International Symposium on Girls in Conflict with the Law

How does a girl’s geographic, economic, and social situation impact her experience with the criminal justice system? Through the International Symposium on Girls in Conflict with the Law, we explored the depths of this complex topic.

The International Symposium on Girls in Conflict with the Law (GICL) was a 12-webinar series that explored key issues and best practices related to girls’ criminal offending and rehabilitation.

Beginning in October 2020 and concluding in April 2021, the GICL brought together experts representing 18 countries to present a global snapshot of policy, approach, challenges and successes on girl’s justice and the criminal justice systems that they move through. Topics for the webinars included alternatives to juvenile incarceration, sex trafficking, and the treatment of Indigenous youth in Canada and Hawaii.

“The first goal of the Symposium was to raise awareness, second, to exchange and talk about best practices with experts, and finally, to make recommendations to governments and other institutions on how to deal with this crisis,” John Kamm, founder and Executive Director of the Dui Hua Foundation said in the press release announcing the series’ conclusion.

The 12 webinars:

• Introduction to the International Symposium on Girls in Conflict with the Law with Remarks from Africa and the Middle East 
• Introduction to the International Symposium on Girls in Conflict with the Law with Remarks from Hong Kong 
• Pathways into and Out of Offending 
• Girls in Conflict with the Law: Voices from Africa and the Middle East  
• International Perspectives on Girls in Conflict with the Law  
• Juvenile Incarceration: Alternatives 
• Girls in Conflict with the Law in Hong Kong and Guangzhou  
• Girls In Justice: Photographer Richard Ross in Conversation 
• Findings and Calls to Justice with a Focus on Indigenous Youth and Girls in Canada and Hawaii  
• Sex Trafficking of Girls 
• Working with Young Women and Girls  
• China’s Supreme People’s Court: Special and Priority Protection of the Legitimate Rights and Interests of Underage Girls in Accordance with the Law  

All the webinars, transcripts, additional materials and recommendations are available on this site. Watch a webinar, start a conversation with a panelist, and download recommendations to share with decision makers.

The GICL functions as a corrective to decades of neglect and ineffective policy. Participants discussed the question of why girls are the fastest growing demographic coming into conflict with the law and examined the disproportionate risks girls face when they encounter the legal system.

The GICL was organized and hosted by an international cross-section of leaders and organizations that work in the field of criminal justice: the Dui Hua Foundation, Managing Attorney for the Juvenile Division of the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office Patricia Lee, Penal Reform International, and the University of Hong Kong’s Centre for Criminology and Centre of Comparative and Public Law.