Uganda: Abstinence clashes with reality when women are powerless

Tens of thousands of Ugandan schoolchildren have enrolled in 'True Love Waits' clubs that promote sexual abstinence as the way to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS. Each student member has pledged "commitment to God, myself, my family, my country, my friends, my future mate and my future children to be sexually pure until the day I give myself only to my marriage partner in a convenient marriage relationship." However, "as a feminist, I strongly think the abstinence programme doesn't take into consideration the reality in the country, which is that women's sexuality is controlled by men," said Salome Nakaweesi Kimbugwe, coordinator of the Uganda Women's Network (UWONET).