June 24, 2010

The Grandfinalists of the debate from DWU and PAU immediately after their final debate at the SVD Memorial Auditorium on Wednesday night, 23 June, 2010.	Initiator of the inaugural National Youth Debate on HIV, Sir Peter Barter making a point when opening the debate at the SVD Memorial Auditorium at Divine Word University in Madang	Part of the Unitech debating team with their lecturer moving to one of the venues for their next hit out. Unfortunately, Unitech did not make it to the semi-finals.

The inaugural Nature’s Own National HIV Youth Debate on Wednesday night, 23 June, 2010 involving students from the six national universities turned out to be an excellent exhibition of intellect there is at the campuses.

The debate hosted by Divine Word University in Madang was dubbed as the first-ever intellectual discourse of its kind among students from the University of PNG, PNG University of Technology, University of Goroka, University of National Resources and Environment, Pacific Adventist University and DWU.

PAU defeated DWU to become the inaugural winners in a grueling series that had two teams from each of the six universities clashing for survival.

UNRE had both its teams eliminated in the first hit. After a series of knock-outs throughout the day, it was it DWU, PAU and UPNG who took a team each to the semifinals. In the semis the three teams had to challenging each other over three games in an equally grueling encounter find the eventual grand finalists. Unfortunately, UPNG was knocked out and DWU and PAU survived to hit-out in the grandfinal.

Throughout the debate, the exceptional delivery of some of the speakers in the packed venues had observers feeling assured in the intellectuals that were being molded at the PNG universities.

In the main hits at the main venue, the SVD memorial auditorium, students from the host campus and other educational institutions in Madang and invited dignitaries got their money’s worth, as it were, as thet young intellects challenged each others’ understanding of the issues surrounding HIV prevalence in PNG.

For the older ones in the audience, the debate brought back memories of those great intellectual exchanges among the bright minds at the UPNG and Unitech campuses during the formative years of the nation in the 1970s and 1980s.

Dignitaries who attended all felt satisfied and commended the initiative of the Chairman of the National AIDS Council (NAC) Sir Peter Barter and called for more intellectual discussions among students and youth to advice future policies.

The dignitaries included, Governor General Sir Paulias Matane and Lady Kaludia, Minister for Community Development, DameCarol Kidu, Madang Governor Sir Arnold Amet, National Youth Commissioner, Johnson Hebe, Acting Secretary for Health, Paison Dakulala and David MacLauchlan, the UN Country representative among others

Sir Peter, in his keynote address said the debate was a deliberate effort to include the future leaders to take ownership of issues affecting their country and be involved in decision-making and policy formulation.


Sir Peter declared that yesterday’s debate was the first of many that will follow every year and thanked all the sponsors for supporting it.

Director of the National AIDS Council Secretariat, Wep Kanawi when commending Sir Peter said the Five Year national HIV /AIDS strategy is on hold to include suggestions that come out of the debate.

President of DWU, Fr Jan Czuba also applauded Sir Peter for the initiative and urged the students to offer constructive solutions to curbing the further prevalence of HIV.

“I hope that your discussions will focus on the social context and contemporary sexual culture as shaping factors in the passing of high-risk sexual behavior,” Fr Czuba told the students.

Sir Peter said the winning team will take out the inaugural Prime Minister’s scholarship for Lahara job attachment at the NACS or the provincial AIDS councils of their choice