Aceh Students Take National High School Crown

Students from Aceh, where schools were burnt down during three decades of separatist conflict that only ended six years ago and smashed by one of the world's most damaging tsunamis in 2004, showed they could rise from the ashes and win the top crown of high school debating in Indonesia. This is the first ever victory of any team from Aceh in a national English debating championship.

#6 Aceh (Cut Maghfirah Faisal, Rahmad Nugraha, Pocut Adila Nadiva) argued for the motion "This House Believes That Establishing Democracy Through Military Force is Justifiable" and convinced 5 out of 9 grand final adjudicators that the team should win the 2011 National Schools Debating Championships, giving hot favourites #1 Bali (Revaldi Wirabuana, Revian Wirabuana, Bika Alice Pidada) a heartbreaking loss.

Aceh last year also reached the NSDC final but had to bow to a team from West Java. The 2011 Aceh team came from SMA Modal Bangsa, the jewel of the province's school system, while Bali trusted a trio from SMA 4 Denpasar who won the recent ALSA UI E-Comp, the country's top school-based debating contest, to represent the tourism-driven province. NSDC is province-based. This year's final was the first time two non-Java teams met in the penultimate debate of a national high school debating competition.

Bali vs Aceh in First Non-Java Final in a National School Comp

#1 Bali and #6 Aceh will battle it out for the crown of the 2011 National Schools Debating Championships tonight after beating #4 North Sumatra and #2 Jakarta respectively in the semifinals. This is the first time two non-Java teams meet in the final of a national high school debating competition. Aceh also reached last year's NSDC grandfinal while the Bali team is supported by members of the SMA 4 Denpasar squad that won the recent ALSA UI E-Comp, the country's premier school-based competition. NSDC is province-based.

While non-Java teams have never won any national varsity debating tournament, it is a different story in the high school category where the competition is more geographically balanced. NSDC is the latest progression from the High School Debating Camp in 2000, the inaugural national scale high school debating event in Indonesia, and the trophy then went to a non-Java team from Bengkulu that defeated a Jakarta squad. Although since 2001 Java teams championed almost all of the derivative forms of HSDC, Bali won the 2006 edition and non-Java squads have regularly reached the semis and grandfinals.

National High School Debates Reach Semifinals

#1 Bali will meet #4 North Sumatra while #2 Jakarta will face #6 Aceh in the semifinals of the 2011 National Schools Debating Championships tomorrow. The government-run NSDC is the premier province-based high school debate competition in Indonesia with origins from the High School Debating Camp held by Universitas Indonesia in 2000 that produced the country's first representatives to the World Schools Debating Championships. Like its predecessor, NSDC is part of the selection process for the coming WSDC team. The current Team Indonesia, which came from last year's NSDC, will compete in the 2011 WSDC in Dundee, Scotland next August.

The break list was as follows:

1. Bali
2. Jakarta
3. Yogyakarta
4. North Sumatra
5. South Sulawesi
6. Aceh
7. East Java
8. Central Java
9. Banten
10. West Java
11. West Kalimantan
12. South Kalimantan
13. East Kalimantan
14. West Nusa Tenggara
15. East Nusa Tenggara
16. Riau Islands

NUEDC Forces Hasanuddin BP to Change Date Again

The National Universities English Debating Championships' sudden announcement that the finale round will take place from June 20 to 25 has forced Makassar-based Universitas Hasanuddin to move its inaugural British Parliamentary tournament to July 1-3, its second change of dates. First, it was slated for June 17-19 and then it was moved to June 24-26. Hasanuddin BP will be eastern Indonesia's first ever competition using the four-side format. Following the trend set by Jakarta-based Binus schools, Hasanuddin BP will also open its doors to international teams and boast a foreign deputy adjudicator, Darren Savuriar from Malaysia's UCTI.

NUEDC 2011 Participation List Starts to Shape Up

The National Universities English Debating Championships will take place on June 20-25 at Semarang-based Universitas Diponegoro and most regions have found their representatives. Binus International (Astrio Feligent/Christian Leonardo) won the Jakarta qualifying round today, completing the line up from the main island of Java where most of Indonesia's debating powerhouses reside. No university outside of Java has won any national-scale debating contest although several IVED champions graduated from non-Java high schools.

NUEDC, which uses the British parliamentary format, is divided into 12 qualifying regions loosely following the demarcation used by Indonesia's private college coordinating body or Kopertis. This year, 8 teams from each region (96 pairs) can go to the main round. Each school can only send one team. The chief adjudicator in Semarang will be Luthfie Abdurrahman from Institut Teknologi Bandung who championed NUEDC in 2009. The deputies are Muhammad Pandu, the other half of the victorious ITB pair; Buna Rizal Rahman from host Undip, who won last year's NUEDC; and Bryan Gunawan from Universitas Binus, the best ranked Indonesian adjudicator in the recent United Asian Debating Championships.


Here are the schools that have qualified for the main NUEDC debates (regional winners are in capitals): 


Region 1 (North Sumatra/Aceh)
UNIVERSITAS MUHAMMADIYAH SUMATRA UTARA (Ahmad Thanthawi/Selamat Husin), STIK Mikroskil, Universitas Sumatra Utara, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Politeknik Medan, STIE IT&B, Universitas Negeri Medan, ASM Cendana


Region 2 (Bengkulu/South Sumatra/Bangka Belitung/Lampung)
UNIVERSITAS SRIWIJAYA (Joko Dwi Santoso/Syahrima Nazariyah), STBA Teknokrat, Politeknik Sriwijaya, Universitas Bina Darma, STMIK Teknokrat, Universitas Lampung, Universitas Bangka Belitung, Universitas Baturaja

Region 3 (Greater Jakarta)
BINUS INTERNATIONAL (Astrio Feligent/Christian Leonardo), Universitas Indonesia, Universitas Bakrie, Universitas Atma Jaya, Institut Pertanian Bogor, Universitas Bunda Mulia, Universitas Negeri Jakarta, Universitas Indraprasta PGRI

Region 4 (West Java)
INSTITUT TEKNOLOGI BANDUNG (Dito Krista/Rifan Ibnu Rahman), Universitas Padjadjaran, Institut Teknologi Telkom, Institut Manajemen Telkom, Universitas Parahyangan, Universitas Majalengka, Politeknik Manufaktur Bandung, STKIP Garut

