FAD’S PHONE-a-friend hotline is one of the few venues that young people can anonymously call and ask about questions about relationships and reproductive health. One hotline counselor there says that young people are likely to have many misconceptions and few facts. For example, she says, they will judge reproductive health on mere appearance. “They think if someone is beautiful or sexy and looks rich and clean, he or she is healthy,” the counselor says. “They say you can get STIs only from nightclub workers.”

Sometimes, she says, callers reason, “Kilala ko naman siya. ‘Di siya gano’n (I know the person. He/She is not like that.).” But it is precisely knowing their partner in the biblical sense, unarmed with the knowledge of the consequences, that gets these teens into trouble in the first place. Some other common misconceptions include drinking Coke to prevent STIs and jumping up and down steps to regulate the menstrual cycle. There are even those who believe one can’t get pregnant from one’s first sexual intercourse or if the woman's on top.

Two of three respondents in the YAFS study said they know about STIs in general. Awareness of HIV/AIDS is near universal at 95 percent, yet only 27 percent think there is a chance of them getting AIDS. Also, the misconception that AIDS is curable has worsened from 12 percent in 1994 to 28 percent in 2002. Predictably, HIV/AIDS and STI awareness is higher in urban areas, among better-educated classes, and among older youth (20-24) vs. the younger (15-19), and those with more exposure to the media. The hotline counselor says that some teens are unfazed when they test positive for an STI. Adolescent males may even consider STIs to be “warrior marks,” proof of their sexual prowess. The first concern of younger callers — those 16 and below who consult the hotline because they suspect they have been infected — is not their own health but how they could win back their girlfriends or boyfriends. “They don’t see it’s a serious problem,” notes the counselor.

Indeed, they don’t. The YAFS study says only 80 percent of young people used contraception the first time they had sex. Unsurprisingly, 74 percent of all estimated illegitimate births are by 15-24 year olds. There are 400,000 cases of illegal abortions every year, and young women account for nearly four out of 10 cases of abortion complications.

WHO IS supposed to teach young people about sex? Some experts believe schools should. They say many parents lack the knowledge and may even be the ones perpetrating misconceptions. In addition, studies show young people do not talk to their parents about sex. Information from family is often limited to ideal gender roles and lectures about refraining from sexual activity. Most teens get their information from peers, movies, television shows, and books.

While the government has opened its doors to talking about adolescent health, it is unable to do this enough. There are NGOs that try to fill the gap but, as FAD’s Villa says, “we have limited reach.” The government, by comparison, “can be everywhere.”

Unfortunately, the government can also block information. Without a clear national population control program, local health workers are obliged to obey municipal officials who impose personal beliefs on state policy. With Mayor Lito Atienza’s staunch stance against artificial birth control, for example, the city of Manila has become a hostile place for NGOs. Clinics are discouraged from promoting family planning and safe sex and from distributing condoms.

Dr. Carolyn Sobritchea, director of the Center for Women’s Studies at the University of the Philippines, is aghast. “The right to reproductive health is a human right,” she says. “Governments must provide all the information for individuals to make the right decisions for themselves.” She adds, “I don’t look at it from a moral dimension. That’s not my place. As a teacher, I would like to imbue them with the knowledge and skills to protect themselves.”

She calms down the fears of officials who think that more knowledge about sex could lead to promiscuity. “It’s simply not true,” she says. “I can cite the statistics of Japan and other countries where you have condoms and pills in dormitories.”

Most health workers support sex education in schools although they unanimously stress that abstinence remains the best protection. But they reiterate that balanced teaching is key. Although information should never be withheld, it should be balanced with responsibility.

FAD, for one, has produced “STI Confidential,” an educational video with popular young star Judy Ann Santos as host. POGS launched two years ago an STD awareness program aimed at schools, starting from Grade 5 onwards. Some schools have also taken steps toward more informative and grounded discussions on sex. Incoming freshmen at the University of the Philippines now have to take a mandatory course on gender, sexuality, and culture. The class tackles issues such as STIs, unwanted pregnancies, boyfriend battering, and sexual abuse.

The likes of Sobritchea remain hopeful. “Young people today are very responsible,” the professor says. “They just need the proper information.”