Debate Society held its first official debate on Thursday, October 10, 2013, with participants from SPPM as well as the International Relations Department. The motion was, “Loosening Hukou restrictions on access to and quality of basic social provisions is the most effective path towards greater equality between rural and urban residents in China.” Emily He and Hoang Vu from SPPM represented the proposition side, while Matthias Bach and Torsten Weller, two master’s students from the IR Department debated on the opposition side. The hukou (or household registration) system may be a challenging and unfamiliar topic for those who did not grow up in China, but both teams presented clear and well-researched statements. The proposition side kicked off the debate with an opening statement surrounding the idea that “migrant workers in Chinese cities live like 'illegal' immigrants in the US, [and are] treated as second class citizens because of the exclusivity of hukous”, while the opposition side rejected the premise of the statement and claimed that “reform [of the hukou] will lead to influx of people to cities: more overcrowded public transport, more pollution, more housing problems, and joblessness”. The debaters quickly fell into a heated discussion, while providing insightful comments to the audience members.  In the audience post-debate vote, the opposition side won most of the previously undecided votes, thereby also winning the debate. Overall, the event was a great opportunity to practice public speaking and share ideas among peers with similar interests.

By Alice Xia, SPPM