On the 7th of March, Willingness Team and Betapsi Malta hosted their annual SEX360 Conference – a day filled with informative sessions, intriguing facts, and not to mention, laughter!
The concept of 360° was launched back in 2014 in order to tackle relevant and current topics from a multidisciplinary point of view. With successful events one after the other, this time the Willingness Team and Betapsi Malta decided to tackle the taboo that some have around sex, discussing relationships, sexuality, gender, family and whatnot. The Third Eye team are still hooked on the event and it is time to go for a little throwback!
The day started off with a welcome speech by the Parliamentary Secretary Rosianne Cutajar. Cutajar did not think twice on speaking her mind on her perspective about sex.
“A society that overcomes stigmas is a society that is open. A society that values mutual respect above all else…”
Rosianne Cutajar
On the eve of International Women’s Day, honourable Cutajar said that sexuality continues to be subjected to unequal treatment in our society which further ensures its patriarchal structure.
Sex in the elderly demographic
Moving on to the keynote speaker, who is none other than Kevin McCann, he beautifully explained the sexuality in terms of age. Laced with truthfulness and humour, McCann did not mince his words when explaining that your grandparents fool around. Sure, they may fumble a little, but sexuality is not limited to age.
“For many elderly people, we don’t see ourselves the way you see us. We should be encouraging the expression of sexuality throughout life.”
Kevin McCann
It was proved that 50% of over 65 years of age are still sexually active. A 20-30% of over 80s are still active and there has also been a 23% increase of STIs amongst elderly people.
“Wrinkly skin for some reason we have deemed to be unattractive. It has lived a life. It’s like an old rich tapestry.”
Kevin McCann
The lack of information about pornography and sexual education
During the conference, pornography was discussed from various angles. It has been long theorised and confirmed however that shame and guilt are both the cause and consequence of addiction. It is a known fact that sex sells and it is quite normal for people to watch pornography. In fact, 13% of Internet searches are all for erotic material. Having said that, it is essential to remember that the people performing such sexual acts are specifically hired actors.
A general consensus was reached that young people should be provided with even more sexual education. Due to the taboo and stigma that revolves around sexual education, schools cover only the surface of it. It is high time sexual education delves a bit deeper.
“Young people should be provided adequate sex education where they can discuss sex and pornography without shame and ridicule.”
Christian Cauchi
Sex and disability
Oliver Scicluna focused on the aspect of sex and disability. Scicluna recounted various personal experiences and he believes that in the near future, there will be even more Olivers, meaning a lot of other individuals going through the same experience.
Scicluna emphasized;
“For a human to flourish, sexuality needs to be experience and the individuals need to be provided support for them to experience their emotions.”
This conference vowed to provide a holistic approach to sex and it was only fair to discuss STDs and contraception. To date, Malta has over 400 cases of HIV, therefore contraception is not mean for any unwanted pregnancy but above all, it serves as protection.
To sum up the day, Matthew Bartolo gave his concluding speech who stated that this country wasted a lot of resources on replacing items already in existence. It is, therefore, our duty to give facts and to think about all the spectrum when talking about sex.
The Third Eye cannot wait for another opportunity to cover another event of theirs to once again witness the huge interest and hunger for knowledge we saw from both students and participants alike.