The 2025 Premier’s Harmony Dinner took place in Sydney last week, where 1,600 people comprising community members and organisations, diversity advocates, politicians and businesses gathered for a night of multicultural entertainment, delicious food and a presentation of community awards.
Thirteen individuals and organisations were presented Community Medals in recognition of their role in helping strengthen NSW’s diverse and inclusive society. Five people were also posthumously inducted into the Multicultural Honour Roll.
“The individuals and organisations we celebrate tonight are the heart and soul of multiculturalism in NSW,” said Multicultural NSW CEO Joseph La Posta. “Their unwavering commitment to diversity and inclusion makes our state stronger.”
Minister for Multiculturalism, Steve Kamper emphasised the event was “one of the largest multicultural celebrations in the state” and played an important role in “bringing together people from different cultures to celebrate, find common ground and maintain a strong foundation for social cohesion in NSW”.
Amongst the Community Medal recipients was Sabrina Khan, who was awarded the Human Rights Medal sponsored by SSI Equality for Life.
An international human rights lawyer and an advocate of women and children’s rights, she has worked with Afghan, Palestinian, and Iranian women refugees to foster respectful and meaningful cross-cultural dialogue through the arts. She has also sparked conversation around legislative changes, and the importance of culturally safe spaces being created for women of colour impacted by domestic violence.
Speaking to Draw Your Box at the Premier’s Harmony Dinner after accepting her award, Khan – who has Indian and Afghan heritage – said it was “amazing” to receive this recognition. As a survivor of domestic violence herself, she said she recognised how challenging it can be for women to speak up about their experiences. She took the moment to encourage others to come forward when they’re ready.
“I’m accepting this medal on behalf of every survivor of domestic violence out there and my message to you all who are in these kinds of situations is never give up, and pursue your life, your calling and your purpose,” she told Draw Your Box. “Pursue what’s most important to you. You’ve only got one shot at it, make it count.
“It [domestic violence] is a taboo subject in a lot of South Asian communities and it is very important for every survivor out there to come out and speak about it,” she added, explaining that “the more we speak about it, the more we create awareness about it”.
By creating this awareness, she said society can help “normalise sharing these sorts of ordeals and incidents”, therefore providing “encouragement for other women trapped or surviving these kinds of situations to appreciate that, ‘You know what, I matter. I’m worthy too, and I too can come forward and share my story’.
“There is nothing more important than that,” she said.
There were several other wins for South Asians at the Premier’s Harmony Dinner this year, including Syed Sibtain (Dr G.K. Harinath OAM Sports Medal sponsored by Sydney Thunder), Ahmad Zarar (Multicultural Youth Support Medal sponsored by STARTTS), Syed Shah Khan Amin Zada (Stepan Kerkyasharian AO Community Harmony Medal sponsored by Commonwealth Bank of Australia), Neena Sinha (Interpreters and Translators Medal sponsored by NAATI), Dubbo Nepalese Community Australia (Multicultural Not for Profit Medal sponsored by NSW Department of Communities and Justice), as well as CulturalPulse founded by Reg Raghavan (Multicultural Marketing Campaign of the Year sponsored by Anti-Discrimination NSW).
For CulturalPulse, it was their FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 Multicultural Fan Engagement Program that landed them the Multicultural Marketing Campaign of the Year on the night.
“For the FIFA Women’s World Cup, our vision was clear: to honour, engage, and mobilise Australia’s multicultural communities through sport,” CEO of CulturalPulse, Reg Raghavan said in a statement provided to Draw Your Box.
“We worked tirelessly to ensure that every fan, no matter their background or language, felt connected to the tournament and could celebrate their homegrown female heroes. This award is a testament to the power of cultural inclusion in sports marketing.”
Joseph La Posta emphasised that the annual event was ultimately about the contributions of every single person in the room.
“In addition to celebrating the stellar contributions of these worthy winners, this event is a reminder of the rich contribution of migrants to the everyday lives of everyone in our great state.”
Top image source: Multicultural NSW/Salty Dingo
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