Media invite: Voices from the Border -- Refugee Realities in Thailand and Bangladesh

Settlement Services International (SSI), Amnesty International Australia, APRRN

Between Borders: Refugee Realities in Thailand and Bangladesh will be launched at an event bringing together representatives from SSI, Amnesty International Australia, Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN), UNHCR and other regional partners. They will discuss its findings and Australia's role in strengthening refugee protection across the Asia-Pacific.

Event details

What: Speaker series and report launch

Date: Tuesday, 20 October 2026

Time: 12:00pm–2:00pm AEDT (panel begins 12:30pm)

Location: SSI Parramatta, 19/60 Station St E, Parramatta NSW 2150

Format: In person and livestream (register here)

Speakers include:

Violet Roumeliotis AM, SSI CEO
Zaki Haidari, Amnesty International Australia Refugee Rights Campaigner
Hafsar Tameesuddin, Co-Secretary General, APRRN

Copies of the report are available under embargo.

Background: Joint field mission to Bangladesh and Thailand

From 14 to 20 June 2026, representatives from Amnesty International Australia, SSI and APRRN travelled to Bangladesh and Thailand to examine the challenges facing refugees displaced from Myanmar. The visit coincided with World Refugee Day and marked ten years of partnership between SSI and APRRN.

The delegation held more than 20 meetings with refugees, refugee-led committees, United Nations agencies, humanitarian organisations and governments. In Cox’s Bazar, it met Rohingya community members and survivor groups, including Shanti Mohila, a collective of women survivors. In Thailand, it visited communities along the Thai-Myanmar border, including Mae La refugee camp, to examine funding shortfalls and the country’s new work rights for refugees.

Its findings form the basis of Between Borders: Refugee Realities in Thailand and Bangladesh, published in October 2026.

Contact details:

Jordan Wise
M: 0481 484 761
E: [email protected]