Sex, lies and love letters: rethinking condoms and female agency in Uganda

Through an analysis of youth love letters, this focus re-considers the commonly held notion among feminists and sexual health specialists that females lack power to negotiate condom use. While not ignoring historic female subordination, this focus highlights the subtle process through which females appropriate, subvert, and are co-opted into wider patriarchal ideologies in their romantic strategies. Youth romantic relationships are conceptualised as operating as a ‘counterpublic’ to dominant (adult) public health discourses on sexual risk and popular culture discourses of sexual pleasure. This youth counterpublic operates out of the direct view of authoritarian adults while simultaneously borrowing from conflicting public discourses in ways that might have detrimental consequences. The focus shows that Uganda's internationally lauded ABC (abstinence, be faithful, and condom use) campaign is often interpreted by youth in unintended ways, as they translate the message in ways that position monogamy and condoms as two mutually exclusive options for safer sex. Specifically, romantic love based on the modernist idea of selecting your own partner (as opposed to marriage based on family obligations) decreases the perceived need for condoms. If a young couple is modern and monogamous, there is no need for condom use. In the process of negotiating romantic relationships, many young females view condomless sex as both an indication of their ability to make wise and independent choices, and as an affirmation of monogamy and commitment to their male suitors.