Gov't regulations vs. condoms putting Pinoys at risk of HIV —HRW

Government regulations that obstruct access to condoms are the ones that are putting the youth at risk of AIDS and HIV, a human rights organization said Wednesday, as it throws its support behind the Department of Health's plan to distribute condoms in high schools.

"Government policy failures – including regulations that obstruct access to condoms – are one of the reasons why the Philippines faces one of the fastest-growing epidemics of HIV in the Asia-Pacific region," said Carlos Conde, researcher of Human Rights Watch, in a statement.

HRW issued the statement in response to Sen. Vicente Sotto III, as well as to Vice President Leni Robredo and Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista, who all opposed the DOH's plan to distribute condoms to high school students.

Sotto has promised to block the implementation of the measure, saying "high school students are under-aged and it's a crime to encourage them to indulge in sex."

According to Conde, HRW research shows that "many sexually active young Filipinos have little or no knowledge about the role condoms play in preventing sexually transmitted diseases because the Philippine government fails to provide adequate school education programs on safe-sex practices, particularly condom use."

DOH earlier planned to distribute condom in schools nationwide to curb the increasing number of HIV cases in the country. It said it would work with the Department of Education (DepEd) in implementing the program. —Anna Felicia J. Bajo/KBK, GMA News