Text your say: Condom controversy

Your comments on the controversy on the need to distribute free condoms although the Health Ministry has denied introducing the program to encourage casual sex or to halt the alarming number of abortions:

Practice safe sex. Use condoms. I hope teachers are telling their students to use condoms. Parents must give their children protection, guidance and education in order to understand the importance of using condoms.

Robert
Bekasi, West Java

Just ignore the prejudices of people who are against the Health Ministry. Those people can only say this and that is right and that’s wrong, but they do not know how to overcome the problems. Forget those NATO (no action, talk only).

E Nurdin
Jakarta

Casual sex is rampant in the country and sex education is still considered as taboo. Nevertheless, it is through education and open discussion about the subject and the use of condoms that HIV can be contained and illegal abortions due to unwanted pregnancies avoided. Let’s be realistic and live in the 21st century.

T G
Bali

I strongly oppose the idea of free condoms. Doesn’t it feel like luring people to have sexual affairs? I just can’t imagine how terrible it will be.

Suyanto
Bangka Belitung

I agree with the minister and am proud of her for standing by her principles. Encouraging to see an official with caliber and courage.

For those who say that this policy will lead people astray and mislead them into thinking that the government promotes free sex, please grow up!

Whether it is officially promoted or not, free sex is already common in Indonesia’s big cities. Better to acknowledge the fact and move toward a solution than to deny it and wait for the bomb to explode.

If they are worried about moral degradation, how about really cracking down on corruption and give the people a good example.

If people’s faith is so easily swayed, then faith in this country is a mask worn by people to merely fool the world and themselves.

If one is foolish enough to commit adultery, at least one shouldn’t be dumb enough to do it without protection. Besides, isn’t moral guidance the job of social leaders, teachers of religion and families?

Christine Pan

I have to laugh at how naive some of those House members can be. If they think that distributing condoms will promote free sex, why don’t they distribute jilbab (headscarves) and the Koran and Bibles to promote religious awareness and tolerance, or distribute free business licenses to promote entrepreneurship or even distribute red and white flags to promote nationalism?

The truth is, as keen as our society is on distributed freebies, things related to values and culture will not instantly be affected by them.

And while distributing condoms can be judged as merely a short-term solution to the problem of the increasing number of HIV-afflicted patients — education being the better option and perhaps also a definitive safety protocol to be implemented in hospitals to prevent the spread of the virus during blood transfusions etc. — at least it’s going in the right direction.

Indra Ardiansyah