Prof Mezmur judges the National Schools Moot Court Competition

The head of the Children’s Rights Project, Prof Benyam Dawit Mezmur was invited to be judge in the final round of the 2017 National Schools Moot Court Competition on the 8th October in the Constitutional Court in Pretoria, together with Justices Madlanga, Mhlantla, Mojapelo, Kollapen, and a number of other experts.

The Competition is aimed at creating greater awareness in schools and communities in South Africa about the Constitution and the values that it embodies through active participation. The aim is also to encourage talented young people to consider pursuing a law career. It also provides a unique opportunity for learners to develop their research, writing and oral advocacy skills as they endeavour to come to grips with some of the constitutional issues that are presently facing our country. Participants are allowed to argue their case in any of the 11 official languages in the oral rounds before judges in an actual court scenario.

Over 300 learners from all nine provinces participated in the competition this year, all of whom were diverse not only in terms of both gender and race but also in terms of class. While moot encourages a substantive interaction with human rights, being exposed to experts in the field offers a role model, with whom the learners are able to relate.

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Information about the National Schools Moot Court Competition