The trade is in people.
The currency is hope.
Human traffickers and people involved in the buying and selling of people and exercising ownership of another person, trade on people’s hopes.
The hope for a better future for their children
The hope for an education
The hope for a job
The hope to provide food and shelter for their families
What is Modern Slavery?
Watch the video below to get an overview of modern slavery.
What Does Modern Slavery Look Like?
Human trafficking and slavery occurs here in Australia.
Australia is a destination country for people who have been trafficked. In Australia, human trafficking leads to exploitation in a number of forms including sexual exploitation, forced labour, visa exploitation, forced marriage and domestic servitude. Each of these is characterised by deception, coercion, force, threat and abuse, and each is an issue of human rights and in many cases, child protection and gender inequality.
We call these types of exploitation modern slavery. In Australia, they are punishable under the Criminal Code Act (1995).
Find out about the different types of slavery below and learn the signs here.
Forced Marriage
Domestic Servitude
Forced Labour
Organ Trafficking
Visa Exploitation
Sexual Exploitation
Stories of Modern Slavery
These short stories are true stories of child labour, entrapment, forced labour, human trafficking and modern slavery.
I Will
'I Will' is a short visual narrative based on a poem by a human trafficking survivor, given to Suzanne Kim (the director/producer) on a visit with Be Slavery Free (formerly STOP THE TRAFFIK Australia) to a material factory in Tamil Nadu. Her story is a powerful message of survival, hope, overcoming extreme adversities through love and courage. In collaboration with director Suzanne Kim, we created this visual narrative as part of encouraging the Australian Government to adopt national legislation combatting modern slavery.
“I will not be defined by my past.
I will not be defined by the way you belittled me.
I will not be defined by the brand carved into my skin.
I will not be defined by the way you hurt me.
I will not be defined by silence.
I will not be defined as a statistic.
I will be defined by my determination.
I will be defined by my strength.
I will be defined by my self worth.
I will be defined by laughter.
I will be defined by love.
I will be defined by my own story.”
25 Civil Society Organisations call for ‘Effectiveness Over Efficiency’ in Australia’s Duty to Prevent Modern Slavery
22 November 2022
25 civil society organisations have called for a focus on effectiveness in ending modern slavery over efficiency of implementing the Modern Slavery Act, as part of Be Slavery Free’s submission to the Modern Slavery Act Review.
Australia’s Modern Slavery Act 2018 (the Act)– which currently focuses on corporate supply chain transparency and reporting of modern slavery risks – does not consider a whole-of-government approach to anti-slavery legislation and initiatives. This means there is no coordinated approach to prevent modern slavery from occurring, respond to risks as they arise, or provision of remedy to victim-survivors of slavery when it occurs.
The Act is undergoing its first review, three years after implementation. However, the focus so far has predominantly been on improving efficiency in corporate reporting against the Act – rather than effectiveness in ending modern slavery.
Be Slavery Free is calling for a shift to a due diligence approach, rather than a reporting and transparency-based framework, that ensures all companies are required to ‘do no harm’. As part of this response, companies should receive support from Government to improve the accuracy of their reporting and face penalties for non-compliance.
“Simply requiring companies to make a statement about modern slavery in their supply chains and their activities to mitigate risk is at best ineffective, and at worst, harmful” says Carolyn Kitto, Co-Director, Be Slavery Free.
“More than 50 million people are in slavery around the world. Australia will continue to contribute to this exploitation unless corporate standards are enforced, practice is analysed, and penalties for failing to uphold required standards”, Carolyn Kitto continued.
Without rigorous checks and significant penalties, companies who are doing the right thing and working to end slavery in their supply chains are at a competitive disadvantage, compared to those who neglect their responsibilities.
Be Slavery Free recommends the appointment of an independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner to oversee and enforce the Act and all other modern slavery interventions. Doing so would help position Australia alongside other world-leading countries in its response to modern slavery.
Amongst the 11 recommendations submitted by the coalition of civil society organisations, Be Slavery Free calls for more published guidance and support for companies working in high-risk regions and industries, as well as for small and medium enterprises, who are impacted by the Act’s reporting requirements.
Additionally, Australia’s response to modern slavery – through the Modern Slavery Act and the National Action Plan to Combat Modern Slavery – relies on civil society organisations and academia to review and assess data, raise awareness and provide practical support to victim-survivors of slavery. However, the sector receives no ongoing funding to undertake this work.