Indonesian health minister clarifies youth condom campaign

In the five-minute video, health minister Nafsiah Mboi, who was appointed last week to replace the late Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih, denies accusations that she distributed free condoms to teenagers.

Mboi clarifies that despite the fact that risky sex happens at all ages, she will never 'endorse' casual sex among young people by handing out condoms.

She noted that the use of condoms should be the last resort to prevent the risks from such practice, including unwanted pregnancy and the spread of HIV/AIDS. She cited a report claiming that there are 2 million abortions annually in the country.

The ministry is educating the public about these risks, said Mboi, from the perspective of religion and health. It is also looking at counseling people to change their lifestyle.

Conservative organisations in the country have claimed that promoting condom use is the same as promoting pre-marital sex, and that such practice is of “Western style”. Some even described the initiative as an adultery campaign.

Some parties added the issue of abortion should be addressed through religion, and not contraceptives.

Commenting on the campaign, a senior advertising executive based in Jakarta said he doesn’t see the campaign as “a big thing” and it remains a question if the ministry will actually launch the campaign. 

A study conducted by the Child Protection Commission (KPAI) claimed that 21.2 per cent of girls between the ages of 14 and 18 have had at least one abortion.

Omar Shahab, business development director at Oze Indonesia, reckoned that the campaign is a breakthrough for the government, amid the country's large Muslim population. He expects the campaign, which promotes the use of condoms, will continue to receive a lot of criticism and comments in the Muslims' context.