Asian championships in disarray

This is a post I would prefer not to have to write but it is the biggest breaking news in debating in quite some time and has to be covered. As many of you will know there has been an ongoing saga about an Asian championships tournament this year. At the start of the year there were two "Asian championships" the AUT hosted by MMU in Malaysia and AUDC hosted by EWU in Bangladesh. Following an extensive campaign for a single tournament MMU, stepped aside in the interests of Asian debating and an impressive series of promises from the EWU-Org-Comm.

Since then there has been a number of issues with the organisation tournament. The concerns most people seemed to focus on were security related (following a military mutiny in Bangladesh) however the more serious ones seemed to be organisational issues as costs increased and questions were raised about having the same individual as both Convenor and Chief Adjudicator.

In order to address these concerns the AUDC council sent a team to do a site visit. During this visit a number of reassurances were given about security, finance and organisation. As a result of these assurances the AUDC council decided to continue with EWU as hosts. Less than 2 weeks later the EWU vice chancellor has been in touch with the AUDC council and it now turns out that some of the assurances about what EWU would provide were not agreed with EWU.

The result is that the tournament cannot now go ahead as originally planned. Three options have been presented to the Asian Debating community to vote on. They basically break down between remaining with EWU but with a reduced quality of tournament, delaying the tournament in the hope EWU org comm can organise a tournament or moving to another host.

If you want more detail and background visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AUDC/messages

Here is the e-mail outlining the current status:

Dear Friends,
After the Site Visit, the Exco got in touch with the EWU Vice Chancellor to follow-up on certain promises and commitments made by the EWU orgcomm. Regrettably, we have just recently been informed by the EWU Vice Chancellor that he was not aware of some of the promises made by the EWU Orgcomm to the AUDC Union, both during the bid presentation as well as during the site visit.

He has since informed us that having reviewed these promises, as well as EWU's current finances, they will only be able to provide the following:

1. Registration Waiver as well as complimentary hotel accommodation for the CA, 4 DCAs as well as the Tab Director.
2. Security for the hotel and all venues, as these will be provided by the government.

They will no longer be able to give full adj subsidy, nor will they be able to fund airfare for the adj core. The adj core will have to come at their own expense.

The EWU VC is also requesting for an extension of a month and a half or two months to allow the school to get more sponsorships. We have explained to the VC that this will make it difficult for teams to attend because of schedule concerns, and he has just assured us yesterday that they will be able to host the tournament on the original dates if 60 teams will be registered by April 15.

Because of recent events, the EWU Vice Chancellor also insists that the CA and the Convener be replaced. The EWU Administration will choose a new Convener, while the AUDC Union can simply promote one of the existing DCAs to the CA-position.

Given these developments, the Union has three foreseeable options, all with its own pros and cons:

(Option 1) We retain EWU as hosts and push for the tournament to be held on the original dates. -- For this to happen, we will need to work together to have 60 teams registered and paid by April 15. This will be advantageous for those who have already bought plane tickets for Dhaka on the said dates, and for those who would have trouble attending a tournament if it is not held in May.

(Option 2) We give EWU a month and a half or two months extension to adequately prepare for a tournament and get more sponsorships. There is no assurance, however, that an additional two months will result in full adj subsidies being reinstated. This has the advantage of a potentially smoother-running tournament that will still be held in Dhaka.

(Option 3) We move on to the next ratified host, College of St. Benilde in Manila, Philippines. The exco has spoken to them and they are willing and able to host the tournament, but would most likely be able to host it only by September 2009, during school break. We will of course ask EWU to refund all registration fees paid/wired if the Union decides on this option; but we may not be as successful in requesting a refund from airline companies for those who have already bought their tickets. Of course, all promises with regards to a separate unity session and a DCA from the All Asians will still be upheld by the exco.

I know none of the options above are optimal--I am sure everyone would rather have the tournament as originally promised and planned. Unfortunately, according to the EWU VC, this is no longer possible, so we have to pull together as a united Asian Debating Community and decide how we can best resolve this situation.

To this end, we would like to request the help of the President of the All Asian Debate Community, Jason Jarvis, to kindly facilitate the voting process for his constituents.

