[Ministry of Justice] The Study Group on Criminal Law Concerning Sexual Offences Published a Draft Report

On April 12, 2021, at the 15th Meeting of the Study Group on Criminal Law Concerning Sexual Offences, the draft summary report of the study group was published. The study group was established by a directive of the Minister of Justice in accordance with Article 9 of the Supplementary Provisions of the Partial Amendment to the Penal Code (Law No. 72 of 2017), which was enacted in June 2017 and came into force in July of the same year. The first meeting was held in June 2020. The table of contents of the draft report is as follows: "Discussion on the Penal Provisions for Victims with Disabilities" is included in "(3)”.

Chapter 1. Introduction

Chapter 2. Purpose and status of the meeting

Chapter 3. Discussion of each issue

1. Criminal substantive law

  (1) The actual situation and problems surrounding the application of the present law (general matters)

  (2) Conditions rendering the victim incapable of consent, such as assault, threats, insanity, impossibility of refusal, etc.

    a) Requirements to prove assault, threat, insanity, or impossibility of refusal

    b) Conversion provisions and presumptive provisions of the burden of proof

    c) Requirements to prove that the victim has not consented

  (3) Types of crime committed by taking advantage of one’s position or relationship

    a) Crimes committed by taking advantages of one’s position or relationship

    b) Punishment for continuous forced sexual intercourse with the same victim

    c) Punishment for child grooming

  (4) The age of consent for sexual intercourse

  (5) The scope of acts subject to the crime of forced sexual intercourse

  (6) Statutory penalties

    a) Aggravating circumstances

    b) Reduction of the lower limit of the statutory penalty

  (7) Punishment for sexual intercourse between spouses

  (8) Penalties for photographing sexual acts

   a) Penal provisions

   b) Confiscation and erasure

2.  The Criminal Procedure Code

  (1) The statute of limitations for prosecution

  (2) The ideal nature of the rape shield

  (3) How the results of judicial interviews should be treated under the Evidence Act

Chapter 4. Conclusion

For more information, please see the following website (Japanese only). http://www.moj.go.jp/keiji1/keiji12_00020.html

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