Condoms give-away attracts youths

The new National Library had to be closed yesterday afternoon when it was over run by crowds of children who converged on the compound causing chaos. The number of school children was in excess of the 800 the library could accommodate.

Adding to the confusion was the fact that the organisation — Advocates for Youth Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (AYSHR) was outside demonstrating to the captive audience, how a condom is used. There were reports of two boys brandishing knives inside, as well as a fight outside the library. There were only 30 guards to keep the peace. Due to the crowd, at 2.30 pm the authorities decided to stop more students from entering. Security guards posted outside were advising students and adults that the library was closed and to return today.

One of them described the area as a “hot spot” for students on Friday afternoons. Testimony to this observance was the large crowd of youths in school uniform socialising outside. “All of them not coming to study, it’s the same faces, boys coming here to meet girls and girls coming to meet boys,” the guard said. He said two boys were involved in a scuffle with knives upstairs the library. A report was made at the nearby Port-of-Spain CID. The guard said he also had to stop five boys from beating another student.  

Public Relations and Marketing Officer for the National Library Information Systems (NALIS) Debbie Goodman, said she had not heard of the two incidents at the library, but said it was closed because of the crowd. Last Friday the library began closing early to allow the crowd to disperse before allowing more people to enter. Goodman said additional security will be hired and other measures have been implemented to secure lockers and bags storage. More staff have also been hired at the registration and circulation desks. Asked about the library becoming a liming spot, she admitted that “some (students) may not come  to use the facility.”  She said there were “incidents” — girls complaining about boys interfering with them, user cards being stolen — since the library opened in March.

Having a captive audience yesterday, AYSHR member Sven Miki Grant allowed students to do a self-demonstration. Curious onlookers, including students of all ages, in and out of uniform, gathered to observe what was being done. This was AYSHR’s second attempt at distributing condoms. The first, done outside the gates of the Woodbrook Government Secondary School, drew much criticism from the public and various groups in the society. AYSHR is lobby for sex education in schools and plans to acquire 10,000 signatures to take to Government for the implementation of the Health and Family Life Education Policy. So far the group has obtained over 450 signatures. If their goal is not achieved by September, Sheyna Weston, a member of AYSHR, said the group would “step up” its campaign.

There was some opposition from passersby yesterday, one of whom was a parent, who said outside the library was not the venue for distribution of condoms, or demonstration of condom use. One ten-year-old, out of uniform, who received a condom, said they were shown how to tie the condom, how to put it one and how to put in back into the pack after use. He however said he had no intentions of using it. Weston disagreed with criticisms that the group was going about their drive irresponsibly. “We’re not doing something illegal,” he declared. Weston said the need to act now was the result of high incidence of HIV/AIDS and teenage poregnancy “which statistics show.”