Condom campaign encounters resistance<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): When the government, with the strong support of
\nnon-governmental organizations (NGOs), embarked on a nationwide
\ncampaign to promote the use of condoms to check the spread of the
\nHuman Immunodeficiency Virus\/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
\n(HIV\/AIDS), there was optimism that the campaign would be a
\nsuccess.<\/p>\n
But after several years, condom use has not gained in
\npopularity and its promotion as the best protection against
\nHIV\/AIDS remains controversial.<\/p>\n
The use of condoms has been a main theme in the AIDS campaign,
\nwhich has received backing from a number of international
\norganizations, including USAID, KfW of Germany and the World
\nBank.<\/p>\n
Long before AIDS came to Indonesia, condoms were widely
\naccepted as a contraceptive. However, a controversy emerged when
\ncondoms began to be promoted as part of the effort to prevent the
\nspread of HIV. Opposition came from religious groups, which
\nlikened the condom campaign to the tacit promotion of \"free sex\",
\nadultery and prostitution.<\/p>\n
In February last year, for example, activists from the
\nIndonesian Family Planning Association became the targets of a
\nprotest by the Catholic community in Belu, East Nusa Tenggara,
\nwhen they attempted to distribute free condoms as part of the
\nAIDS campaign.<\/p>\n
The locals accused the association of \"promoting
\nprostitution\".<\/p>\n
But the strongest opposition to the promotion of condoms in
\nthe AIDS campaign has come from Islamic religious leaders.<\/p>\n
This opposition has put the NGOs behind the AIDS campaign,
\nsuch as the Indonesian AIDS Society and Gaya Nusantara
\nOrganization, in a difficult position. Nevertheless, the campaign
\nis forging ahead, albeit in a low-key fashion.<\/p>\n
\"The promotion of condoms (in the AIDS campaign) is necessary
\nbut it has to be implemented very carefully in view of the local
\ncultural and religious traditions,\" says Abdul Manaf, chief of
\nthe directorate for the prevention of communicable diseases at
\nthe health ministry.<\/p>\n
\"The approach that we use in (dominantly Christian) Irian
\nJaya, for example, is totally different from what we do in
\n(dominantly Muslim) Aceh.\"<\/p>\n
Those who are opposed to the promotion of condoms to prevent
\nHIV suggest that the AIDS campaign focus on discouraging
\npromiscuity.<\/p>\n
While the controversy remains, HIV\/AIDS continues to take its
\ntoll in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
According to official statistics, as of the end of February
\nthis year the number of people living with HIV reached 604 and
\nanother 235 people had full-blown AIDS. Since the first AIDS case
\nwas reported in 1987, 113 people with AIDS have died.<\/p>\n
Jakarta has the highest number of HIV\/AIDS cases with 243,
\nfollowed by Irian Jaya with 211 cases and Riau with 107 cases.
\nAceh, Lampung, East Nusa Tenggara and East Timor have the fewest
\ncases with \"only\" one case each.<\/p>\n
New AIDS cases have been steadily on the rise in Indonesia. In
\n1987, two new cases were reported. Since then, new AIDS cases
\nhave shown an upward trend, reaching 12 in 1991. But the most
\ndramatic jump was from 34 new cases in 1997 to 74 last year.<\/p>\n
No condom, no sex<\/p>\n
The sensitivity surrounding the condom promotion has forced
\nthe government to focus their campaign on high risk groups,
\nparticularly prostitutes, homosexuals, fishermen and truck
\ndrivers.<\/p>\n
In its latest move, the government has introduced the \"100
\npercent condom use\" policy for brothels. The policy was
\napparently inspired by a similar tactic in Thailand which has
\nreportedly been a success. The motto for the policy is \"No
\nCondom, No Sex\".<\/p>\n
\"But since customers' awareness about safe sex is so low, the
\npolicy is doomed to end up a failure,\" said an AIDS activist.<\/p>\n
Manaf said health ministry officials across the country were
\ntold to implement the 100 percent condom use policy \"without
\ncausing unrest in their respective areas\".<\/p>\n
A behavioral surveillance survey conducted in several major
\ncities across Indonesia showed that the use of condoms among high
\nrisk groups was not very encouraging.<\/p>\n
The survey found that 47 percent of prostitutes' customers in
\nJakarta in 1997 used condoms, while that number was 30 percent in
\nSurabaya and 29.5 percent in Manado.<\/p>\n
In a 1998 survey the results were just as discouraging. In
\nDenpasar, close to 70 percent of prostitutes' customers used
\ncondoms, while in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, that number was 52
\npercent and in Ujungpandang only 33 percent of the customers used
\ncondoms.<\/p>\n
Manaf said that many people refuse to use a condom simply
\nbecause they believe that wearing a condom will make intercourse
\nless enjoyable, although they are well aware of the risks of
\nunprotected sex.<\/p>\n
There have been suggestions that to provide its AIDS
\nprevention policies teeth, the government should initiate
\nlegislation similar to that enacted in Thailand.<\/p>\n
Manaf cited the need for legislation which, for example, would
\nrequire prostitutes to be tested for sexually transmitted
\ndiseases on a regular basis.<\/p>\n
However, he said, the problem was that prostitution, which is
\nillegal in Indonesia, is not always organized in brothels.<\/p>\n
\"What can we do with streetwalkers who work independently,\" he
\nasked?<\/p>\n
Prostitution has become an even more complex social and health
\nproblem due to the economic crisis. More sex workers are taking
\nto the streets as many night spots that once served as
\nprostitution fronts went bankrupt or were forcibly closed down by
\ncitizens. It is also feared that the economic crisis will force
\neven larger numbers of women into prostitution. (pan)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/condom-campaign-encounters-resistance-1447893297",
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"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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