Region 5 (Yogyakarta)
UNIVERSITAS GADJAH MADA (Astri Agustina/Gentur Adiutama), Universitas Atma Jaya Yogyakarta, Universitas Ahmad Dahlan, Universitas Islam Indonesia, Universitas Pembangunan Nasional, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta, Institut Seni Indonesia


Region 6 (Central Java)
UNIVERSITAS DIPONEGORO (Wildand Angesti/Astrid Ayutasari), Universitas Negeri Semarang, Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana, Universitas Jenderal Soedirman, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Universitas Muhammadiyah Purwokerto, Universitas Sultan Agung, Politeknik Negeri Semarang


Region 7 (East Java)
POLITEKNIK NEGERI MALANG (Harist Muhtadin/Asdin Herzegovina), Universitas Negeri Surabaya, Universitas Negeri Malang, Universitas Brawijaya, Universitas Darul Ulum, STKIP Ponorogo, Universitas Trunojoyo, Universitas Widya Kartika


Region 9 (North Sulawesi/Gorontalo/Central Sulawesi/Southeast Sulawesi/West Sulawesi/South Sulawesi)
UNIVERSITAS HASANUDDIN (Bama Andika/Ahmad Thariqul), Politeknik Ujung Pandang, Universitas Sam Ratulangi A, Universitas Sam Ratulangi B, Universitas Muhammadiyah Makassar, Universitas Negeri Manado, Universitas Fajar, Universitas Muhammadiyah Pare-Pare.


(Manado-based Universitas Sam Ratulangi has two qualifying teams due to a confusion on the number of teams that a school can send during regionals. It is unclear whether this will be rectified for the final round)


Qualification data unavailable from the following regions:
Region 8 (Bali, NTB, NTT)
Region 10 (West Sumatra, Riau, Riau Islands, Jambi)
Region 11 (West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, East Kalimantan)
Region 12 (Maluku, North Maluku, West Papua)

Jakarta NUEDC Qualifiers to Wrap Up Java Selections

Universities in Greater Jakarta will face off from May 27 to 28 to find 8 teams eligible to qualify for the final round of the National Universities English Debating Championships that will take place next month. The Jakarta qualifiers will complete the NUEDC line up from the main island of Java where most of Indonesia's debating powerhouses reside. No university outside of Java has won any national-scale debating competition  although several IVED champions graduated from non-Java high schools.

The NUEDC, which uses the British parliamentary format, is divided into 12 qualifying regions loosely following the demarcation used by Indonesia's private college coordinating body or Kopertis. This year, 8 teams from each region, which means 96 pairs, can go to the finale tournament hosted by Semarang-based Universitas Diponegoro. Each school can only send one team. Java has 5 groupings and Region 3 covers universities in Jakarta and cities adjacent to the capital, including Depok and Bogor. Other Java regions have concluded their selections.

Debaters who championed the recent UADC EFL, ALSA UI E-Comp and UMM English Fiesta are among those who will compete tomorrow in the Jakarta qualifiers that will take place at Universitas Atma Jaya. NUEDC discriminates schools that are not under the supervision of the sponsor, the Ministry of National Education. Debating powerhouse Sekolah Tinggi Akuntansi Negara, the feeder school for the Ministry of Finance that should be part of Region 3, is one of the schools barred from competing in NUEDC.

UI Wins Metro TV Debates, Second Triumph at Home in a Month

Universitas Indonesia championed another debating contest on its Depok campus today after beating Sekolah Tinggi Akuntansi Negara in the final of Metro TV's "Bangkit Indonesiaku" debates. The UI team (Boby Ruitang, Emir Adi Syailendra, Riza Aryani) defended the controversial construction of the new Indonesian parliament building, deflecting opposition from STAN (By Charles Butar-butar, Talisa Noor, Tifara Ashari). Earlier this month, another UI squad won the ALSA UI E-Comp debates that took place at the university's law school.

Metro TV, Indonesia's first television news channel, only invited 8 schools to the debates at UI's Balairung graduation hall and used a shortened version of the 3-on-3 debating format. All debates used motions related to current national affairs and were part of the private broadcaster's off-air program.   

Manila WUDC Announces Revised List, UGM Gets Entry

The organizers of the 2012 World Universities Debating Championships have promoted the first batch of waiting list teams to the safe zone after several schools reduced their contingents or pulled out from the competition that will take place in Manila around the Christmas-New Year's holiday season. One of the teams that got the bump up was Universitas Gadjah Mada while Universitas Bengkulu, which had a place in the raw list, decided to cancel its participation.

The Indonesian teams on the main list are as follows:

• Universitas Binus (3 teams) status OK
• Universitas Atma Jaya (2 teams) status OK
• Binus International (1 team) status OK
• Universitas Indonesia (1 team) status OK
• Institut Teknologi Bandung (1 team) status OK
• Universitas Padjadjaran (1 team) status OK
• Sekolah Tinggi Akuntansi Negara (1 team) status OK
• Universitas Hasanuddin (1 team) status waiting bank update
• Universitas Gadjah Mada (1 team) status promoted

There are still chances for Indonesian universities on the waiting list to get into the confirmed list if the teams that were just promoted cannot meet requirements before June 27, 2011. 

UADC 2011 Indonesian Results

Team Performance

1. #28 Universitas Bakrie (Ammar Syah Anwar, Aryo Febrian, Yudha Mustafa) 5-3
2. #51 Binus International (Annisa Sabran, Jaran Walia, Ravina Alimchandani) 4-4
3. #60 Institut Pertanian Bogor (Leo Wibisono, Andini Widya Astuti, Devi Fitri Yani) 4-4
4. #65 London School of Public Relations (Christin Berlina, Nadia Meuthia, Airin Tirtayadi) 4-4
5. #68 Universitas Binus (Elsa Novita, Rosmi Yana, Sabarudin Adinugroho) 4-4
6. #74 Universitas Parahyangan (Dian Hutami, Josefhine Citra, Lani Diana Salim) 3-5 
7. #94 Universitas Gadjah Mada (Tanti Kosmiyati, Nabila Aghniarizqa, Daisy Qisthy) 2-6

Top 10 Indonesian Speakers

1. #56 Ammar Syah Anwar (Bakrie)
2. #95 Leo Wibisono (IPB)
3. #113 Yudha Mustafa (Bakrie)
4. #125 Annisa Sabran (Binus Intl)
5. #130 Aryo Febrian (Bakrie)
6. #143 Christin Berlina (LSPR)
7. #147 Ravina Alimchandani (Binus Intl)
8. #162 Andini Widya Astuti (IPB)
9. #199 Jaran Walia (Binus Intl)
10. #201 Dian Hutami (Unpar)

