In a historic overhaul of its sex crime laws, Japan has passed laws that redefine rape and raise the legal consent age.
To bring Japanese law's definition of rape into line with international standards, the term was expanded from "forced sexual intercourse" to "non-consensual sexual intercourse".
According to critics, previous laws did not protect people who were forced into having sex and discouraged reporting of such assaults.
Additionally, they have produced erroneous court rulings, which have fueled calls for change.
On Friday, the upper house of the Diet, Japan's parliament, approved the new law. It specifically lists eight circumstances in which it is challenging for a victim to "form, express, or fulfil an intention not to consent" to sexual contact.
These include circumstances where the victim is under the influence of alcohol or drugs, is the target of violence or threats, or is "frightened or amazed". Another example of a power abuse seems to be when the victim is "worried" about the repercussions of refusing.
Previously 13 years old and among the lowest among developed countries, the legal consent age has now been raised to 16 years. But only if the offender is five or more years older than the minor will they be punished for having sex with a minor between the ages of 13 and 15.
Since it was enacted in 1907, Japan has only altered its age of consent once.
In the meantime, the legal window for reporting rape will be increased from 10 to 15 years to give survivors more time to come forward.
On Friday, new laws were passed that prohibit "photo voyeurism," which includes, among other things, upskirting and covertly filming sexual acts.
Following widespread public outrage over multiple rape acquittals in 2019, Japan has been considering several changes to the penal code to strengthen legislation against sex crimes.
In the same year, a national campaign against sexual assault called the Flower Demo got underway. Activists have gathered across Japan on the eleventh day of every month since April 2019 to call for justice and express support for sexual assault survivors.
