Fiona David | Why we need a modern slavery act in Canberra

The police had been given evidence that a woman had been trafficked from Colombia to Canberra, and forced to work from 7am until late at night seven days a week, cleaning the house, cooking, caring for children, and working in a business in Majura Park. The police report suggests the woman was not able to leave the house unescorted.

Having worked on human trafficking issues for many years, the situation in this police report sounds sadly familiar.

A little known quirk of the diplomatic system in Australia is that foreign diplomats are able to bring people to Australia on a special domestic worker visa.

In the past, organisations like the Salvation Army have supported visa holders to exit highly abusive situations. This includes domestic workers who were not permitted to leave the house they were working in, reporting being watched by cameras and subjected to sexual abuse.

Modern slavery, a term that encompasses human trafficking, forced labour and forced marriage, occurs in every country around the world. The UN estimates that 50 million people were living in situations of modern slavery on any given day in 2021.

The Walk Free Global Slavery Index, which looks at the situation country by country, estimates there in 2022, there were more than 41,000 people living in modern slavery, in Australia.

Here in the ACT, the issue is not limited to abuse of domestic workers. Given the scale of modern slavery globally, this criminal abuse of human rights also ends up finding its way into the everyday products we buy.

For example, recent research from Sheffield Hallam University suggests that if you have bought a car in the last five years, chances are it includes products made by forced labour.

But the issues are broader than single categories of products. According to the Global Slavery Index, Australia imports $US17.4 billion of products annually, at high risk of forced labour. The top five products are electronics, garments, solar panels, textiles and fish.

So the ACT government is to be commended for making it an election priority to ensure that ACT legislation can identify and effectively respond to modern slavery.

However, developments in the ACT Legislative Assembly this week suggest there is still some way to go, until this election promise is realised.

In March this year, Greens MLA Jo Clay introduced the Modern Slavery Legislation Amendment Bill 2023.

The bill sought to require a stronger focus by the ACT government on looking into whether the goods and services it buys are impacted by modern slavery. The bill sought to introduce a Modern Slavery Commissioner to oversee the anti-slavery response in the ACT.

A parliamentary committee recommended against passing the bill in its current form.

From the government response tabled last week in the ACT Legislative Assembly, it appears that the government has largely accepted the committees' recommendations.

It is easy to get lost in the detail of the ACT government's response, referring as it does to numerous tweaks to procurement directions and various committees.

But stepping back from the details, what I see is a failure to grasp the complexity and seriousness of the issues at hand and the risk of a missed opportunity for leadership.

It is difficult to grasp the complexity of these cases until you have been immersed in them. Consider the minefield of trying to get a criminal conviction, let alone reclaim unpaid wages when diplomatic immunity is involved, and you start to get the picture.

Add in the reality that nine out of 10 of the world's largest solar panel producers rely on polysilicon that is produced by forced labour, according to research from Sheffield Hallam University. Suddenly, the ACT's renewable energy supply looks anything but straightforward.

Building the systems and processes needed to identify and respond to these crimes requires, and deserves, focused, expert attention over time. It is no accident that the worst exploitation occurs in the places that are hidden, and difficult to reach.

Diplomatic immunity, and forced labour buried in global renewable energy supply chains are just two examples. These are fault lines that are well beyond the ability of any individual public servant to solve.

This is why it is so important to create clear mechanisms for independent oversight and accountability. While public servants are limited by their agency mandates, an independent commissioner can be tasked with achieving an outcome.

They can be given powers such as those that exist in NSW, to require audits, or make codes of conduct that span multiple agencies. They have the mandate to convene stakeholders to develop new ways of working, drawing on the strengths of civil society, different levels of government and even foreign embassies.

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This is why I, along with many colleagues, have advocated for years for the establishment of an anti-slavery commissioner federally. This is why I believe there is a need for equivalent commissioners, in each of the states and territories, including the ACT.

My request of the ACT Legislative Assembly is simple. Before doing away with the idea of a Modern Slavery Act in the nation's capital, take the time to learn more about the issues and the complexity involved. In particular, seek out the views of survivors of these abuses and ask them for their recommendations.

Talk with embassy officials, and to civil society organisations that work on these issues. It is unthinkable to develop legislation on human rights issues without talking to the people who have lived experience.

The ACT has a proud history of engaging with, and driving progressive change on difficult human rights issues. Yet modern slavery happens right here in the ACT, and we are likely buying products that are at risk of being produced by forced labour.

We owe it to every one of those 50 million people still living in modern slavery to give this issue careful focus, and sufficient time and attention to develop a considered response.

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