Chris Crewther (Dunkley, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that modem slavery continues to devastate the lives of millions of people, with latest estimates of over 40 million people impacted across the world, including over 4,000 people in Australia;

(2) acknowledges that the Government has one of the strongest responses to combat human trafficking and slavery around the world, delivered under the National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking and Slavery 2015-19;

(3) notes that the Government:

(a) remains committed to continuing to improve this response and recognises the importance of partnering with those on the frontline to combat this abhorrent crime;

(b) initiated the inquiry into Australia establishing modern slavery legislation, led by the Foreign Affairs and Aid Sub-Committee of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, which released its interim report in August 2017 making a number of recommendations and statements of in-principle support; and

(c) following extensive consultation with business and civil society, and taking into account the Foreign Affairs and Aid Sub-Committee's recommendations in its December 2017 final report, will introduce targeted legislation requiring large businesses to report on the actions they are taking to address modern slavery in their supply chains; and

(4) calls on the House to support the Government's modern slavery legislation when it is brought before the Parliament.

Modern slavery continues to have a devastating impact on the lives of millions of people around the world. Modern slavery is an umbrella concept covering a number of different forms of exploitation, such as forced labour, debt bondage, child labour, human trafficking, sexual slavery and forced marriage. These are some of the worst crimes of humanity, creating situations where people can be trapped for years in cycles of exploitation and suffering. The stories can be harrowing. I have listened to stories of people being forced into domestic servitude and beaten on a daily basis for years—a story I believe will be covered on Australian television this evening. I have also read media reports regarding workers forced to live in wall cavities in my own electorate in Seaford.

Sadly, victims can be hidden in the depths of supply chains, contributing a small part to a larger product while their suffering is hidden from the world. Australians may be unknowingly contributing to these crimes, whether through the food they eat or the clothes they purchase. The latest estimates suggest that there are more than 40 million people in some form of modern slavery today, including some 4,000 in Australia. Various industries have found themselves at global risk, including fashion, fishing and horticulture. Globalisation has created a situation where goods manufactured for the Australian market are at risk of having elements produced by modern slavery.

Thankfully, this is an issue already on our radar. The Australian government has delivered a strong response to modern slavery thus far through the National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking and Slavery. The action plan has provided a whole-of-government framework for Commonwealth agencies to address the problem of modern slavery through both clarifying the problems and creating a number of priorities for government in addressing this issue. Furthermore, the Australian government is delivering a response internationally through its involvement in the Bali Process. The foreign minister is working closely with our regional partners, as well as business and non-government organisations, to develop best-practice solutions to these problems. By ensuring that our regional partners have a best-practice approach to tackling these problems, we can continue to fight modern slavery in the countries where it has had the greatest impact.

However, there is still room to expand our efforts in addressing modern slavery. While government certainly has a role to play in the response, we cannot be in every factory or on every farm around the world ensuring that people are not exploited. Businesses have a crucial role in addressing modern slavery, as they are the ones that can ultimately affect this issue. As such, the Australian government has already committed to legislation to enhance our response to modern slavery. In particular, the government announced during 2017 that it will introduce a mandatory supply-chain reporting requirement for businesses and a central repository of published statements. These actions will ask businesses to look into their supply chains and understand the challenges and risks of modern slavery to their own enterprises. I know that many directors would be horrified to find modern slavery as part of their business's supply chain, and this will see many of our businesses change their practices to stamp out this problem. The legislation will also see a central repository of modern slavery statements developed. This will allow any individual to access the modern-slavery reports of businesses and other organisations in order to understand what they are doing to fight and limit their risks. This will create a race to the top, producing and boosting the reputations of those businesses that embrace the fight to stop modern slavery.

