Duration: 4 min 57 sec

Transcript

KHOPOTSO: Sibusiso is an 18 year-old Pimville, Soweto-born lad. He is still a student and makes some money doing part-time work over weekends. I asked him about his choice of condoms.

SIBUSISO: It actually depends on the condoms. You get government condoms, which are made for the quantity. They’€™re not quality. Let’€™s just say for instance, me as a young man, it is my number one priority to carry a condom wherever I go. But now, carrying a government condom, you don’€™t feel like you’€™re carrying a condom. It’€™s like you’€™re carrying nothing.

KHOPOTSO: Is it cheap? Does it lower your status as an individual?

SIBUSISO: That’€™s one of the reasons, you know. It’€™s for free’€¦ You feel shy, you know, if you’€™re going to have to take out a free condom. At least, when you’€™re taking out, let’€™s say Lovers Plus, you’€™re proud. The chick must see it and everything, you know. When you roll it on, whatever, you don’€™t mind. You don’€™t mind her seeing that.

KHOPOTSO: Siza, Sibusiso’€™s 27 year-old friend and neighbour cuts in.

SIZA: Okay, though there is a status factor behind everything, it’€™s more of safety than status. You’€™ve got to be safe. You’€™ve got to have pleasure. That’€™s why you’€™re having sex. It’€™s based on pleasure more than any other thing. And there’€™s no discomfort in pleasure’€¦ So, when you have government condoms and there’€™s discomfort, obviously you’€™ll never use them. As a result, (he laughs) you fall for the trap. That’€™s the result of using the government condoms’€¦ You see, one thing I think, Africans are very big. Hey, those guys are very big. It’€™s a known factor. So, you might think wena you have a condom. And yet, you don’€™t. You know why? Because it’€™s a government condom.

KHOPOTSO: So, they should make them specially for darkies, and specially for whites and specially for’€¦

SIZA: Not really’€¦ Government has to make them up to standard. They have to be classy, so that every person can be comfortable with using condoms.

KHOPOTSO: Ernest Buthelezi is a 42 year-old divorced father. He was born in Alexandra township near the plush suburb of Sandton. He now lives in the relatively well-off suburb of Diepkloof Phase 3 in Soweto, a few miles away from downtown Jo’€™burg. For Ernest, the problem with condoms is neither about the cost, nor the brand, nor the size, nor whether they are free or not. For him the issue is how to use a condom.

ERNEST BUTHELEZI: What I would suggest our government to do is to educate the poorest of the poor in our nation about the use of condoms and the importance of using condoms. Most of us don’€™t even know what a condom is. We don’€™t know the difference of a government condom. We don’€™t know the difference of Lovers Plus. And we don’€™t even know the price. All I’€™m interested in is ‘€˜do I have food for my kids? Can I have sex with my wife after having sex with my girlfriend?’€™ So, we need to be educated as per the use of condoms. It’€™s not that we’€™re rejecting condoms. We can see people are dying because of this pandemic.

KHOPOTSO: Glen Mabuza, affectionately known as Mama G, is head of the AIDS Counselling Care and Training Centre at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, in Soweto. She believes the government’€™s introduction of the condom was flawed from the onset.

GLEN MABUZA: I think in every situation, be it welfare grants or whatever, if people are not being involved in owning up processes we’€™re going to see this kind of an issue where people are being treated as recipients. So, people do not participate. And I think because it was not people who made choices people were never given a platform to dialogue and to understand and to sort of interrogate’€¦ So, I think the condom issue like HIV, there is just a huge stigma around condom use.

KHOPOTSO: Would you say that it is a rebellious stance that people are taking not to use condoms?

GLEN MABUZA: Ja, it’€™ll be rebellious or it will be passive. People are saying: ‘€˜Uh-huh. Go on with your thing. It is your thing. You came with it.’€™ And because people have been hard hit with a lot of social ills from apartheid to poverty. So, if you need to come in to people you need to understand who people are. So, I think even the involvement part ‘€“ people were not involved. The government was going on about again and again giving things that are cheap, are free. People can be however poor, but we have fought apartheid, we’€™re saying no more handouts. We’€™re saying hand-up. And hand-up is people getting involved.

KHOPOTSO: A people-centred approach is what Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang boasted at the launch of the new condoms, named ‘€˜Choice.’€™ She said the new packaging was tested among ‘€˜young South Africans’€™ aged 18 to 35 ‘€˜who recognised it for its funky, punchy and straightforward attitude’€™. However, at 28 years, my first impression when a promoter offered me a pack of ‘€˜Choice’€™ at a taxi-rank was to immediately mistake it for a packet of biscuits and I politely declined. It was not until some minutes later when I saw a fellow commuter holding the packet in her hands that I realised that it was a packet of condoms. Some others blushingly admitted that they had made the same mistake. However, my snap survey confirmed the Ministers prediction: people find the packaging attractive. But the question remains: Once they know the contents, will they use them consistently?    

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