The audience, a mix of local university students, political activists and Syrian refugees, will debate the motion: “The West has failed the Syrian people”.
Tim Sebastian, who founded NAD in early 2011, will moderate the English debate on Wednesday, November 27. A day later, renowned Egyptian TV presenter Mai El Sherbiny will present the Arabic version with different speakers and audience.
Both debates will be recorded at the Landmark hotel in Amman at 7 p.m.
Sebastian and Sherbiny will each question two panelists – one supporting the motion and the other opposing it – and invite the audience to quiz the speakers, before deciding the issue by electronic vote.
Sebastian hopes the debates will shed light on who has done what during the Syrian crisis and which promises were kept or broken.
“The blame game is in full swing over Syria- but what else could have been done? The West has suffered from division and indecision but has spearheaded a huge humanitarian effort. What about the Arab states – have they done all they could to ease suffering and bring about peace? Just some of the questions that lie at the heart of our debate in Amman”, says Sebastian.
The speakers for both debates will be announced on Twitter #newarabdebates in the next few days.
The Norwegian Foreign Ministry is supporting the series, designed to foster free speech and democratic accountability. The NAD also run an extensive outreach campaign in schools and universities with the aim of encouraging young people to participate, through public debating, in the political development of their country.
Roar Haugsdal, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Norwegian Embassy in Amman, says his government is delighted to support the series “as it encourages increased political awareness and participation by creating space for balanced and uncensored public debates and dialogue on key contemporary issues”.
“The success of the two former rounds of the NAD, and the excellent performance of Tim Sebastian and the rest of the team, demonstrates their ability to create a healthy environment in which opinions and arguments can be exchanged freely whilst engaging new audiences.”
Both debates will be transmitted for the third year on Deutsche Welle TV in English and Arabic along with its global and regional network of partners including Egypt’s ONTV, Ro’ya TV in Jordan and Watan TV in Ramallah.