Dear Editor,

I find it very interesting that while the debate over whether condoms should be distributed in schools remains unresolved, a new minister of education has been appointed, the Rev Ronnie Thwaites, a deacon of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Vatican's pontifical Council for the Family, in a recent "Family and Human Procreation" document, reaffirmed the Roman Catholic Church's traditional opposition to family planning and abortion, and has persistently opposed the use of condoms in the context of the global AIDS pandemic.

The former minister of education Andrew Holness rejected the distribution of condoms in schools. However, he supported a revised health and family life education programme in secondary schools, as the means through which students would be empowered to make healthy lifestyle decisions.

Mr Holness's argument was that it was the responsibility of schools to inform students of the choices they have, in protecting themselves against unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases.

I must remind the government that in 2008 a joint select committee of Parliament deliberated on proposals for a Termination of Pregnancy Act, to supplant sections 72 and 73 of the Offences Against the Person Act which make abortions illegal, an issue which was not concluded by the previous government.

I think we need to hear Rev Thwaites' position on the issue, and since the current prime minister is a woman, shouldn't she be more interested in resolving this matter, than being so pre-occupied with amending the buggery provisions of the same Act?

Research has shown that before the age of 20, about 20 per cent of Jamaican women have been pregnant at least once, and the Ministry of Health says students 10-19 years old, and specifically those between 13 and 15, are at highest risk or are most vulnerable to HIV infection.

Why is political expediency always the priority for our governments?

Janet Wiggan

janetwiggan@yahoo.com

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