The Maiden Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara Human Rights Moot Court Competition, 2020
The NHRC in partnership with the Faculty of Law, University of The Gambia (UTG) brings to you the maiden Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara Human Rights Moot Competition. The human rights moot court competition is designed to be hosted by the UTG, Faculty of Law as a flagship program supported and funded by NHRC. This proposed moot court competition aligns with the core functions which includes the promotion of respect for human rights through awareness creation and education. Therefore, Faculty of Law provides a unique opportunity for the NHRC to train and engage the emerging generation of legal practitioners on contemporary human rights and constitutional issues through moot competition. During this competition students will argue a human rights hypothetical case before the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights. The 2020 hypothetical case focuses on issues related to section 5 of the Public Order Act of the Republic of Zamanda, the caste system among the Lendi ethnic group and enforced disappearances. These issues were framed considering the current country context of the Gambia. The winners of this prestigious competition will be awarded cash prizes and have the rare opportunity to undertake a six-month paid internship with the NHRC. The moot is named after the late Gambian President, His Excellency, Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara in recognition of his efforts in laying the foundations of the regional human rights mechanism on the African continent. At a time when the African continent experienced human rights violations and authoritarianism, Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara played a key role in the drafting of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights which today is the foundational document for the protection of human rights in Africa. His support for the drafting process is memorialised in the name of the eventually adopted treaty, the Banjul Charter. Therefore, this moot competition will nurture the values of Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara and popularise the Banjul Charter, as well as other regional and international human rights instruments amongst law students at the Faculty of Law. Eligibility The applicants must be in their second year or above at the Faculty of Law of the UTG. Registration • Participants must team up in a group of two. • Each registered team will be designated a number, which each team will use throughout the competition to identify itself. • Eight teams (8) will be selected from the memorials submitted by each team. The top eight (8) memorials will advance to the preliminaries. • Each team must submit two (2) memorials (i.e for the applicants and respondent; • Deadline for registration is on the 19 October 2020. • Names of the team members and matriculation must be sent to sbah@utg.edu.gm on or before 19 October 2020. Memorials Each memorial must be composed of the following: • A standard cover page; • Must begin with jurisdiction and admissibility; • Each issue must be argued separately; and • Prayers. • Must not exceed 2000 words including footnotes, if these are used; • Spacing: Double-spaced; • Must be submitted in Microsoft Word; • Font type: Arial; and Font size: 12. NB: One (1) copy of the memorials for each side (one for the Applicants and one for the Respondent) should be submitted, to reach the organisers on or before 28 October 2020. Memorials should be sent as attachments with an email message to the following addresses: sbah@utg.edu.gm ; abdouazizsaho@gmail.com ; njieb@gm-nhrc.org