Moreover, there is still further scope for improvements to this legislation. The report of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, Hidden in plain sightwhich I was very proud of as Chair of the Foreign Affairs and Aid Sub-Committee last year—addresses other shortfalls in Australia's response to modern slavery. The recommendations of this report address issues not currently covered in Australia's response to modern slavery. One crucial element is expanding the oversight and response mechanism through the creation of an anti-modern-slavery commissioner in Australia, similar to a role that already exists in the United Kingdom. The commissioner would be independent and become a focal point for Australia's efforts and would be able to both inform and examine our ongoing efforts as well as advise on best-practice responses to modern slavery. Additionally, an independent commissioner would help erase the regulatory burden of the business reporting requirement by helping to advise concerned businesses on what is required under the reporting mechanism and how they can best tackle the risk of slavery in their supply chains.

The report also addresses orphanage trafficking, whereby children in orphanages and generous donors are exploited by orphanage directors and operators overseas. This can see everyday Australians of goodwill who want to help children in need having their donations instead diverted to line the pockets of some unscrupulous orphanage operators and even middlemen who traffic the children into orphanages. By changing some of our regulatory responses and improving education for Australians who seek to assist orphanages, we can ensure that donations and efforts genuinely assist children in need rather than continuing to fund human trafficking.

Another area addressed by the report is the risk of exploitation in our horticultural industry here in Australia. The committee heard from Moe Turaga, a Fijian migrant who gave evidence of being unpaid for his work on farms for two years. Furthermore, it was disappointing to hear that Mr Turaga's experience is not unique, with reports of ongoing exploitation of workers persisting. Thus the report recommended changes to Australia's visa system as well as improvements to our criminal justice responses to ensure that police in at-risk areas have the responses and training to identify victims of modern slavery.

Furthermore, the report addressed the risks victims of modern slavery face when trying to have their stories heard. Cases such as that of Mohammed Rowi, who was trapped in a modern slavery situation in northern Victoria before being locked in prison and deported, show that sometimes victims of this crime cannot receive the justice they deserve. This also continues the cycle of suffering for others, as the criminals exploiting people like Mr Rowi continue to go unpunished while the victims are deported and lose what money they have.

By improving our identification and training for crimes such as debt bondage and forced labour here in Australia we can catch these persistent criminals and improve the situation for all involved. By addressing these and other areas of concern the committee's report presents a multifaceted policy response to modern slavery. As a result, this report has been widely welcomed by both business and not-for-profit groups. Organisations as varied as Konica Minolta, the Law Council of Australia and the Freedom Partnership have all praised the recommendations of the committee's report. This broad spectrum of support creates a real opportunity for us to seize the momentum and ensure that Australia is at the forefront of this important global fight. Passing this legislation is crucial to our efforts in fighting modern slavery, and I call on each and every member of parliament to do so. I also look forward to our recommendations being considered, and hopefully approved, by the government, which would then follow with this legislation incorporated in these recommendations. This will ensure that we continue to bring slavery out of the shadows and address the problems with broader attention from directors, board members and the wider community.

This is a landmark report that I commend to the House. I hope the government that I am part of accepts the recommendations of the report. I look forward to legislation this year to tackle this issue to see that this problem, which faces over 40 million people worldwide and over 4,000 people in Australia, can be tackled both now and into the future.

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is there a seconder for the motion?

Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm happy to second the motion and commend the member for Dunkley for bringing it to the chamber and to the attention of the Australian people.

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Moreton.

Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade inquired into establishing a modern slavery act in Australia. They handed down their final report in December. As a member of that committee, I was horrified to read the evidence presented at that inquiry. I also dealt with this issue as deputy chair of the Human Rights Committee. I'm horrified that human trafficking, forced labour, sexual slavery, child labour and trafficking, domestic servitude, forced marriage, bonded labour—including debt bondage and slavery—are still being inflicted on our fellow human beings in the 21st century. I'm horrified, but, sadly, I'm not surprised.

I'm horrified that in 2017 there are 45.8 million people living in slavery around the world. That's about double the population of Australia. Two-thirds of those trapped in slavery-like conditions are in our Asia-Pacific region. These people are our neighbours. Often, they are enslaved in the global supply chains of companies that provide products and services to Australians every day—you and me. Industries like manufacturing, construction and agriculture agree that exploitation is occurring in these sectors. Some Australian companies have acknowledged that they have found forms of forced labour in their own company's supply chains. These are mainstream companies like Fortescue Metals and Wesfarmers, to name but a few.

