Bishop criticizes pro-condom campaign in Colombian public schools

Published: 2007-05-04

BOGOTA, Colombia (CNS) -- A Catholic bishop has added his voice to the criticisms of a controversial pro-condom campaign in public schools. While authorities say the campaign's purpose is to promote sexual responsibility among youths who are already sexually active, church leaders and some school directors say the series of posters promotes promiscuity. At a late-April news conference, retired Bishop Fabian Marulanda Lopez of Florencia, secretary-general of the Colombian bishops' conference, supported the idea of sex education, but said the government "education campaigns and sexual and reproductive health programs emphasize some things, but omit what is truly education in values." The Catholic Church teaches that sexual relations must take place within the context of marriage. The campaign, "Bogota, For a Sexuality Without Indifference," consists primarily of posters in schools but also includes the distribution of brochures containing free condoms and instructions about how to use them. It is being promoted by the mayor's office and the city's health department and was developed in cooperation with the U.N. Population Fund.

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