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Jess Ma

Three in four Hongkongers say removing condoms without consent during intercourse is sexual assault, an NGO poll shows.
Executive director Doris Chong Tsz-wai of the Association Concerning Sexual Violence Against Women on Thursday urged authorities to create a statutory definition of consent to clarify the scope of protection for victims whose wishes were violated during sex.
She noted that other jurisdictions, such as Singapore, already had laws covering this type of act.
“The most important issue is in the vocabulary,” Chong said. “If victims could not describe what happened, it would be hard for them to recognise the experience as sexual violence and subsequently seek help.”
The survey examined “stealthing”, which refers to a partner surreptitiously removing a condom during consensual sex promised to be safe.
Under Hong Kong law, the legal responses to stealthing remain unclear.
The city lacks dedicated laws criminalising it, and current legislation against rape and indecent assault may not cover this behaviour.
The association polled 277 people between October 2024 and February this year, with more than half aged 18 to 34. Participants included women, men and non-binary individuals of various sexual orientations.
Findings showed 95.3 per cent viewed stealthing as a violation of consent, while 74.4 per cent considered it sexual assault.
Fifty-seven respondents, or 20.6 per cent, reported experiencing non-consensual condom removal during sex.
Respondents also weighed in on other scenarios.
Secretly piercing a condom during sex was seen as a violation of consent by 95.7 per cent, with 74 per cent labelling it sexual assault.
Ignoring an agreement for safe sex by having intercourse without protection was viewed as a violation of consent by 93.9 per cent, with 84.5 per cent considering it sexual assault.
Also, internal ejaculation without consent was considered a violation by 78.3 per cent and sexual assault by 57.4 per cent.
In-depth interviews with 10 people of various sexual orientations who had experienced stealthing revealed they believed that sex with a condom and without one were fundamentally different acts that could not be consented to interchangeably, senior research officer Albert Yau Chi-hang said.
“They think the level of intimacy and trust required between the two types of sex was markedly different. The sexual health risks associated with these two acts were also different,” he said.
Among the 57 victims of stealthing, 47.4 per cent responded by testing for sexually transmitted diseases, while 40.4 per cent opted to take emergency contraceptive measures.
The survey also found that only two of them had reported their cases to police.
One report was still under investigation, while police had ended their investigation into the other case without laying any charges.
Five respondents said they had sought help from an NGO, four had gone to friends and family and three had demanded compensation from the partner. Twelve said they had not taken any action.
Chong said the lack of a statutory definition of consent in sexual offence laws could discourage victims from seeking help.
“The current legal focus on whether the victim had consented to the sex act may affect victims,” she said. “Knowing that sex with and without condoms is different and that they consented only to safe sex would help them understand their feelings [after the incident].”
Chong said her association would call for the government to clearly spell out the definition of consent in the coming reform of sexual offence laws, including adopting an affirmative model where a person must clearly express consent for a sexual act to be deemed legal, to eliminate acts such as stealthing.
“If we can establish the concept of consent clearly, it would be easier to establish whether [a violation] was a sexual offence,” she said.


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Authorities urged to create statutory definition of consent to clarify scope of protection for victims whose wishes are violated during sex


Authorities urged to create statutory definition of consent to clarify scope of protection for victims whose wishes are violated during sex.


Sexual harassment and assault

Stealthily removing condoms during sex is assault, 3 in 4 Hongkongers say

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Authorities urged to create statutory definition of consent to clarify scope of protection for victims whose wishes are violated during sex

Authorities urged to create statutory definition of consent to clarify scope of protection for victims whose wishes are violated during sex