BETWEEN the misguided information put out by some sections of the religious brigade on the one hand and the lackadaisical attitude adopted by many young people on the other, it is not an easy task trying to eradicate HIV/Aids in the developed world. Most people in their 20s are beyond the MTV generation who would be influenced by catchphrases promoting safe sex recited by celebrities in between music videos and at award ceremonies.
However, they are also at the age where most would steer clear of reading voluminous articles about undesirable diseases.
Young people have spontaneous sex. If it even crosses their mind to use protection, it is only a fleeting thought subsumed by the "it will never happen to me" mentality.
Europe's interest in HIV/Aids has seemingly declined in recent years. It is generally considered more of a Third World issue. However, while it is certainly a major problem in the developing world, there is no reason for ignorance or complacency in this continent. The UK recorded its highest rate of HIV carriers last year since the start of the epidemic.
The UN Aids report at the end of 2007 found a large increase in new cases of HIV in western Europe. This was reiterated by the World Health Organisation. So statistically speaking, the odds of contracting HIV are not as low as we'd thought in this part of the world.
We donate to charities to stop the spread of HIV/Aids in the Third World but we fail to consider it in the developed world. HIV is not just their problem or for certain groups in society to worry about.
While there is no need for us to be in a constant state of paranoia, we do seem to have let our communal guard down. In the Eighties, when HIV was spreading rapidly, everyone thought they were going to die of Aids. Now medical advances have meant that death may not be as imminent for sufferers
Maybe this has allowed our lax attitudes to safe sex to develop. Or maybe it's the fact that using protection is just too costly, especially for the young and penniless, and especially if you think it is never going to happen to you.
An Irish study of sexual health found that one in five people in the 18-24 age bracket have been discouraged from using condoms due to the price.
Last week, VAT on non-oral contraception, including condoms, was reduced from 21 per cent to 13.5 per cent, bringing the average price of a packet of condoms down from €13.20 to €12.40.
Efforts by the Crisis Pregnancy Agency as well as online petitioning on the social networking site, Facebook, may have contributed to this move by the Government, although these groups were hoping for a full cut in VAT.
EU regulations do not allow tax on non-oral contraception to be any less than five per cent. Condoms in Ireland are among the most expensive in Europe. They do not fall under the free Medical Card scheme as they do in some places.
Needless to say, while the Government's gesture is welcome, I would imagine that it translates to a mere drop in the ocean for those who are burdened by the purchase price to begin with. A few cents will not really make that much of a difference. As it has been quoted in many campaigns, condoms are for prevention, they are not a luxury.
Less wealthy countries such as Brazil hand out millions of free condoms a year.
The Brazilians subsidise contraception for the poor.
Brazil is a strongly Catholic nation, yet just days after a visit by the Pope, who in his address condemned the use of condoms and suggested abstinence instead, the authorities proceeded to distribute free condoms.
The South African bishops were also up in arms over promoting condoms, saying these acts were "immoral and misguided".
Nevertheless, not all Catholic leaders are so blinkered in their thinking.
Bishop Kevin Dowling encouraged people to use condoms as a way of "not transmitting death", as he put it.
Long-haul tourism is much more common now. The possibility of meeting a new sexual partner in Europe -- who is carrying an infection they caught in Thailand -- is not that outrageous. Indonesia has the fastest growing Aids epidemic in Asia with Vietnam and Thailand not far behind. People have sex when they go abroad.
Condoms are still vital in the fight against HIV and Aids -- wherever you are, and whoever you are with.
The small reduction in tax by the Government is certainly a step in the right direction -- but there is a lot more they can do to encourage the use of sexual protection.
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