Kassahun Negewo and Ruchika Talwar of SBS have won the Multicultural Affairs and Media Quill “Detention to determination”.

This award is presented in partnership with the Gandel Foundation.

Judges’ citation

This striking piece probes Australia’s punitive immigration detention policies. The subject matter is hard-hitting, yet through their vivid storytelling, journalists Kassahun Negewo and Ruchika Talwar also succeed in delivering a very human story. Notably, the central protagonist, an asylum seeker who arrived by boat, is never cast as helpless in a quite personalized narrative. The reader is drawn into a multi-layered story, which traces a challenging journey from detention in Nauru to a new life as a Metro train ticket inspector on a bridging visa. This is an elevated example of reporting in the multicultural domain that does not patronise or compromise.

Highly Commended

Suzan Delibasic, Herald Sun, “Lee Family Deportation Fight”

Casey Briggs and Ahmed Yussuf, ABC News, “African and Middle Eastern communities over-represented in COVID-19 fines in Victoria, data shows”

Shortlisted

Dellaram Vreeland, Guardian Australia, “After growing up Iranian in Ballarat, I know it to be a welcoming place – a hate march won’t change that”