The International Council for Adult Education (ICAE) organized an international Public Tribunal to explore how violations of the right to education in different countries can lead to juridical action. The Public Tribunal was held on September 19 at UQAM's Salle Marie-Gérin-Lajoie. Co-sponsoring the event were the Canadian Institute for Adult Education, the Canadian Commission for UNESCO, and the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM) The seven participants who presented their testimonies were: María Clara Di Pierro (Acao Educativa, Brazil), Sofía Valdivielso (Gender and Education Office, Spain), Vasanta Kannabiran (Asmita Resource Centre for Women, India, Lamis Abu Nahleh ( Birzeit University, Jordan), Lamine Kane (Association Nationale pour l'alphabetisation et la formation adultes -ANAFA, Senegal), Vilma McClenan, Caribbean Regional Council for Adult Education, Jamaica), Daniel Baril (Institut Canadien d'éducation des adultes, Canada). Read their testimonies (1) (2). Three Canadian judges were present: Juanita Westmoreland-Traore (Quebec Courts judge), Lucie Lamarche (professor of Social Rights UQAM), and Pierre Marois (president of the Quebec Commission for Human Rights). The moderator was Jean-Michel Leprince, a journalist of Radio-Canada. Mr. Roch Denis, the Rector of UQAM delivered the opening remarks.

The main idea of the Public Tribunal was to give visibility, sensitize and raise the awareness of the invited audience in relation to the violation to the Right to Education. At the same time, it sought to reaffirm, as a global education network, that education is a right and that its violation must be sanctioned. This issue should be considered seriously following the consensus expressed in the absolute priority for Education For All, and taking into consideration the critical proposition to be debated by the World Trade Organization regarding the privatization of services, among which education is included. This idea of a public tribunal was derived from a proposal presented by Sergio Haddad, Açao Educativa, Brazil, about the urgent need to denounce, on juridical basis, the violations to the right to education and explore possible actions in international tribunals. Aside from the seven principal presenters, representatives from different countries attending the ICAE-sponsored Workshop on the Follow Up to CONFINTEA 6 delivered their testimonies before the judges and the invited audience. The countries they represented were Bolivia, El Salvador, Hungary, Japan, Malaysia, México, Mozambique, New Zealand, South Africa, United Kingdom, Zambia.