Letter: Contraception is not the answer

I refer to an article “Urban poor ‘fear’ contraceptives,” (The Jakarta Post, March 31, p. 4).

Contraception is not the answer for resolving poverty or social problems. Education and the redistribution of wealth are.

Americans and the residents of other industrialized nations know this only too well. Indonesians should not follow their direction! Contraception provides a false sense of security while encouraging permissiveness.

People engaging in irresponsible sexual behavior while believing that they are “safe” will likely face unwanted pregnancies and, if no other solutions are made available, abortions.

In the US, 54 percent of all abortions were done by women who used contraception. Women and men who have lost children from abortion are at high risk for depression or other mental illness, suicide, using alcohol or drugs excessively and aggressive behavior.

Unless these social problems are not an issue for the nation, Indonesia needs to resort to other means to help the poor: entertainment

S. Handajani
San Francisco