Sexual assault of men is now a criminal offense in China, following an amendment to the Criminal Law that took effect on Sunday.
According to Shanghaiist, the amendment was adopted in August with the word "women" amended to "other".
This guarantees that indecent assault on either men or women carries a minimum sentence of five years in prison,
It was difficult to file charges involving male sexual assault before this new law was passed.
For example, a Chinese security guard sexually abused his male colleague in the employee dormitory but instead of being charged with sexual assault, he was convicted of intentional injury and sentenced to just 12 months in prison.
The amendment will also provide more protection for underage boys, ensuring equal rights to boys and girls below the age of 18 years old.
In the past, rapists of boys could only be charged with child molestation which carries a maximum sentence of five years.
Based on a research jointly carried out by the University of Hong Kong and UBS Optimus Foundation, the percentage of boys who suffer sexual offences is actually 2.7 percent higher than girls.