Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
Catholic News ServiceSeptember 30, 2020
With images of St. Josephine Bakhita as a backdrop, Sydney Archbishop Anthony Fisher poses with members of the Anti-Slavery Taskforce of the Archdiocese of Sydney. Pictured with the archbishop are Executive Officer Alison Rahill, Executive Manager Jenny Stanger, and Taskforce Chair John McCarthy. (CNS photo/Giovanni Portelli, courtesy Archdiocese of Sydney)    

SYDNEY (CNS) -- Archbishop Anthony Fisher and archdiocesan staff welcomed a commitment by the government of New South Wales to enact anti-slavery legislation passed by the Australian Parliament more than two years ago.

The state of New South Wales endorsed the Modern Slavery Act 2018 and supported, in principle, a recommendation to implement the act before the end of the year.

Under the new laws, companies with annual consolidated revenue of over 100 million Australian dollars ($71.3 million) would have to produce public statements detailing how they are keeping their supply chains slavery-free. Modern slavery includes, but is not limited to, human trafficking and child labor.

Archbishop Fisher said the new laws are long overdue.

"I am grateful to the more than 10,000 people who petitioned the government over recent months, calling for an end to the stalling tactics that were delaying the enactment of these laws," he said.

He also said it was encouraging to see the state government appoint an anti-slavery commissioner.

"Our community cannot be indifferent to modern slavery and human trafficking or our responsibility to eradicate it," Archbishop Fisher said. "Like the good Samaritan, we must reach out with a supportive hand to those in greatest need. I look forward to these laws coming into effect and urge the government to ensure this happens before the end of this year."

Alison Rahill, executive officer of the Sydney archdiocesan Anti-Slavery Taskforce, said she was glad to see the state government "call for local councils to face the same reporting obligations on operations and supply chains as state government agencies."

"We know from the experience overseas, in countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom, that when states and counties take the lead on this issue, it breathes a whole new life into it and encourages a response in communities and on the ground," Rahill said.

"We're also pleased to see the government commit to amending the legislation to give the victims of modern slavery access to recognition payments" and to work to consider better ways to protect potential victims, Rahill added.

We don’t have comments turned on everywhere anymore. We have recently relaunched the commenting experience at America and are aiming for a more focused commenting experience with better moderation by opening comments on a select number of articles each day.

But we still want your feedback. You can join the conversation about this article with us in social media on Twitter or Facebook, or in one of our Facebook discussion groups for various topics.

Or send us feedback on this article with one of the options below:

We welcome and read all letters to the editor but, due to the volume received, cannot guarantee a response.

In order to be considered for publication, letters should be brief (around 200 words or less) and include the author’s name and geographic location. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

We open comments only on select articles so that we can provide a focused and well-moderated discussion on interesting topics. If you think this article provides the opportunity for such a discussion, please let us know what you'd like to talk about, or what interesting question you think readers might want to respond to.

If we decide to open comments on this article, we will email you to let you know.

If you have a message for the author, we will do our best to pass it along. Note that if the article is from a wire service such as Catholic News Service, Religion News Service, or the Associated Press, we will not have direct contact information for the author. We cannot guarantee a response from any author.

We welcome any information that will help us improve the factual accuracy of this piece. Thank you.

Please consult our Contact Us page for other options to reach us.

City and state/province, or if outside Canada or the U.S., city and country. 
When you click submit, this article page will reload. You should see a message at the top of the reloaded page confirming that your feedback has been received.

The latest from america

The 12 women whose feet were washed by Pope Francis included women from Italy, Bulgaria, Nigeria, Ukraine, Russia, Peru, Venezuela and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
"We, the members of the Society of Jesus, continue to be lifted up in prayer, in lament, in protest at the death and destruction that continue to reign in Gaza and other territories in Israel/Palestine, spilling over into the surrounding countries of the Middle East."
The Society of JesusMarch 28, 2024
A child wounded in an I.D.F. bombardment is brought to Al Aqsa hospital in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, on March 25. (AP Photo/Ismael abu dayyah)
While some children have been evacuated from conflict, more than 1.1 million children in Gaza and 3.7 million in Haiti have been left behind to face the rampaging adult world around them.
Kevin ClarkeMarch 28, 2024
Easter will not be postponed this year. It will not wait until the war is over. It is precisely now, in our darkest hour, that resurrection finds us.
Stephanie SaldañaMarch 28, 2024