Gobierno de Chile Ministerio De Salud/Government of Chile Ministry of Health, Gay Couple

The Chilean government released a groundbreaking TV campaign which promote condom use for World AIDS Day, along with radio jingles, pamphlets and bus-stop posters. Chile, where divorce is illegal, is one of the most socially conservative nations in Latin America.

The commercials feature a married man who has a lover, a teenager having unprotected sex, a housewife whose husband is cheating on her, and a gay couple in bed. The people look in the mirror and ask themselves why they are not taking precautions against HIV-AIDS.

Looking in the mirror, he asks, "¿Qué me pasa?...What's happening to me?"

"¡Es mi vida!...It's my life!"

"¡Me gusta!...I like it!"

"¡La paso bien!...I have fun!" He is seen having intimate moments with another man.

"¿Si no me cuido yo, QUIEN?...If I don't take care of myself, WHO WILL?

¿Si no es ahora, CUANDO?...If not now, WHEN?" He is seen on a city street, exchanging glances with someone passing him.

At the end of the ad, the text reads: "¡Yo sé como prevenir el SIDA!...I know how to prevent AIDS!"

"¿Cómo no me cuido?...How could I not take care of myself?"

Three leading TV channels refused to air the commercials, saying they violated their editorial policies. "The ads fail to address the negative consequences of promiscuous sexual conduct to people and their families. On the contrary, they suggest that such conduct is an option or a model for personal fulfillment," Reuters quoted Channel 13, which is owned by Chile's Catholic University, as saying.

Two other channels showed the ads.

The government expressed disappointment at the backlash. "We're talking about people dying here," government spokesman Francisco Vidal told Reuters. "I have my own opinion about infidelity and homosexuality, but they exist. So how do we deal with a problem like this? Looking at the ceiling or dealing with it?"