A sociosemiotic approach to the legal dispute over the crime of whoring with an underage girl in China

Abstract

AbstractFocusing on the legal dispute over the crime of whoring with an underage girl, the present study explores why many Chinese appeal to abolish the legal statute on the crime of whoring with an underage girl from a sociosemiotic perspective. The authors argue that the legislation of this legal statute neglects that the Chinese social system, including social customs and conventions, could also influence Chinese social semiotic systems. This legal dispute originates from the lack of an overview of the Chinese social, legal, and semiotic systems. By situating the dispute in the Chinese historical and cultural settings, the authors reveal why it is unreasonable to promulgate this legal statute. By situating the dispute in the Chinese and world legal settings, the authors further reveal the causal factors of this dispute: (1) labeling underage schoolgirls as prostitutes; (2) classifying statutory rape as crimes in prostitution; (3) the potential legal contradiction between the crime of rape and the crime of whoring with underage girl; (4) aiming to punish the perpetrator more severely and safeguard the underage girl more effectively, but giving rise to more similar crimes and doing more psychological harm to the underage girl by using language violence in reality. Therefore, the authors suggest that it be necessary to amend or modify, and to systematize some relevant legal provisions on sex offences against minors timely according to the social, linguistic, and legal realities.