June 26, 2018
MP’S take on taboo kōrero
Encouraging uptake of the HPV vaccine and encouraging more women to have smear tests for cervical cancers are the latest priorities for a cross party-group of MPs working on sexual and reproductive health rights.
Manurewa MP Louisa Wall says Parliamentarians for Population and Development is this week marking its 20th year in operation.
She says just getting people to talk about such issues is an important first step, as Māori have seen through the example of the late Talei Morrison’s Smear Your Mea campaign.
"We find it incredibly difficult to talk ablut anything to do with our reproductive organs. Somehow it's a taboo subject. What Talei managed to do in saying 'why are we so afraid to talk about these issues?' helped to open the conversation for a whole lot of other issues to do with sexual and reproductive health," Ms Wall says.
As well as addressing issues in Aotearoa, the MPs are working with similar groups around the region on issues like increasing teen pregnancy rates in the Pacific and an upsurge in the number of child brides.
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