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• Closing address by Zarizana Abdul Aziz

The Malaysian Bar will keep propagating discussion on issues and encouraging people to speak out for their rights.

The Closing Ceremony of the inaugural Human Rights Debate 2008 (HRD) organised by the Bar Council Human Rights Committee (BCHRC), held on 12 December 2008, was officiated by Zarizana Abdul Aziz, Co-Deputy Chairperson of the BCHRC and a newly-elected member of the Bar Council for the 2009-10 term.

In her speech, she said that the wide range of topics debated symbolises how far-reaching human rights are in that the same extends to all facets of life and to all communities.

She also said that we cannot afford to be part of the human race only through the intercession of our own communities.

“It is often said that human rights is inherent, inalienable and indivisible. What does this mean? What it means, really, is that when we allow another person’s human rights to be violated, the rights of all of us are diminished.

“For in the human chain of life, we are only as good as the weakest amongst us.”

Zarizana reminded us that “debates are an expression of human rights and democracy where everybody is given the opportunity to speak his/her own mind.

“Freedom of expression is not only a right to stand up for what we believe in and communicating that belief to our fellow human beings, it is also an obligation to defend and extend the same rights to those whose ideas oppose our own.”

After three days of preliminary rounds, quarter-finals and semi-finals at KDU College, the finals of the Debate Tournament and the Public Speaking Competition were held at he Bar Council Auditorium.

Debate Tournament Final

The WUPID (World Universities Peace Invitational Debate)-sponsored team, Omar Sallehuddin and Praba Ganesan, championed their arguments against the motion: ‘This House would Ban All Forms of Development on the Ancestral Lands of the Indigenous Peoples’. They won the Champion’s Trophy, sponsored by Saha Deva A. Arunasalam, and brought home the cash prize of RM3,000.

Praba Ganesan, a local municipal councillor of Sepang, also picked up the award for being the Best Speaker in the Final and received a trophy as well as a RM1,000 cash prize sponsored by UCSI University.

The runner-up for the Debate was the team from the International Islamic University Malaysia, represented by Danial Abdul Rahman and Liyana Rashid.

Other debate teams that made it to the finals were the two teams representing the National University of Singapore, NUS A and NUS B.

The Best Overall Speaker for the Debate was Andrew Gnananantham, who received a trophy and a RM1,000 cash prize sponsored by the Bar Council.

Muhammad Faisal Moideen, the Chief Adjudicator of the Debate, said that the debating culture creates the opportunity for people to think. He found that there is no such thing as a ‘generation gap’ when it comes to discussing ideas. The Debate participants proved otherwise the common perception in Malaysia that when you are still young, you are not entitled to be heard.

Neill Harvey-Smith, Chair of the World Debating Council who was invited to adjudicate the Debate, shared his experiences by saying that he learnt a great deal about human rights during the four days of the event. He spoke about the regression of human rights in the UK on detention without trial, for example,  and emphasised the importance of continuing to debate about Government policies.

The topics for the Debate included issues pertaining to preventive detention, same-sex unions, compulsory collection of DNA samples, religious objections to human rights, State responsibility for food, housing and healthcare for the poor, imposing the Malay language as the only medium of instruction in schools and the prosecution of undocumented refugee and asylum-seekers for unlawful entry.

The Debate saw participations from a wide range of communities and ages, from secondary school students to university lecturers.

Public Speaking Competition

Gabrielle Chong, who spoke passionately about the rights of homosexuals and lesbians, seized the Champion Trophy sponsored by Roger Chan Weng Keng and a cash prize of RM1,500 for the Public Speaking Competition.

By a very slim margin, the runner-up for the Public Speaking Competition was the  ‘darling’ of the audience for the night, Iskandar Abdullah, who ‘hosted’ a television show and ‘sold’ human rights as a product for the layperson.

Other public speaking finalists were Richard Wee, who spoke about rights to one’s life, Marcus Chee, who spoke about change in the US with Barack Obama’s election, and Suresh Gnasegarah, who spoke about a pragmatic approach to human rights.

Delivering the results for Public Speaking Competition, head judge Andrew Khoo said that the judges were pleased with the content of the speeches and the manner of delivery, which they found to be vibrant and colourful.  The participants were very courageous to speak about issues which are still deemed ‘sensitive’ in our society.

The Ceremony was attended by Dato’ Ambiga Sreenevasan, President of the Malaysian Bar, His Excellency Ambassador Frank L.M. Van de Craen, the Ambassador of Belgium to Malaysia, representatives of our main sponsors, Clauspeter Hill and Jochen Hoerth from Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Lee Swee Seng from Messrs. Lee Swee Seng & Co. and Varghese George from Messrs. Zain & Co.

When asked, Chairperson of the BCHRC Edmund Bon Tai Soon was extremely pleased with how the event turned out. He congratulated all the winners and participants and thanked all the sponsors. He also thanked Khaizan Sharizad Razak Dali, Chairperson of the HRD Organising Committee, Chin Oy Sim, BCHRC Executive Officer, and all other members of the HRD Organising Committee and BCHRC who worked tirelessly and contributed much to the success of the event.

Many participants and our own Bar members are clamouring for a repeat event, and for a bigger, more internationalised competition next year. Edmund said this matter will be determined by the new BCHRC and Bar Council next term.

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