ABSTRACT
Rape (from Latin rapio, “seize, snatch”) is dened differently among nations and jurisdictions. It is thus difcult, if not impossible, to give any single denition of rape. However, all denitions, have one requisite element, which must be satised in order to constitute the offense of rape, namely absence of the victim’s will and consent. Consent to sex is important because its absence can transform coitus from a pleasurable activity having no legal concern, to one of the most heinous of criminal offenses.* The consent is said to be absent when it has been taken illegally, such as by force or fraud, by promising or providing illegal gratications or inducements, by impersonation, under the inuence of alcohol or drugs, or by a mentally ill person. The absence of consent may be also be statutory or technical, when the victim is under the age of consent (please see below).
