"Men lack basic legal rights" is a phase many people could not imagine hearing non-ironically. If anyone were to say it, they would likely be given strange looks at best. The idea itself is outright ridiculous, I mean how could men who hold the power create laws that is unfair to their own sex? The idea doesn't make any sense to most people. However, does the popular opinion means that this idea is accurate?

Well, let's take a look at some areas where men still lack basic systematic equality.

Male Exclusive Rape Laws

Introduction

Rape

"To force someone to have sex when they are unwilling*, using* violence or threatening behavior*"*

*-*Cambridge Dictionary

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Most people would define rape as non-consensual sex between two or more people, and as a result, most people assume the legal definition would be defined similarly. However, the concept of men being legally recognized as victims of rape is actually a very recent one. Previously, the FBI defined rape as “The carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.” The definition was only changed from this to “Penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.” in 2012 \source]). (New definition actually came into effect on 1 January 2013) To put this into a better perspective, GTA 5 was released that very same year. Furthermore, Japan only started to recognize that men can legally become rape victims in 2017 \source]). To make it even more messed up, in some countries, men still are not recognized as rape victims \source]).

This is not limited to the legal field. The CDC to this day still defined rape as

any completed or attempted unwanted vaginal (for women), oral, or anal penetration through the use of physical force (such as being pinned or held down, or by the use of violence) or threats to physically harm and includes times when the victim was drunk, high, drugged, or passed out and unable to consent.

While this definition recognizes rape victims can be male, it is not fully gender neutral. The definition only includes forced penetration. Due to the fact that women do not usually have penises, this definition excludes rape cases where men were forced to penetrate or made to penetrate without consent. Instead, this is counted under a separate category of "Made to penetrate", which the CDC defines as

includes times when the victim was made to, or there was an attempt to make them, sexually penetrate someone without the victim’s consent because the victim was physically forced (such as being pinned or held down, or by the use of violence) or threatened with physical harm, or when the victim was drunk, high, drugged, or passed out and unable to consent.

\source])

This results in an unimaginable manipulation of statistics. Just to show you what I mean, according to NISVS 2017 and 20-18 report published by the CDC in June of this year 2.3% of women reported being rape 12 within month prior to the survey, while 0.3% of men reported being rape 12 within month prior to the survey.

Rape
Female: 2.3% or 2,857,000 estimated victims
Male: 0.3 % or 340,000 estimated victims

​

However, if we include made to penetrate here, the numbers will look something like this:

​

Rape
Female: 2.3% or 2,857,000 estimated victims
Male: 1.6% or 1,902,000 estimated victims

This means that around 40% of the estimated rape victims are men. Two things to note is that this doesn't include victims who are in correctional facilities, and whether due to a change in methodology or some other reason, this is actually lower than some estimates made in the past.

\source])

Unequal Rape Laws by Country

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England and Wales

In England and Wales, the legal definition of rape is,

​

A person (A) commits an offence if—

(a)he intentionally penetrates the vagina, anus or mouth of another person (B) with his penis,

(b)B does not consent to the penetration, and

(c)A does not reasonably believe that B consents.

(2)Whether a belief is reasonable is to be determined having regard to all the circumstances, including any steps A has taken to ascertain whether B consents.

\source])

Under given legal definition, only men could be charged and convicted of rape as a principal offender. Women are charged with other offenses like Sexual Assault, assault by penetration or Causing a Person to engage in un-consensual sexual activities. Unlike rape, causing a Person to engage in un-consensual sexual activities have different sentencing guidelines, as well as covers more crimes than rape. Sexual Assault and Assault by Penetration are either way offences, triable summarily or on indictment unlike rape, which is indictable offense.

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/international-journal-of-law-in-context/article/oh-youre-a-guy-how-could-you-be-raped-by-a-woman-that-makes-no-sense-towards-a-case-for-legally-recognising-and-labelling-forcedtopenetrate-cases-as-rape/8166CABA33BBE64EBBAD384E1FE13551#:\~:text=Unlike%20rape%20and,cases%20as%20rape.

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France

Any act of sexual penetration, of any nature whatsoever, committed against another person by violence, constraint, threat or surprise is rape. Rape is punished by fifteen years imprisonment.

Some people argue that this definition still require someone to "penetrate" another person and doesn't do well enough to cover forced to penetrate cases.

\sources])

Switzerland

In Switzerland, rape is defined as

Coercing a person of the female gender to endure sexual intercourse

This definition makes it pretty much impossible for men to be raped. Instead, it's only considered sexual assault.

\source])

Japan

Male rape victims are only legally recognized in 2017, and even so, the law only covers oral sex. Forced to penetrate cases may be on slippery slope.\source])

\source])

Korea

As recent as 2009, Korean law states that victims or rape are required to be female.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/women-and-justice/court/supreme\_court\_of\_south\_korea#:\~:text=Under%20Korean%20law%2C%20the%20victim%20of%20the%20crime%20of%20rape%20must%20be%20female

Furthermore, as recent as 2013, Korean law simply only recognize rape as when “female sex organ has been penetrated by the male sex organ.”

\source])

​

Scotland

Similar to in England and Wales, Scotland recognizes rape as:

If a person (“A”), with A's penis—

(a)without another person (“B”) consenting, and

(b)without any reasonable belief that B consents,

While the law recognizes male victims of rape, under the law, women can't be charged with rape as a principal offender.

\source])

Ireland

Rape in Ireland is defined as

A man commits rape if—

(a) he has unlawful sexual intercourse with a woman who at the time of the intercourse does not consent to it, and

(b) at that time he knows that she does not consent to the intercourse or he is reckless as to whether she does or does not consent to it,

and references to rape in this Act and any other enactment shall be construed accordingly.

Because of this, like in England and Wales and Scotland, women can't be charged with rape as a principal offender. Men also can't be recognized as rape victims.

\source])

Thailand

Thailand only started recognizing male rape victims in 2007 with The Criminal Code Amendment Act (No.19) B.E. 2550 (2007), which expands the definition of rape to cover raping of people of all sexes and all types of sexual penetration.

\source])

Australia (Qld)

Australia, like the US, has many jurisdictions with their own laws.In Queensland rape is defined as

Penetration with or of another person without that person’s consent;

Penetration of the vulva, vagina or anus of another person with a thing or a part of the person’s body other than a penis without the other person’s consent;

Penetration of the mouth of another person by the person’s penis without the other person’s consent.

This doesn't cover victims who were "forced to penetrate".

\source])

New Zealand

Under the Crimes Act of 1961, "rape" is defined on section 128.2 as

Person A rapes person B if person A has sexual connection with person B, effected by the penetration of person B’s genitalia by person A’s penis,—

(a)

without person B’s consent to the connection; and

(b)

without believing on reasonable grounds that person B consents to the connection.

Because of this, similar to in England and Wales and Scotland, only men can be charged with rape as a principal offender.

\source])

This isn't even all the places yet. There are simply too many countries to list each individually. So, with all of this, does anyone ever wonder how the hell are there barely anyone talking about these legal inequalities?