Top 5 Indonesian Adjudicators

1. #34 Bryan Gunawan (Binus) - Breaking
2. #37 Poppy Aimy (Bakrie) - Breaking
3. #39 Dwita Aryani (Unpar) - Breaking
4. #49 Erwina Salsabila (UGM)
5. #94 Andrew Sadeli (Binus Intl)

UADC 2011 Best Speakers (Main & EFL)

Top 10 Speakers 

1. Imran Rahim (National University of Singapore1)
2. Lee Yarcia (University of the Philippines-Manila1)
3. Sadhana Rai (National University of Singapore1)
4. Robin Teo (National University of Singapore1)
5. Robert Totanes (University of the Philippines-Manila1)
6. Carlito Reyes (De La Salle University1)
7. Shiveena Parmanand (Ateneo De Manila University1)
8. Don Stanley Dalisay (University of the Philippines-Manila1)
9. Cecile Gotamo (Ateneo De Manila University1)
10. Dino De Leon  (De La Salle University1)

Top 10 EFL Speakers

1. #56 Ammar Syah Anwar (Universitas Bakrie1)
2. #91 Yuki Tominaga (University of Tokyo1)
3. #95 Leo Wibisono (Institut Pertanian Bogor1)
4. #100 Fumihiko Sano (University of Tokyo1)
5. #113 Yudha Mustafa (Universitas Bakrie1)
6. #125 Annisa Sabran (Binus International1)
7. #130 Aryo Febrian (Universitas Bakrie1)
8. #132 Kit Prasert Nopparat (Chulalongkorn University2)
9. #138 Zhang Gou Sheng (Beijing University of Technology1)
10. #143 Chakrit Seankho (Chulalongkorn University2)

Metro TV, EDS UI to Hold Debates on National Issues

The country's first news television channel Metro TV in a partnership with the English Debating Society Universitas Indonesia will hold a series of debates on national issues tomorrow, inviting eight schools - Institut Teknologi Bandung, Sekolah Tinggi Akuntansi Negara, Universitas Atma Jaya, Universitas Bakrie, Universitas Bina Nusantara, Universitas Padjadjaran, Universitas Parahyangan and host UI. The competition will use a shortened version of the 3-on-3 debating format with five-minute substantive speeches. It is part of the broadcaster's "Bangkit Indonesiaku" off-air program.

UADC 2011 Motions in Knockout Rounds

Main Final
* THW never offer amnesty to heads of state in the midst of possible regime change

EFL Final
* THBT regional proximity should be prioritized when handing out aid

Semifinal (EFL & Main)
* TH welcome the development of feminist discourse that embraces and expounds of the physical and psychological differences between men and women
* THBT seduction is a legitimate tool in achieving political ends
* THW send women as ambassadors to countries that oppress women

Quarterfinal (EFL & Main)
* THW make the raising of business and labour standards a pre-requisite for developmental aid
* THW punish financial institutions who fail to maintain liquidity in situations of market fluctuation
* THW discard tourism-reliant economic strategies

Octofinal (Main)
* THW target the families of our enemies
* THBT it is legitimate for states to exaggerate threats to pass unpopular legislation they deem to be in the interest of national security
* THW discontinue all Black Operations

Double-Octofinal (Main)

* THBT states should actively protect the practice of homegrown religion

* THBT the state should cease to recognize the specific 'right to religious freedom'

* THW not allow religious missions to access the vulnerable

NUS Reigns Supreme in Primier Asian Debate Comp

#1 National University of Singapore 1 (Imran Rahim, Robin Teo, Sadhana Rai) dominated the 2011 United Asian Debating Championships in Macao, taking home the main trophy and finishing the tournament as the only squad without a single loss. Imran Rahim collected the most individual points in the competition and became the overall best speaker, completing the NUS supremacy.

In the grand final, NUS1 convinced the majority of the judge panel that the motion "This House Would Never Offer Amnesty to Heads of State in the Midst of Possible Regime Change" should stand, staving off challenges from the opposition #7 University of the Philippines - Diliman 1 (Alistair Zosa, Carlo Borromeo, Pearl Simbulan). The same NUS team won the recent SMU Hammers 2011, Singapore's top 3-on-3 parliamentary debating tournament, while the exact UPD squad grabbed the national title in the Philippines Inter-Collegiate Debating Championship last April.

Bakrie Wins UADC EFL, Ammar Anwar Takes Speaker Prize

#1EFL Bakrie University (Ammar Syah Anwar, Aryo Febrian, Yudha Mustafa) grabbed the top prize in the 2011 United Asian Debating Championships' English-as-Foreign-Language category today after defeating fellow Indonesians from #7EFL London School of Public Relations (Airin Tirtayadi, Christin Berlina, Nadia Meuthia) in the final in Macao. Ammar Syah Anwar became the best EFL speaker in the tournament while Yudha Mustafa got the highest score in the final, completing Bakrie's success.

The Bakrie team successfully defended the motion that "This House Believes That Regional Proximity Should Be Prioritized When Handing Out Aid" and gave their school its first ever debating trophy. Bakrie squads reached the semifinal round of 3 national-scale tournaments this year and topped the tab with a perfect record in the recent ALSA UI E-Comp. Their rising form peaked at UADC, the most prestigious competition in Asia. They reached the 28th spot on the main tab with a respectable 5-3 scorecard and broke into the EFL knockouts as the highest-ranked team. Their losses in the preliminary round came from matches with Asian powerhouses National University of Singapore and Ateneo de Manila University.

Bakrie and LSPR never participated in UADC before this year's edition. They also have never won a major debating tournament in Indonesia. However, their hardwork and tenacity found reward on the international stage and proved they are now forces to be reckon with. They performed better than teams from more well-known Indonesian debating institutions that competed in the UADC and squads from other ESL countries like Japan, China and Thailand.

A team from Institut Teknologi Bandung won the EFL trophy in the previous UADC in Bangkok, which also saw an all-Indonesian final. The Macao event was the second UADC after the unification of two Asian-level competitions - the Asian Intervarsity Debating Championships (All-Asians) and the Asian Universities Debating Championships (AUDC). The latter tournament came about after several top schools broke away from the former outfit in 2005.

