Deadline: 11 April 2020
The Open Society Justice Initiative (Justice Initiative) and Katiba Institute (KI) invite suitably qualified candidates to apply for the 2nd Africa Human Rights Litigation Course scheduled to take place in Nairobi, Kenya from 17th – 21st August 2020.
The course encourages its participants to approach human rights litigation strategically, viewing litigating a human rights case as one step in the process of achieving social change. It includes modules that examine the steps involved in strategic litigation,such as case selection, client care and forum choice. It also uses case studies to explore how to build a strong evidential record in support of the case, howto develop campaigning and advocacy to raise awareness of the issues involved,as well as how to implement a successful judgment. Other presentations will focus on litigating before regional human rights institutions; community engagement with respect to litigation, and litigating on behalf of groups.
The curriculum will cover a range of human rights tribunals within the African regional human rights system, including the ECOWAS Court of Justice, African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, East Africa Development Community Tribunal, COMESA Court, among others. To the extent of their relevance, tribunals in other regions, e.g. Europe and the Americas may be referenced. The course will also allow participants to choose specialist seminars to examine key issues in their field. In the first year,these have included the subjects of discrimination, freedom of information,women’s rights; civic space, pre-trial detention and socio-economic rights.
Eligibility Criteria
Participants need to be practicing lawyers with some experience in human rights litigation and should ideally have two to seven years’ experience in human rights practice. Participants will be required to submit examples of cases and issues that they are or have been involved in. Instruction will be in English.
Application
- Evidence of professional experience: Please attach your CV. Include all relevant professional experience (paid or voluntary), including your roles and responsibilities. You will also have the opportunity to list relevant training and professional courses in the form in a separate question.
- Your statement of purpose: This is a very important section of the form and significant weight is placed on this to decide between short-listed candidates. In this statement, you must answer the question of how you meet the eligibility criteria and how this course will assist your human rights practice.
- A reference: Please list two references. This is not a letter of recommendation, simply the contact information of someone who can attest to your suitability for this course, preferably your current or most recent manager. The reference may be contacted at the short-listing stage.
- Faculty: The summer school faculty consists of practitioners from the Justice Initiative and its human rights litigation partners, including Katiba Institute combining both an academic analysis and a practical assessment of different human rights situations faced by lawyers and activists around the world.
For more information, visit https://www.katibainstitute.org/call-for-applications-the-2nd-africa-human-rights-litigation-course/