Laos

Any person forcing another person into prostitution is subject to 5-10 years of imprisonment. If the victim is under 18 years old, the offender is subject to 10-20 years of imprisonment. Human trafficking is defined as the recruitment, moving, transfer or harboring of any person within or across national borders by means of deception, threats, use of force, debt bondage or other means, and using such person in forced labor, prostitution, pornography, or other unlawful acts, or removing body organs of such person, or for other unlawful purposes. The offender is subject to 5-15 years of imprisonment. For victims under 18 years old, any of the above-mentioned acts committed against them is deemed to be human trafficking even if there is no deception, threat, use of force, or debt bondage. When the offender is a “regular” human trafficker or in an organized group, the victims are children, there are two or more victims, the victim is a relative of the offender, or any victim suffers serious injury or becomes an invalid or insane, the offender is subject to 15-20 years of imprisonment. If a victim becomes disabled, infected with HIV, or died, the offender is subject to life imprisonment. Fines for human trafficking range from 10 million to 1 billion kip. If the victim is a woman, provisions of the Law on the Development and Protection of Women may be applicable too.

Rape is defined as using force, armed threats, drugs, or other means to coerce sexual intercourse with a woman against her will (where such woman is not the offender’s spouse), and is subject to three to five years of imprisonment. When the victim is between 15 to 18 years old, or is the offender’s dependent or patient, the offender is subject to 5-10 years of imprisonment. When the victim is under 15 years old, the offender committed battery, or the rape resulted the victim’s disability or caused the victim’s death, the offender is subject to 7-15 years of imprisonment. When the victim is also murdered, the offender is subject to 15-20 years of imprisonment, and may be sentenced to life imprisonment or death penalty. Violators are also subject to fines ranging from 5 million to 70 million kip. Attempted rape is also punishable. "Marital rape" through use of force or threats is also punishable by article 252 ("Sexual Intercourse by Force with a Female Spouse"), but separately and differently from other rape offenses. Violators of article 252 may face three months to one year imprisonment or re-education without imprisonment and a fine of 500,000 to 3 million kip. If the rape of a female spouse results in serious injury, the penalties increase to one to five years in prison and a fine of 1 million to 5 million kip. While article 248 includes male victims of rape, article 252's prohibition on marital rape only applies to female spouses. English translation available from the Laos Official Gazette here.