Indonesian teams first competed in an Asian-level debating championship in 1997, a milestone that led to the proliferation of competitive debating into the country. A squad from Universitas Indonesia in 2000 broke into the top 16 of the All-Asians, the first time any Indonesian team proceeded into the knockout rounds of an overseas debating competition.

Bakrie, LSPR Create All-Jakarta Final in UADC EFL Category

Jakarta-based colleges #1EFL Universitas Bakrie (Ammar Syah Anwar, Aryo Febrian, Yudha Mustafa Putra) and #7EFL London School of Public Relations (Airin Tirtayadi, Nadia Meuthia, Christin Berlina) are in the final of the United Asian Debating Championship 2011's English-as-Foreign-Language (EFL) category after respectively beating fellow countrymen, #4EFL Institut Pertanian Bogor and #3EFL Binus International in all-Indonesian semifinals.

Bakrie plays government proposing the motion "This House Believes That Regional Proximity Should Be Prioritized When Handing Out Aid" while LSPR takes the opposition role. This is a first final for both teams ever. Both finalists are emerging forces in the Indonesian debating scene that have never debated in the UADC before.

The all-male Bakrie team consist of two-third of the squad that topped the tab in the recent ALSA UI E-Competition with a perfect record in the preliminary stage while most of the all-female LSPR trio were part of the team that came #17 in the same tournament. Bakrie led the UADC EFL tab but LSPR is at top form after defeating higher-ranked Binus International and University of Tokyo to reach the final.

The proud performance of Bakrie and LSPR in UADC shows the development of new debating forces in Indonesia that should motivate other budding societies across the archipelago.

NUS v.UPD Showdown Guaranteed in UADC 2011 Final

A team from National University of Singapore and a squad from University of the Philippines-Diliman will battle it out for the crown of the United Asian Debating Championship 2011 in Macao tomorrow. Semifinals will only take place tomorrow morning but these regional debating powerhouses have their seats guaranteed in the competition's last showdon. #1 NUS1 will face schoolmates #5 NUS2  in one semifinal match while #6 UPD2 and #7 UPD1 have to log heads in the other after beating their opponents today.  

All-Indonesian Semifinals in UADC 2011 EFL Category

Four Indonesian teams grabbed all the spots in the semifinals of the 2011 UADC's EFL category after beating opponents from Japan, Thailand and China. #1EFL Universitas Bakrie will go against #4EFL Institut Pertanian Bogor while #3EFL Binus International will face #7EFL London School of Public Relations in the semifinals tomorrow.

It is the first time for Bakrie, IPB and LSPR to compete in UADC, the most prestigious debating competition in Asia. Another Indonesian team, Universitas Bina Nusantara, broke #8 into the EFL knockouts but lost in the quarterfinals to fellow countrymen from Bakrie, which also became the highest ranked Indonesian squad on the main tab at #28.

The EFL quarterfinal results are as follows:
#1EFL Bakrie (Ammar Syah Anwar, Aryo Febrian, Yudha Mustafa) beat #8EFL Binus
#3EFL Binus International (Ravina Alimchandani, Annisa Sabran, Jaran Walia) beat  #6EFL Sun Yat Sen (China)
#4EFL IPB (Leo Wibisono, Dewi Fitri Yani, Andini Widya Astuti) beat #5EFL Chulalongkorn (Thailand)
#7EFL LSPR (Airin Tirtayadi, Nadia Meuthia, Christin Berlina) beat #2EFL Tokyo (Japan)

Indonesian Teams Swamp UADC EFL Break, Bakrie Tops Tab

Indonesian teams took 5 out of 8 spots in UADC 2011's EFL elimination rounds with Bakrie University (Ammar Syah Anwar, Aryo Febrian, Yudha Mustafa)  topping the tab in that category. A council meeting today passed the motion to expand the EFL break from 4 to 8. EFL knockouts will take place later today simultaneously with the main elimination rounds.

The Bakrie team also scored the best record among Indonesian teams with 5VP and took the 28th spot on the main tab but failed to make the cut into the pre-octofinals on speaker points. National University of Singapore broke first. The break announcement came out much later than the original plan of last night due to tabulation woes. The adjudication core blamed organisers for failing to properly average the ballots.

The teams in the EFL knockouts are:

1. #28 Universitas Bakrie (Indonesia)
2. #46 University of Tokyo (Japan)
3. #51 Binus International (Indonesia)
4. #60 Institut Pertanian Bogor (Indonesia)
5. #62 Chulalongkorn University (Thailand)
6. #63 Sun Yat Sen University (China)
7. #65 London School of Public Relations (Indonesia)
8. #68 Universitas Bina Nusantara (Indonesia)

UADC 2011: The Preliminary Round Motions

Eight gruelling preliminary rounds of the 2011 United Asian Debating Championships ended today after a series of delays that made the Macao organizers squash a plan of having the third round on day 1, cramp 4 rounds on day 2 and hold an emergency council meeting on day 3. While the running of the competition failed to impress, the motions used in this year's edition of the most prestigious debating competition in Asia provoked interesting debates. Here are the complete list of the motions of the preliminary rounds:

R1 : The Young and the Old
* THW not allow minors to be involved in politics
* THW scrap the government pension system
* TH regrets the practice of 'tiger' parenting

R2 : Privacy and Intellectual Property
* THBT copyright of visual media belongs to the subject and not the photographer
* THW build a national DNA database
* THW ban the collection and sale of location and usage information by smartphone companies

R3 : Sex and Money
* THW ban adult entertainment from casinos
* THBT it is wrong to raise money for social welfare through national lotteries
* THW remove all sin taxes

R4 : Cross-Border
* THBT countries which pollute common waters should lose their Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs)
* THW not grant citizenship at birth to the children of foreigners on domestic soil
* THW pay the militaries of other states to fight our battles

R5 : Mind and Body
* THBT doctors should never lie to their patients even for their own good
* TH celebrates the willingness of women to be 'sluts'
* THW allow individuals to purchase behaviour-modifying drugs

R6 : The Middle Kingdom
* THBT China should leave the WTO
* THBT China should support the unification of the two Koreas
* THBT China should actively incentivise celebrities and public figures who are non-citizen ethnic Chinese to naturalise

R7 : The Audience
* THW make education in the high arts mandatory in schools
* THW require presidential candidates to disclose their official records upon public request
* TH regrets the high priority give to sports in the national consciousness

R8 : Transitions and Democracies
* TH prefers a secular autocracy to a fundamentalist democracy
* THW erase legacies and tear down monuments dedicated to deposed dictators
* THW require election campaigns to be bi/multi-lingual

UADC Macao Ends First Day of Debates Without Round 3

The United Asian Debating Championships 2011 in Macao faced technical glitches on the first day of debates today that forced hours of delay and made organizers fail to conduct the third preliminary round. The delay followed a decision in the council to increase the maximum margin in one debate from 12 to 15 points, giving bigger benefits for overwhelmingly stronger teams.

