单项选择题

Condoms Stirring College Campuses Handing out free condoms is quite common in many foreign universities, but the small condom vendors on Chinese college campuses have aroused heated debates. Managerial personnel at universities worry that those little boxes will trigger more sexual activity, while students argue that college authorities should not treat them like children. One day in mid-April, a student cafeteria in Tianjin’’s Nankai University was bustling with unusual excitement over a new vending machine. Though seemingly ordinary, the vending machine grabbed students’’ attention. While most female students hurried away after glancing at it, male students gathered in small groups in the vicinity, whispering about it. Some even went forward to have a closer look and then told their fellow students, laughing, "There really are some in it. " It was a condom vending machine, and condoms were the "some" the students talked about. This scene has also happened on other college campuses. In July 1999, the Shanghai Jiaotong University installed a similar machine on the second floor of its clinic. One month later, condom vending machines appeared at Tsinghua University in Beijing, and at the end of October, they appeared on the campus of the Anhui University. In early March of this year, a sex-related health-care products shop opened in the student living quarters at the Wuhan Engineering University, the first of its kind in institutions of higher learning in Wuhan. These developments have aroused many remarks and debates. Family Planning Centers vs. Universities Today, with the incidence of sexually-transmitted diseases (STDs) and AIDS rising, condoms are considered the most effective method available to prevent transmitting STDs. As a result, the Shanghai Family Planning Committee recently opened a third channel for the distribution of condoms—the condom vending machine, in addition to the already existent channels—free handouts by various units and sales in shops and drug stores. The first 200 vending machines were installed in various communities and were well received by local residents. In only half a year’’s time, more than 60,000 condoms were sold. Encouraged by these results, the committee decided to introduce the practice in a larger area. It first thought of college students, a significant component of society. According to statistics, more than 50 percent of the AIDS sufferers in China are aged between 20 and 29. Therefore, the committee intended to put the condom vending machines on college campuses. This idea was rejected by the Shanghai Teachers’’ University. Wang Qun, an official of the university in charge of student management, is a strong opponent. "No leader or department in our university is ready to accept putting a condom vending machine somewhere on campus," she says, asking, " If something happens as a result of this, who will bear the responsibility" In contrast, the Shanghai Jiaotong University decided to accept the condom machines and installed one in the university clinic. According to Shu Peili, Deputy Director of the university’’s women’’s committee, Jiaotong University is a model unit for family planning in Shanghai. "It is our duty to offer safe, healthy and hygienic contraceptive devices for married teachers and staff members," she says. "However, they do not include students," she stresses. Recently, CCTV conducted a survey in these two universities. It revealed that most teachers and staff members at these universities are conservative regarding the condom issue. Many believe that using the vending machine will ruin the students’’ images. Do We Really Need Them Whether or not and how much college students need condoms is the focus of the debate over whether or not to put condom vending machines on campus. An official with Shanghai’’s family planning authorities notes that colleges are by no means a vacuum or a paradise, as some people expect. Everything that happens in society takes place on college campuses, he says, and it is urgent to provide sex education among college students. With society becoming more and more open, the fact that college campuses house sexual activity is undeniable and independent of whether or not society approves. Given this, the official thinks the better road is to provide positive directions. "If something happens before preventive measures are available, it will cause greater problems, including physiological and psychological harm." Wang Qun thinks the opposite. "There is no need to install condom machines on campus. It’’s true that some students have gone a bit too far sexually, but they are isolated cases. " The survey made by the Shanghai Jiaotong University indicates that the users of condom vending machines include members of the teaching staff, students and off-campus visitors. "It’’s normal to have sex," says a female Shanghai college student. She argues that sexual relationships meet basic needs of any normal person when he or she reaches a certain age, saying, " Many of us college students are over In early March of this year, a sex-related health-care products shop opened in the student living quarters at the Wuhan Engineering University, the first of its kind in institutions of higher learning in Wuhan. These developments have aroused many remarks and debates. Family Planning Centers vs. Universities Today, with the