News release

28 November 2014

Tehran (ICRC) – A regional moot-court competition in international humanitarian law took place in Tehran for the first time on 26 and 27 November, with the National Law University of Lucknow, India emerging as the winner. The first four teams earned the right to represent their countries at next year’s Asia-Pacific Red Cross International Humanitarian Law Moot-Court Competition, which will be held in Hong Kong.

Twelve universities from Bangladesh, India, Iran, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka took part in the competition, which was co-organized by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Red Crescent Society of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the National Committee of Humanitarian Law, the Iranian Association for United Nations Studies and the Shahre Danesh Institute of Law. More than 50 students, their coaches and 25 judges participated.

“In these simulated trials, law students are given the opportunity to learn by doing: they have to prepare arguments and represent themselves before judges,” said Olivier Martin, head of the ICRC mission in Iran. “The competition also helps students test their knowledge of international humanitarian law while improving their oral advocacy skills.”

In cooperation with the Iranian Red Crescent and the National Committee of Humanitarian Law, the ICRC is working to spread knowledge of international humanitarian law in Iran. Moot-court competitions are one way of achieving this aim.

For further information, please contact:
Mojgan Mohammad, ICRC Tehran, tel: +98 21 22 64 58 21-4 or +98 919 830 11 61