Voyeurism: the filthy desires behind those despicable people

[2] Compiled from: Sohu News, Yangtze Evening News
 
Case review
[3] 1. A man in Fuzhou Cameras installed in 4 hotels, with over 600 victims
Chen purchased four sets of pinhole camera equipment online. Starting from July 2019, he installed pinhole cameras in guest rooms of four hotels in downtown Fuzhou, using a mobile app to remotely view, record, and store videos of others. Among the recordings were more than 40 sex videos, and the number of victims exceeded 600. Chen’s actions severely infringed upon the victims’ personal privacy and undermined social order and public morals.

 
 

[6] After the incident, Chen was arrested by police, and the installed pinhole cameras were removed. Currently, Chen has been prosecuted by the Gulou District Court for illegally using specialized窃照 equipment.
 
2. A man secretly filmed his female roommate in the bathroom for a year, only receiving administrative detention. 9th
On the morning of June 27, 2020, Xiaoding got up to take a shower. While spacing out in the shower stall, her gaze was drawn to a cabinet opposite the shower area. A sachet was wedged into one of the cabinet doors. Since the shower stall was shared by tenants, no tenant would leave anything there—personal toiletries were always taken away after use. Xiaoding grew suspicious of the sachet and moved closer to observe. She then discovered a pinhole camera on the partition wall of the cabinet door and immediately called the police.
 
Police discovered that the surveillance camera did not have wireless transmission capabilities, which meant the person secretly filming had to come periodically to replace the memory card. The police then retrieved the memory card to review the video. The footage revealed Song, the male roommate sharing the apartment with Xiao Ding, adjusting the camera. According to Song's confession, he had been secretly filming for over a year. Ultimately, Song was sentenced to nine days of administrative detention for invading others' privacy.

 

 
5. Current legislative status on voyeurism in China
One, Public Security Administration Punishments Law of the People's Republic of China
Article 42 of the Public Security Administration Punishments Law provides: “A person who commits any of the following acts shall be detained for not more than five days or fined not more than 500 yuan; and if the circumstances are relatively serious, shall be detained for not less than five days but not more than ten days and may also be fined not more than 500 yuan: … … (6) peeping, secretly photographing, eavesdropping on, or disseminating another person’s privacy.”
 
Part Two "Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China"
The Criminal Law does not explicitly stipulate provisions on "secret photography," but if other acts are committed after secret photography, they may constitute a crime in combination, as follows:
 
1. If maliciously disseminated along with insulting language, it may violate Article 246, Paragraph 1 of the Criminal Law: “Whoever publicly insults another person by violence or other methods, or fabricates facts to defame another person, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, criminal detention, surveillance, or deprivation of political rights.”
 
2. If accompanied by physical contact or the threat of physical contact, it may constitute a violation of Article 237 of the Criminal Law: “Whoever forcibly molests another person or insults a woman by violence, coercion or other means shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention. Whoever gathers a crowd to commit the crime specified in the preceding paragraph in a public place, or commits the crime under other flagrant circumstances, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years. Whoever molests a child shall be given a heavier punishment in accordance with the provisions of the preceding two paragraphs.”
 
3. If private photos are used in conjunction with selling to or extorting the victim, it may constitute a violation of Article 274 of the Criminal Law: “Whoever extorts public or private property, if the amount is relatively large or if extortion is committed multiple times, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, criminal detention, or control, and shall also, or shall only, be fined; if the amount is huge or there are other serious circumstances, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than ten years, and shall also be fined; if the amount is especially huge or there are other especially serious circumstances, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than ten years, and shall also be fined.”
 
4. If accompanied by the use of improper equipment, it may constitute a violation of Article 284 of the Criminal Law: “Whoever illegally uses special equipment for eavesdropping or secret photographing, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than two years, criminal detention, or surveillance.”
 
III. The Tort Liability Law of the People's Republic of China
According to Articles 2 and 15 of the Tort Liability Law, infringement of civil rights and interests such as the right to privacy shall bear tort liability; the main methods of assuming liability include cessation of infringement, removal of obstacles, compensation for losses, apology, elimination of adverse effects, and restoration of reputation, among others.

 

 
[1] The author's perspective
In modern society, with the advancement of technology, in addition to the commonly seen pinhole cameras, the use of mobile phone cameras for covert photography has gradually become “popular.” Subways, buses, shopping mall escalators, and stairways have all become the hardest-hit areas of this new wave of covert photography. A casual search online makes it easy to purchase tools for committing these offenses. This easy access, combined with the lenient penalties for such offenses, lowers the cost of offending for voyeurs at every turn and makes it all the more effortless for them to commit these acts.
 
From a legal perspective, the penalties for “secret photography” in China are indeed notably lenient. During this year’s Two Sessions, Committee Member Hua Yawei proposed adding the crime of “infringement of citizens’ personal privacy” to the Criminal Law to combat secret photography. At that time, the Weibo topic “suggest criminalizing voyeurism and secret photography” garnered as many as 66,000 discussions, demonstrating that public opinion in China aligns with the need for legislation.
 
The author hopes that every girl or boy who has been covertly recorded will not have to swallow their anger or settle matters quietly, and that the law can become a solid support for victims.