The Mahidol University International College (MUIC) Debate Club competed in theAustralasian Intervarsity Debate Championships 2023 (Australs) organized by Edudrift at Bluesotel, Krabi, Thailand on July 2 – 9, 2023.

Though the MUIC team tied for 17^th Place out of 60+ teams at the tournament which was just slightly short to have made advancements onto the quarter finals, the debaters made new friends from erstwhile rivals from teams coming not only from Thailand but also Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and South Korea.

“Between the three Thai universities that attended the tournament, each of us found success taking home wins against teams from Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and South Korea. Tackling topics ranging from the new economic pact and political situation within Africa, to battling about the ethics and business strategy behind Fifa and the participation by authoritarian regimes, Australs provided stiff competition on a variety of topics that many of us have never seen and experienced before all against ‘monsters’ of confidence and rhetoric. But among these worthy opponents we found plenty of allies, intellectual and friendly towards sharing the hobby and discussions that we all found very interesting,” said the debate team.

“These friends that we made from a variety of nations and socio-economic backgrounds gave us priceless opportunities to practice and learn with. As anxious as many of us were at the beginning, we found much more confidence in our own skills and our own narratives,” the debate team added.

The team also noted the unique characteristics of the Australasian format: “It is a unique anomaly that hasn’t been competed in on the world stage since the onset of the pandemic. With this odd format that extends the length of the daunting 8-minute long speeches, it removes the opportunity to interrupt and therefore halt the opposition team arguments with a quick question or statement. Instead, teams are forced to recall and remember the wording and rebuttals to be delivered while pressed for time within their own speeches whilst also progressing and moving their own arguments and thoughts forward.”

The team was composed of Ibrahim O Dawoodjee, Karan Pathela and Krittiya Sagaekhao (all from Biological Science major); Sumit Sachdev and Tate Lee (from Computer Science major); and Patsha Ha (Physics).