The age of consent has seen renewed scrutiny in Japan in recent months, after a Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP) lawmaker made controversial comments during a party meeting on May 10 looking at whether to raise the age from 13 to 16.
Hiranao Honda, 56, is reported to have said that he found it strange that he could be arrested if he had sex with a 14-year-old even if there was consent, assuming the age ends up rising. He apologized for the remarks before resigning from the party Tuesday and as a lawmaker Wednesday, and his political future is uncertain even as the debate over whether to raise the minimum age of consent continues.
Why has the age of consent been in the spotlight?
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