Human Trafficking: A Crime of the 21st Century
Tuesday 11 June 2013 @ 8.56 a.m. | Legal Research
With a new report issued by the UN's Office on Drugs and Crime saying convictions for human trafficking are on the rise in a quarter of countries around the world and the effect of Australia's Crimes Legislation Amendment (Slavery, Slavery-like Conditions and People Trafficking) Act 2013 (6/2013) (CTH) being seen in full effect after its commencement in March this year, human trafficking is being labelled the "crime of the 21st century."
Human trafficking is defined by the Australian Federal Police as the "global trade of trafficking men, women and children into the sex industry and labour markets." In 2003, the Federal Government announced a whole-of-government package to address crimes committed against humanity; specifically human trafficking, addressing mainly consecutive amendments to the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth).
The Criminal Code contains eight offences of trafficking in persons. These offences prohibit organising or facilitating the movement of a victim into, out of, or within Australia, where this movement occurs because of force, threats, or deception for the purpose of exploitation. It is also an offence to be reckless to the fact that a person who is trafficked to Australia may be exploited. The maximum penalty for a trafficking offence is 25 years imprisonment. There are separate offences of trafficking in children and domestic trafficking within Australia.
Australia's response to human trafficking reflects our obligations as party to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime since 2004 and its supplementary Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children since 2005.
However, as stated in a recent SBS report, "research by the Australian Institute of Criminology has shown extensive human trafficking out of one of our closest neighbours - Indonesia."
Director of Anti-Slavery Australia, Jennifer Burns, who deals with victims of human trafficking, is concerned there's still "little information about the true dimension of human trafficking and exploitation in Australia."
She further states,
"it can be hard to find people trafficked into areas other than the sex industry...they are in effect invisible, unrecognised by the public and too scared to come forward themselves.
Particularly domestic workers and that might be women working in a private home or people in working on construction or manufacturing or in the agricultural industry, hospitality is also a potentially vulnerable industry for exploitation......People who do experience this kind of exploitation are often fearful of authority, wouldn't dream of asking assistance from the police or immigration or other government authorities in fear of deportation."
Victims of human trafficking are in a unique position, unlike other victims of crime, they may have a tenuous migration status in a foreign country, where they may speak little of the language and know only the people who have exploited them. In addition, there is the fear of being identified as a victim of crime. As a result, suspected victims of trafficking can be highly vulnerable and isolated.
With Australia's latest amendments to the Criminal Code and continuous co-operation with Indonesia and other foreign countries suspected of human trafficking, it would seem that a solution is far from certain. However, with continuous research and co-operation internationally, the scope of the problem may at least be determined.
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