Won't Somebody Think of the Slavers?

[4thofeleven]

Bleh.

“AUSTRALIA'S anti-slavery laws could be interpreted in a way that netted employers who exploit workers, High Court justice Michael Kirby has warned…

…Justice Kirby was part of a full bench of the High Court hearing an appeal against the conviction of a Melbourne woman on 10 slavery-related charges...

…[She] was convicted by a County Court jury of having possessed and used as slaves five Thai women she imported to work as prostitutes.

The women were told they had debts of up to $45,000 to work off, which would involve servicing up to 900 men. The prosecution alleged their passports were taken away, they were denied freedom of movement, and had to work six days a week for no payment other than reduction of the "debt"…

…Justice Kirby said it would be naive "if we did not keep in the back of our mind that there are very large movements of populations in the world today, including of commercial sex workers … who do so for economic advancement, and that is just part of the reality of the world we live in"….

…[he] said that when he was an articled clerk there were many elements of his employment that were "very similar to slavery: long hours, lack of food and various forms of oppression. But no one would have said it was slavery.”

Presumably while he was an articled clerk he moonlighted as a prostitute in a foreign country without a passport and completely dependant on the owners of the brothel who did not permit him to leave. Because otherwise that would be an utterly ridiculous and repugnant comparison to make, right?

Yes, sex trafficking is ‘part of the reality of the world we live in.’ It’s still illegal in this country to keep people as… well, Mr. Kirby doesn’t think ‘slave’ applies. Indentured servants, then? Serfs? Whatever, it’s pretty fucking disgusting, and the fact that it’s a lot more common than we’d like doesn’t mean we turn a blood blind eye to it, or start worrying about supposed slippery slopes that would result from actually enforcing the anti-slavery laws.

This isn’t about someone being paid under the table or working shitty hours or being screwed in their entitlements. This is about someone who intentionally forced five women to work as prostitutes for no pay, with no freedom, with no way of getting out of this situation. There’s no excuses for this, even if the women were desperate enough to initially agree to this bullshit.

Bleh.

Comments

[sunnyskywalker]

*headdesk*

I don't even know what else to say about that.