The exco, on the other hand, will be asking the national representatives to help us get union reps' votes regarding which option to take. We need to reach a decision soon to allow our chosen host to continue their preparations. The EWU Vice Chancellor will be expecting an update from the exco with regards to our choice by Sunday morning, to know if they should proceed with organizing. We understand that meeting this deadline may not be possible, but we hope to get your cooperation in expediting this voting process as this is a decision that will affect us all.

Much thanks in advance for everyone's cooperation and understanding. Should anyone have constructive comments or other suggestions for how we can best resolve this, we would be glad to hear from you.
Sincerely

Estelle Osorio
Chair, AUDC Exco

Note: Edited following request

Monash Debating Review 2009

The Monash Association of Debaters is currently producing the 2009 edition of its annual publication, the Monash Debating Review. The MDR is a scholarly, interdisciplinary journal that addresses strategic and substantive issues of interest to debaters.

Submissions are sought from debaters or any party with an interest in debating or debating issues. All submissions must be in English, and we strongly encourage participation from those overseas, as this publication has a strong international focus.

Submissions:
- Should be 2000 to 3000 words in length, with proper annotations in accordance with the system that will be updated soon on the MAD website at www.monashdebaters.com.

- Should be sent to the editorial committee via Michael Kotrly, the Editor in Chief by e-mail at kotrly@gmail.com in Word or RTF by May 31, 2009. Submissions will be accepted on a rolling basis so early submissions are encouraged.

- Should include a SEPARATE document stating the author’s name, University and debating society where applicable, contact e-mail address, postal address, word count and the title of the submission. Do not place any identifying information in the body of your work.

- Joint authorship is permitted

- Publication is open to all interested participants regardless of enrolment at university or membership of a recognised debating society. Submissions must, however, be in some way relevant to debating.

- Any queries requests for further information should be sent to kotrly@gmail.com.

Submissions must focus either on an issue that may concern the international debating community at large or a current event or issue of international significance and how it would present itself in a debate. The previous edition included essays on the politics of climate change, tactics for Worlds, the role of a whip speaker, the substance of style, new arguments from new epistimologies, and debating in Africa. Broadly speaking, submissions should be one of three types:

1. An essay that outlines and then evaluates the arguments for and against a chosen topic. Evaluations should be based upon a discussion of the relevant evidence, and an analysis of the consistency of arguments.

2. A comprehensive historical / political overview of a particular World “hot spot”. Examples would include the Balkans, the Middle East, the Persian Gulf, Central Africa, and East Asia.

3. An article focusing on tactical and strategic issues in debating.

The Monash Debating Review is a refereed journal, i.e. each submission will be evaluated by one or more referees, with the author’s name remaining undisclosed. Short referees’ reports will be sent to each author after submission. In submitting an essay, the author agrees to transfer copyright, including electronic copyright, to the Monash Debating Review. We reserve the right to make changes to the essay before publication; these will not affect the substance of the submission.

Michael Kotrly, Canada
Editor

Nick Bibby, South Korea
Sing Chi, Hong Kong
Paralabh Gupta, Australia
Max Harris, New Zealand
Subeditors

Tallinn Intervarsity 2009

Tallinn is proud to present its Tallinn IV to take place (again, after a little break) from Friday 7th of May until Sunday 9th of May. Registration opens on the 23rd of March and lasts until the 24th of April.

Registration
Our team cap is set at 32 (no institutional cap), with a registration fee of 25 € per debater and 15 € for adjudicators. No charge for teams and judges who have reached break-rounds at EUDC/WUDC/Oxbridge competitions. The n-1 rule applies for all institutions and we would like to see many adequate adjudicators attending. Payment possible on registration and via bank transfer in advance.

The registration for Tallinn Intervarsity 2009 will be active from Monday, 23rd of March until the 24th of April (23:59, GMT +2) on the following link
http://www.eformular.com/iivikakalden/tallinniv09.html
Notice that this one is to be filled INDIVIDUALLY.

Tournament
We'll be running a 5 round competition, which is spread out on two days of debating. There is breaking to semis but no ESL, sorry guys. Preliminary rounds feature 5 minute speeches, beyond that you will have 7 minutes to speak your mind.

