First there was the "Tangshan assault," now there is the "ex-husband rape"—who can save women's safety?
Compiled from The Paper
Case review
On the evening of July 11, two videos titled "Mother and daughter dragged into house by raincoat man" sparked nationwide attention. The videos showed the incident occurring around 18:19 on July 6, 2022.
On the morning of July 12, the Laiyang Public Security Bureau responded to a reporter from Xinhuang River: The man and woman in the video had just divorced on June 16 and had been negotiating post-divorce matters. After the man moved out, the woman had refused to meet. Around 6 p.m. on July 6, the man hid on the staircase. When the woman returned home with her child, she was forcibly dragged into the house by the man. Around 9 a.m. on July 7, the dragged woman reported to the police that someone had forcibly entered her home and harassed her normal life. The Laiyang police also reported that on that same night, Zhan Moumou forcibly had sexual relations with Jiang Moumou.
On July 11, the man was apprehended and has been criminally detained in accordance with the law. The case is currently under further investigation.
"Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China"
Article 236: Crime of Rape
Whoever rapes a woman by violence, coercion, or other means shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than ten years.
Whoever rapes a girl under the age of 14 shall be deemed to have committed rape and shall be given a heavier punishment.
Whoever rapes a woman or rapes a young girl under any of the following circumstances shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than 10 years, life imprisonment, or death:
(1) Raping a woman or sexually assaulting a minor female under aggravating circumstances;
(2) Raping multiple women or sexually assaulting multiple minor females;
(3) Raping a woman in a public place in front of others;
(4) Gang rape committed by two or more persons;
(5) Causing serious injury, death, or other severe consequences to the victim.
[1] The author's perspective
Although the man in the raincoat and the woman dragged into the house were previously married, they had already divorced, and his behavior of forcibly having sexual relations with her is highly repulsive and even crosses the legal red line. In fact, as long as a person uses violence, coercion, or other means to forcibly have sexual intercourse with a woman, it constitutes the crime of rape. Therefore, even within a marriage, if forced means are used to compel a woman to have sexual relations, it can also constitute the crime of rape.
First there was the Tangshan assault case, and now this case has emerged, making us wonder: who can ensure the safety of women? The author believes that besides protecting oneself, using legal weapons to strike hard is the best method. Only when the cost is severe enough will these arrogant individuals realize the seriousness of the problem, thereby deterring those with malicious intent and reducing the occurrence of such crimes.
