In Conversation with Behrouz Boochani

RACS was honoured to host an evening with award-winning writer and human rights advocate Behrouz Boochani in November, at Belvoir St Theatre in Sydney.

Behrouz was joined In Conversation by refugee law expert Dr Daniel Ghezelbash and celebrated journalist and TV presenter Jan Fran.

The panel discussed Australia’s immigration and humanitarian policies, with Behrouz drawing on his personal experience of offshore detention under such laws. He was a political prisoner incarcerated by the Australian government in Papua New Guinea for almost seven years. In November 2019, Behrouz was granted asylum in New Zealand, where he now lives.

The conversation turned to the recent High Court decision to overturn a landmark case, effectively ruling that indefinite detention is unconstitutional, and discussed the role the media plays in portraying refugees and people seeking asylum in Australian communities.

With 2023 being a year of headlines, policy changes and global developments in the refugee space, this was a timely conversation with a thinker who has experienced and explored them deeply.

We are immensely grateful to the team at Belvoir St Theatre for their generosity in donating their space for this event, to Behrouz Boochani, Jan Fran and Daniel Ghezelbash for their talent and expertise, and to the attendees who came in support of Behrouz and the work we do at RACS.