Ifrane - Last Wednesday, the Minister of Communication and government spokesman, Mustapha El Khalfi, asked the National Radio and Television Company to take legal measures regarding a video advertising a brand of condom.
Ifrane – Last Wednesday, the Minister of Communication and government spokesman, Mustapha El Khalfi, asked the National Radio and Television Company to take legal measures regarding a video advertising a brand of condom.
The video, which was only published on YouTube, was created by students in an effort to participate in a competition organized by their school. In addition, the competition was scheduled as part of an academic program of the marketing course titled “Advertising and Promotion.” The goal of this program was to encourage and motivate students to come up with innovative, creative, and socially responsible ideas.
To be more precise, the students’ objective behind making this video, was to entertain their audience through a funny scenario while providing a public service message. The scenario in the video was of an earthquake hitting the city of Ifrane, Morocco. The cause of the earthquake, which was the main and controversial scene, portrayed the back of an actor and the hand of an actress. The innuendo was that they had just finished having sex.
If one views this scene through the eyes of a layman, it would be next to impossible to construe it as “erotic” or “pornographic.” However, this perverse view is indeed the way it was described by many Moroccan blogs and online newspapers. With regards to the social responsibility of the advertising, the point of this humorous video and informative video was mainly to encourage people to use condoms during sexual intercourse, but certainly NOT to promote intercourse.
It is a fact, that there are numerous unwanted and detrimental social issues which are the result of not using this readily available and inexpensive form of protection. Examples of these issues are abandoned children, outcast single mothers and sexually transmitted diseases. Although Morocco is waging war against these terrible consequences, through media campaigns and various other programs, the number of people diagnosed with AIDS and other sexually transmissible diseases continue to rise every year.
This video was intended solely to encourage young people to protect themselves from self-inflicted harm that could cause great damage, regret and expense in the future. There have been numerous reactions to this type of public message in Morocco. However, more often than not, the people who react strictly on the basis of ideologically, fail to take into account the social reality of today. It cannot be disputed that there are more than a few unmarried and even married people who engage in unprotected sexual intercourse acts, even while observing their religious beliefs.
To say that this video promotes sexual promiscuity is like saying that if you tell someone to wear a seat belt while driving, it is the same as encouraging one to drive. That argument is absurd. The fact, whether various groups like it or not, remains that people will engage in sexual intercourse, this video only suggests that if you choose to have sex, that you do so in a responsible manner that protects you, your partner and the future of our society. The advocating of condoms use is not a green light to engage in sex, it is simply a shield against health and social issues from which the Moroccan society is already suffering.
Edited by Peter “Clay” Smith
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