Why are the people in Jonas’s community being protected from having to make choices?

In Chapter 13, Jonas protests the fact that people are not allowed to make choices for themselves. The Giver then reminds him that people left to make decisions on their own make the wrong choices, something that can be dangerous to themselves and others. The concept of Sameness, which is held by the community, allows the Committee of Elders to make all the community's decisions for them, which they justify is their way of protecting the citizens harmful choices.