Some horrifying exploitation is occurring in the production of chocolate that Australians consume every day. Australians chew through an astounding three million tonnes of chocolate every year—a fair bit of that in my household. Around two million children—some as young as eight years old—are being used as child slave labour on cocoa plantations in Africa. Some of these children are brought to the plantations after being abducted or kidnapped. They live in terrible conditions, are given very little food and receive almost no education. They are made to work in the hot sun for hours upon hours and they suffer beatings from those enslaving them, just so we can gorge ourselves on chocolate. We should remember these children at Easter time, when the supermarkets are full of wall-to-wall chocolate eggs. I'm not prepared to sit back and do nothing while this cruelty is happening right on our doorstep.

Labor has already committed to a modern slavery act, an act which would have penalties for noncompliance. Other countries have already enacted legislation designed to combat modern slavery, including the United Kingdom, France, Canada and throughout the European Union. I've had briefings from members of the United Kingdom parliament and activists on that particular legislation and how it's been rolled out. The Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade gives in-principle support in its report for developing a modern slavery act in Australia, including mandatory supply chain reporting requirements for companies, businesses, organisations and governments. The committee gave in-principle support to key elements of the United Kingdom's model of supply chain reporting. There are already some companies operating in Australia that are required to report because they have offices in the United Kingdom. The committee heard very positive accounts from those companies about the legislative requirements from the UK. I attended a human rights conference in London a year ago and met with people who advocate against modern slavery. The former Senator Chris Evans is actually doing some great work in this area. This model of legislation which has reporting requirements attached is popular throughout Commonwealth nations. We can and should learn from other countries, like the UK, who have already taken a stand and are making companies accountable for their supply chains.

I look forward to the Turnbull government's bill being introduced. The bill must include penalties for companies which breach the act. A modern slavery act without penalties is a toothless tiger. Modern slavery is an important human rights issue and should concern all of us. We should not be leaving big business to police themselves on slavery. Too often, the Turnbull government panders to big business. Only a modern slavery act that improves transparency within business supply chains and has penalties for companies which breach the act will be an effective tool to combat modern slavery.

The committee also recommended that the government establish an independent antislavery commissioner so that the estimated 4,300 victims of modern slavery right here in Australia can receive the crucial help they need. Victims of modern slavery rarely get the justice they deserve. An antislavery commissioner would provide support for law enforcement and also for victims; and an independent antislavery commissioner would also provide crucial oversight of supply chain reporting. So I call on the Turnbull government to include in their bill an independent antislavery commissioner. A bill without penalties or a commissioner would rely on goodwill too much. Sadly, it would be symbolic and empty. The government must join with the Labor Party and implement a strong modern slavery act. Again, I thank the member for bringing this motion to the chamber.

Kevin Andrews (Menzies, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm pleased to speak to this motion. In doing so I reflect that William Wilberforce is regarded by many people as one of the greatest parliamentarians. He was born to a wealthy merchant family and attended Cambridge University, where he became lifelong friends with William Pitt the younger. Pitt was to become a member of parliament and Prime Minister at the age of just 24, a position he held for some 17 years. Neither Wilberforce nor Pitt were renowned for serious study at Cambridge, as they enjoyed the life of the university. Among other things, Wilberforce was known for his fine singing voice. Like Pitt, he was elected to parliament in his early twenties. Despite his friendship with Pitt, Wilberforce never held ministerial office.

