A team composed of three students from the University of Oslo took part in the 35th round of the Jean Pictet Moot Court Competition, which took place between 3-10 April in Durrës, Albania. The team was composed of Fatemeh Yavari, Dagmar Matúšu and Alma Hvoslef. This is the second UiO team to take part in what is the largest international competition on international humanitarian law (IHL).
The team was coached by Professor Gentian Zyberi, who is responsible for the course on International Humanitarian Law at the Faculty of Law. In preparation for the competition, the team members went through several rounds of online training via Zoom. Besides Gentian, the team was able to speak to Margarita Avramtcheva, a former Picteist from the UiO first team to the Pictet, who conveyed her experiences from the competition. The team had the opportunity to talk also to Dr Camilla Guldahl Cooper (Norwegian Defense College) to get the perspective of a legal military adviser.
Alma Hvoslef is one of the three Jean-Pictet competition participants who won the Gilbert Apollis prize for the best speaker. Each of the members of the team has shared a few of their impressions from this one-week experience:
A lifetime experience
Fatemeh:
The Pictet moot court competition is a precious experience to learn how to take a practical approach towards IHL. At a very professional level, the participants attain a wealth of theoretical knowledge & legal practical skills not only in the field of IHL, but also in various areas of international law. I am very glad to get the chance to have such an extraordinary experience and Pictet is a competition not just to win, but also to learn & take the law out of the books!
Dagmar:
The Jean Pictet Competition is an experience of a lifetime and I will never regret the decision to participate, even though the preparation during the current pandemic was not always a bowl of cherries. It is a unique experience where one can find himself in the shoes of an ICRC delegate, a military legal advisor or even a member of an armed group! The slogan of this 35th edition was “compete, meet and enjoy” and I believe that all the fellow “Picteists” would agree with me that we fulfilled each one of them. So, if you want to meet amazing people from all around the world who share the same humanitarian spirit and passion for IHL, you definitely have to apply for the Pictet. I can guarantee that it will be a week of your life that you never forget.
Alma:
Jean Pictet is really something special. I believe it is something that has to be experienced in order to truly understand the character of the competition. The motto “Taking the Law out of the books” is a good description of the legal part, but the competition is so much more. Being surrounded by like-minded people from all over the world and share cultures, ideas and love for International Humanitarian Law – that is what I appreciated the most.
Professor Zyberi expressed his admiration for the dedication of the team members and their hard work under difficult circumstances. He adds that it is important to continue to have UiO teams participating in this and other important international moot court competitions, so that our university students can learn more about IHL or other fields, compete with their colleagues from all four corners of the globe, and strike new friendships.