Hoko Horii

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Research topics   NewgonWiki Research Project Academics (present)   Angelides, Graupner, Tromovitch, Walker Andersson, Butler, Breslow, Rubin Kershnar, Singer, Rind, Janssen, Smith Hubbard, Horii, Herdt, Edelman, Loftus Cleves, Syrett, Arce Vidal, Thompson Žižek, Sandfort, McCartan, White Sinason, Abel, Malesky, Finkelhor Academics (inactive)   Leahy, Sikes, Lautmann, Califia, Gieles Yuill, Kincaid, Paglia, Williams, Langfeldt Durber, Bleibtreu-Ehrenberg, Schultz, Kennedy Sax, Farrell, Best, Jenkins, Ullerstam Schmidt, C. K. Li, Okami, Kilpatrick, Dannecker De Young, Dallam, Jackson Academics (historical)   Reich, Foucault, Kinsey, Percy Sonenschein, Faust, Foster, Mader Hekma, Martinson, Bullough, Bernard Johansson, Hocquenghem, De Cecco Tripp, Schérer, Kentler, Sigusch, Baurmann Holt, Burton, Rutschky, Hertoft, Schorsch Brongersma, Ogrinc, Plummer, Weeks Money, Duvert, Ingram, Green, Mirkin Simon, Gagnon, West, Reeves, Shively Densen-Gerber, Reisman, Whitfield, Fink Related topics   Queer Theory, Feminism, Consent Minor-adult sex, CSA, Paraphilia Sexceptionalism, Sexualization Heteronormativity, Trans youth Hebephilia, Pedophilia, Teleiophilia Censorship, Chris Brand, Moral panic Preventionism, Minor Attracted Person Masturbation, Inner child, CSBI IICSA, CSAM, Covert incest Pedophilia OCD, Teen Dating Violence Repressed memory, Anal wink Kent State Study, Rind et al, CSAAS COPINE Scale, Cognitive distortion Adolescence, Abel screening Actuarial testing, Plethysmography Erwin Schrodinger, Carleton Gajdusek David Riegel, Jordan Peterson Wikipedia, Rites of passage Medicalism, Evolving capacity Nocebogenic harm, Moral Recruitment Intrinsic harm Orgs and Publications   JoH, ASB, Paidika, JCI, FSRS B4U-ACT, PF, Ipce NARTH, TLC OJP, NSPCC, ASPAC
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Hoko Horii is assistant professor at the Van Vollenhoven Institute for Law, Governance and Society (Leiden Law School) in the Netherlands, and a post-doctoral fellow at Kobe University, Japan. She studies the concept of agency in law, by examining the background and practice of ‘age of consent’ laws in three countries: Japan, Indonesia, and the Netherlands. Her research has involved fieldwork interviewing people who married when considered "children" by international definitions (i.e. under 18 years of age). Her research challenges the widespread international framing of youthful marriage as forced unions where the younger party lacks agency.

Her 2020 PhD thesis is provocatively titled "Child marriage as a choice: rethinking agency in international human rights". For more of her work, see the following:

• Horii, H. (2020). Walking a thin line: Taking children’s decision to marry seriously? Childhood, Vol. 27(2): 254–270.

Abstract: "This article provides empirical evidence on children’s agency and capacity in making the decision to marry. Case studies from my fieldwork in Bali contrast the commonly represented image of child marriage as a forced marriage, by demonstrating that in many cases children themselves make the decision to marry. However, considering social power dynamics, is such a decision really the child’s? The analysis shows that the current international child marriage framework fails to walk the thin line between empowerment and protection of children. Policies instead should be designed to encourage their participation in decision making and stimulate their resilience in their life after marriage."

• Horii, H. (2024). The Limits of Sexual Autonomy for Minors: Debating Age of Consent Laws InterGentes: The McGill Journal of International Law and Legal Pluralism, Online publication (Unpaginated).

Abstract: "Sexual freedom is regarded as a fundamental right that is essential for the development of personal autonomy. Yet, when it comes to childhood sexuality, this freedom seems to become less clear-cut. While the Convention of the Rights of the Child affirms children’s negative freedom (protection from sexual abuse and exploitation), it does not address their positive freedom (the freedom to engage in sexual activity). The reservation stems from the belief that children, not fully developed, lack the capacity to make informed decisions and can be easily influenced by older individuals who possess greater knowledge and power.

This paper explores the debates surrounding age of consent laws and legal cases involving ‘child sexual abuse’, particularly those cases where the minor party appears to be consenting. These limitations on adolescents’ sexual freedom are often justified based on the concept of harm, which is identified either as collective harm or foreseeable harm in the future. This paper provides evidence of a moralistic tendency to punish ‘deviant’ behavior that violates prevailing moral norms, even when harm is not evident."

Relevant publications

• Horii H. (2018). Child marriage, not all alike. Inside Indonesia.
• Grijns, M. and Horii, H. (2018). Child Marriage in a Village in West Java (Indonesia): Compromises between Legal Obligations and Religious Concerns. Asian Journal of Law and Society, Vol. 5(2): 453-466.
• Horii H. (2019). A blind spot in international human rights framework: A space between tradition and modernity within the child marriage discourse. The International Journal of Human Rights, 24(8), 1–23.
• Horii H. (2019). Pluralistic legal system, pluralistic human rights? Teenage pregnancy, child marriage and legal institutions in Bali. The Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law, 51(3), 292–319.
• Horii H. (2020). Legal reasoning for legitimation of child marriage in West Java: Accommodation of local norms at Islamic courts and the paradox of child protection. Journal of Human Rights Practice.
• Horii, H. (2021). Child Marriage as a ‘Solution’ to Modern Youth in Bali. Progress in Development Studies, Vol. 20(4).

External links

• Faculty profile
• Horii's personal website