Victorian politicians were given a wake-up call at a recent speaker’s breakfast when told modern slavery is almost certainly happening in every electorate in the state. Source: ACRATH.
The speaker’s breakfast at Parliament House on February 20 was organised by Legislative Assembly Speaker Maree Edwards. The event was part of a series of breakfasts highlighting key community issues and the organisations actively addressing them.
Ms Edwards has worked closely with Australian Catholic Religious Against Trafficking in Humans (ACRATH) over the past 18 months to plan the event, learning about modern slavery and listening to stories from ACRATH members.
ACRATH’s anti-slavery work was initially highlighted in 2023, when Victoria’s Health Minister and Member for Macedon, Mary-Anne Thomas, urged all members of Parliament to make their electorate offices slavery-free, starting with tea, coffee and chocolate.
ACRATH representatives highlighted its efforts in the community, focusing on programs and initiatives aimed at eliminating modern slavery in Australia and highlighting the importance of actions to prevent modern slavery and to support victims/survivors.
ACRATH’s mission to eliminate modern slavery in Australia includes tackling issues such as forced marriage, exploitation of migrant workers, and slavery within the supply chains of local shops, markets and supermarkets.
ACRATH member Marg Leahy said at the breakfast: “No matter what electorate you belong to, there is human trafficking and modern slavery in your electorate”.
Megan Bourke, a member of ACRATH’s working group on forced marriage, said forced marriage was one of the most highly reported forms of modern slavery in Australia.
“ACRATH’s response to this is a very human perspective for a start, in that we look to train and educate people to notice and respond to behavioural indicators of forced marriage, to look for people who may be in a forced marriage or at threat of being in a forced marriage,” she said.
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ACRATH tells MPs, slavery is present in your electorate (ACRATH)
