In all former Soviet republics in Asia, the age of sexual consent, like in Russia, is 16. The same age is set in Israel, Mongolia, Myanmar, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia, as well as the Philippines and Sri Lanka. Countries in Asia where the age of sexual consent is less than 16 are a clear minority (unlike in Europe). Thus, in the DPRK, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Syria this age is 15, and in China, Macau and Bangladesh – 14.
In many Muslim countries in Asia, sex outside of marriage is prohibited in principle. These countries include Afghanistan, Brunei, Iran, Yemen, Qatar, Kuwait, the Maldives, the UAE, Oman, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. At the same time, the marriage age according to the laws of these countries is usually set quite high.
The exception is Iran, where boys can marry at 15 and girls bahrain mobile database at 13. However, the court may allow a girl to marry at a younger age. The Western press noted that in 2010, 716 Iranian girls under 10 got married.
Another exception is Yemen, where the marriage age is set at 15 for both sexes.
Afghanistan stands apart. If under the previous secular government girls were allowed to marry from the age of 16, then after the Taliban* came to power (*the Taliban movement in Russia is included in the list of terrorist organizations) this can be done "with the onset of puberty" , that is, at 11-13 years old.
In Kuwait, boys can marry at the age of 17, and girls can marry at the age of 15.
As for the rest of the Muslim countries of Asia, the marriage age for both sexes is generally 18. This is the case in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Palestine, Oman and the Maldives.
In some Muslim countries, sex outside of marriage is permitted, such as Iraq, Jordan and Indonesia. In the first two, the age of consent is 18, while in the latter, it is 15.
Interestingly, India has the same strict standard of sexual consent as Muslim countries – 18 years.
Age of Consent in North and South America
While in Canada the age of sexual consent is uniform throughout the country and is 16 years old, in the US it depends on the legislation of a particular state. In most states (31) the age is set at 16, in another seven at 17, and in 12, including California, at 18.
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But in Mexico, further south, where laws also vary from state to state, the range is much wider: from 18 (Campeche) to 12 (Guerrero, Michoacán, Morelos, Oaxaca, Sinaloa, Sonora, and Baja California Sur) or "the age of puberty" (Nayarit). The remaining states set the age of consent at 13, 14, or 15.
However, Mexico has child abuse laws that make it possible to still be held accountable for having sex with someone who has reached the age of consent if it turns out that consent was obtained through deception or seduction.
Despite this, Mexico's standards of sexual consent are among the lowest in the world, rivaled only by nearby Cuba, where the age of consent is also 12, although sex with someone over that age can still be punishable.
In other Latin American countries, the most common age of sexual consent is 14. It is lower only in Argentina (13), but there you can still be held responsible for sex with people over that age. But in Brazil, all restrictions are lifted above the threshold of 14.