Secretly Removing 'Condom' During Sexual Intercourse
Clear Non-Consensual Rape... 'Sexual Violence Crime'
No Legal Basis for Punishment Under Current Law, Strict Penalties in Germany and Other Countries
[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] Won Jong-geon (27), the second recruitment talent of the Democratic Party of Korea, voluntarily resigned amid the 'Me too' scandal, raising calls for swift punishment against him.
In particular, the victim claims that she had sexual intercourse without her consent and that the act was carried out without a condom, raising concerns that she may have been a victim of 'stealthing' sexual assault. A sexual violence counseling activist pointed out that 'stealthing' clearly constitutes sexual violence.
'Stealthing' refers to the act of not using or removing a condom without the partner's consent. Since the crime is committed secretly without the partner's knowledge, it is likened to a stealth fighter that cannot be detected by radar, hence the term 'stealthing.'
This act corresponds to the crime of 'non-consensual sexual intercourse.' Non-consensual sexual intercourse refers to the legal provision that punishes the perpetrator for engaging in sexual acts (intercourse or molestation) without the victim's consent.
There have been criticisms that the current rape law (Article 297 of the Criminal Act), which requires physical force such as assault or threats, is insufficient to adequately protect sexual assault victims, bringing attention to this issue.
The problem is that there is currently no legal basis in our law to punish such non-consensual sexual intercourse.
The situation is different in other countries. In some countries such as the United States and Germany, laws punishing non-consensual sexual intercourse have already been enacted.
In 2016, Germany established grounds for punishing sexual violence by defining non-consensual sexual intercourse as cases where the perpetrator takes advantage of situations where the victim finds it difficult to explicitly express refusal.
Following Germany, countries like Switzerland and Canada have also applied conditions for punishing non-consensual sexual intercourse and have handed down strict sentences to perpetrators.
In December 2018, a district court in Berlin, Germany, convicted a man who secretly removed a condom during intercourse. The court judged the act of removing the condom as a sexual crime and sentenced him to eight months of probation, ordered him to pay a fine of 3,000 euros (approximately 3.9 million KRW), and compensate 96 euros (approximately 120,000 KRW) for sexually transmitted disease testing costs.
Earlier, in 2017, the Federal Supreme Court of Lausanne, Switzerland, sentenced a man who committed stealthing during intercourse to 12 months of probation on charges of rape. The Canadian court also convicted a man of sexual assault in 2014 for deliberately puncturing a condom to impregnate a woman.
Experts emphasize that the act of 'stealthing' clearly constitutes sexual violence.
Kim Hye-jung, Deputy Director of the Korea Sexual Violence Counseling Center, said in a phone interview with Asia Economy, "Stealthing refers to the act of removing a condom during intercourse without informing the partner," adding, "Not using a condom from the start or doing so involves deceptive and aggressive trickery." She further pointed out, "This is clear sexual violence, and considering the possibility of (unwanted) pregnancy for women, it is a highly aggressive sexual violence act."
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