By bizn_fun 
A BBC survey carried out in 2019, external suggested 38% of women aged 18-39 had been choked during sex.
Bernie Ryan, chief executive of the Institute for Addressing Strangulation, welcomed the government’s amendment, saying choking can send “confusing and harmful messages” to women about what to expect in intimate relationships.
“Strangulation is a serious form of violence, often used in domestic abuse to control, silence or terrify,” she said.
Andrea Simon, director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, described the amendments as “a vital step” towards tackling the normalisation of violence in online content.
“There is no such thing as safe strangulation; women cannot consent to the long-term harm it can cause, including impaired cognitive functioning and memory,” she said.
“Its widespread portrayal in porn is fuelling dangerous behaviours, particularly among young people.”
But campaigner Fiona Mackenzie, founder of the group We Can’t Consent To This, was less optimistic of the proposed law’s effectiveness.
She argued there were already existing laws against showing choking in pornography, but which were not enforced in practice.
This included the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008, which criminalises the possession of extreme porn, including that showing life-threatening acts.
“More than five years ago, young women told us that social media sold strangulation of women as normal, as an expression of passion,” she said.
“The porn sites make this normal for men – and none of those sites have ever felt the impact of the existing law.
“So a change in law or practice is needed. It’s possible that this time the government might actually do something about this.
“However until we see otherwise, I don’t believe that any new law will actually be enforced.”
The government said in June, when the amendment was pledged, that it built on existing laws, including the Obscene Publications Act 1959 and the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008.