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Myth #3: Mandatory sex education and contraceptives will destroy the family, compromise morality, increase
promiscuity and promote HIV infections.
FACT: Age-appropriate sex education and contraceptive provision will support informed choice and lower the
transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.

Sex education
 Sex education is about warning everyone about the risks and dangers involved with reproductive health.
 According to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, only 12% of women and
18% of men aged 15-24 knew about how to avoid and control HIV12.
 Proper sex education also aims to strengthen family bonds by encouraging the youth to seek guidance from their
parents, rather than avoid the topic.
 Proper sex education encourages families to REJECT promiscuity in favor of appropriate behavior.

Contraception
 Contraceptives are tools that allow responsible people to make the right choices to protect themselves and their
loved ones.
 If all women who wanted to avoid pregnancy used modern methods, there would be 1.6 million fewer
pregnancies each year in the Philippines. Unintended births would drop by 800,000, abortions would decline by
500,000 and miscarriages would decline by 200,000.13
 The Philippines needs an educational system that properly balances health concerns, practical issues, and moral
principles that take the family values and cultural factors into account.
 Condoms have also been proven not only to be effective artificial contraceptives, but are also virtually 100%
effective in preventing the transmission of AIDS/HIV and other sexually-transmitted diseases as shown by
research conducted in Europe.14
o USAID, has said this in support of condom use, as proven by their vast experience in Africa, “Scientific studies
of sexually active discordant couples, where one partner is infected with HIV and the other partner is not, have
demonstrated that the correct and consistent use of latex condoms reduces the likelihood of HIV infection by
80 to 90%.”
o “Scientific studies do provide evidence that latex condoms, when used consistently and correctly, can reduce
the risk of gonorrhea and chlamydia infections in both women and men.”15
 Along with Bangladesh, the Philippines is the only country in Asia with increases in HIV cases, while others are
stabilizing or declining due to increased prevention and contraceptive programs. 16

12
United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, Statistical Yearbook for Asia and the Pacific 2008 (United
Nations, 2008) 50.
13
http://www.likhaan.org/sites/default/files/pdf/2010_facts_barriers_contraceptive_use_philippines.pdf
14
HIV/AIDS: European Research provides clear proof that HIV virus cannot pass through condoms, press release by European Commission,
Manuel Romarís, HIV/AIDS Research, DG Research.
15
Condom Use: How It Relates to HIV and STI Prevention, USAID,
http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/global_health/aids/TechAreas/prevention/condomuse.html
16
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20101125/hl_afp/healthphilippinesaids. http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/11/24/10/hiv-cases-
soaring-philippines.