The Editor, Sir:

The children are having sex on the school grounds, in minibuses to and from school, at home or at a friend's house after or during school hours, but let's not give them condoms. The girls are having sex with the taxi and minibus drivers, the store managers, the boy next door and his friend, but let's not give them condoms. The boys are having sex with their mother's best woman friend, the helper next door, the girl down the road, and the schoolteacher, but let's not give them condoms.

We should not give them condoms because it is an offence to our Christian values; we should not give them condoms because it would be ridiculous to give such young beings 'permission' to have sex; we should not give them condoms because that would be the final straw that says the moral fabric of our society is gone for good.

Maintaining a 'civil, democratic society'

Let's face it, we, as a society, don't mind those big-bellied teens, the videotapes of children engaging in sexual activities, or the bouncing rhythm of those minibuses. We certainly don't mind the escalation of HIV/AIDS and other STDs among children. By not making condoms available, we can proudly say we did not give our children 'permission' to have sex. By not handing out condoms, we can continue to call Jamaican society a civil and democratic society.

Between the guns that we did not give them permission to have, and the sex that we did not give them permission to have, and the music that we did not give them permission to hear, and the movies that we did not give them permission to watch, and the ideas that we did not give them permission to have, we should congratulate ourselves because we have not given them 'permission'.

We will one day come to terms with the reality that this - as with many problems Jamaica faces - cannot be solved with slogans and moralism. Condoms are not the solution to the problem of children having sex. What condoms offer is the possibility of keeping children alive (disease-free) and not pregnant while we, the responsible adults in society, figure out some effective solutions to the problem. And, while the society has not given children 'permission' to have sex, they are not having sex by themselves. Many are having sex with those much older individuals society label 'adult'.

We, the adults in society, need to grow up. We need to come to terms with the reality that less than a generation or two ago, waiting until the age of 25 or 30 to have sex and children was not the norm, regardless of social or economic status.

Condoms in the schools and elsewhere will not increase sexual activity among our children. It is, however, likely to reduce the possibility of pregnancy and STDs. Condoms are not the solution to children having sex; it will instead, keep them alive while we search for (and hopefully find) appropriate interventions.

We need programmes in the schools and elsewhere that speak with and to young people about sex, sexuality, and identity. We need these programmes because sex surrounds our children at every turn. We need to learn to talk about sex within the context of the 21st century environment in which our children are growing up and coming of age.

I am, etc.,

CAROL MARIE WEBSTER

webstercm@yahoo.com

Via Go-Jamaica