incidence of sexually-transmitted diseases (STDs) and AIDS rising, condoms are considered the most effective method available to prevent transmitting STDs. As a result, the Shanghai Family Planning Committee recently opened a third channel for the distribution of condoms—the condom vending machine, in addition to the already existent channels—free handouts by various units and sales in shops and drug stores. The first 200 vending machines were installed in various communities and were well received by local residents. In only half a year’’s time, more than 60,000 condoms were sold. Encouraged by these results, the committee decided to introduce the practice in a larger area. It first thought of college students, a significant component of society. According to statistics, more than 50 percent of the AIDS sufferers in China are aged between 20 and 29. Therefore, the committee intended to put the condom vending machines on college campuses. This idea was rejected by the Shanghai Teachers’’ University. Wang Qun, an official of the university in charge of student management, is a strong opponent. "No leader or department in our university is ready to accept putting a condom vending machine somewhere on campus," she says, asking, " If something happens as a result of this, who will bear the responsibility" In contrast, the Shanghai Jiaotong University decided to accept the condom machines and installed one in the university clinic. According to Shu Peili, Deputy Director of the university’’s women’’s committee, Jiaotong University is a model unit for family planning in Shanghai. "It is our duty to offer safe, healthy and hygienic contraceptive devices for married teachers and staff members," she says. "However, they do not include students," she stresses. Recently, CCTV conducted a survey in these two universities. It revealed that most teachers and staff members at these universities are conservative regarding the condom issue. Many believe that using the vending machine will ruin the students’’ images. Do We Really Need Them Whether or not and how much college students need condoms is the focus of the debate over whether or not to put condom vending machines on campus. An official with Shanghai’’s family planning authorities notes that colleges are by no means a vacuum or a paradise, as some people expect. Everything that happens in society takes place on college campuses, he says, and it is urgent to provide sex education among college students. With society becoming more and more open, the fact that college campuses house sexual activity is undeniable and independent of whether or not society approves. Given this, the official thinks the better road is to provide positive directions. "If something happens before preventive measures are available, it will cause greater problems, including physiological and psychological harm. " Wang Qun thinks the opposite. "There is no need to install condom machines on campus. It’’s true that some students have gone a bit too far sexually, but they are isolated cases. " The survey made by the Shanghai Jiaotong University indicates that the users of condom vending machines include members of the teaching staff, students and off-campus visitors. "It’’s normal to have sex," says a female Shanghai college student. She argues that sexual relationships meet basic needs of any normal person when he or she reaches a certain age, saying, " Many of us college students are over 20. We are not as young as our parents think we are. We should be allowed to do what we want to do. " " Though rare, sexual behavior exists among college students," notes a male sophomore in the Political Science Department of the Nankai University. It’’s natural for them to use condoms, he believes, and nothing to be ashamed of. Liu Dalin is a scholar engaged in cultural research. He believes that college students’’ sexual desires are stronger today than in the past. Several years ago, he conducted a survey on premarital sex among 20,000 college students. The survey found that 10 percent of the male students had sex before marriage. "This rate has obviously been rising in recent years," Liu says. He notes that members of the younger generation are generally more sexually precocious, and their first ejaculation or menstrual period is commonly one or one and a half years earlier than of kids in the 1950s. Improved living standards and better nutrition account heavily for this, while the influence of different cultures disseminated through the mass media also holds a considerable weight. Earlier maturation in sex-related psychology inevitably leads to earlier sexual needs, a phenomenon commonly found in many countries and regions during their development. "It’’s a good thing," says Liu. "How could it be good for impoverished boys who don’’t have enough food to suffer undergrowth when they are 17 or 18" " It’’s not an embarrassing thing to put condom machines on campus," says sociologist Hu Shensheng. "We shouldn’’t wait until it becomes necessary. Even though there are only a few sexual relationships that exist right now, condoms should be available. " However, this practice has met strong opposition from Shanghai residents. Most of them are afraid that condom machines will produce negative effects on students. Some students may also worry that handing out free condoms will stimulate more sexual activity.