The nation took the first significant step in more than a century Wednesday toward revamping its outdated sex crime laws with a Lower House committee's unanimous passing of a package of amendments, including one that broadens the definition of what constitutes rape.
The proposed revision passed by the Lower House's Judicial Affairs Committee has the support of both ruling and opposition camps and is expected to proceed smoothly through a plenary session of the more powerful chamber on Thursday.
Whether the revised bills will be enacted into law within this ongoing legislative session remains uncertain, with just a little over a week remaining until the Diet's scheduled wrap-up on June 18 and the current focus overwhelmed by escalating debates over allegations of favoritism leveled against Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.