For more than a decade, South Korea’s rape laws have been premised on the use of violence or intimidation, and this narrow definition has increasingly been criticized as out of step with international standards and public expectations in the aftermath of the #MeToo movement.

Some segments of the ROK government appear to recognize this. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family’s (MOGEF) “Third Basic Plan for Gender Equality (2023-2027)” released on Jan. 26 states that the ministry will actively consider amending the definition of rape to make non-consensual sex a crime, working alongside the Ministry of Justice.

But earlier this