The Adelaide Festival Board’s decision to disinvite Palestinian-Australian author and academic Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah from the Festival’s 2026 Adelaide Writers Week – reported by ArtsHub yesterday (Friday 9 January) – continues to reverberate across the Australian cultural sector.
Adelaide Writers Week crisis: quick links
Adelaide Writers Week: the crisis continues
As reported by ArtsHub yesterday, more than 40 writers and intellectuals are now boycotting Writers Week in protest at the Board’s decision, leaving the program in tatters.
This morning (10 January), an open letter written by 11 former Adelaide Festival leaders who support the reinstatement of Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah to the Adelaide Writers Week program, was sent to the Festival Board.
Editor’s note: The letter was updated and recirculated on 12 January with six additional names added to the list of authors; this article has been updated accordingly.
As noted in the accompanying email to the Board, a ‘small number’ of names are missing from the letter.
‘There are a very small number of names missing of those living who have had artistic or executive stewardship of the Festival over its history but largely because some have been uncontactable and a couple have not been able to publicly express support due to extraneous factors (e.g. current employment arrangements). Barrie Kosky (Artistic Director 1996) has indicated that he is supportive of the views in the letter but does not sign group letters as a matter of principle. He has written separately to the Premier and the Minister calling for the reinstatement of Dr Abdel-Fattah,’ the email read.
The letter – published below in full – is also being sent to South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas and Andrea Michaels MP, Minister for the Arts.
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An open letter to the Adelaide Festival Board
We are deeply saddened by the decision by the board of Adelaide Festival to cancel the invitation to Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah to speak at Adelaide Writers Week 2026. It is a grave mistake which brings the Festival and Writers Week into disrepute and which may have far-reaching consequences for both the Festival and Writers Week well into the future.
There is one remedy for the justified public outcry at this egregious incursion on free speech and the damaging series of withdrawals it has caused. We call upon the Board to reinstate Dr Abdel-Fattah’s invitation to the 2026 Adelaide Writers’ Week immediately. An about-face may be embarrassing but it is both the right thing to do and will cauterise the growing damage to this much loved and internationally significant South Australian cultural institution.
Adelaide Writers Week has, over many years, been notable for steadfastly providing a platform for intelligent free-speech in the face of a world awash in dumbed-down hate-speech. The Festival Board has previously been admirable in its support of the Director’s decisions in the face of vocal and well-organised opposition, notably in the lead up to the 2023 Festival. This calm resolve was utterly vindicated by the civility of those Writers Week sessions that were alleged to contain the seeds of division. As it was, the divisive ruckus was largely confined to the media in advance of the fact. The Board’s reversal of its principled support for the Director and her program at this time is, in our view, antithetical to what the Festival and Writers Week have and should stand for.
In its statement, the Board alluded to “the role of Adelaide Festival in promoting community cohesion”. The cancellation of Dr Abdel-Fattah’s invitation exposes this as mere double-speak. Rather than resolving division, the Board’s decision has and will create it. The Festival and Writers Week already have robust policies in place that protect against hate-speech and they have proven effective in the past. The original invitation to Dr Abdel-Fattah was doubtless made within this context. To revoke her invitation inevitably and appallingly draws a direct link between her presence and the outrage of the Bondi massacre.
Wickedness thrives in darkness and prejudice thrives in ignorance born of silence. The open discussion of ideas, beliefs, facts and opinion is ultimately the pathway to community cohesion. Silencing and censorship are not.
We are also saddened the Board has chosen to publicly advise it will be creating a sub-committee to review Writers Week programming decisions. This can only be read as a public vote of no confidence in Louise Adler AM (and her successors) and undercuts the long-held principle that the Board, having done its due diligence when appointing its creative leaders, will support them and their curatorial decisions. Whilst we acknowledge the Board has ultimate oversight of all facets of the Festival and Writers’ Week operations, its first impulse should be to allow the Artistic Director and the Director of Adelaide Writers Week to do their work without heeding the views of thought-police, media moguls or brilliantly co-ordinated lobbies. This decision appears as a humiliating rebuke to someone who has led Adelaide Writers Week with immense distinction and courage in the face of unjustified hatred.
One can only assume a Board that decides to bring in independent experts to help it in its management of programming has a lack of confidence in its own expertise. Perhaps this might be more simply remedied by the Government appointing even a few people with arts expertise to the Board of this great arts institution? We note there are currently none.
Signed,
Neil Armfield AO: Artistic Director 2017 – 2022 Festivals; Participating Artist 1982, 1986, 1990, 1992, 1994, 2004, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023.
Rob Brookman AM: Administrator 1983 – 1988; Associate Director 1990 Festival; Artistic Director 1992 Festival; Executive Director 2017 – 2020; Associate Director 2023 Festival; Opera & Music Advisor 2024 Festival.
Jo Dyer: Director Adelaide Writers Week 2019 – 2022 Festivals
Peter Goldsworthy AM: Chair Adelaide Writers Week 2012 – 2016; Serial Participating Writer.
Nicholas Heyward AM: Chief Executive Officer 1997 – 2001.
Kath M Mainland CBE: Chief Executive 2022 – 2025.
Ian Scobie AM: Administrator 1990 – 1994; General Manager 1994 – 1996.
David Sefton: Artistic Director 2013 – 2016 Festivals.
Jim Sharman AO: Artistic Director 1982 Festival; Participating AF Artist 1972, 1980, 1986, 1992, 2006; Board Member 1997-2002.
Anthony Steel AM: Artistic Director 1974, 1976, 1978, 1984, 1986 Festivals; Board Member 1999 – 2002.
Mary Vallentine AO: Administrator 1978 – 1982; Opera & Music Advisor 2018 – 2021 Festivals.
Update: Several additional signatories were added to the list on 12 January. They are:
Robyn Archer AO: Artistic Director 1998, 2000 Festivals; Serial Participating Artist.
Penny Chapman: Administrator 1982; Writers Week/Come Out Coordinator 1978 – 1982.
Paul Grabowsky AO: Artistic Director 2010, 2012 Festivals; Serial Participating Artist.
Ruth Mackenzie CBE: Artistic Director 2023, 2024 Festivals.
Stephen Page AO: Artistic Director 2004 Festival; Board Member 2023 – 24; Serial Participating Artist.
Peter Sellars: Artistic Director 2002 Festival; Participating Artist 2002, 2026.
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Adelaide Writers Week 2026 runs from 28 February to 5 March. Adelaide Festival runs from 27 February to 15 March 2026.
This article was updated on 13 January at 9:58am to include additional signatories to the open letter.
