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China's first sentence in homosexual rape case

By Jia Xu (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2011-01-05 09:21
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In a first for China, a man received a one-year prison sentence in a homosexual rape case in Beijing on charges of intentional injury, marking the advancement of Chinese law on homosexual crime, djnews.com.cn reported Tuesday.

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Zhang Hua (alias), 42, a sports stadium security guard, was accused of rape by an 18-year-old colleague on May 9, 2010.

Due to the special circumstances，the case proceeded in a private trial on Aug 30, 2010. Zhang was then charged with intentional injury, and received a one-year sentence.

Law experts said due to flaws and gaps in the current law, Zhang received only light punishment. "Zhang would serve at least three years in prison if the victim were female, but it is the first case that the suspect was given criminal sanctions after committing homosexual rape," one expert said.