Tabeetha School, Jaffa

Special projects

Lead Teachers: Mrs. Linda Rosenthal and Mr. Paul Spencer Model International Criminal Court is a programme for high school students from all over the world, aiming to educate and raise awareness for human rights and their protection. In November 2018, a group of Tabeetha’s secondary pupils took part in the MICC School in Krzyzowa Poland. My MICC experience by Fiona Imperial I can recall my interest in the MICC since 9th grade, watching my peers coming home from the programme and sharing their experience.

The main focus of the MICC school is to educate young people about human rights hoping to create an impact. During our workshops we learned in depth about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We engaged in group dialogues discussing how an individual’s perception of human rights is shaped by its surroundings. This concept highlighted the individual and collective responsibility of people in enforcing human rights. Then we were given the task to address the human rights violations within our countries and present ideas to solve them. Within that setting, we were given a role of being change-makers by seeking solutions to important human rights issues. MICC enabled us to obtain a legal perspective by studying some of the greatest human rights violation committed in history. I was a judge on the Bikindi case. Simon Bikindi was a musician and a songwriter. His music was utilised during the genocide to fuel extremist sentiment. Initially, my co-judges and I immediately condemned the Bikindi case from an emotional perspective. However, the legal training sessions and workshops taught us to look deeper and challenged our emotional perspectives further. The training sessions and workshops enhanced our critical thinking skills and enabled us to establish an impartial judgement with a legal basis. The greatest skill MICC taught me was the ability to look at circumstances through different angles to gain a better understanding of the issues or conflicts we face. MICC is an amazing programme. It empowers young adults by educating them about human rights, international law, individual and collective responsibility in establishing a just society. It taught me that a fair trial is the basis for sustainable justice and the protection of human rights.

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