex education can protect youngsters from abusers

I am writing in response to Eunice Li’s letter (“Hong Kong needs to set up a sex offender registry”, April 30).

A sex offender registry in Hong Kong could help people who face sexual abuse to speak up. However, it won’t encourage them to proactively seek help.

I recently read a book by the late Taiwanese author, Lin Yi-han, called Fang Si-Qi’s First Love Paradise. It is about a girl who was sexually groomed and abused by her middle-aged teacher.

The girl worried that no one would believe her if she broke her silence, as the teacher was popular. Moreover, her parents did not tell her much about sex and, when she faced abuse, she did not know what to do. She became depressed, showing the harmful, and even life-threatening, impact of sexual abuse.

Lack of sex education among youngsters may be making them more vulnerable to sexual abuse. Parents should not shy away from sharing information about sex with their children when they are old enough to understand. 

Kelly Cheng, Kwai Chung