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Q: Are Chinese Aware of Pedophilia?
I want to ask if Chinese people are aware of pedophilia, and if so by what standards do they judge someone to be a pedophile? Furthermore, what societal repercussions (if any) exist for people found to be pedophiles (in China)? I know that different cultures have a different perspective one what pedophilia is-and-is-not; i.e. there are several places in the world where marrying an 11 or 12 year old girl (or even younger) and fathering a child with her is considered acceptable. There is a 'cultural lensing' issue which you need to try to disregard when dealing with other cultures, so I'd like to know what other thoughts are on this subject.
My question actually comes from a recent conversation I had with a colleague. The short-end of our talk was this; At the school in which he works (a high school) a male Chinese teacher was caught in bed with a 14 year old girl. He told me that there were rampant rumors around the campus regarding this 30-something teacher and said teenage girl. I asked if there had been an investigation into these rumors and my colleague replied 'no.' Only after catching the man in bed with the girl was he fired, and even then, no criminal charges were filed. The teacher claimed to be 'in love' with the girl. My colleague shocked me with his next comments.. he actually attacked the teachers character, and then defended the possibility that they were in love. My colleague said this situation is not unheard of in China.
So, might I ask, what are other people opinions on this? For me, as an American, I find it entirely shocking. However I try to remind myself that I am not in the USA and Chinese culture is not my culture. That being said, other nationalities, and especially any Chinese that frequent these forums, I would be interested in knowing your opinion. Thank you!
Hello Masque:
Being a native Chinese guy, I hope my knowledge and opinion about this could help you. I'm sorry about the mistakes and flaws in my English and hope you don't mind.
Well you know China has a strong central govt, and every province has to abide the central laws, not like the States where different states might have different laws and regulations. Exceptions are China's minorities regions, like Tibet, Xinjiang(Muslim Uyghur), Ningxia(Muslim HuiZu), and many other big or small self-governed places. Laws may vary a bit due to their minority culture, and sometimes make their penalty less strict than Han Majority.
In China, the legal consensual age for a girl is 14. No consensual age for a boy.
There are a few names related to this issue:
强奸罪 rape
强奸幼女罪 raping a girl under 14
猥亵儿童罪 sexual harass a child(boy or girl ) under 14
嫖宿幼女罪 have sex with girl prostitutes under 14 (this crime is highly controversial because in practise it's often used to protect commie pedophiles or rich merchants who actually raped little girls and paid money later)
As for my opinion about this: your colleague was finding a way to comfort himself by "defending the possibility that they were in love". However, I want to say this might be true. Asian culture is somehow male dominated with a hard paternalism. It's not strange, but sicks me, that many Chinese girls have an affection for men at their father age. (Electra complex?)
Most Chinese children are raised and encouraged to be obedient to their parents and teachers, They are not encouraged to express their true feelings. So, those 14 year old girls are kind of easy to manipulate their feelings and confuse them with "love".
I don't know what would happen to that teacher who slept with his young student. If the girl has a strong family background,(parents/relatives in court, govt, very rich, etc), the teacher could end up rotted in jail(despite the girl is above consensual age 14), or get his legs/arms broken in dark night or strong acid pouring in his face (one of my dad's colleague encountered this because he had an affair, with an adult woman though). Well usually teachers don't dare to "care" such girls. They are more likely to pick the vulnerable victims, whose families are poor and not violent. The commie pedophiles and rich merchants pretty much do the same way as well. Once caught, they would use money to buy their mouth and power to keep everyone including cops silent.
Those above are pretty evil and criminal stuffs. As for less criminal cases, there are like some minor girls (under 16 or 18) dating adults men (above 18, or 28).
In many Chinese families sex is a forbidden topic. It's often read in news that the girls didn't dare to tell they were raped by teachers/neighbors. Well it's also normal many parents believe their daughters are "pure like paper" while actually they have experienced a handful of guys in school. Relationships are supposed to be banned until graduation from high school.
If you have further questions or want to discuss, just comment or what not. Thanks.
mArtiAn:
OhChina, you are clearly a highly intelligent person. The problem I have with China, and much of Asia, is the attitude towards individuals who 'have' experienced sexual abuse. As I understand it they are generally looked upon as dirty. For me this is almost unspeakably cruel, though I feel maybe I understand it.
