Tokyo: In a landmark decision, Japan has passed laws that redefine rape and raised age of sexual consent to 16 from 13. The change has come as a part of an overhaul of Japan’s laws on sex crimes.
The new bill, which also clarifies rape prosecution requirements and criminalises voyeurism, cleared the upper house of the Diet – Japan’s parliament – on Friday in an unanimous vote, BBC reported.
The definition of rape was broadened to “non-consensual sexual intercourse” from “forcible sexual intercourse”, aligning Japanese law’s definition with other countries.
The new laws explicitly outline eight scenarios where it is difficult for a victim to “form, express, or fulfil an intention not to consent” to sexual intercourse.
These include situations where the victim is intoxicated with alcohol or drugs; or subject to violence or threats; or is “frightened or astonished”. Another scenario appears to describe an abuse of power, where the victim is “worried” of the consequences of refusal, reported BBC.
Previously, Japan had one of the lowest age of consent among developed nations.
The age of children deemed capable of sexual consent is 16 in Britain, 15 in France, and 14 in Germany and China. In Japan the age was 13 and it remained unchanged since 1907.
Earlier, the person who has had sex with a minor in Japan was punished only if the person was five or more years older than the minor. Also the legal window for reporting rape was 10 years, which has now been increased to 15 in order to give survivors more time to come forward.
In Japan, survivors of sexual violence are often reluctant to come forward because of stigma and shame. A 2021 survey by the government showed that only about 6 per cent of women and men reported an assault half of the women polled felt they couldn’t do so because of “embarrassment”, reported the BBC.
