After the Tampa: From Afghanistan to New Zealand

In 2001 Abbas Nazari's parents fled Taliban persecution in Afghanistan to find a safe place for their children. Their six-month journey through Pakistan and Indonesia searching for asylum culminated with the family being crammed onto a small fishing boat with more than 400 other asylum seekers. When that boat started to sink in the Indian Ocean, they were mercifully rescued by a Norwegian cargo boat, the Tampa. This sparked an international incident among Australia, Norway and Indonesia over responsibility for those rescued, leaving them stranded and then ultimately sent to Nauru Island. Eventually New Zealand offered to take 150 of them, including Nazari and his family.

Now a bestselling author, speaker and Fulbright Scholar, Nazari recounts his extraordinary story - from living under the Taliban’s brutal rule, to spending a terrifying month at sea, his family’s desperate search for safety, and building a new life at the bottom of the world.

An inspiring storyteller of our times, Nazari celebrates the importance of never letting go of what drives the human spirit: hope. He will be in conversation with writer and journalist, Mohamed Hassan.

Sponsored By Acorn Foundation.