Prof. Lao Dongyan on Sex and Marriage in Chinese Law

"I had not expected that some of my peers—who have, supposedly, studied law—would actually hold views that by the standards of modern civilisation could be described as legally illiterate."

Today’s article concerns the much-discussed “engagement rape case” (订婚强奸) in Datong, Shanxi, for which the appeal hearing was held in April this year. The original case involved a man who was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment for the rape of his fiancée in 2023. Despite protests sympathetic to the man, the original sentence was upheld in the appeal courts. For a detailed account of the case as well as the relevant social and familial pressures around the “bride price” (彩礼) custom in Shanxi, an independent Chinese news source has made a thorough investigation (in Chinese). A shorter summary is also available in English.

Departing from its usual focus on international relations, this week’s edition of Sinification spotlights a legal scholar who, undeterred by waves of vitriolic criticism and censorship, continues to speak out with remarkable courage against perceived injustices in China. Lao Dongyan, a professor of law at Tsinghua University, recently weighed in on the furore which …