Gov't to distribute condoms in capital to prevent HIV/AIDS

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - The Department of Health (DOH) launched today a massive campaign to distribute condoms in leisure business establishments in Metro Manila, in a move to prevent HIV/AIDS in the country as the confirmed cases of the disease rapidly increased in January.

Undersecretary Teodora Herbosa said that under the campaign, each of the establishments will be given a box full of free condoms and flyers where essential information about HIV/AIDS can be read. Customers can get from the box, which will be strategically placed in the entrance or front desk.

The campaign was firstly launched in Quezon, a city of Philippine capital of Metro Manila, because it has the biggest number of AIDS patients and asymptomatic cases, said Herbosa, citing that in Quezon City alone, there were 54 asymptomatic and six confirmed cases last January.

"We will be flooding Metro Manila with condoms if it is the only way we can prevent the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS," she said.

"It is a critical and the only effective element in the prevention and control of the disease and available tool in reducing the transmission of sexual infections and diseases," she added.

According to the official, the HIV/AIDS Registry in the Philippines for last January showed a total of 224 confirmed cases. The figure is 23 percent higher compared to the same period last year with 182 confirmed cases. From 1984, there were a total of 7, 843 cases recorded by the DOH in the country.

Due to religious and cultural reasons, the Philippines is characterized by its very low rate of condom use.