U.P.
Law Students Win International Moot Court Competition in HK
14 March 2005
Law students from the
University of the Philippines’ College of Law brought honor to the country
when they bested 10 other Asian universities to finish first and second in
the 3rd Hong Kong Red Cross International Humanitarian Law Moot
Court Competition held on 11-12 March 2005 in Hong Kong.
The team of Ms. Celia
Torres-Villanueva and Mr. William Varias was adjudged “The Best Team”
after defeating another duo from UP composed of Mr. Mark Rabe and Mr.
Marlon Marquez in the final round held at the Hong Kong High Court. Mr.
Rabe also won the award for “Best Oralist” during the competition. The
coach for both teams is Prof. Harry Roque of the UP College of Law.
“The level of advocacy
displayed by both (teams) is of a remarkably high quality,” said Mr.
Anthony Neoh, Senior Counsel and Harvard Professor, one of the
competition’s judges.
The winning team was awarded a
trip to Switzerland for a visit to the International Committee of the Red
Cross and UN Headquarters courtesy of the Swiss government. The prize was
awarded to the winning team by the Hon. Andrew Li, Chief Justice of HK,
and Swiss Consul General Francois Barras at the HK Red Cross headquarters
on 12 March 2005.
Sponsored by the Hong Kong Red
Cross with support from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC),
the Faculty of Law of the University of Hong Kong and the School of Law of
the City University of Hong Kong, the competition aims to raise awareness
among law students, practitioners, and the general public about the
significance of international humanitarian law in world affairs.
This is the second straight
year that a Philippine team garnered an award for its participation in the
competition. In 2004, a team from the Ateneo de Manila School of Law won
the “Best Memorial” award for its written submission.
The judges for the two-day
competition were from the Hong Kong judiciary, the Legislative Council in
Hong Kong, the Consular Corps, and Hong Kong law practitioners. The final
round judges were Mr. Justice Patrick Chan of the HK Court of Final Appeal
(Supreme Court), Mr. Justice Timothy Gall of the HK High Court, and Mr.
Neoh.
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