Transcript Human trafficking and slavery in Australia

Human trafficking and
slavery in Australia
www.acrath.org.au
Trafficking in Australia
Australia is a destination country
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Australia has not been reported as a
source or transit country.
Media headlines - Scope of TIP
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Indian Stonemasons Exploited to Build
Temple, 2001
$50 a Week for Ribs and Rump, say
Soweto Chefs, 2002
Deadly Slave Labour Racket Exposed,
2002
Abused and Exploited and Now to Be
Deported, 2005
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Hung Jury in Sex Slave Trial, 2005
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Slaves Dig Desert Ditches, 2006
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Filipinos Treated as Slave Labour,
2006
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Foreign Nurses Exploited, Union Says, 2005
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Bride Forced to Work in Brothel, Court Told,
2006
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Teens Bashed and Used as Slaves, 2006
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Man Charged with Slavery Offences, 2006
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Sex Slavery: First Woman Jailed
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Trio Arrested on Sexual Servitude Charges,
2006
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Firm Treated Migrant Worker Like Slave,
2007
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Diplomat Servant’s Unpaid Slavery, 2007
Difficulties in collecting reliable data
Estimates of the extent of trafficking in Australia
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Thailand and to a lesser extent China, South Korea and Malaysia
have been cited as origin countries of illegal sex workers in
Australia, based on statistics of those detected by immigration
authorities and submissions to a parliamentary inquiry into
trafficking of women for sexual servitude (PJCACC 2004).
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2007 US State Department’s Trafficking in Persons Report lists
Australia as:
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Quoted in AIC, Human trafficking to Australia: a research challenge,
June 2007.
a destination country for women from East Asia and Eastern Europe
trafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation. Men and women
from India, China and South Korea were reported to be subject to
slavery, debt bondage and involuntary servitude
There are different estimates about the extent of trafficking in
Australia (Project Respect study: up to 1000 women under
‘contract’ at any given time); Australian Government’s Action Plan
to Eradicate Trafficking in Persons states the number is less than
100; Scarlet Alliance 300 consenting to contract debt
arrangements each year).
Official human trafficking statistics, Australia,
January 2004 - September 2006
Criminal Investigations
117
Victim Support Program
66(a)
Arrests
23
Prosecutions
14
Convictions
4(b)
a: 44 have been issued with criminal justice stay visas
b: at the time of writing three convictions were under appeal
Source: Australian Federal Police From Australian Institute of
Criminology, Human trafficking to Australia: a research
challenge, June 2007
The tip of the iceberg
Australia’s response to
trafficking has focused
on the trafficking of
women for sexual
exploitation.
Less is known about
the trafficking of
persons into other
industries.
Root causes of trafficking to Australia
In Countries of Origin
 Poverty
 Lack of access to education
 Lack of access to
employment
 Lack of a chance to make a
life
 Responsibility for family
members
 Excitement at the prospect
of travel
 Family circumstances –
violence, assault, maledominated family
structures.
In Australia Market Demand
Australian Government Action Plan
To Eradicate Trafficking in Persons
Prevention :community awareness, regional
initiatives
Investigation:establishment of new AFP taskforce,
Prosecution:review of legislation & reform of
criminal law
Protection :victim support & rehabilitation,
trafficking visa framework
Ratification of Trafficking Protocol
Prevention and awareness campaigns
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Government community
awareness campaign
focused on the sex
industry
NGO campaigns by AntiSlavery Project and Project
Respect
Australian Catholic
Religious Against
Trafficking in Humans
Stop the Traffik campaign
– jointly promoted by
World Vision and the
Salvation Army
Australian Government Support for Victims of People
Trafficking Program
1.2 What are the planned outcomes of the
Support for Victims of People Trafficking
Program?
The Program aims to achieve the following outcomes:
• Clients are able to meet their basic needs for
food, accommodation, health and welfare while
they assist the Australian Federal Police (AFP) with
investigations into people trafficking and the
Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions
(CDPP) with respect to the prosecution of such
offences; and
• Clients will also be given the opportunity to learn
new skills to support their reintegration upon
returning home.
