Badminton itself may be a harmless racket sport, but Hong Kong's Education Bureau has unintentionally given it a whole new meaning.
A teaching resource for third-year secondary school students, titled “Young People and Intimate Relationships”, published last week, suggests that teenagers who want to have sex with each other could instead “go out to play badminton together”.
The materials also include a form called “My Pledge,” which is intended to have “young lovers” certify that they will practice “self-control, self-restraint and resistance to pornography.”
The new material has attracted public attention and criticism as being “unrealistic”, but authorities have defended their decision.
Meanwhile, social media has been filled with jokes centred around “playing badminton”.
“FWB (sex friends)?? Badminton friends,” one Instagram comment read, and received more than 1,000 likes.
“Let's chill out with Netflix in English? Let's play badminton together in Cantonese?” one Facebook post was shared more than 500 times.
Olympic badminton player Tse Ying Shwet also couldn't refrain from commenting.
“Everyone is promising to play badminton. Do you all actually like badminton?” she asked in the thread, adding a grinning face emoji.
For some, it was also a matter of practicality.
Local councillor Doreen Kong said the document showed the Education Department did not understand young people, and particularly criticised the badminton proposal as unrealistic.
“If that happens, how can I borrow a badminton racket on the spot?” she asked.
For amateur badminton player Thomas Tan, the jokes and the sudden surge in interest in badminton have become a bit embarrassing for players like him.
“Badminton used to be a healthy sport, but now if you say you want to play badminton, people will joke at you,” he said, adding that ironically, badminton is actually a good way for men to meet women.
The education department document also told teachers that one of the aims of the module was to help students learn how to deal with sexual fantasies and urges, and that it was not designed to encourage students to start dating or having sex.
Suggested discussion activities in the document include advising students to “dress appropriately to present a healthy image and avoid the visual stimulation of sexy clothing” and to “categorically refuse premarital sex” if they cannot deal with the “consequences of premarital sex.”
Education Secretary Christine Choi has remained firm in the face of all criticism.
“We want to protect teenagers,” she said in an interview Sunday while defending the document, adding that it is illegal to have sex with a minor.
She has the backing of City Leader John Lee, who said that while there may be differing views on education, the government “has a leading role in deciding what kind of society we aim to build.”
But to Henry Zhang, father of a 13-year-old girl and a 10-year-old boy, such efforts seem absurd.
“The Hong Kong government is always out of touch with reality. They are fools,” he said.
“My wife and I will probably do it ourselves. We're not expecting the school or the government to do it for us.”