The motion to change the margin came from Asian debating powerhouse National University of Singapore that first wanted to eliminate the margin limit altogether. After their first attempt fell flat, NUS continued to propose to expand the bar from 12 to 20 points. The second push also failed but the school lugged on and won a slimmer increase at its third try.

It is still unclear how the organizers will fit the postponed round into the original rundown. UADC will let 24 teams to break into the knockouts with #9 to #24 going to the pre-octofinal round and the top eight teams waiting for the results from that stage in the octofinals. Only 4 squads will go to the special knockouts that will decide the best ESL team.

Seven Indonesian teams are competing in UADC Macao. They come from Binus International, Institut Pertanian Bogor, London School of Public Relations, Universitas Bakrie, Universitas Bina Nusantara, Universitas Gadjah Mada and  Universitas Parahyangan.

BIND 2011 Completes Adjudication Core With WUDC Finalist

The Binus International Debates (BIND) this year will continue its tradition to include world class judges in its adjudication core, including a finalist in the last Worlds, the chief adjudicator of the next one and the lead judge in the first ever Asian BP 2009.  Here are the details of the adjudication core of the BP competiton that will take place from September 13 to 16, 2011:

Chief Adjudicator:

• Rajkumar Narendra (Binus International/Indonesia)
• ALSA Unpad 2011 Champion, FT 2009 Finalist, AUDC 2009 EFL Best Speaker

DCA :

• Lucinda David (De La Salle/Philippines) - WUDC 2012 Co-CA, Australs 2010 Final Judge
• Tim Mooney (Sydney/Australia) - WUDC 2011 Finalist, WUDC 2012 DCA
• Thepparith Senamngern (Assumption/Thailand) - Asian BP 2009 CA, UADC 2010 CA

The tournament, which will mix high school and college students, will open its registration next week on May 24 with a team cap of 80. Earlier this year, Universitas Bina Nusantara also held a BP competition with international judges on its adjudication core that include the other co-chief adjudicator of WUDC 2012 Sam Block from Cambridge. By September, the two CAs of the coming Worlds would have engaged with the Indonesian debating scene, which should make the most out of these visits for WUDC 2012.

Introducing: IndoDebate's Debater of the Year Table

IndoDebate plans to monitor the performance of Indonesian varsity debaters in a specific year to find the speaker with the most achievements through out a period of 12 months who will take the title of Debater of the Year (DOTY) in December.

The DOTY 2011 table considers tournaments in Indonesia this year that do not restrict participation on the basis of geography or educational choice. That excludes area-specific debates, regional NUEDC selections and competitions that only allow students of a particular major to compete like the International Humanitarian Law Debates, which barred non-International Relations students from joining. The list includes debates with a specific subject like finance-themed NDC-NES and IFF, which were open for non-economics students this year. In fact, there was only 1 economics student among the 6 debaters in IFF 2011's last debate while all speakers in this year's NDC-NES final came from an engineering school.

The table will also include tournaments that mix tertiary and secondary level students, as long as, the event is varsity-heavy and not the other way around. There are some school-held debates in Indonesia that invite university students to add pizzazz but they do not ensure high-level competition and, sometimes, struggle to attract the best varsity speakers to come. The yardstick to gauge the ability of mixed tournaments to enter the list is EDSUI's Founders Trophy, which invites varsity, high school, and alumni teams without sacrificing the quality of the debates. In 2004, SMA Kanisius won FT, beating IVED champs in the final.

The ranking in the table follows a simple point-based system. A speaker wins 1 point whenever s/he grabs a spot in the semifinal or final of a listed tournament or is part of the winning team. A debater also gets 1 point whenever s/he enters the top 10 or best 5 speakers of a recognized competition or tops the speaker tab. For example, someone who wins a tournament and its best speaker title will get 6 points after results are out. Three points from winning a trophy, which also means reaching the semi and final round, and 3 more from becoming the top speaker, which also proves s/he is part of the top 5 and best 10.

The list will not have a different set of points for different competitions. The intention is to find a special individual, regardless of origin and that means composites are no different to school squads and open tournaments are at equal footing  with national championships. A speaker is associated to a school only for the sake of clear identification.

Some may think NUEDC with participation from all 33 provinces is tougher that the 14-team IFF 2011 and deserves more points. Others can argue wide representation does not mean high competition because of the geographical imbalance in talent and NUEDC only allows one pair from each school, no matter how strong the university is. IndoDebate feels it is hard to find a gold standard for classifying events in Indonesia if top varsity debaters nationwide are allowed to join a tournament. IFF 2011 had a tiny number of teams but there were past IVED, NUEDC, JOVED, FT and BIND winners among the debaters. Arguably, IVED 2011 had a less illustrious line-up. ALSA Unpad was known as a training ground for new debaters but the final of this year's edition had a team with an IVED champ against a squad led by a WUDC veteran.

While debaters who compete in more tournaments have bigger chances to win points, there is no score for attendance. Those who just have the habit of entering competitions without the ability to improve skills and eventually win may end up lower than a speaker who select targets carefully, learn from mistakes and collect points. Up to mid-May, the table took into account 7 tournaments in 2011: IVED, SEO, ALSA Unpad, IFF, NDC-NES, EF and ALSA UI. If there was any other deserving tournament, please send a note to achmad_abu@yahoo.com. The cacth is it must be a competition that invited varsity debaters from different parts of the country and publicly posted the results.

All ranking systems have weaknesses and IndoDebate's DOTY table is no exception. It depends on organizers to post accurate results and has no mechanism to check their validity other than feedback from readers who notice the errors. Some may object to the way points are distributed. Nonetheless, it still can show a picture of how a debater stands among the crowd. Hopefully, the table can motivate speakers to aim higher and debate better in future events.

To find out the complete, active table, click the DOTY button on the main panel.