Our judging team:
CA: Uve Poom (Tallinn)
DCA: Will Jones (Oxford)
DCA: Rich Penny (Helsinki)
Very Special Guest: Leela Koenig (Leiden)

Transportation
Tallinn University is situated in a walking distance from the centre of the city, some would even claim it is in the centre. Numerous public transports connect this place with the rest of Tallinn so it should be no problem to come and go (even when drunk).

If your problem of getting to the spot exists on a broader scale, i.e. "Where is Tallinn?", there are several possibilities. Firstly, check the map, okay? Then, if that didn't scare you off, there are Easyjet flights from Stansted, London to Tallinn, where booking early might save you some money, but Tallinn Airport is able to cater a variety of airlines so check your options. Perhaps a better way for some to reach us, is to first go to Riga, even if you're not from Latvia, buses from there cost about 15 € and take about 5 hours to get here, but the plane tickets with Ryanair make up for the re-route...

Schedule (as usual, slight changes may occur):

Thursday, 7th of May
18.00 – Public debate: Peep Sürje vs Rein Raud in the Rotermann Centre (most likely something about education, as usual)
20.00 – Dinner. Mack Bar-B-Que (recommended, meaning, here you'll meet the debating crowd)
21:30 – Sauna. Reval Olympia Hotel.

Friday, 8th of May
Arrival and check-in
13:00 – Lunch. Vapiano (recommended)
16.00 – Registration opens at Tallinn University
16.50 – Registration closes
17.00 – Tallinn Intervarsity 2009 opening ceremony
17.30 – Round I
19.00 – Round II
21.00 – Dinner. Lost Continent. (Not Australia but the pub actually next to the university)
22.30 – Party

Saturday, 9th of May
Breakfast
09.40 – Registration closes
10.00 – Round III
12.00 – Round IV
13.30 – Lunch
14.30 – Round V
17.00 – Semifinals
18.30 – Final
20.00 – Dinner for the last time in Vertigo or C'est la Vie
Party @ Privé. Don't worry, we'll carry you home.

If you have questions, email me at martinkiik@gmail.com.

If I have some major updates, I'll let you know.

If you know people who don't know about this event, tell them!

And if you haven't already found this (shame!):www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=28513549823

-- Martin Kiik,
Tallinn IV team

Philippine Intercollegiate Debate Championship (PIDC 2009)‏

Greetings! The Philippine Inter-collegiate Debating Championship (PIDC) 2009, the largest and most prestigious national tournament in the Philippines in the Asians format hosted by the UP Debate Society, will be held on April 15-20, 2009, at the University of the Philippines, Diliman, campus. For eight years now, the UP Debate Society has organized an Asian Parliamentary tournament that has served as an arena for competitive debate and public speaking, underscoring the youth's active involvement in critical discourse.

The PIDC 2009 Board of Directors is pleased to announce that we are opening 6 team slots for non-breaking, international teams in this remarkable national tournament. PIDC 2009 will provide a venue for students of all backgrounds and academic direction to test their ideas and opinions on some of the most important issues of our day. As it gathers over 300 participants from the Philippines and Asia, indeed, the tournament is one of the best realms for such enriching debates and outstanding adjudication. With the efficiency that comes with organizational expertise, the organizers of PIDC 2009 also seek to provide a remarkable experience that embraces fun and camaraderie alongside competitive debate. Participants will also be treated to three great socials events—Opening Night, Break Night Party, and Championship Dinner—which are also some of the most anticipated parts of PIDC 2009.

Please visit http://www.pidc-online.com and download the tournament profile for the comprehensive tournament information and registration details. For international teams, the submission of the Phase 2 registration forms through http://www.pidc-online.com is on April 8, 2009 (Wednesday) and you may pay for your registration fee at the on-site registration on April 15, 2009 at the UP Diliman Campus. The granting of slots for international teams will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

Should you have further questions or concerns about PIDC 2009, please do not hesitate to contact us at +639178862232, or send us a message at pidc2009@.... You may also visit www.pidc-online.com, our official website, for regular updates and announcements.

Thank you very much, and we look forward to seeing you at PIDC 2009.

Anna Arcellana
Communications Director
PIDC 2009