Australian Government Support for
Victims of Trafficking & Slavery
Who is eligible for the programme?
Phase 1
During this initial 30 day period victims have access to the
following support:
 secure accommodation within close proximity to the AFP
(approx. $140-$160 per night);
 a living allowance ($160 per fortnight);
 a weekly food allowance ($160 per fortnight);
 a one-off amount of $300 for the purchase of essentials
such as clothing and toiletries;
 access to the Medicare Benefits Scheme and the
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme; and
 access to legal services (a maximum of 3 appointments per
client throughout both phases of support).
From Trafficking Fact Sheet – Office for Women
Australian Government Support for
Victims of Trafficking & Slavery
Phase 2
 Victims who are willing and able to assist with the investigation or
prosecution of a suspected trafficker have access to Phase 2 of the
programme, which will provide them with the following support services:
 Special Benefit (up to $420.90 per fortnight) and Rent Assistance (up to
$103.20 per fortnight) paid through Centrelink (if they meet eligibility
requirements);
 Assistance with securing longer term accommodation (provision for bond
and 2 weeks rent in advance refundable to the Commonwealth);
 a one-off amount of up to $700 for the purchase of essential furniture for
long term accommodation;
 Access to the Medicare Benefits Scheme and the Pharmaceutical Benefits
Scheme;
 Access to legal services (a maximum of 3 appointments per client
throughout both phases of support); and
 Access to employment and training if desired and to social support
(including English language training, budgeting skills, counselling etc) and
vocational guidance where appropriate.
From Trafficking Fact Sheet – Office for Women
What happens at the end of the
Government victim support programme?
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Clients of the programme who are deemed to be
at risk of harm if they return to their home
country as a result of their contribution to an
investigation or the prosecution of trafficking
offenders, may be eligible for temporary or
permanent Witness Protection (Trafficking) Visas.
The Australian Government is also implementing
a reintegration assistance project for victims of
trafficking who return to their countries of origin.
From Trafficking Fact Sheet – Office for Women
Evaluation of the government victim
support program
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The program is limited to those who
can assist the police and prosecutors
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If a woman can’t help the police or
prosecutors, no government help is
offered
This policy causes immense hardship
and suffering as religious groups and
other ngos work hard to fill the gaps
providing
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accommodation,
food,
medical assistance,
dental help,
psychological treatment,
translation and interpreting services,
immigration and other legal services.
No visa certainty
No clear assistance if returned to country
of origin.
Anti-Slavery Project
University of
Technology, Sydney
THE AUSTRALIAN RESPONSE
TO TRAFFICKING
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Criminal Code Amendment (Slavery and
Sexual Servitude) Act 1999
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Created the offences of sexual servitude, slavery and
deceptive recruiting;
No offence of trafficking;
Narrower in scope than the UN Trafficking Protocol;
First charges under the Act laid in 2003;
Difficulty in obtaining successful prosecutions.
Slavery is unlawful: right of ownership over a person including
where such a right results from a debt contract
OFFENCES – Criminal Code 1995
A person who intentionally :
 Possesses a slave or exercises the right of
ownership over a slave;
 Engages in slave trading
 Enters into any commercial transaction involving
a slave
 Exercises control or direction or provides finances
for slave trading or commercial transactions
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25 years imprisonment
(If a person is reckless as to whether a transaction
involves a slave and enters into a commercial
transaction, directs, finances or exercises control over
slave trading :17 years imprisonment ).
CRIMINAL CODE AMENDMENT (TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS
OFFENCES) ACT 2005
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Positive step forward.