IndoDebate's Debater of the Year 2011 Rankings as of May 2011

Up to mid-May, the IndoDebate's Debater of the Year table took into account 7 tournaments in 2011: IVED, SEO, ALSA Unpad, IFF, NDC-NES, EF and ALSA UI. Some debaters only participated in one tournament and won the trophy but others might debate in more than 3 competitions without reaching the semis or top 10 spaker list. The current table leader debated in 3 tournaments and ended up as a IVED semifinalist, SEO finalist and ALSA UI champion. He also finished among the top 5 speakers of each tournament, including becoming a co-best speaker in SEO. Here are the top 5 speakers of the list as of May 2011.

1. Roderick Sibarani (Universitas Indonesia) 
2. Luthfi Abdurrahman (Institut Teknologi Bandung)
3. Rifan Ibnu Rahman (Institut Teknologi Bandung)
4. Eldhianto Jusuf (Universitas Gadjah Mada)
5. Satrio Adi Pratama (Universitas Diponegoro)

To find out the complete, active table, click the DOTY button on the main panel.

UGM Takes Top Prizes in Humanitarian Law Debates

Universitas Gadjah Mada (Amir Abdulaziz, Alvine Stefan, Anggita Paramesti) won the 3rd National Debate on International Humanitarian Law  in front of a home crowd last weekend, beating Universitas Parahyangan  (Dwita Aryani, Tiola Veronica, Wafa Taftazani) in the final and one of its speakers Amir Abdulaziz grabbed the tournament's best speaker award.

The UGM team will represent Indonesia in the international version of the event, which is fully funded by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in Malaysia. The national tournament, which used the 3-on-3 Australasian format, was restricted to students majoring in International Relations.

ALSA UI E-Comp 2011 Key Results (Varsity)

Dennys Kapa, Adlini Ilma Ghaisany, Roderick Sibarani (UI A)

Champions: Universitas Indonesia A (Dennys Kapa, Adlini Ilma Ghaisany, Roderick Sibarani)


Finalists: Binus International B (Jaran Walia, Annisa Sabran, Ravina Alimchandani)


Top 10 Speakers:
1. Satrio Adi Pratama (Universitas Diponegoro)
2. Adlini Ilma Ghaisany (Universitas Indonesia A)
3. Roderick Sibarani (Universitas Indonesia A)
3. Astri Agustina (Universitas Gadjah Mada A)
5. Gentur Adiutama (Universitas Gadjah Mada B)
6. Indra Kusuma (Universitas Indonesia B)
7. Ammar Syah Anwar (Universitas Bakrie A)
8. Rizky Wirastomo (Universitas Gadjah Mada B)
9. Fathir Ramadhan (Institut Teknologi Bandung)
9. Dennys Kapa (Universitas Indonesia A)

ALSA UI E-Comp 2011 Key Results (High School)

Champions: SMA 4 Denpasar A (Revaldi Wirabuana, Revian Wirabuana, Ida Ayu Bika Alice Pidada)
Finalists: SMA 1 Sidoarjo (Dhia Fairus Shofia, Viona Ansili Domini, Agatha Amadea Vashti)
Top 10 Speakers:
1. Revaldi Wirabuana (SMA 4 Denpasar A)
2. Opi Aristya (SMA 2 Tangerang Selatan)
3. Revian Wirabuana (SMA 4 Denpasar A)
4. Wieda Daesy (SMA 2 Tangerang Selatan)
5. Carissa Tehputri (SMA 4 Denpasar B)
5. Laura Nurlatifa (SMA 5 Bandung)
7. Dhia Fairus Shofia (SMA 1 Sidoarjo)
8. Alvin Cahyadi (SMA Kanisius)
9. Anggoro Galuh Pandhito (SMA 2 Tangerang Selatan)
9. Shabrina Mahardhika (SMA 5 Bandung)

UGM to Hold Humanitarian Law Debates This Weekend

Universitas Gadjah Mada plans to host the 3rd National Debate on International Humanitarian Law from May 7 to 8, 2011 at its Bulaksumur campus in Yogyakarta. The competition is fully funded by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the winner will represent Indonesia in the international version of the event in Malaysia. Unfortunately, the tournament has restrictions that include a team cap of 16 and a requirement that the debaters are International Relations students who never participated in previous editions of this event. It is unclear whether this means International Law students who concentrate their studies on humanitarian law are also restricted from joining this event, which will use the 3-on-3 Australasian format.

UMM English Fiesta 2011 Key Results

Champions: Binus International (Christian Leonardo, Astrio Feligent, Caroline Herlina)
Finalists: Universitas Negeri Malang A (Erich Zanuardhi, Irna Fibianti, Prima Kartikasari)
Top 10 Speakers:
1. Alvine Stefan (UGM A)
2. Christian Leonardo (Binus Intl)
3. Nabila Aghniarizqa (UGM A)
4. Astrio Feligent (Binus Intl)
5. Raden Handidwiono (UGM B) -- also Best Novice Speaker
6. Fildza Nabila Avianti (UGM B)
7. Amir Abdulaziz (UGM B)
8. Irna Fibianti (UN Malang A)
8. Bella Chyntiara (UGM A)
8. Wigati Martina (UN Semarang C)


* The ticket to attend the 2012 Indonesian Varsities English Debate at UMM Malang free of charge goes to: #15 Universitas Muhammadiyah Jember
(the prize is given to a school without a record of breaking into the knockout rounds of any national competition before the 2011 UMM English Fiesta but managed to slip into the top 16 of the tournament)

UI Wins ALSA E-Comp for Varsity, Denpasar Tops High School

#2 Universitas Indonesia A (Adlini Ilma Ghaisany, Dennys Kapa, Roderick Sibarani) overcame the challenge from #8 Binus International (Jaran Walia, Annisa Sabran, Ravina Alimchandani) to become champions of the 15th ALSA UI E-Comp's varsity category. In the high school division, #1 SMA 4 Denpasar took the trophy after defeating #10 SMA 1 Sidoarjo.

In the varsity final, UI A convinced all three judges that the motion "This House Would Allow Consensual Cannibalism" should stand, denying Binus International a double success this week after another team from the Jakarta-based institution won the English Fiesta debates in Malang on May 2. This is UI's first victory in 2011 after coming short in three finals since January. Satrio Adi Pratama from Universitas Diponegoro won the best speaker title, which he also grabbed in last year's competition.

The ALSA UI E-Comp is the longest-running competitive debate event in Indonesia with origins predating the country's 1998 reforms. UI teams won every single edition of this tournament until 2007 when Universitas Gadjah Mada broke that streak. An UI squad brought the trophy back home the next year but the top prize got away again in 2009 and 2010.

