Linda Reynolds (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I present the report of the Australian Parliamentary Delegation to the 146 Inter-Parliamentary Union assembly in Manama, Bahrain, which took place from 11 to 15 March this year. I seek leave to move a motion to take note of the document.

Leave granted.

I move:

That the Senate take note of the document.

Among the many amazing things that the Australian delegation achieved at the Bahrain IPU meeting, there is one in particular that I'm very proud of and on which I wish to speak here today, and that is Australia's leadership in the antitrafficking movement in relation to orphanage trafficking—what's also referred to as voluntourism. I thank very much all of the Australian delegates, so ably led by the Speaker of the other place, in relation to this document that we passed.

For those of you who haven't heard me talk about orphanage trafficking, it is a uniquely 21st-century form of modern slavery and trafficking, and that is the trafficking of children into so-called orphanages and other types of institutions to meet our overwhelming demand to assist orphans. Our demand to assist and volunteer with orphans far outstrips supply, which has rather perversely—in fact, very perversely—created this trade in millions of children into thousands of institutions around the world, including here in our region. At the 146th IPU assembly in Bahrain, the standing Committee on Democracy and Human Rights discussed and endorsed my proposal, which was presented on behalf of the Australian delegation and the Australian parliament, on this important issue. Accordingly, the IPU has appointed me as a rapporteur on this issue. I see Senator Payman is coming into the Senate, and I thank her in particular for her fabulous support for this cause.

I was delighted to present to the IPU on this issue, and we had nearly 40 interventions from a wide range of countries, overwhelmingly in support of action on this. They have approved for Australia to come back to the October IPU meeting in Angola to put a motion formally. I've been working with world experts literally from across the globe on this issue, and we're about to circulate a motion to nearly 150 IPU member nations. Assuming they come back with support, that will then be put to the meeting, and the result of that will mean that representatives from 140-plus nations will have endorsed global action on this insidious issue.

I'll conclude by saying that this is a problem that we have created. Our good intentions have led to the most awful outcomes for millions of poor children around the world. The simple principle in our aid programs has to be this: if it is not good enough for our own children—if institutionalisation and removal from their families is not good enough for our own children—it boggles my brain as to why so many Australians would be rushing overseas to support the institutionalisation of other people's children. There are so many other options and different programs for Australians and people from many other nations to support. That has been the key message, including from the EU and the United States: that we have done much harm inadvertently to other people's children and we have an overwhelming moral obligation now to remedy that and to encourage generous people from Australia and elsewhere to support programs that support children in their communities with their families so they can stay, grow and prosper and not be exploited in institutions.

Fatima Payman (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It was an honour to be part of the Australian delegation to the 146th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Manama, Bahrain, in March this year. I want to add my support to the comments given by Senator Reynolds, and I totally agree with the senator's emphasis on the importance of taking action on orphanage trafficking, among many other global issues. It was so good to see Australia taking the lead and wanting to make that difference.

I would also like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to the delegation secretary, Dr Jane Thomson, and senior research officer Miss Elise Williamson for all your diligence and hard work in making sure we were at the right place at the right time. During the trip I was grateful to be able to contribute to the general debate on the topic of promoting peaceful coexistence and inclusive societies and fighting intolerance. I believe that this topic is incredibly important, not just in the international context of the IPU but also for us here when considering domestic issues. So I would like to take this opportunity to share parts of my contribution and reflect on how we can best fight intolerance in this place.

There are more than three million young people in Australia, accounting for over 15 per cent of our population. And our youth are fundamentally diverse. This makes them uniquely placed to inform government on how to build inclusive societies and to fight intolerance. Governments that work with young people will be far more effective and will deliver a better future for those they represent. Across our country, young people have demonstrated their political engagement on big issues of our time, and the right thing to do is to work together. It is young people who are most affected by housing instability and unaffordability. It is young people who will be acutely impacted by the effects of climate change. And it is young people who are the most exposed to changing workforce conditions and unstable work.

The insights and perspectives that young people offer are invaluable, and this government is committed to listen. We have established the Office for Youth, which is accountable to parliament, and are committed to a new youth engagement model which will be codesigned by the Youth Steering Committee, made up of diverse and at-risk cohorts, including First Nations people. Ultimately this is about providing avenues for young Australians to directly engage with government to ensure that policies and programs aimed at young people are designed with them and for them. It was very refreshing to see that other countries at the IPU received this information quite well and even thought about discussing it with their governments to make a difference in their political systems.

I believe that, by embedding engagement structures to make sure young people are heard and can contribute, Australia will lead the way in inclusivity and in fighting intolerance with the next generation. I take seriously my responsibility to represent those who have historically been underrepresented in this place, including young people and those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. This Albanese Labor government is serious about engaging with and respecting the contributions of young people.

Question agreed to.