A parent's first concern is their child, and a partner who has been abused is more likely to be a carrier of some form of venereal disease. In this light I can understand a parent having concerns about their son dating a girl who had been abused. But Jesus.....I don't want to write the word 'sigh' here, but isn't it time people woke up to the fact that there are clinics now that can verify the possibility of such dangers? In my mind, harboring such an offensive justification of ones fears is tantamount to cowardice. Surely it is time the Chinese joined the 21st century with respect to recognizing victims of such abuse as being survivors, worthy of the greatest respect, rather than labeling them in such a disgusting way.
xinyuren:
I have that same sigh, martian. When will these people wake up? They punish the victims and let the perpetrators go free!
Sexual abuse with minors is rampant in the countryside. i have heard numerous personal stories of young girls(8 years and up) being raped by family members. This activity is covered up by the families because they will lose face if it becomes known. I even heard firsthand in one case where the family members pressured the girl to be quiet about it so no face is lost. The girl was told it happens all the time and it is nothing unusual. This girl was repeatedly raped many times by her stepfather from the age of 8. A pity.
I wish I could disagree with xinyuren, but... unfortunately he's correct. My ex-girlfriend was forced to have sex with her father when she was only 5 years old. Five f-ing years old. Some of the other neighbors even joined in.
You know what her whore of a mother did? She invited her daughter's rapists into her own home, with her daughter still there, and fed them, and tried to treat them nicely so she wouldn't lose face.
Why do you think so many Chinese girls never talk about their fathers????
mArtiAn:
I think that's unfair; I don't believe sexual abuse is a more predominant factor within father/daughter relationships in China than it is in the west. I 'do' believe that China's attitudes towards women are dated, as in they think of women in a second class light, and I 'do' believe that the backward views of much of Asia toward the problem of sexual abuse stem from the economic reality of having a child who is not considered a suitable partner for marriage. Such considerations are ugly, but a natural part of life for many people. Inevitably the problem is economic. The system 'itself' is at fault. It is not China's fault. It is EVERYONE'S fault.
N'night.
xinyuren:
agreed. I also know of such cases back home (father/daughter), including in my own family. The big difference is those cases were never perpetuated by the family, covered up and the offender being pardoned by the community. The families involved in the west would never have condoned such actions!
Hulk:
martain, the problem is economic? Are you kidding me? "Damn, I'm poor as hell. Better go rape my daughter because the economy made me do it."
You'll find those scumbags among every damn income class. It's not about money, it's about power, control, and sick f*ckery.
xinyuren:
I may be wrong Hulk, but i think he's talking about the aspect of why men view abused women as "tainted" or damaged. His argument is that it is purely economic practicality in play. "Damaged goods" will not benefit a prospective mate's status regardless of how the damage took place. He's also admitting that such thinking is backwards. I have no problem with his argument that it is society's fault. Why these mothers are failing to protect their daughters in the name of face is beyond my thinking.
Hulk:
After reading what he said with a calm mindset (this topic really pisses me off a lot)... I realize I jumped the gun... yeah, I agree with you. The problem is economic, in that they won't do anything to make the girl deemed unsuitable for marriage... all so they can get money out of her.
mArtiAn:
Haha, yeh, you did jump the gun a bit but it's a touchy subject. Like you say, abuse itself is about control, I wouldn't suggest it was caused by economics, though so much in this world is. I've got people close to me been through it too though. Came very close to aiding in killing an abuser some years back in fact. Knew a lady in London who did time for doing just that. Some dogs just gotta be put down.
Funny, I thought, since I arrived here and saw the way the kids are fussed over, spoiled and mollycoddled that the pedophilia issue was non-existent in China. With just one child in the family I have mistakenly concluded that there is no way that doting parents would ever allow this to happen. Seems I am wrong!
Scandinavian:
Children are being fussed about so they can get an education and support their families. Do you think the long school days is serving any actual educational purpose but rather is a way of having children taken care of so parents do not have to. The children are spoiled with toys so they will be happy, but this will only teach them the art of being materialistic assholes, and later in life, the parents can play the guilt card and say "I gave you everything, now you give me everything".
Thank you everyone for your replies and comments! All of you have greatly enlightened my position on this topic and I appreciate that. I visit these forums quite often, but speak rarely and ask questions -never- until now. I am happy to see all the golden intellects and insights of those that frequent these forums. Thank you again! 