Denpasar vs Sidoarjo in ALSA UI E-Comp High School Final

#1 SMA 4 Denpasar A and #10 SMA 1 Sidoarjo faced off in the final of the 15th ALSA UI E-Comp High School debates earlier today. The results will be out later in the evening after the varsity grand final and cultural shows. In the semifinals, the Denpasar team knocked out #4 SMA St. Albertus Malang while their schoolmates lost to the Sidoarjo trio. It was the first time for the ALSA UI E-Comp, the most prestigious institution-based debate competition in the high school category, to have no team from the tri-provinces of Jakarta-West Java-Banten in the final four.

UI vs Binus International in ALSA E-Comp Varsity Final

#2 Universitas Indonesia A (Adlini Ilma Ghaisany, Dennys Kapa, Roderick Sibarani) and #8 Binus International B (Jaran Walia, Annisa Sabran, Ravina Alimchandani) are the finalists in the 15th ALSA UI E-Comp after overcoming challenges from #3 Universitas Diponegoro and #4 Universitas Bakrie A respectively in the semifinals. In the final of this year's edition of the longest-running debate competition in Indonesia, UI A will defend the motion "This House Would Allow Consensual Cannibalism". Results will be announced at UI's Law School in the evening after today's cultural shows.

Binus International Victorious in Malang's English Fiesta

#3 Binus International (Christian Leonardo, Caroline Herlina, Astrio Feligent) won the UMM English Fiesta debating competition in Malang after defeating #5 Universitas Negeri Malang A (Irna Fibianti, Erich Zanurdhi, Prima Kartikasari), giving the Jakarta-based institution its second trophy in 2011.

Chris, Astrio and Caroline successfully defended the motion "This House Would Partition Libya" in the grand final that only started at 9 p.m. last night after three knockout debates. The final announcement that took place close to midnight revealed five out of seven adjudicators sided with the winner.

Binus International won the ALSA Unpad E-Challenge in Bandung last February with an entirely different line up, showing depth in the squad known as Bipeds. Another Bipeds team, consisting of two members of the  winning Bandung squad, will debate in the semifinals of the ALSA UI E-Comp in Depok today.

Alvine Stefan from Universitas Gadjah Mada grabbed the best speaker award, providing consolation for the Yogyakarta-based university that topped the tab but fell in the semifinals.

UN Malang vs Binus International in UMM English Fiesta Final

#3 Binus International and #5 Universitas Negeri Malang will face off tonight in the grand final of UMM's English Fiesta in Malang after beating opponents from debating powerhouse Universitas Gadjah Mada in the semifinals. UGM teams entered the knockouts as #1 and #2 but failed to maintain their form in the last stretch of the tournament. Jakarta-based Binus International will propose the motion "This house would partition Libya" and UNM will try to knock them down in front of their home crowd in the East Java city.

Binus Int'l, Bakrie, Undip, UI Reach ALSA E-Comp Semifinals

Teams from four different institutions -- Binus International, Universitas Bakrie, Universitas Diponegoro and host Universitas Indonesia -- tomorrow morning will fight to secure the two last spots in the grand final of the 15th ALSA UI E-Comp, the longest-running English debating competition in the country. #8 Binus International B will face #4 Bakrie A after beating the latter's schoolmates #1 Bakrie B that lost no match in the preliminaries. In the other semifinal, #2 UI A will once again meet #3 Undip, which the host university defeated in the fourth round. The grand final will take place at UI's Law School tomorrow afternoon.

East Java, Bali Teams Secure Spots in ALSA High School Semis

All teams that made it to the semifinal round of the 15th ALSA UI E-Comp high school debates have one thing in common: their homes are more than 400 miles away from Greater Jakarta. SMA 4 Denpasar from Bali island have two teams in the last four and they will both go against teams from East Java province, creating for the first time in the competition's history a semifinal round without any team from the tri-provinces of Jakarta, Banten and West Java where most of Indonesia's high school and varsity debating powerhouses reside.

The grand final of the high school and varsity categories will take place tomorrow afternoon. Here are the matchup for tomorrow's semifinals :

#1 SMA 4 Denpasar A v #4 SMA St. Albertus Malang A
#3 SMA 4 Denpasar B v #10 SMA 1 Sidoarjo

UGM Teams Cruise to EF Semis, Fall in ALSA Octos

Two teams from Universitas Gadjah Mada today reached the semifinals of UMM's English Fiesta in Malang and have the chance to create an all-UGM final but their schoolmates failed to proceed to the quarterfinals of the 15th ALSA E-Comp in Depok, dashing the hope of a double success. Binus International, which knocked out one of the UGM teams in the octofinals, still has the chance to achieve that feat as it has debaters who are still active in both competitions.

The UMM English Fiesta semifinals are:
#1 UGM B  v  #5 Universitas Negeri Malang A
#2 UGM A  v  #3 Binus International

The ALSA UI  E-Comp quarterfinals are:
#1 Universitas Bakrie B v #8 Binus International B
#2 Universitas Indonesia A v #10 Universitas Bina Nusantara
#3 Universitas Diponegoro v #6 Institut Teknologi Bandung
#4 Universitas Bakrie A v #5 Universitas Indonesia B

UGM Rules English Fiesta, Bakrie Comes of Age in ALSA UI

The UMM English Fiesta in Malang will wrap up today with four elimination rounds, including the grand final, while ALSA UI E-Comp will have octos and quarters for varsity and high school categories. Reigning IVED champion Universitas Gadjah Mada has shown its might in the first tournament after teams took the two top spots on the tab. Two other UGM teams also broke into the ALSA UI knockouts but the stars of the show in Depok come from up-and-coming Universitas Bakrie.

After steadfastly learning from experiences from past tournaments where they have been seen as perrenial underdogs, Bakrie teams broke first and fourth in this year's version of the longest-running English debating tournament in Indonesia. Bakrie B (Aryo Febrian, Yudha Mustafa Putra, Alfan Rezani) topped the tab with a clean sweep after beating teams from powerhouses Institut Teknologi Bandung, UGM, and Universitas Indonesia in the preliminaries. Bakrie teams have managed to reach semifinals of two national-scale tournaments this year but the achievement in ALSA, even if they fail to grab the trophy in the end, is the clearest sign that this university has come of age in the Indonesian debating scene and should get the respect that it deserves.

