EDITORIAL : THE NEW STRAITS TIMES, MALAYSIA

 

Handle with care

 

THE howls of outrage all over the world after a batch of girlish boys were sent to a four-day camp in Besut were predictable. After all, as homosexual, lesbian and transsexual communities everywhere have embraced the idea of androgyny, they cannot be expected to stay silent when there has been an apparent attempt to prevent adolescent males from getting in touch with their feminine side. The outcry from rights activists was also not surprising as the pursuit of one's rights include freedom from being picked on because of one's gender and the right to express one's personal sexual orientation.

Surprisingly, however, far from being traumatised by the experience, those who were singled out as effeminate seem to be having a whale of a time. More unexpectedly, the Terengganu Education Department seems to be back-pedalling on its earlier stated criteria for selection and intentions to make them manly. We are now told that the camp has nothing to do with boys who look and behave like girls but everything to do with character-building. Furthermore, the military style component has been downplayed and what has been highlighted are physical activities, like jungle trekking, and educational programmes, such as religious and motivational talks. Perhaps, this was just an attempt to deflect the flak that it was homophobic and making punishing physical demands on delicate young bodies. Whatever the case may be, there's little reason to be defensive about army style boot camps. As the positive benefits from National Service Camps suggest, the experience can be fun, therapeutic and even life-changing, produces as many psychological changes as physical, and can become a catalyst for change.

Certainly, such a programme can help young people. But the question is whether there will be follow-up work after the camp, and if so, how much mentoring and support there will be. What is clear is that such camps can only be part of the solution to adolescent problems, whether they be depression or delinquency, obesity or promiscuity. There is no quick fix in treating the emotional and behavioural problems of troubled teens, and no certainty that any treatment will pay off. Clearly, too, whatever that has subsequently been said by the state Education Department, it has attracted attention and sparked debate about sexual ambiguity. Despite the liberal leanings of some circles, many are not ready to accept the androgynous man. That said, however, though they do not fit traditionally defined male roles, those with feminine characteristics should not be regarded as some sort of moral failure and the object of ridicule and censure.