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( in the grand OxBridge tradition of the debating Unions ) THE CAST OF CHARACTERS
Shortly after the historic moon landing in July 1969, Chandran was born in Seremban and went on to study at the St Paul's Institution, Seremban. Chandran entered the University of Malaya, and has been awarded a BSc (Hons) Degree (Botany) and an MSc (Plant Physiology & Biochemistry). He is completing his Ph.D. in Plant Biotechnology. He is the coach of UM debating team, and coached the Malaysian team who won the ASEAN Environment Debate in 2000. He debated in the ASEAN Varsities Debate (1992), Australasian Debating Championship (1993 and 1997) and the All Asians (1998 and 2000). He won the 3rd Best Speaker prize at the Fifth All Asian (1998), and was a semi-finalist in 2000. He also won the Battle of Wits in 1997. He has been an accredited AIDA adjudicator since 1997, and has adjudicated at three ASEAN Varsities Debates, two All Asians and one Australasian. He was a Grand Finals Panelist at the 6th All Asians (1999). He was the Chief Adjudicator for the Bestari Invitational Debates in 1998 and 1999. Chandran has been a staunch supporter of the German national football team since 1980.
Ang was born in 1978, and is a product of Victoria Institution, Kuala Lumpur. He won a National award for his best-remembered feat in the Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia 1997; having not only scored Five Straight A's but also a 1 in every single paper! Ang is reading Law at UM; in his final year. He is the captain of the Varsity debating team. He participated in two All Asians; as a debater in 2000 and as an adjudicator in 1999. He also debated in the National Varsities Debate in 1999 and the Royal Debates in 2000. He spoke at the recent Australs. He is also actively involved in mooting at the Law faculty.
For Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia: Maha Hanaan Jalal Balala, 4th Year LLB, Faculty of Laws Maha Hanaan was born in 1980 in the beautiful coastal town of Mombasa, Kenya; a tourist magnet world-renowned for its beaches and luxurious coastal resorts, and mélange of rich cultures. She graduated within the top five among her batch from Loreto High School, Limuru, a top Kenyan school. She realized early that she was blessed with the gift of the gab (though she doesn't always make sense) and hence always wanted to join the law profession, ending up reading Law in the International Islamic University Malaysia. She debated sporadically in school, and only began actively debating in IIUM in the last two years. She has debated in two All Asian Intervarsity Debating Championships, and two Australasian Intervarsity Debating Championships. She was a finalist in the Public Speaking Competition of the Eighth All-Asians Debating Championship, and recently won the IIUM Ummatic Week Debating Championship, 2001. Apart from debating, Hanaan enjoys writing poetry, public speaking and reading a variety of fiction and non-fiction.
Mohd Sani Mohd Ismail (4th Year, LL.B), Faculty of Laws Mohd Sani was born in 1978 in Penang (a beautiful island with lots of good food). Did his secondary education in Malay College, Kuala Kangsar. Has debated actively in university for about 4 years (so much so that people are getting bored by the mere sight of him). He won the All Asian Debating Championship (1998) in his very first year at IIUM. Captained the Malaysian team and won the ASEAN Environmental Debate. Tried to be the first debater to be a two-time Asians Champion; unfortunately his team came 2nd at this year's All Asian Debating Championship. Was ranked 3rd best speaker in Asia last year and 6th in this year's All Asian's. Currently the president of the English Debating Association of IIUM (no one else wanted the job). He has been awarded a Securities Commission scholarship. Hobbies: debating, watching football (Newcastle United, anti-MU) and surfing the Net (decent stuff only; hasn't a clue how to get to the other stuff). Ambition: "Lord Denning" of Malaysia.
