Aman ki Asha Peace Debates 2013 Postponed

Muhammad Wasee

As you all must've known by now, Aman ki Asha Peace Debates 2013 has been postponed due to security concern. As the President of VOICE Debating Society, I believe that the message I need to convey to everyone out there is more important than being depressed about the fact that our hard work of nearly 4 months, our sacrifices and our tireless effort didn't blossom into the success that we wanted it to.

We had all the concerned authorities on board, our sponsors were fully excited and our university was ready to host an event that will create history. But due to recent events and the resultant concerns, it was impossible for us to put so much at risk including the safety of our guests.

As much as I am sorry for what happened, as much as I feel guilty that people had to cancel their arrangements at the last minute, I still believe that peace has been created.

The fact that today our friends beyond border didn't give us angry calls but called to show their concern, support and empathy. The fact that today, our representative in India, Abhijeet Singh Narwalhandled everything on the Indian side whilst giving us some space to sort things out here. And the fact that people still want to know the date to which the event has been postponed to (which aren't final yet) so they could come and participate. It all shows that friends have been made and peace has been initiated.

I thank you for everything that you have done. And believe me, if we could do this again InshaAllah, I would love to host you. I personally want to apologize to our extremely competent Adjudication Core who made time for us in order to give our event the hype and the class that it otherwise wouldn't have had.

From the Pakistani circuit, I appreciate all the support and kindness that we received today. It was so generous of you guys to offer your best wishes when we really needed them.

I thank Jang Group, FAST National University and all our sponsors for their constant support. A big shout to my conveners: Uzair Ghumman, Hasan Rafique, Ameer Hamza and Saad Ghumman for staying with me as my brothers and making the dream of this event alive. And hats off to my executive council and the management team for being dedicated throughout.

Take care everyone, stay healthy and I would love to get to meet you all sometime.

Cheers,
Muhammad Wasee
President, VOICE