Why, then, is this backbencher, an independent MP who served in the House of Commons for some 45 years, regarded as one of the greatest parliamentarians? After being elected to parliament, Wilberforce was recruited by the Society for the Abolition of the Slave Trade and became their parliamentary leader. Many will have seen the movie Amazing Grace, which marked the bicentenary of the 1807 vote in the House of Commons against the slave trade. It depicts the struggle for over 20 years by the abolitionists, led by Wilberforce, to overcome the evil of slavery. The film depicts a tension in the mind of Wilberforce between serving his religious cause and serving the nation through parliament. In one memorable scene in the film his friend Pitt asks Wilberforce, 'Do you intend to use your beautiful voice to praise the Lord or change the world?' At the urging of the Clapham Sect, Wilberforce eventually concluded that he could do both. Indeed, his epitaph in Westminster Abbey reflects this choice. It reads in part:

Eminent as he was in every department of public labour, and a leader in every work of charity, whether to relieve the temporal or the spiritual wants of his fellow-men, his name will ever be specially identified with those exertions which, by the blessing of God, removed from England the guilt of the African slave trade, and prepared the way for the abolition of slavery in every colony of the empire: in the prosecution of these objects he relied, not in vain, on God; but in the progress he was called to endure great obloquy and great opposition: he outlived, however, all enmity…

Indeed, through sincerity of purpose and civility of manners, Wilberforce attracted many to his long fight for the dignity and liberty of each individual. His courage and perseverance ultimately won through. But it was a long struggle, which endured many decades after the first breakthrough in 1807. There were many setbacks and many more decades before slavery was abolished throughout the developed world.

These reflections bring me to the motion before the House. Regrettably, slavery still exists in the world today. It may be more subtle, less obvious, hidden in places, but there is little doubt that many people, probably millions of people, are enslaved, often but not only in third world countries, and often in the production of goods for sale internationally. Our task, like that of Wilberforce and others two centuries ago, is to get rid of the evil of slavery in all its guises throughout the world. A modern slavery act would aid that cause. As evidence from the United Kingdom indicates, it would be game changing in raising awareness of modern slavery issues for many businesses.

I therefore commend the report of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade to the House, especially the work of the Foreign Affairs and Aid Sub-Committee chaired by my friend the member for Dunkley, and I congratulate him on this work. I hope that in due course a modern slavery bill would have the support of all members of this parliament.

Susan Lamb (Longman, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Dunkley for moving this motion today. It is estimated that there are 45 million people living in slavery worldwide. That is double the population of Australia. This is truly a heartbreaking statistic. There is absolutely no question then that there is zero place for slavery in any part of our modern world. I'm sure any member from either side of the House would agree with me on that, and yet there are still so many people who live enslaved to others, many as victims of exploitation in the private sector, such as in construction, agriculture and manufacturing.

We in Australia have a very important role to play in fighting modern slavery. That's not just because of our proximity to countries where slavery is still so prevalent—two-thirds of people trapped in slavery are reported to be in the Asia-Pacific region—but also because it's estimated that a truly unbelievable 4,300 people are currently trapped in slavery right here in Australia. We must do everything we can to bring that number down to zero. While the Turnbull government may now finally be looking to act—and we applaud that—Labor has been trying to do something for a very, very long time now. The real challenge of being in opposition is you can only take so much action without the support of the government. When you have an ineffective, do-nothing government like this one, you have to overcome delay after delay before progress is finally made.

Back in June last year, Labor announced our plan to tackle modern slavery and to bring the number of people enslaved in Australia down to zero. We recognised a need for greater transparency in supply chains, including information about a company's supply chain, where risk has been and what steps have been taken to ensure that slavery does not exist in that supply chain. This would be enforced to ensure that no Australian company is either directly or indirectly engaging in modern slavery. Our plan would also establish an independent office of the Australian antislavery commissioner to help remedy the gaps in enforcement and support. The commissioner would work with the victims of slavery, receiving inquiries and complaints and assisting victims where necessary. The commissioner would also assist businesses to build best practices in their supply chain to ensure that Australian businesses never engage in slavery, either directly or indirectly.

