Philippine gov't to heighten distribution of condoms despite Church's opposition

Despite opposition from the Catholic Church, the Philippine government will pursue with its plan to intensify the distribution of condoms, particularly to the young ones, next year, a senior government official said Tuesday.

Department of Health (DOH) Undersecretary Gerardo Bayugo told reporters in Malacanang, the presidential palace, that dissemination of condoms was not to control the population but to further prevent the spread of HIV-AIDS.

He said there was a "very low" awareness, specifically about 17 percent, on HIV/AIDS among the young Filipinos.

"So, I hope the Church will understand that we are not doing this to control the population. And we are very much willing to seek their assistance and help in promoting awareness about the morality of our children, the proper way that children need to behave sexually and the condom is just there as a stopgap," he explained.

The DOH reported that from January 1984 to October 2016, a total of 38,114 cases of HIV were reported in the country. In 2016, the total number was 7,756 or 26 new HIV infections everyday.

More than half of all cases or about 19,000 people were ages between 25 and 34, while 10,279 were 15 to 24 years old, Bayugo said.

Health Secretary Paulyn Jean Ubial earlier proposed the distribution of condoms to schools by next year, which received criticism from the Catholic Church.

The Philippines is predominantly a Catholic nation. Endit