http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20080121/lead/lead2.html

Row over schools issuing condoms - Students taped having unsafe sex on campuses
published: Monday | January 21, 2008

Petrina Francis, Staff Reporter

   
( L - R ) Lynch, Anderson

Claiming that some students are having unprotected sex on school compounds, youth advocate Lawman Lynch yesterday renewed calls for condoms to be made available in schools.

"All senior students, ages 16 and over in all secondary and high schools, should have condoms available to them in the school system," Lynch said.

Condoms, he said, would be issued by guidance counsellors who would also provide the necessary counselling for students.

Lynch, who is the president of the Kingston and St. Andrew Action Forum Youth organisation, said the harsh reality is that many young people are sexually active.

"I have in my possession videotapes of high school students in Jamaica (in school uniform) having sex on school compounds without using a condom," he said.

Lynch continued: "In one case, the two students engaging in sex have an audience. In another case, it was obvious that the girl was forced to have intercourse with the young man. The most appalling thing is that no condoms were being used."

They're still children

But the head of the National Parent-Teacher Association of Jamaica shot down Lynch's recommendation.

Sylvester Anderson, the presi-dent, told The Gleaner yesterday that at age 16, students in school were still children and should not be engaging in sex.

"I can't go down that road because they are still children and we should be preaching abstinence," he added. "If it's a case to say, we know that you are having sex so use a condom, but I don't want to go out there and give them that licence to practise."

Meanwhile, Minister of Education Andrew Holness disagreed with Lynch's suggestions, saying that it was not the policy of his ministry to distribute condoms in schools.

Holness said the Ministry of Education was cognisant of the need to teach safe sex awareness in schools.

"But we also have a higher duty to teach abstinence at that age," the Education Minister said.