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World Human Rights Moot Court Competition

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The Nelson Mandela World Human Rights Moot Court Competition is a moot court competition on international human rights law. In 2009, the University of Pretoria Faculty of Law's Centre for Human Rights, with the assistance of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, organised the inaugural World Human Rights Moot Court Competition. The oral rounds of the competition are held annually on 8th and 9 December in Pretoria, the administrative and de facto capital of South Africa.[1][2]

More than pure aspirations, human rights are real rights that can be tested in courts of law. The World Human Rights Moot Court Competition is an exciting way for students from around the world to deepen their knowledge of rights and learn from each other.

— Navi Pillay,
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights[3]

Moot format

World Regions
University of Pretoria Old Arts building
University of Pretoria Faculty of Law building

The moot involves a written round after which teams are selected for the oral round. Teams argue a hypothetical case on issues of international human rights law in either English or French as if it will be adjudicated by a hypothetical International Human Rights Court, on the basis of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other applicable (such as regional) human rights instruments.[4] A winner is announced for each United Nations world region.

Judges

The regional rounds are judged by distinguished legal academics and legal professionals from around the world. In the final round, the panel is made up of eminent jurists and judges from international tribunals and bodies such as the different regional human rights courts and UN human rights treaty bodies. The inaugural presiding judge was Navi Pillay[5][6] and Judge Mark Villiger of the European Court of Human Rights presided in the 2010 final.[7]

Year Judge Recent Relevant Office
2009[8] High Commissioner Navanethem Pillay (Presiding) United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Ms Nicole Lewis Previously associate legal officer at the Special Court for Sierra Leone and the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia
Justice Arthur Chaskalson Previous Chief Justice of the South African Constitutional Court
Justice Pius Langa Previous Chief Justice of the South African Constitutional Court
Mr David Johnson Senior official of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Advocate Olajobi Makinwa Solicitor and barrister of the Supreme Court of Nigeria
Professor Michelo Hansungule Commissioner of the International Commission of Jurists and a member of the Expert Advisory Group of UNIFERM
Dr George William Mugwanyais Senior Appeals Counsel at the Office of the Prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
2010[9] Judge Mark Villiger (Presiding) Judge of the European Court of Human Rights
Judge Anita Ušacka Judge of the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court
Justice Florence Ndepele Mumba Former Judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
Ms Yanine Poc Regional Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Southern Africa, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Mr Uli Parulian Sihombing Executive Director of the Indonesian Legal Resource Center
2011[10] Mr Ibrahim Wani Chief Africa Branch/ FOTCD, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva, Switzerland
Professor Martin Scheinin Professor of Public International Law, European University Institute, Florence, Italy and former UN special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism
Judge Zak Yacoob Justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa, Johannesburg
Professor Ann Skelton Director, Centre for Child Law, University of Pretoria, South Africa
Advocate Pansy Tlakula Chairperson, Electoral Commission, South Africa and member of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights
Professor Christof Heyns (Co) Director: Institute for International and Comparative Law in Africa Faculty of Law University of Pretoria and UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions OHCHR

Previous Overall winners

Year Winner Runner-up Best Memorial Best Oralist
2009[11] None Declared None Declared None Declared None Declared
2010[12] Norman Manley Law School (Jamaica)[Advocates: Merrick R. Watson, Lori-Ann E. Green] University of Sydney (Australia) Ateneo de Manila University (Philippines) Norman Manley Law School (Jamaica)
2011[13] Norman Manley Law School (Jamaica)[Advocates : Love N. Odih, Jermaine Case ] Yale University (US) Ateneo de Manila University (Philippines) Yale University (US)

Pontificia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

Previous Regional winners

Year Region Winner Runner-up
2009[14] Africa The American University in Cairo (Egypt) University of Yaoundé, International Relations Institute (Cameroon)
Western Europe University of Lucerne (Switzerland) Freie University, Berlin (Germany)
Eastern Europe Institute of International Relations of National Taras Shevchenko University of Kyiv (Ukraine) Debrecen University (Hungary)
Asia National Law School of India (India) Gujarat National Law University (India)
Latin America and the Caribbean Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo (Brazil) Universidad Juarez Del Estado De Durango (Mexico)
2010[15] Africa (Tie) Midlands State University (Zimbabwe)

University of KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa)

Western Europe & Other University of Sydney (Australia)
Eastern Europe Vilnius University (Lithuania)
Asia Ateneo de Manila University (Philippines)
Latin America and the Caribbean University of the West Indies (Jamaica)
2011[16] Africa University of KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa)
Western Europe & Other Yale Law School (United States of America)
Eastern Europe West University of Timisoara (Romania)
Asia Universitas Katolik Parahyangan (Indonesia)
Latin America and the Caribbean Norman Manley Law School (Jamaica)

See also

References

  1. ^ http://portal.unesco.org/shs/en/ev.php-URL_ID=12881&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html The first World Human Rights Moot Court Competition organized in South Africa. Retrieved November 12, 2009
  2. ^ http://www.polity.org.za/article/united-nations-world-human-rights-moot-court-competition-9-december-2009-2009-09-11 United Nations: World Human Rights Moot Court Competition (9 December 2009). Retrieved November 12, 2009
  3. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/sitefiles/image/47/moot_poster_1.jpg World Human Rights Moot Court Competition. Retrieved November 12, 2009
  4. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/sitefiles/file/47/About_eng_nnn.doc WORLD HUMAN RIGHTS MOOT COURT COMPETITION. Retrieved November 12, 2009
  5. ^ http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20091015165626200 World's first Human Rights Moot Court. Retrieved November 13, 2009
  6. ^ http://www.caleidoscop.org/Members/Marius/news-caleidoscop-2009/world-human-rights-moot-court-competition-pretoria-south-africa-9-december-2009 World Human Rights Moot Court Competition, Pretoria, South Africa, 9 December 2009. Retrieved November 13, 2009
  7. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/sitefiles/file/47/World%20Human%20Rights%20Moot%20Court%202010%20Judges(4).pdf World Human Rights Moot Court Competition 2010 Judges Retrieved 17 January 2011
  8. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/sitefiles/file/47/Programme.pdf
  9. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/sitefiles/file/47/Media%20winner.pdf Results of 2009 World Human Rights Moot Court Competition, Pretoria, South Africa. Retrieved February 18, 2010
  10. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/sitefiles/file/47/Final%20Round%20Judges%20confirmed(2).pdf Final Round Judges 3rd World Human Rights Moot Court Competition 2011 Retrieved 22 December 2011
  11. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/default.asp?ipkCategoryID=12520
  12. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/sitefiles/file/47/Media%20winner.pdf Results of 2009 World Human Rights Moot Court Competition, Pretoria, South Africa. Retrieved February 18, 2010
  13. ^ http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Norman-Manley-shocks-Yale
  14. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/default.asp?ipkCategoryID=12520/winners%20%website.doc Results of 2009 World Human Rights Moot Court Competition, Pretoria, South Africa. Retrieved February 18, 2010
  15. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/sitefiles/file/47/Media%20winner.pdf Results of 2009 World Human Rights Moot Court Competition, Pretoria, South Africa. Retrieved February 18, 2010
  16. ^ http://web.up.ac.za/default.asp?ipkCategoryID=11341 Retrieved April 7, 2012
  • OHCHR – Official site of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
  • CHR – Official site of the Centre for Human Rights
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