New offences:
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Offence of Trafficking in Persons (s 271.2)
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Covers trafficking into and out of Australia in circumstances where
the person is forced, threatened or deceived about the fact the
person’s stay in Australia will involve exploitation, debt bondage or
confiscation of travel documents
Covers where a person was deceived about the nature or
conditions of sexual services
Covers circumstances where the trafficker is reckless as to
whether the person will be exploited either by the first person or
another
Offence of Trafficking in children (s71.4)
Offence of Domestic Trafficking (s271.5)
CRIMINAL CODE AMENDMENT (TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS OFFENCES) ACT 2005
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Offence of Debt Bondage (s271.8)
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Debt bondage is defined as: the status or condition that
arises from a pledge by (a) a person of his or her personal
services or (b) of the services of another person under his
or her control as security for a debt owed, or claimed to be
owed, (including any debt incurred, or claimed to be
incurred, after the pledge is given), by that person if: (ba)
the debt owed or claimed to be owed is manifestly
excessive; or (c) the reasonable value of those services is
not applied toward the liquidation of the debt or purported
debt; or (d) the length and nature of those services are not
respectively limited and defined.
The offence of debt bondage in section 271.8 states a
person commits an offence if a person engages in conduct
that causes and intends to cause another person to enter
into debt bondage.
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Prosecution : ‘beyond reasonable doubt’
In Australia, the jury makes the
decision about whether a person
is guilty or innocent.
The jury must decide whether a
person is guilty ‘beyond
reasonable doubt’.
The Attorney-General’s
department believes that there
is a general lack of knowledge in
the community about the reality
of trafficking and slavery.
Director of Public Prosecutions
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14 prosecutions have been
undertaken resulting in 4
convictions – 3 of which are
under appeal.
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Commonwealth conducts
prosecutions – generally they
prosecute white-collar crime,
customs and drug importation
offences.
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Little experience prosecuting
personal crimes such as
sexual assault, rape. They are
building up their experience in
the prosecution of trafficking
and slavery.
A NEW VISA FRAMEWORK
FOR VICTIMS/WITNESSES
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Introduced January 2004
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The new visa framework
is a four-step package,
comprising:
1.
Bridging Visa F (BVF)
2.
Criminal Justice Stay
Visa
Witness protection
(trafficking) (temporary)
Witness protection
(trafficking)
(permanent)
3.
4.
EVALUATING THE VISA
FRAMEWORK
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Problems:
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Few witness protection (trafficking) visas have been
granted;
Discretionary process;
Even if trafficking victims are willing to provide evidence
they will not be granted visas unless the AFP believes the
evidence is useful to an investigation or prosecution;
Witness protection visas only available after criminal justice
visas have expired;
Victim support contingent on capacity to provide useful
evidence;
Reform the current visa regime to protect
ALL victims of trafficking and slavery
Weaknesses:
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Focuses on victim’s usefulness as a witness
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Requires close cooperation with a prosecution or
investigation
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Not self-petitioning, at the discretion of the Minister
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Lengthy and expensive process
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A victim-centered visa regime will prevent the retrafficking and re-enslavement of victims regardless of
their cooperation with authorities
Particular issues for Australia
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Labour shortages in rural
and regional Australia
Is there a need for a new
type of visa to meet
demand for seasonal
horticultural and other
work?
Should Australia invest in a
guest worker scheme?
Is there a greater risk of
trafficking, slavery and
exploitation
Australia has not ratified
the Migrant Workers
Convention.
Implement a coordinated human rights
approach to combat trafficking and slavery
Human Rights
Human rights are about recognising and
respecting the inherent value and dignity
of people. Human rights principles are
contained in internationally agreed human
rights standards. The Australian Human
Rights and Equal Opportunities
Commission is responsible for promoting
and protecting those human rights in
Australia.
Law enforcement
The Australian
government has
pursued a migration
and law enforcement
approach to address
trafficking and slavery
focused on criminal
justice and
immigration control
rather than a holistic
human rights and
social justice
approach.
Human rights
The National Action
Plan should be reevaluated and new
strategies developed
in conjunction with
human rights
organisations.