Birzeit University Wins Second Place - Conclusion of Beirut AAHRN Human Rights Moot Court Competition
On 21-23 September 2012, a student team from Birzeit University (BZU) took part in the 2012 Human Rights Moot Court Competition organised by the Arab Academic Human Rights Network (AAHRN). With conclusion of the competition, AAHRN announced BZU team won second place in the oral argument round. Law students from Morocco, Lebanon and Jordan also participated in the moot court competition.
Membership on the BZU team included Mrs. Narmin Siyam, legal research at BZU Institute of Law (IoL) and student team coordinator, as well as four law students: Amani Sarras, Abdullah Abu Eid, Fadi Abu Ta’ah and Shahd Awartani. Advocate Nasser ar Rayyes, Legal Advisor to AL-HAQ, provided mentoring to the BZU team on participation requirements and moot court competition techniques. Mentoring was supervised by Dr. Mustafa Mar’i, IoL staff member.
Based on a set of international conventions and judicial precedents, the hypothetical case operating as the basis of the competition centred on human rights protection and defence in the Arab context. The BZU team examined the case, wrote a legal memorial, and presented an oral argument in front of human rights experts acting as the fictive Arab Court on Human Rights.
Participation in moot court competitions introduces a major added value to law education. Moot court practice has the advantage of diversifying teaching methods as well as enhancing research capacity building, pleadings and presentation skills, argumentation, etc.
BZU participation was facilitated thanks to the IoL, which formally joined the AAHRN in December 2011. IoL membership crowned a year-long cooperation with the Network’s member universities. Since early 2012, IoL has played an increasingly significant role within the Network. Members on the AAHRN include:
• Faculty of Law at Hassan II University in Casablanca, Morocco;
• Faculty of Law at University of Jordan in Amman, Jordan;
• Human Rights Center at Beirut Arab University in Beirut, Lebanon;
• Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law in Lund, Sweden; and
• Department of Law at Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
The stated mission of the AAHRN is to strengthen the capacity of academic institutions in formulating and disseminating knowledge on human rights topics responding to the reality and needs of society, with the main objectives to strengthen the institutional capacity of academic institutions to plan, design, organise and implement teaching and research in human rights; encourage exchange and dialogue between academic institutions; and strengthen the resource base of human rights materials in Arabic. Information on the AAHRN on respective members is accessible on www.aahrn.net/en.
