The sex-education textbook that has been in use in Kyrgyz schools for several years has been withdrawn and its author is being sued in a Bishkek court by a group called the Public Committee for Defense of the Honor and Dignity of the Kyrgyz People. The suit was filed on 22 July against author Boris Shapiro, head of the national AIDS center and president of the Jewish Culture Society; two of his co-authors, Gulnara Kurmanova and Larisa Bashmakova; and the publishing house that produced the book. According to the plaintiff, who is demanding \"compensation\" of $1 million, the book violates the mentality, traditions, and customs of the Kyrgyz people. Education Minister Ishenkul Boldzhurova had already ordered that the book be withdrawn, supposedly because of numerous complaints from parents, though students who used the book said they found it very helpful because it dealt with issues that they felt unable to bring up with their parents, and that their parents were too shy to discuss with them. (akipress.org)