The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 04/22/2010 11:24 AM
The lack of information and knowledge about contraceptives has contributed to the common practice of unsafe sex among sexually active youth who live in poverty in Jakarta.
Many people who live in poverty have been said to believe that condom use decreases the experience of sexual activity.
Iqbal, 30, of Kampung Sepatan in Rorotan subdistrict, Cilincing, North Jakarta, said recently that many of the youth in the neighborhood had been in sexual relations and thought condom use could reduce a couple’s intimacy.
Kampung Sepatan is one of the urban slums in Jakarta and home to around 1,400 lower-income residents, many whose livelihood’s depend on trash picking, farming and fishing.
“Using a condom while having sex is not enjoyable,” Iqbal stated.
It was said that while young people there were aware of the dangers of practicing unsafe sex, there was a social propensity among them that championed unsafe sex as a way to cement a relationship.
“My ex-girlfriend insisted that we did not use condoms to hold me responsible if she became preg-nant,” Iqbal’s friend told the The Jakarta Post on condition of anonymity, adding that using condoms in a relationship also symbolized a lack of trust.
Sex education among the youth in the neighborhood appears to lack.
Reportedly many NGOs visiting the area are focused on providing young residents with more assistance with food, clothing and vocational training.
“No NGOs that have visited have provided sex education,” Adi, 20, said.
He said they received sex education from their schools in biology class, which consisted of information about their reproductive organs and function.
Similar to their counterparts in Kampung Sepatan, the young people living along Ciliwung riverbank of Bukit Duri and Kampung Pulo subdistricts, South Jakarta, also agreed that unprotected sex was a strategy to find love.
A young woman said, “I’d rather have sex without using condoms because it’s a symbol of intimacy and trust”.
Unprotected sex is a way in which a woman can ensure her boyfriend remains loyal, she said.
Zaky, 19, told the Post that they had better more informed and became aware of the dangers of unprotected sex after several NGOs recently visited their area to educate them about sex.
However, NGOs did not discuss the importance of using condoms, despite the fact that many young people there were sexually active.
“The NGOs explained the dangers of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections [STIs], but not about contraception in detail,” Zaky said.
The Lamp Science Foundation (YPI), a grassroot organization active in promoting the awareness on HIV/AIDS, confirmed that its approaches to young people in lower-income urban areas had been proactive in educating them about reproductive health, STIs and HIV/AIDS prevention.
“We highlighted condom use as one way to reduce the risk of HIV infection,” YPI secretary Srisulistyurini said.
She said that premarital and unsafe sex was prevalent among the youth in shanty areas, and that sex education was the key to curbing the rapid spread of STIs and HIV/AIDS.
The YPI suggested that communities of slum areas in Jakarta should initiate workshops on sex education by requesting NGOs such as the YPI to visit their areas.
“It needs comprehensive participation from society because many NGOs don’t have the resources to map all the slum areas in the city whose young residents need sex education,” Srisulistyurini said.
According to the health agency, 3,863 AIDS cases were reported in 2009, with women and young people being the most prone to infection. (tsy)
Sex education among the youth in the neighborhood appears to lack.
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