Three debating events took place over the holidays:
• Following on St Andrew’s College's success at last year's National Finals of the SA Model United Nations Debating Competition, Dexter Munnik was selected to be a part of the South African team who participated in the Cornell International Model United Nations Competition in New York. While the team performed extremely well, Dexter shone out as one of the most exceptional participants seen in recent years. He received an individual award in recognition of his efforts and has even made his debut on South African television as a consequence.
• After a term of intense preparation and research, eight Gr12 St Andrew’s College boys set off for Ireland at the end of term to compete in the St Andrew's International Model United Nations Competition. Each individual had to serve on a committee where they had to advocate resolutions to problems in the world, (such as the situation in Somalia, Afghanistan and the DRC, nuclear weapons, energy, terrorism, drug trafficking and various Human Rights issues), in a manner consistent with the best interests of our assigned country, Indonesia. The learners impressed all with their knowledge and eloquence, with four of the group receiving 'Distinguished Delegate' awards in their respective committees (Abel, de Blocq, McLintock & Hart) and others shining in the General Assembly (Lawless & Buchalter) and the social networking (Delport & Jamjam) components. Over 100 teams competed in the event, many with considerable experience so the results were extremely gratifying: three of the teams were given 'Outstanding Delegation' awards and a further three awarded 'Highly Commended Delegation' - College's 'Highly Commended' award is thus a most pleasing achievement!
• Arriving back in South Africa, Tim Abel and Andrew de Blocq met up with Richard Wilson and Dexter Munnik to participate in the World Schools-style African Schools Debating Championships held at St Johns in Johannesburg. This is undoubtedly the premier debating event in the country where the top debating schools are invited to participate alongside teams from various African countries. While we unfortunately got knocked out of the competition, Dexter managed to earn third place in the Top Speaker rankings. The excellent training offered and the exposure to speakers such as Tito Mboweni, Penny Heyns, Zackie Achmad and the newly-appointed Constitutional Court judge, Justice Edwin Cameron, made the event truly memorable. In addition, two of the team had the special privilege of meeting and getting photographs with Nelson Mandela!