The ALSA UI trophy itself is still up for grabs. Bakrie B is the only one with a perfect score but their road to glory is full of tough opponents. Most of the top 16 teams have 4-1 records and many teams with 3 VPs failed to break, promising tight battles in the knockouts. UGM, Binus International and Universitas Brawijaya who have teams in the knockouts of EF and ALSA may still have the chance to achieve double success this week.      

UMM English Fiesta 2011 Knockout Bracket

1. UGM B
	1. UGM B
16. Brawijaya B
8. Brawijaya A		1. UGM B
	8. Brawijaya A
9. UMM
4. Unesa C			5. UN Malang A
	4. Unesa C
13. UPN
5. UN Malang A		5. UN Malang A
	5. UN Malang A
12. Udayana A
2. UGM A
				3. Binus Intl
	2. UGM A
15. UM Jember
7. SMK 5 Sby		2. UGM A
	7. SMK 5 Sby
10. UMY
3. Binus Intl			3. Binus Intl
	3. Binus Intl
14. UNY B
6. Udayana B		3. Binus Intl
	11. UIN Malang
11. UIN Malang

ALSA UI E-Comp 2011 Knockout Bracket (Varsity)

1. Bakrie B
	1. Bakrie B
16. Brawijaya B
8. Binus Intl B		8. Binus Intl B
	8. Binus Intl B
9. UGM B
4. Bakrie A			8. Binus Intl B
	4. Bakrie A
13. Teknokrat B
5. UI B		4. Bakrie A
	5. UI B
12. Unesa A
2. UI A
				2. UI A
	2. UI A
15. Unpar
7. UGM A		2. UI A
	10. Binus
10. Binus
3. Undip			2. UI A
	3. Undip
14. IM Telkom A
6. ITB		3. Undip
	6. ITB
11. Brawijaya A

Corrected ALSA UI E-Comp 2011 Break List for Varsity

The organizers of the ALSA E-Comp 2011 have corrected the break list for the varsity category after discovering some discrepancy related to the team from Institut Teknologi Bandung, which has now climbed to #6  from #9. The reshuffle affected the rankings of several teams but did not change the composition of the top 16. The octofinals for this category will start after lunchtime today. Here is the corrected list of teams that broke into the knockout rounds. The knockout bracket has been retracted and will be re-uploaded. 

1. Universitas Bakrie B
2. Universitas Indonesia A
3. Universitas Diponegoro
4. Universitas Bakrie A
5. Universitas Indonesia B
6. Institut Teknologi Bandung
7. Universitas Gadjah Mada A
8. Binus International B
9. Universitas Gadjah Mada B
10. Universitas Bina Nusantara B
11. Universitas Brawijaya A
12. Universitas Negeri Semarang A
13. STBA Teknokrat B
14. Institut Manajemen Telkom A
15. Universitas Parahyangan A
16. Universitas Brawijaya B

ALSA UI E-Comp 2011 High School Break List

ALSA UI E-Comp is not only the longest-running English intervarsity debate competition in Indonesia. It is also the most prestigious institution-based debating tournament for high scools in the country. Here are the 16 teams that can proceed to the knockout stages tomorrow.

1. SMA 4 Denpasar A
2. SMA 2 Tangerang Selatan
3. SMA 4 Denpasar B
4. SMA St. Albertus Malang A
5. SMA St. Albertus Malang B
6. SMA 81 Jakarta A
7. SMA Ipeka Sunter
8. SMK 4 Jakarta
9. SMA 5 Bandung
10. SMA 1 Sidoarjo
11. SMA Tarakanita 2 Jakarta B
12. SMA 1 Ponorogo
13. SMA Canisius Jakarta B
14. SMA Santa Ursula
15. SMA Taruna Nusantara Magelang
16. SMAK 1 Penabur Jakarta

ALSA UI E-Comp 2011 Varsity Break List

Darkhorse Universitas Bakrie showed its rise in the Indonesian debating scene after its teams came first and fourth on the tab of the ALSA UI E-Comp today. Bakrie teams have reached semifinals of two national-scale tournaments this year. With today's achievements, other teams should no longer consider this school as peripheral. Octofinals and quarters will be held tomorrow while semifinals and the grand final take place on May 3. Here is the complete list of varsity teams that broke into the knockouts.

1. Universitas Bakrie B
2. Universitas Indonesia A
3. Universitas Diponegoro
4. Universitas Bakrie A
5. Universitas Indonesia B
6. Universitas Gadjah Mada A
7. Binus International B
8. Universitas Gadjah Mada B
9. Institut Teknologi Bandung A
10. Universitas Bina Nusantara B
11. Universitas Brawijaya A
12. Universitas Negeri Semarang A
13. STBA Teknokrat B
14. Institut Manajemen Telkom
15. Universitas Parahyangan A
16. Universitas Brawijaya B

UMM English Fiesta Break List

After five rounds of preliminaries in the UMM English Fiesta debates, teams from Universitas Gadjah Mada showed dominance by topping the tab in this Malang competition. Here are are the teams that will debate in the knockouts tomorrow.

1. Universitas Gadjah Mada B
2. Universitas Gadjah Mada A
3. Binus International
4. Universitas Negeri Semarang C
5. Universitas Negeri Malang A
6. Universitas Udayana B
7. SMK 5 Surabaya
8. Universitas Brawijaya A
9. Universitas Muhammadiyah Malang
10. Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta
11. Universitas Islam Negeri Malang
12. Universitas Udayana A
13. Universitas Pembangunan Nasional
14. Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta B
15. Universitas Muhammadiyah Jember
16. Universitas Brawijaya B

ALSA UI EComp, UMM English Fiesta Prelims End Today

The two last preliminary rounds of the ALSA UI E-Comp in Depok and UMM Engish Fiesta in Malang take place today for varsity and high school categories, wrapping up the first stage of these national-scale debating competitions. The break lists will be out this afternoon and knockouts will start tomorrow.

On the second day of debates at ALSA E-Comp, blackouts at UI's Law School momentarily disrupted the running of the competition. Varsity teams debated prepared economics motions for round three and impromptu topics on religion in the next session.

All teams from the host university are still unblemished going into the fourth round today while squads from debating powerhouses Universitas Gadjah Mada and Binus International need to rebound from losses in round three to secure spots in the knockouts. The high school team prepared for WSDC 2011 yesterday gave a spirited challenge against an experienced UI trio who eventually humbled the teenage stars.