Up to 60 human rights advocates, academics and LGBTQIA+ leaders will participate in the first LGBTQIA+ human rights conference of its kind in the Asia Pacific as part of Sydney WorldPride 2023, with the first 10 panellists and presenters now confirmed.
Taking place 1-3 March 2023 at International Convention Sydney (ICC Sydney), the Sydney WorldPride Human Rights Conference will bring together 1,500 community leaders, activists, politicians and human rights experts from across the globe for three days of talks, panel discussions and workshops about the key human rights issues affecting LGBTQIA+ people around the world.
“Never before has an LGBTQIA+ Human Rights Conference of this scale been held in the Asia Pacific. It’s a cornerstone event in the Sydney WorldPride festival calendar,” Sydney WorldPride chief executive officer Kate Wickett said.
“The 10 highly respected speakers announced come from across the globe including the UK, South Africa and Indonesia. They have a variety of backgrounds and bring unique perspectives and experiences that will help drive progress for our community.”
The confirmed panellists include Victor Madrigal-Borloz, the UN’s Independent Expert on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity; Tony Briffa, intersex human rights activist and first out intersex person elected to public office in the world; Edwin Cameron, former Justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa and LGBTQIA+ advocate; Professor Dennis Altman AM FASSA, Australian writer, academic and voice of the early Gay Liberation Movement; and Dr Elizabeth Kerekere MP, member of New Zealand Parliament and LGBTQ+ activist and scholar.
With the full program yet to be released, four new ticket options have been announced, adding to the existing discount streams for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and Community Organisations. The conference will also be streamed online for free for anyone to attend.
“The Human Rights Conference is for all of us and from the beginning it has been our intention to have a mix of attendees, from grass-roots organisations and activists, to government, researchers and service providers,” Wickett said.
“From art, activism and healthcare to legal policy and inclusion, the Human Rights Conference is the cornerstone of Sydney WorldPride 2023, with an ambition to create meaningful change for our community right across the region. I am confident we have balanced the scale and ambition of the conference, while also making it accessible and ensuring a diversity of voices.”
