The 2019 Elections have proved one disquieting fact: the youth are uninvolved in their own political future, do not vote and therefore do not utilise their right to democracy. It is important that young people are oriented into the demands and ethos of the constitutional dispensation. With schools being viewed as catalysts for social change, they are the focal point around which the constitutional values and the principles of the supreme law can be instilled. Since its inception in 2011, the National Schools Moot Programme has managed to explore various sections of the Bill of Rights such as rights, equality, freedom of expression and human dignity. It offers a platform for young people to experiment with the actual application of the country’s supreme law. The Moot Court exercise is not only about the law, but the founding values that underpin the country’s Constitutional Law.
The DBE, in partnership with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, and the South African Human Rights Commission will collaboratively host the ninth National Schools Moot Court Competition Finals from 25 to 29 September 2019, at the University of Pretoria and the Constitutional Court. All provincial rounds will be hosted between 12 August and 07 September 2019 with the various provincial coordinators submitting the selected essays to the national coordinators on 27 July 2019.
The Programme invites all Grade 10 to 11 learners to prepare an essay on a fictional Constitutional Court case as a team of two learners, both as applicants and respondents to the case. During the National Finals, each province is represented by a delegation of eight learners (four teams), preparing them to argue as both applicants and respondents during the finals at the Constitutional Court, where Judges form part of the bench. The best essay writers and oral argument presenters are offered bursaries to study towards law at a university of their choice. The National Finalists will represent South Africa at the International Schools Moot Court Competition in The Hague, Netherlands which will take place at during 2020.
https://www.education.gov.za/Programmes/MootCourt.aspx