10/04/2001 (Agence Europe) - Bioethics is the theme of the 17th European "René Cassin" Human Rights Competition which will taken place from 9-12 April at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg. Some 200 law and/or politics students from 62 universities will be competing on this topic. Their theses and cases considered by a jury made up of Simone Veil, former French Health Minister and erstwhile President of the European Parliament (who is now a member of the "Conseil constitutionnel"), Françoise Tulkens, Belgian judge at the European Court of Human Rights, Philippe Léger, French judge at the European Court of Justice and Bernard Strin, Member of the French Conseil d'Etat. Twenty-four countries - including Cameroon (2 universities), Colombia (2 universities), Morocco, Moldavia, Romania (6 universities), Russia (2 universities) and Slovenia - are taking part in this year's event, the most prestigious international law competition in the French language.