A man gets a crash course on female genitalia given by a worker from a local gay and lesbian rights group. Photos by Nicole Wong

While sex tends to remain a taboo in the public sphere in Hong Kong, a number of local organizations are working to promote a more diverse local sex culture, and to engage the community in an open dialogue on a variety of topics.

The Hong Kong Macau Sex Cultural Festival (HKMSCF), organized by the Hong Kong Sex Education Association (HKSEA) and participated in by more than 20 organizations in Hong Kong and Macao, is the centerpiece of such efforts.

The festival kicked off on Sunday at the Charter Road pedestrian zone in Central, with an outdoor carnival that included body-art painting demonstrations, exhibitions, debates, drama shows and talks, as well as 20 booths run by various groups.

According to HKSEA Vice Chairman Ng Man-lun, the HKMSCF is a rare opportunity to host public seminars on different concepts of sexuality and sexual orientation in the two SARs, where the public has little exposure to related topics.

"Compared with certain mainland cities such as Shanghai and Beijing, Hong Kong and Macao are much more conservative in sexuality," Ng said. "We hope to change the public perception with this yearly event, which sets an open discussion on sex culture."

For one of the co-organizers, the Family Planning Association of Hong Kong (HKFPA), the festival is a channel to promote their sex therapy for married couples, many of whom shy away from seeking help despite serious problems in their sex lives.

"The festival will make a good introduction of some of our services for these couples," said Grace Lee, HKFPA education officer-in-charge. "It's also a good start for the public to learn about some aspects of sex culture they were previously unaware of."

The exhibit on the history of pornographic magazines in Hong Kong, organized by the Society for the Study of Sexualities and Sex-pol (SSSS), is one example. It showcases the materials from the early '80s - a time lost to many youngsters nowadays.

As Alison So from SSSS remarked, the popular publication Dragon Tiger Leopard, from the '80s to early '90s, was more than a pornographic magazine. It contained in-depth information on local villas, and even medical information about sexual diseases.

Male visitors reading about the work of female sex workers in Hong Kong at Zi Teng's booth at the Hong Kong Macau Sex Cultural Festival.

"Beyond provocative photos of naked women, the magazine ran many articles and essays on a wide range of subjects related to sex," So said. "It served an educational purpose for Hong Kong people who might have learned little about it in school."

So added that the retrospective is intended to shed light on the current conservatism in the local media. For Gary Fok, a 21-year-old university student, the exhibit achieved its goal of provoking thoughts and questions.

"It makes you wonder what pornography, or having a high level of transparency of our sex culture, can mean to our society as a whole," Fok said. "The question is, of course, why isn't it happening in today's media?"

The body-art painting demonstration was another highlight of the carnival, attracting more than 1,500 visitors in the afternoon. Many had to queue up for one hour to get a glimpse. Alice Cheung, 19, was one of them.

"I've always been attracted to body arts like tattoos," Cheung said. "For this festival, I wanted to see how body-art painting is presented as a part of our sex culture, so that the public has no qualms about embracing it."

The demonstration was moderated by police requests that all models cover their private parts during the paintings. It was also only open to those aged 18 or above. However, Galie Chong, a 21-year-old art student, was somewhat disappointed.

"For anyone who appreciates body painting as an art, the naked body is the template for creativity," Chong said. "It makes little sense for the models to strike these 'elusive' poses when their work is part of a festival that stresses openness."

Zi Teng and Midnight Blue, two organizations that promote the rights of female and male sex workers, did their part in the festival to advocate a more liberal attitudes toward sex in Hong Kong.

At the carnival, staff of Midnight Blue gave a massage demonstration. Male and female members of the audience participated as recipients, while Midnight Blue spokesperson Tommy explained the legal issues male sex workers often face.

"Prostitution isn't illegal in Hong Kong, but it's illegal to escort customers in any way. We can only advertise ourselves as masseurs and speak in secret codes," Tommy said. "It's also illegal for us to have female clients in our massage places."

The life of a male sex worker is also plagued by fears for personal safety. While physical violence is relatively rare, Tommy stated that a good number of his fellows have been intoxicated by customers with drugs.

"It's the same old story of someone slipping drugs in your drinks. The rest was robbery or rape," Tommy sighed. "We don't call the police in such cases, because we don't want our families to have to bail us out and find out what we do."

In exposing the different facets of their work, as well as the complications and dangers involved, Midnight Blue hopes the public will have a better understanding and hopefully accept the sex trade.

Calvin Cheung, a 29-year-old accountant, enjoyed the demonstration. "It's good this marginalized group got to show us what they do in such a light-hearted manner, so the public sees it's nothing weird; it happens in real life," Cheung said.

At Zi Teng's booth, Terence and Sam, two regular visitors to female sex workers, shared the same sentiments. Both are members of Zi Teng's "men's group", which works to raise clients' respect for sex workers through its many talks, forums and meetings.

"We're here to tell the world there's nothing shameful about visiting or being a prostitute. Through our group's activities, we aim to educate male clients that they aren't superior to the female sex workers. Instead, we're all on equal ground," Terence said.

Sam added that the group hopes to raise the profile of paid sex from an underground activity to a normalized one that is a part of many Hong Kong men's lives. "In my 20 years of visiting prostitutes, there've been ups and downs, but the trade isn't going to go away," Sam said.

Zi Teng spokeswoman Yim urged the Hong Kong public to view prostitution with a more open mind, since sex workers have a long way to go in safeguarding their legal rights and, in turn, their personal safety.

"As we've seen in the six murders this year, these female sex workers are living under constant threats," Yim said. "It's only with public acceptance that they can fight for more legal protection, even though it's a long and difficult path."

The HKMSCF continues from Thursday through Sunday at The Venetian Macao, Macao. For more details, visit www.hksea.org/fest08.html

Midnight Blue, which advocates the rights of male sex workers, gives a massage demonstration.

(HK Edition 12/03/2008 page4)