Hong Kong youngsters are much more conservative about sex compared with their counterparts in other parts of the world, a survey reveals. But a sex education expert said the appearance that Hong Kong people were conservative about sex was deceptive. The online survey commissioned by the Body Shop and MTV Networks International last month interviewed 2,000 people aged 16 to 24 from 10 countries or regions, including South Africa, Singapore, Mexico, Sweden, India, the United Kingdom, Russia, Hong Kong, Germany and the US. Some 62 per cent of Hong Kong youngsters are too embarrassed to buy condoms, the highest percentage among all those surveyed. Singapore came second with 52 per cent, compared with Europe and the Americas where an average 25 per cent were too embarrassed to buy condoms. Alarmingly, 77 per cent of the Hong Kong youngsters said contracting HIV/Aids was not something that would happen within their group of friends. This contrasted with an average of 37 per cent across the survey. A relatively low proportion of Hong Kong respondents, 9 per cent, were worried about contracting sexually transmitted diseases compared with Britain's 16 per cent, the highest among all respondent groups. Seventy-five per cent of young Hongkongers believed it was the male's responsibility to carry a condom, compared with the average of 56 per cent. Indian youths followed with 73 per cent, Singapore came third with 67 per cent but 33 per cent of Swedish youngsters believed condoms were a man's responsibility. Hong Kong youngsters are apparently less likely to talk about sex with friends. Twenty-four per cent of them said they do not share their views on sex with friends, compared with the average of 14 per cent. Matthew Yau Kwai-sang, chairman of the Hong Kong Association of Sexuality Educators, Researchers and Therapists, said youngsters were only conservative on the surface. He urged parents and schools not to run away from providing proper sex education. 'They are verbally conservative but the reality is another story. They are very curious about sex and they can get all sorts of information they want on the internet,' Dr Yau said, citing the recent wide circulation of celebrity sex photos. Hong Kong hang-up The percentage of young Hong Kong people who said buying condoms was too embarrassing: 62%