Reported by The New York City Times.
A 15-year-old girl and her boyfriend are studying alone together on a hot summer day when she removes her jacket and clings to his shoulder. What should he do?
In Hong Kong, the authorities advise young men to continue studying or to seek a diversion, including badminton, to avoid premarital sex and other “intimate behaviours.”
Critics, including lawmakers and sex educators, say that the Chinese territory’s new sex education materials are regressive. But top officials are not backing down, and the standoff is getting kind of awkward.
“Is badminton the Hong Kong answer to sexual impulses in schoolchildren?” the South China Morning Post newspaper asked in a headline over the weekend.
Hong Kong teenagers find it all pretty amusing. A few said on social media that the officials behind the policy have their “heads in the clouds.” Others have worked it into sexual slang, talking about “friends with badminton” instead of “friends with benefits.”
The sex-ed materials were published last week by the Education Bureau in a 70-page document that includes worksheets for adolescents and guidance for their teachers. The document emphasizes that the lessons are not designed to encourage students to “start dating or having sexual behaviours early in life.” It also advises people in a “love relationship” to fill out a form setting the limits of their intimacy.
“It is normal for people to have sexual fantasies and desires, but we must recognize that we are the masters of our desires and should think twice before acting, and control our desires instead of being controlled by them,” the document says.
The curriculum, which replaces an older one, explains that while some adolescents masturbate, sexual impulses can generally be controlled by avoiding “publications or media” that stimulate them.
It also recommends exercise and other activities that “draw attention away from undesirable activities,” and warns students to dress appropriately and avoid wearing “sexy clothing” that could lead to “visual stimulation.”
Critics are wary, saying that the guidelines are irresponsible. Diana Kwok, professor of gender studies at the Education University of Hong Kong, told the South China Morning Post that the authorities should not emphasize the need to control sexual development, but instead teach young people how to face or understand it.
“I think it’s like having your head in the clouds to suggest that middle school students avoid sexy outfits or play badminton when they’re sexually aroused,” Doreen Kong, a Hong Kong lawmaker, wrote on Facebook.
Officials aren’t flinching. Christine Choi, the education secretary, framed the guidance on Sunday as a kind of moral imperative and a way of protecting young people, particularly those who are 12 to 14.
“We should teach them to take responsibility for themselves correctly, to understand how to take care of themselves and respect others,” she said in a television interview. “When they grow up, they will face a more complex society and environment.”
John Lee, Hong Kong’s leader, described the materials as good for the territory’s long-term future on Sunday. “I think that social culture has to be created collectively,” he said.
It was not immediately clear on Monday how the Education Bureau developed the sex education materials. The bureau did not respond to a request for comment. Neither did two local nonprofits whose work the bureau cited in its footnotes, or a local association of sexuality educators, researchers and therapists.
Young people in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan often use slang to talk about sex, just like their peers around the world. If your date asks if you want to go back to their place to “watch my cat do back-flips,” don’t say you weren’t warned.
Now, thanks to Hong Kong’s Education Bureau, new slang is in play. The sentence “I want to play badminton with you” will never be the same again.
香港當局建議青少年打羽球對抗性誘惑
在炎熱的夏日，一名 15 歲的女孩和男友獨自學習，她脫下外套，靠在男友的肩上。 他該怎麼辦？
在香港，當局建議這名年輕人繼續學習或尋求其他消遣，包括打羽毛球，以避免婚前性行為和其他「親密行為」。
包括立法者和性教育工作者在內的批評者表示，中國領土上的新性教育材料是倒退的。 但高層官員並沒有讓步，僵局變得有點尷尬。
“羽球是香港解決學童性衝動的方法嗎？” 《南華早報》週末在頭條中問道。
香港青少年覺得這一切都很有趣。 有些人在社群媒體上表示，這項政策背後的官員「腦子裡浮現了」。 其他人則將其融入性俚語中，談論“有羽毛球的朋友”而不是“有福利的朋友”。
教育局上週發布了一份長達 70 頁的性教育資料，其中包括青少年的工作表和教師的指導。 文件強調，這些課程並不是為了鼓勵學生「早年開始約會或發生性行為」。 它還建議處於「戀愛關係」的人們填寫一份表格，設定他們的親密關係的界限。
文件稱：“人有性幻想和慾望是正常的，但我們必須認識到，我們是慾望的主人，行動前應該三思而後行，控制我們的慾望而不是被慾望控制。”
該課程取代了舊課程，解釋說雖然一些青少年有自慰，但通常可以透過避免刺激他們的「出版物或媒體」來控制性衝動。
它還建議運動和其他活動“轉移人們對不良活動的注意力”，並警告學生穿著得體，避免穿著可能導致“視覺刺激”的“性感服裝”。
批評者持謹慎態度，稱這些指導方針是不負責任的。 香港教育大學性別研究教授黛安娜‧郭告訴《南華早報》，當局不應強調控制性發展的必要性，而應教導年輕人如何面對或理解它。
香港立法會議員江多琳在 Facebook 上寫道：“我認為，建議中學生在受到性刺激時避免穿性感服裝或打羽毛球，就像是在雲裡霧裡一樣。”
官員們並沒有退縮。 教育部長克里斯汀崔 (Christine Choi) 將週日的指導方針視為一種道德要求和保護年輕人，特別是 12 至 14 歲年輕人的一種方式。
「我們應該教導他們正確地對自己負責，了解如何照顧自己並尊重他人，」她在電視採訪中說。 “當他們長大後，他們將面臨更複雜的社會和環境。”
香港領導人李家超週日表示，這些資料對香港的長期未來有利。 「我認為社會文化必須集體創造，」他說。
週一還不清楚教育局是如何開發性教育材料的。 該局沒有回應置評請求。 該局在註腳中引用了兩個當地非營利組織的工作，或者當地的性教育者、研究人員和治療師協會也沒有這樣做。
正如世界各地的同齡人一樣，中國大陸、香港和台灣的年輕人經常使用俚語來談論性。 如果你的約會對象問你是否想回到他們的住處“看我的貓做後空翻”，不要說你沒有被警告過。
現在，在香港教育局的幫助下，新的俚語開始發揮作用。 「我想和你一起打羽毛球」這句話將不再一樣。
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