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The writer has stumbled into an old law that condemned writers who had sold more than 5,000 copies to 10 years in prison.

According to South China Morning Post, a Chinese erotic writer was sentenced to 10 years in prison for writing and selling a homosexual pornographic story.

The news was greeted by discouragement and surprise for the harshness of the sentence.

The writer, surname Liu, but better known as Tianyi, was sentenced last month to have “produced and sold pornographic material”, according to a television report on Friday.

The book, Occupy, was published in 2017 and had sold around 7,000 copies online.

The Global Times reported that Liu’s novel speaks of “obscene sexual behavior between males” and is “full of perverse sexual acts such as violence and abuse”.

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According to the statement issued by the judges, selling more than 5,000 copies of a pornographic book or earning more than 10,000 yuan from the sale of the material, is considered as aggravating, and as a consequence involves a sentence between 10 years and life imprisonment.

Tianyi not only sold more than 5,000 copies but also earned 150,000 yuan from the sale of the book.

The 1998 law is considered dated by critics.

The novel tells of a forbidden love story between a teacher and a student and was described as full of detailed descriptions of male homosexual sex scenes, according to Anhui television.

Pornography is illegal in China, but in this case, it was the severity of the sentence that caused a stir on social media in the country.

According to Chinese law, judgments can vary widely based on profit and other factors, and according to the perceived severity of the offense.

According to many netizens, the sentence is disproportionate, heavier than that imposed on other serious crimes.

In China, many rapists are sentenced to periods between 3 and 10 years.

One case cited by critics concerns that of an officer from Yunnan Province, sentenced to 5 years in prison for kidnapping and raping a 4-year-old girl. After public protests, the sentence was extended to 8 years.

Another man from Beijing had been sentenced to six and a half years in prison after having his wife beaten to death in 2009.