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Following an announcement by the Ugandan Ministry of Health that it would drop its policy of quiet promotion of condom use in favor of a more proactive campaign, Muslim and Catholic church leaders offered opposing opinions about the use of condoms to prevent the spread of HIV.

As part of a one-week workshop on the reproductive health within Muslim families, leading sheiks from 26 districts agreed to accept the use of condoms within the Muslim community so long as the teachings of the Koran and Mohammed are strictly followed. For example, the leaders said that condoms should be used when one partner has HIV or AIDS, but that otherwise Muslim husbands should choose among a prescribed maximum of four wives without using protection.

Archbishop Emmanuel Cardinal Wamala of the Roman Catholic church, meanwhile, maintained his earlier position opposing the use of condoms as a prevention method. Instead, he called upon Catholic families to changes their behaviors and remain faithful in their marriages.

According to estimates, there are 1.6 million HIV cases in Uganda, although recent reports suggest the infection rates there have fallen, in large part due to the use of condoms and changes in sexual behavior.

Editor's Note: from Africa News Service