A War of Words: USTB International Students Win the Quarter-Final of the Annual Debating Contest

On Nov. 8^th, 2012, the quarter-final of the 2012 Chinese Debating Contest of International Students in Universities Beijing was hosted in the Yi Fu Report Hall of the Beijing Language and Culture University (BLCU). USTB International students played the opposition side against students from Minzu University of China (MUC). The debate was over the issue of whether men or women are in greater need of care within marriages. USTB students were debating in favour of men. The team from USTB consisted of Mongolian student Luo Enjun, Bengali student Rui Jiangming, Bolivian student Ke Yi and Mongolian student Dong Namin. Prof. Guo Kailin from the Office of H.K., Macao, and Taiwan Affairs coached the team.

At the opening ceremony, USTB debaters performed their own version of the Happy Goat and Big Wolf (a popular contemporary Chinese cartoon), acting out how the “Big Wolf” was bearing pressures from a husband’s work, home and personal life in three scenes: “Big Wolf & His Boss;” “Big Wolf & His Wife;” and “Big Wolf and the Happy Goat.” The show gave the audience a well-rounded preview of the USTB team’s stance. Following the performance, Luo Enjun presented a of the team’s arguments in a poised manner, pointing out why men should be more taken care of in marriages by utilizing the three perspectives from the act. Rui Jiangming gave a detailed illustration of the arguments, adding a true story of his friend’s life after marriage. In defending their position and rebutting against the opposite position, the third debater Ke Yi argued heatedly with all four debaters from (MUC). During the round of free debate, the four USTB debaters cooperated well with each other and presented an outstanding verbal battle. At last, Dong Namin presented an organized and concise conclusion of their arguments and rebuttals.

Adjudicator Tian Guoxiu commented on the contest. She was impressed by the lead-in performance designed by USTB students, joking that the students had done an advertisement for the new episode of this Cartoon which would be casted during the Spring Festival. She praised Rui Jiangming for his performing skills and the fantastic teamwork showcased by USTB students.

Subsequent to the comments offered by the judges, the USTB debating team was announced to have won a seat in the semi-final, battling against a strong team – BLCU, the three-year consecutive winner of this contest – in the next round. The semi-final will be hosted on Nov. 15^th, 2012. It will be the hope of all students from USTB that our debate team can keep this momentum going into the final round.

After the debate, Rui Jiangming was interviewed by the magazine the Beijinger.

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