Labor announced this nearly a year ago, but nothing's been legislated since, not even after the bipartisan Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade tabled a report following the inquiry into modern slavery in December last year. The committee backed Labor's policy for an Australian modern slavery act—one with some teeth. It recognised that we can't rely on big businesses to police themselves. There must be penalties and there must be accountability. But nothing much has been done. As I previously noted, we have an estimated 4,300 people living in slavery in this country, and yet there have only been seven slavery convictions in the last half-decade. This is really urgent legislation. We need to be working on it to pass this immediately. There should not be any people in this country living in slavery. We should be doing everything to bring that number down to zero as quickly as possible.

To the member for Dunkley and the others opposite—I call on you to join with Labor. Let's pass through some meaningful legislation and let's do it sooner rather than later. Every day wasted is another day where someone is living under truly heartbreaking conditions. Join with us now. Let's put an end to slavery in this country once and for all.

Tim Wilson (Goldstein, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

First, I give this speech with sadness that the topic even needs to be raised—that we still have the scourge of slavery in its different guises in the modern world, including in a nation, a Commonwealth, as great as ours. But I also start with sadness having listened to the speech of the previous speaker. If you could find any issue that warranted bipartisan cooperation, I would have thought it would be this one. We could make some obvious points: this government actually initiated the inquiry that led to the report, which is the topic we're discussing today, in October of the previous year versus the policy announcements of the opposition last year.

But to focus and dwell on these sorts of points about who's first distracts from the critical issue—and, frankly, the people—that this report and this cause is designed to address, because nobody should be under any misunderstanding about the importance of tackling modern slavery. It is a critical issue. The International Labour Organization measures the prevalence of forced labour. According to their 2012 global estimates of forced labour, an estimated 20.9 million people across the world are victims of forced labour. The statistics for each type of labour are quite staggering, I think, for many people in this chamber and without. There are 14.2 million people in forced labour in areas such as agricultural, construction, domestic work and manufacturing. In enforced sexual exploitation, there are 4.5 million people. Regarding state imposed forced labour, there are still, tragically, 2.2 million people who are in some form of state imposed labour, whether it's in military or rebel forces. Other UN organisations have reported that 63,251 victims of trafficking were detected in 106 countries between 2012 and 2014. In 2014, over 70 per cent of the 17,752 victims were women or girls, particularly those who are vulnerable and may not be in a position to assist themselves.

Nobody disputes the importance of this issue. It is critical that we face it and confront it, and that is what the report and the committee have sought to do. The inquiry heard about the devastating impact of modern slavery on individual victims. At its public hearing in Melbourne the committee heard from Ms Sophea Touch, a victim of domestic servitude in Cambodia. I have now read her account; it was a very moving one. She was born to a violent family, was sent 300 kilometres from home and was forced to sell cakes from around the village. She lost her chance to go to school. She was beaten and denied food if the cakes were not sold. Sophea was denied the freedoms that we all too often take for granted. I have served as Australia's Human Rights Commissioner and worked directly on some of these issues with many others. Nobody can dispute the enormous impact that the denial of basic liberties has on someone's development throughout their childhood and their adulthood and on their capacity to go on and live a full and free life. The important thing is to do what we can, particularly in the areas that are within our control.

In Australia, there have been over 750 referrals of human trafficking and slavery offences to the Australian Federal Police following the introduction of offences in 2004. From what little data there is available, it seems that forced marriage is the highest risk area in Australia, followed by sexual exploitation and labour exploitation. There have been similar problems in ethnic communities, where people have used dowries as an example of the way to extract relationships and force people into servitude. This is not acceptable in a modern, liberal, pluralistic country with a basic respect for the rights and freedoms of all people. What we know is that most cases were found in metropolitan areas. The committee heard that in 2014 a case of modern slavery was revealed in a brothel in suburban Melbourne, where a woman was held captive and found hidden in a secret wall cavity. We have the resources and the capacity to do something about that now and, as a society, we must do more now.

What we need to do is focus as a country on the things we can control and work cooperatively with the private sector to help tackle the scourge of modern slavery beyond our borders. Of course, we should always work with companies that voluntarily take appropriate action and are part of the solution, not participants in the problem. Where we can work with them to try to effect change, we should, so that we can stamp out modern slavery together.

Ian Goodenough (Moore, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.