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News & Updates

Australian Government Announces Major Package to Combat People Trafficking

On October 13, 2003, the Australian Government showed its commitment to combating trafficking in people by allocating more than AU$20 million over four years for a major package of measures to combat this growing form of transnational organized crime.

The new measures will significantly enhance the detection, investigation and prosecution of traffickers, improve the range of support available to victims and help prevent trafficking of persons. They will complement existing efforts, including Australian Government aid program activities valued at around AU$14 million.

While Australia has a range of practical and legal measures already in place to combat trafficking, these new measures emphasize the Government's commitment to combating trafficking in persons by focusing on prevention, detection, prosecutions, supporting victims and international efforts.

A Commonwealth Action Plan to Eradicate Trafficking in Persons will be developed to co-ordinate these new initiatives. 

This Action Plan will complement existing measures by providing additional initiatives. These are:

• A new community awareness campaign to raise awareness of trafficking issues within Australia;
• A new 23-member Australian Federal Police (AFP) mobile strike team (the Transnational Sexual Exploitation and Trafficking Team) to investigate trafficking and sexual servitude;
• A new Senior Migration Officer (Compliance) in Thailand, focused on trafficking in persons;
• Closer links between the AFP and Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs (DIMIA) officers in the detection and investigation of trafficking and enhanced training on trafficking issues;
• New visa arrangements for potentially trafficked persons;
• Comprehensive victim support measures provided through contracted case managers,  including appropriate accommodation and living expenses and access for victims to a wide range of social support, legal, medical and counselling services;
• Enhancement of arrangements, including access to additional support, for the small number of potential victims who may be required to remain in immigration detention;
• Development of a reintegration assistance project for trafficking victims who are returned to key source countries in South East Asia;
• Improvements to legislation to comprehensively criminalize trafficking activity;
• Legislative amendments to make telecommunications interception available for investigating  trafficking offences, and
• Ratification, once all domestic requirements are in place, of the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children.

The existing networks developed by the Bali Regional Ministerial Conferences on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime, and the Ambassador for People Smuggling Issues, will be used to pursue enhanced region-wide cooperation to combat trafficking in persons.

For inquiries:
Chris Kenny (Mr Downer's office) (02) 6277 7500/(0419) 206 890
Steve Ingram (Mr Ruddock's office) (02) 6277 7300/(0419) 278 715