Settlement reached over the murder of asylum seeker Reza Berati on Manus Island

14 August 2023

Mr Berati was aged 23 when he was beaten to death by guards and other local contractors in a violent rampage at Australia’s offshore detention centre on Manus that also left 77 other asylum seekers injured. 

In 2021, Mr Berati’s parents Ita Torab Berati and Farideh Baralak sued G4S and the Australian Government for the mental harm suffered as a result of their son’s murder.

Nine years after Reza’s death the parties have settled the claims on confidential terms.

Maurice Blackburn and the Human Rights Law Centre are representing the Berati family.

In June, the last refugees held on Nauru were evacuated to Australia after 10 years. Around 75 people are still being held in Papua New Guinea and need urgent evacuation.

Recent reports have revealed alleged corruption at the heart of offshore detention, with secret multi-million-dollar payments by Australian government contractors to politicians in Papua New Guinea and Nauru. 

Quotes attributable to Mrs Baralak and Mr Berati:

“We still feel the pain of Reza’s absence every single day. Reza came to Australia seeking safety. Then he was murdered in a detention centre where he should have been kept safe. He had done nothing wrong. 

We hope that no other parent has to go through this pain and that nothing like this is allowed to happen ever again.

“While there is nothing that will bring our Reza back or lessen the pain of his loss, we are glad that this case is over. We are satisfied that we fought for justice for Reza and are relieved now that we can try to move on with our lives.”

Quotes attributable to Jennifer Kanis, Principal Lawyer and head of the social justice practice at Maurice Blackburn: 

“We are pleased that after so many years, Reza’s parents have achieved some justice over their son’s death. While this settlement is an important step, they will forever grieve his absence. We must not forget that at the heart of this legal case is the story of a family who lost their child and brother in the most brutal of circumstances.

“The injustices experienced by Reza and other asylum seekers detained offshore underscore the importance of establishing a national charter of human rights to ensure that all people in Australia’s care are treated with humanity and dignity.”

Quotes attributable to Freya Dinshaw, Acting Legal Director, Human Rights Law Centre:

“Reza Berati’s murder has become a symbol of both the brutality and impunity of the offshore detention

system. He came to this country seeking safety and was killed by the very people meant to be protecting him. We were honoured to work with Mrs Baralak and Mr Berati to help deliver this small measure of justice.

“Offshore processing has inflicted untold suffering upon people merely asking for safety while private security operators made multi-million dollar profits. The Albanese Government must urgently evacuate the 75 people still stranded in PNG, and end the harmful policy of offshore detention once and for all.”

Media enquires: Chee Chee Leung at Maurice Blackburn Lawyers on 0412 560 584 or Thomas Feng at the Human Rights Law Centre on 0431 285 275