The grand final of the World Universities Debating Championship in Madrid, Spain. (Photo: Ateneo Debate Society)
Debaters from the Jesuit-run Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines won the World Universities Debating Championship for the first time in the history of the Southeast Asian nation.
The Filipino debaters beat the world’s top universities including Harvard University and Oxford University on their way to victory in the championship, dubbed World Debate Olympics, at Madrid, Spain held from Dec. 27 to Jan. 4.
In the grand final the Ateneo de Manila team, composed of David Africa and Tobi Leung, faced off against teams from the Princeton University of the United States, Sofia University of Bulgaria, and the Tel Aviv University of Israel.
The teams argued whether it was preferable to have “a world where all individuals have a strong belief in Ubuntu- a philosophical belief which literally means “I am because we are.”
The Philippine debaters argued in the Opposition saying that people’s identities were not shaped by, and their obligations were not primarily owed to their communities.
Former Philippine debater and law professor Kristina Sales told UCA News that the championship followed the British Parliamentary format and debaters had only 15 to 30 minutes to prepare for their speeches.
“What is being tested in parliamentary format debates is the ability of the debaters to formulate arguments based on good matter or evidence and very strong logic. They should be able to communicate their arguments very well to adjudicators who assume the role of average reasonable persons,” Sales added.
The Jesuit University hailed the “historic win.”
“The Ateneo Debate Society are World Champions as they won the World Universities Debating Championship (WUDC) held in Madrid, Spain. This is the Philippines' first-ever title in the competition's 43-year history,” the Ateneo said in an online post.
The university also congratulated Africa and Leung, both holding majors in Mathematics, for securing spots among the top 10 best speakers in the world.
“Leung and Africa were awarded as the 2nd and 8th best speakers of the world, respectively. Leung attained the highest best-speaker position that a Filipino has ever held in WUDC history,” the university added.
The country’s academic community has congratulated the debaters for their success.
“Super-duper wow! What an awesome feat! Congratulations, Ateneo! You have brought so much honor to our country. Mabuhay kayo!,” law professor Arlene Maneja told UCA News.
The country’s Department of Education congratulated the team for conquering a “seemingly unreachable dream.”
“Thank you, Ateneo de Manila University. Once again, you have put the Philippines on the map as one of the best countries in the world to win this prestigious tournament,” Department of Education Undersecretary Kris Ablan said in a statement.
The Catholics Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) also sent its blessing and wishes to the team urging more Catholic school students to engage in debate as a mode to seek the truth.
“Every debate is for the truth. Debate is a format in order for people to understand, to drive us closer to the truth. In debates, ideas are tested. Concepts are not taken for granted easily because we need the best ideas to stand out. Debating is truth-seeking,” Father Donald San Juan, the CBCP youth commission executive secretary, told UCA News.
Father San Juan said the debate should be promoted to all Catholic schools to develop critical and communication skills among students.
The Ateneo de Manila University is a member of the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines, a national association of Catholic Education Institutions in the Philippines with 1,484 member schools.
