International Law (including Inkundla yeHlabathi / World Forum simulation)

Under South Africa's democratic, constitutional order, training in international law is as vital for domestic legal practice as for work with international and regional organisations such as the United Nations or the African Union. In the preliminary year of the Bachelor of Laws degree (LLB) - year 2 of 4 in the undergraduate stream and year 1 of 3 in the postgraduate stream - students are required to complete a compulsory, introductory course in international law. This course is animated by the tension between the classical, state-centred model of the international legal system and concepts such as international human rights, individual criminal responsibility and the common heritage of humanity which are challenging and reshaping the international legal landscape. Topics covered include the sources of international law, international legal personality, the relationship between domestic law and international law, rights to territory, water, air and space, State jurisdiction; the regime of state responsibility, the settlement of disputes; the use of force, the United Nations, the African Union and the influence of international human rights on South African constitutional interpretation. The course is accompanied by an innovative tutorial simulation known as Inkundla yeHlabathi (World Forum), in which students learn to apply the rules and methods of international law by simulating the work of legal advisers to ten African States.The course is delivered through a combination of formal, doctrinal lectures, small-group tutorials and the Inkundla yeHlabathi simulation. A compilation of cases and materials, the e-casebook, is made available to students both online and on CD-ROM for offline use. The University of Cape Town implementation of Sakai (known locally as Vula) is central to teaching and learning in this course. The course is profiled on the website of the Department of Public Law of the University of Cape Town (www.publiclaw.uct.ac.za/courses/international_law/).