Australia’s largest law firm, MinterEllison, has cut ties with the Adelaide Festival over the inclusion of two Palestinian writers with a track record of hostility against Jewish people and Ukraine.
Minters chief executive Virginia Briggs said on Tuesday that the firm had not only withdrawn its support for the Writers’ Week part of this year’s festival, but also the entire program, which covers a broad spectrum of the arts.
Her statement also said the firm, which has been a sponsor for five years, would boycott all festival events.
“We have made the decision to remove our presence and involvement with this year’s writers’ festival program,” Ms Briggs said.
“In addition, as these speakers are associated with the festival, we will be removing our branding from the broader festival program [where feasible] and not be attending any events of the festival.”
Minters has been under pressure, including from within its ranks, since it emerged that Palestinian poet Mohammed El-Kurd and Palestinian writer Susan Abulhawa had been invited to Writers’ Week, which begins on March 4.
The festival wrote to sponsors two weeks ago to assure them that all sessions would be conducted in a respectful way. Minters sought further assurances late last week from Adelaide Writers’ Week director Louise Adler. They were given, but the law firm still withdrew its support.
Read the article by Michael Pelly in the Financial Review.