00:00Adelaide Writers Week 2026 has been officially cancelled.
00:05It follows a mass boycott of the event by invited authors
00:08in response to the rescinding of an invitation
00:11to Palestinian-Australian writer Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah.
00:16Days of scandal saw 180 writers pull out of attending the event,
00:22which was meant to be held in South Australia
00:24from February 28th to March 5th, 2026.
00:28The writers said they would stand in solidarity
00:32against the perceived censorship of Randa Abdel-Fattah,
00:36who has been a vocal opponent of Israel.
00:39I was cancelled in an email based on my presence being a trigger
00:44and being framed as culturally insensitive
00:47in a direct link to the Bondi terrorist atrocity.
00:52That is racism.
00:53On January 8th, the Writers' Festival Board put out a statement
00:57explaining the rescinding of Abdel-Fattah's invitation
01:00by saying it would
01:02not be culturally sensitive to continue to program the author
01:07at this unprecedented time, so soon after Bondi,
01:12referencing the terror attack where 15 people were killed
01:15during a Jewish celebration of Hanukkah.
01:19Following the cancellation of the event,
01:21the board released a statement saying,
01:23we took this action out of respect for a community experiencing the pain
01:29from a devastating event.
01:31Instead, this decision has created more division,
01:35and for that we express our sincere apologies.
01:39The Adelaide Festival Board apologised to Abdel-Fattah for,
01:44quote,
01:44how the decision was represented.
01:48The statement read,
01:50we also apologise to Dr. Randa Abdel-Fattah
01:53for how the decision was represented,
01:56and reiterate this is not about identity or dissent,
02:00but rather a continuing rapid shift in the national discourse
02:04around the breadth of freedom of expression in our nation,
02:08following Australia's worst terror attack in history.
02:12In a post to Instagram,
02:15Abdel-Fattah said she rejected the board's apology.
02:18She said,
02:19it is clear that the board's regret
02:21extends to how the message of my cancellation was conveyed,
02:26not the decision itself.
02:28But I think this is a landmark,
02:30a watershed moment in the history of Adelaide Writers Week.
02:34In the furore,
02:35former Festival Board chairperson Louise Adler resigned.
02:39Adler is a member of the Jewish Council of Australia's advisory committee
02:44and is herself the daughter of Holocaust survivors.
02:49In an open letter,
02:50Adler said,
02:51the Adelaide Festival Board's decision,
02:54despite my strongest opposition,
02:57to disinvite the Australian-Palestinian writer,
03:00Randa Abdel-Fattah from Adelaide Writers Week,
03:03weakens freedom of speech
03:05and is the harbinger of a less free nation,
03:09where lobbying and political pressure
03:11determine who gets to speak and who doesn't.
03:15I think when we look back on this history,
03:18we will see a masterclass in poor governance,
03:22an act of cultural vandalism,
03:25a moment when 180 writers said,
03:29we will not support censorship,
03:31we will not support
03:32the denigration of one particular writer.
03:38The South Australian government
03:40has since announced the reappointment
03:42of the past chairperson, Judy Potter,
03:45who had previously led the board
03:47from 2016 to 2023.
03:50So that we can ensure
03:52that the 27 writers' week
03:54will be full, beautiful
03:55and down in that park in all its glory.
