Following on the heels of coverage in the New York Times yesterday and Scott's post about it, we hear more today about the HIV epidemic in Kenya. First Lady Lucy Kibaki has made a strong statement against condom use:

"Those still in school and colleges have no business having access to condoms…"

Considering that the successes in lowering the infection rate in Kenya have been from comprehensive prevention campaigns, this statement could not have been a more obvious step backward.

I'm sure some conservative activists will celebrate this statement, but I hope they consider the realities: by one set of number from Johns Hopkins, "Among 15 to 19 year olds, 40% of females and 60% of males are sexually active" in Kenya.

To take away access to condoms for these school-aged youth would practically be a death sentence for the youth of her country. We would all like to see and encourage safe and responsible sexual behaviors practiced by youth (and everyone else), but the difference between our hopes and reality is the difference between life and death in the age of HIV.

No business having access to condoms? Mrs. Kibaki's statement is downright irresponsible.