No more free condoms in Philippines on Valentine's

Bad news for lovers: On Valentine's Day, the Department of Health (DoH) of the Philippines won't be around to give away free condoms to couples assailed by temptations.

Health Secretary Enrique Ona has announced his department would not be doing what it did around this time last year when it handed condoms to adult customers at the popular Dangwa Flower Market in Manila.

Instead of condoms, the DoH will be dispensing advice. "Be careful on Feb. 14 ... Enjoy it with your wife or husband," Ona said in a press briefing. "Have sex, but only with your wife or husband ... Avoid sex if not married."

For spouses only - The DoH is promoting abstinence and monogamy to help curb the growing number of HIV and AIDS cases in the country. Ona reminded Filipinos of the importance of safe sex and to be aware of the dangers of HIV and AIDS.

"I'm addressing this to everybody: What is really important is that our morality tells us that one must only have sex with the wife or husband," he said.

"We'd like adults to understand that there is this scourge that we have to avoid and, therefore, use your judgment if and when tempted."

The human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, leads to AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome), a condition in which the body's immune systems are attacked and damaged by the virus, ultimately causing death.

323 deaths - Last year alone, the DoH National Epidemiology Center officially logged 1,591 HIV cases, bringing the number of total incidence to 6,015 since the virus was first detected in the Philippines in 1984.

Since 1984, the DoH has recorded 323 deaths due to AIDS. At least two deaths were reported from January to December last year. The National Center for Disease Prevention and Control last year staged a condom-giving campaign, dubbed "Be My Valentine, Ingat Lagi," to enhance awareness to the perils of unprotected sex, and not as a family planning method.

The Catholic Church branded the stunt as "vulgar and gross."

Fidelity, not condom -- Fr. Melvin Castro, executive secretary of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines' Episcopal Commission on Family and Life, supported the DoH's plan to scrap the campaign on Valentine's Day this year.

"The number of HIV cases is increasing because they are giving young people a false sense of security by distributing condoms," Castro said.

He said giving away condoms was one way of enticing young people to be experimental and promiscuous.

"In the end, a change in attitude and behavior towards sex will help bring down the prevalence of HIV," he said.

Castro said that instead of condom use, marital fidelity and abstention among unmarried pairs should be promoted by the government.

ANN