For University of Oxford: Cheong Jin-Yu, (2nd Year, B.A.) Philosophy, Politics and Economics, Lady Margaret Hall Jin-Yu spent 13 years at Garden International School, and then took up a mathematics scholarship to Sevenoaks School. Whilst at Garden, Jin (please don't say tonic) reached the semi-finals of the South-East Asian Forensics Debating Competition. He lost; being fatally bored by the complicated American-style debate. Jin also reached the semi-finals of the South-England round of the National MACE competition. But the team lost to the team they beat in the first round, thanks to the imaginative English scoring system. He has proudly contributed to the sound and fury at the Oxford Debating Union, and has held a spectacularly poorly-attended debating workshop. He is the President of the Junior Common Room at Lady Margaret Hall, by means not taught in "What They Don't Teach You At Harvard Business School". He recently gave a mercifully short piano recital (Rachmaninoff's Prelude) at the college freshers' concert. Thankfully not many non-tone deaf persons were present. His other interests include golf, mountain climbing and drama (lead role in Shakespearean plays, aided by a bizarre but exotic accent).
Lim Jo Yan, (2nd Year B.A.), Jurisprudence, Pembroke College Lim Jo Yan's last public appearance was during a Les Miserables musical play at Concord College in which he played the charming Marius. He retained the moustache and beard to continue concealing his good (?) looks. He had a brief stint at debating and was President of the Literary and Debating Society while studying at the Victoria Institution. His past achievements include breaking a state debating championship trophy into two at the presentation ceremony, and also breaking the ice at a South East Asia Forensics Tournament when he tried getting the drop-dead gorgeous opponent's phone number on a point of information. During his more (albeit admittedly few) sensible days, Jo Yan is the President of the Oxford University Malaysia Club in which he uses Club funds wisely for social reasons. Or was it facial reasons? No one has yet to disagree on that policy, except sponsors. He considers himself more of an outdoor person than anything else. He has cycled from Oxford to London to eat Bayswater's duck rice after being deprived of healthy ducks for two terms at Oxford; he couldn't afford the bus ride. On a final note, Jo Yan firmly believes that a debater should always think twice before saying nothing.
Dr Ian Ross, Trinity Hall, Cambridge Ian Ross is clearly a reckless and impulsive chap. We know this because he accepted our last minute invitation to complete the Oxbridge team. Ian is not an experienced debater -- he tried to convince his wife that he should not be here tonight but he lost the argument. Nevertheless, he is loyal to his Alma Mater and has heeded the call when others faltered. The Oxbridge team is bound to benefit from his vast and expansive life experience -- this is a nice way of saying that his age is greater than the combined years of the rest of the team. He is much in demand as an after dinner speaker at his Mum and Dad's house, and sometimes he says things at business meetings, although not very loudly. Ian is a rarity, an Australian Engineer working in Malaysia who attended a Lawyers College in Cambridge, England. He spent 3 years at Trinity Hall and in the Chemical Engineering Department studying the combustion of coal particles, work which will stand him in good stead here tonight. He has over 30 years experience in Government and industry and has also managed his own consulting firm. He abhors Money Politics but is prepared to swallow his principles and give each and every one of you RM5 if you vote in favour of his team's effort tonight. Apart from debating, his dislikes include having teeth pulled at the dentist and durian flavoured ice cream.
Ong Chong Yi, Medical Science, Christ's College Having met Nobel Prize winners, CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, theologists and White House advisors, Chong Yi can honestly claim no similar fame or capability. An anomalous product of Malaysian secondary school education, he attended from 1992 the then-infamous Sultan Abdul Samad Secondary School, Petaling Jaya; now one of the better Sixth Form schools (his departure may have had something to do with that). There he learnt from a lively debating community and had some success in debating. Things took a turn for the worse when the school team was "disqualified for being too good". After being told "kiddies can't quote Kant" (catchy as it sounds), he finally made the astute observation that it's not what you know but where you come from. Abandoning the fine art of debating for the blunt truths of science, he accepted a place to read Medical Science in Christ's College, Cambridge; renowned for Charles Darwin and inexpensive food. Accepting the reality that his academic life can only go downhill, he enjoys taking time off; randomly attending society events that catch his eye. He also enjoys his eclectic lunchtime conversations that touch on game theory, statistics and probability or "Shall I eat the beef?", poverty and homelessness (yup, "The Big Issue"), epidemiology, and the etymology of "crap" (remember Thomas Crapper, the inventor of the flush toilet?). His first debate in a long time, he hopes he still remembers how!
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