Siyavuya Mzantsi
THE Springfield Convent for Girls team has won the National Schools Moot Court competition held at the Constitutional Court at the weekend.
They were among 33 teams that made it to the finals from around the country.
The competition was created to empower and encourage pupils, especially those in grades 10 and 11, to understand and relate human rights concepts, values and principles to daily life activities.
Eight pupils from Bergvliet, the Cape Academy, Wynberg Girls and Springfield high schools won the provincial leg of the competition.
Springfield Grade 11 pupil Claire Rankin, 17, said she gained good experience in the competition as she wants to be a state attorney in future.
“Being in the finals was a fantastic achievement. And to win the competition was just amazing. It was so unbelievable that we won and it was such a good experience. It was a really tough competition,” she said.
Rankin added that they sometimes faced intimidating and tough opposition teams, but the judges were even more difficult.
“I’m interested in law. It’s something I want to do as my career. The Constitutional Court protects human rights. That is what I want to do. One of the teams we went up against was a Johannesburg team, they were so brilliant and they knew their stuff. I was among the pupils who were selected to represent my school. The school always participates in the competition.”
The pupils were coached by legal experts in the run-up to the provincial finals.
Regional head of Justice Hishaam Mohamed said the department was proud of Springfield’s achievement in coming tops out of 33 schools in the final national round.
“The competition was an opportunity for the legal profession to engage with the promotion of the constitution and the rule of law in our society. Practising attorneys and teachers have all assisted the pupils step-by-step through this process,” he said.
“The Springfield achievement will help inspire and motivate other pupils, especially in the townships, to take part in the competition. We want to produce more black lawyers for this country.”
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