Japan raises its age of consent from 13 to 16 years old

Japan has raised the age of consent in a landmark move, bringing it to 16 years.

Following public outcry, the country has just passed a law that states the age to consent to sexual acts is now 16, a significant improvement from its prior limit set at only 13.

The previous age of consent, one of the lowest among developed nations, had been set in a law dating back to 1907 and never changed prior to today (June 16), when an amendment was passed in the upper house of the Diet (Japan's parliament).

The new age of consent thus criminalises sex with teens aged from 13 to 15, but only if the person is five or more years older than the minor, in which case it is considered statutory rape.

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This also means that teen couples where the age gap is limited to five years or less will be exempt from prosecution under the new law if both partners are over 13.

Together with raising the age of consent in order to align it with other countries, the definition of rape was also changed so that the language used in the Japanese law would match that of other nations.

In the new wording, the legal description of rape has gone from 'forcible sexual intercourse' to 'non-consensual sexual intercourse'.

The newly passed law details eight scenarios in which is difficult for a person to express their consent to sexual intercourse, including alcohol or drugs intoxication, being subjected to violence or threats and fearing the consequences of a refusal, with the latter taking into account any power imbalances between the perpetrator and the victim.

As for reporting a sexual assault, the new law has extended the window for survivors to come forward from 10 to 15 years.

Finally, Japan has now also criminalised 'photo voyeurism,' which includes upskirting and filming sexual acts without someone's consent.

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Campaigners have welcomed the improved definition of rape, which highlights the idea of consent and should put a halt to a long streak of acquittals in sexual assault trials.

"The actual trial processes and decisions vary - some defendants were not convicted even if their acts were proven to be non-consensual, as they did not meet the case of 'assault or intimidation'," Yuu Tadokoro, a spokesman for Spring, a sexual assault survivor group, told the BBC.

Activists hope that the new law will empower survivors to report their attacks as the subject is still taboo in Japan. They also call for a nationwide education programme to contrast the prevalence of sexual violence.

"Nationwide learning and educational effort is essential for this norm to be embedded in the society. This is only way to prevent actual sexual violence along with ending culture of impunity," Kazuko Ito, vice-president of the Tokyo-based Human Rights Now, noted.