The term ‘consent’ has played a vital role in tackling sexual assault in society. Consent is the positive and conscious agreement to engage in sexual activity.

One of the issues that we as a society are dealing with is the lack of awareness about the importance of seeking consent. This has led to a surge in the number of sexual assault cases in the past few years.

To increase awareness about consent, one of the primary steps that needs to be taken is to integrate consent education in existing curricula.

In Australia, from the year 2023, consent education will be included as part of the curriculum. Schools will educate students on topics including coercion in sexual relationships.

Most importantly, teenagers will be taught how to seek, give and deny consent appropriately through effective communication. This is truly a commendable move from the state and federal ministers, one that heralds positive reforms in Australian society.

While governments in NSW and Victoria had previously mandated consent education, it was only applicable to state schools. The recent decision includes mandatory consent education in all schools across Australia.

Chanel Contos was the first one to trail-blaze this movement with her “Teach Us Consent” campaign last year. Through this campaign she has actively lobbied for holistic consent education to be included in school curricula. What has resulted is a clear win for Contos and all other activists who have pushed for consent education to be included in formal curriculum.

Being a part of a family law firm, seeing cases related to sexual assault within a domestic setting is not uncommon. Domestic and personal violence cases often include sexual assault allegations against people. Furthermore, the statistics in Australia paint a bleak picture with at least one in five women having experienced sexual assault in Australia.

Preventative education through the means of information on consent will go a long way in reducing sexual assaults. With the unanimous decision being made across all jurisdictions, we can remain hopeful about what to expect in post-2023 Australian society.

Why We Should Enlighten, Empower and Protect

Like it is the case with creating awareness around any societal issue, education is the key to achieving progress in this matter. Reiterating the importance of educational institutions in shaping young minds is crucial when dealing with consent.

Enlightening young people and enabling them to become well-informed individuals is the need of the hour. Consent education has the potential to protect many people and prevent sexual assaults in the future. It is also about empowerment through communication.

However, there is more to consent education than just teaching young people about the concept per se. There are various subtleties that form a significant subject under the overall theme of consent. Importantly, the complexity and obscurity of ‘consent’ as a subject has led to many questions being asked. For instance, is it okay to simply obtain consent, or is it important to understand whether consent is actually being given?

This can be understood better by analysing teen behaviour wherein many young people give in to sexual advances because of peer pressure. The focus needs to be on educating young people on how to communicate efficiently when discussing consent. In this regard, the need to instruct how to communicate a lack of consent, accept a lack of consent, and manage rejection is extremely vital.

In June 2022, the most populous state of Australia, New South Wales (NSW) implemented affirmative consent laws. These laws have made it explicitly clear that consent needs to be communicated by words or actions.

Such laws can help address the afore-mentioned issues regarding communicative consent language. These laws indicate that there is a responsibility to find out if the other person is actually consenting.

Now, the lack of communication or lack of resistance will also be seen as evidence of non-consent. The law has placed tremendous emphasis on the importance of consenting through words and actions. Moreover, it asserts that consent is an ongoing process, and can end at any time.

The University of Wollongong in New South Wales, Australia, has already made consent modules compulsory. The university has tried to get the ball rolling before consent education reforms will be implemented across the country by 2023.

With the new affirmative consent laws, educational institutions will be able to implement better strategies to educate young people on the importance of consent.

Global Need for Consent Education

With ministers taking such an imperative unanimous decision, Australia can now be a model for other countries with high sexual assault rates. When the concept of ‘consent’ is taught to impressionable minds, it will undoubtedly bring about a change.

Australia’s landmark decision should influence other nations and it can serve as a precedent to tackle sexual assaults globally. There is a need to facilitate conversations and policy-based discussions on sexual assault and consent in other nations.

While the emphasis has been placed on educational institutions to bring about change by creating awareness, it is equally important to recognise the role of the family and home in inculcating the understanding of consent in young people.

Families need to set up a culture of consent at their home, and children need to be aware of consent from a young age. Teaching the importance of ‘asking for permission’ is crucial. When children are made to learn these things from a young age, it becomes easier for them to become informed adults.

Moreover, respecting a person’s response is paramount. Kids must be taught about respecting a ‘no’ so that they become empowered individuals. Not only does this lead to the children respecting others, but also themselves.

Apart from consent, families can also teach children about respecting boundaries and limits. Similarly, they should also be able to set limits for themselves.

Asking for permission is a normal part of our day-to-day lives. Therefore, conversations around consent can be initiated at any age.

Ultimately, we need awareness coupled with stringent rules and regulations in society to effectively combat sexual assault and harassment.

Author info:

John Bui is the Principal Solicitor of JB Solicitors. The firm primarily deals with matters falling under family law, criminal law, property law, and commercial law. John is a nationally accredited family law mediator and arbitrator.