International Day of the Girl Child

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS (15:28): Supplementary: given that twice in the last six weeks instances of girl child human rights violations in this country have taken place where visas have been cancelled for girls being sent overseas to forced marriage, what is this government doing to respond to the instances of child marriage?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills, Minister for Science and Information Economy, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Business Services and Consumers) (15:28): I thank the honourable member for her supplementary, even though it is a bit of a long bow. In spite of that, it is indeed a really important issue. I did make some notes here, which I am just having trouble putting my finger on, but if you will just bear with me.

Indeed, the issue of child marriage is a very significant one and one that is incredibly difficult to combat. We know that child marriage robs girls of their childhood, their health, their hopes and dreams and their education right at a time when it can matter the most. When a girl is married young she is more likely to experience violence, physical and sexual abuse, and poor sexual and reproductive health.

Plan International defines child marriage as any marriage whether under civil, religious or customary law, with or without formal registration, where either one or both spouses are children under the age of 18. Unlike many countries, Australia has laws in place to protect children from forced marriage; however, many cases of child marriage are unofficial and therefore not registered and are hidden from authorities.

As marriage is enshrined in the Australian Constitution, offences related to child and forced marriage are legislated by the Australian government and apply across the country. In February 2013, the Australian parliament passed the Crimes Legislation Amendment (Slavery, Slavery-like Conditions and People Trafficking) Act 2013, the slavery act, which amended the commonwealth Criminal Code Act 1995 to recognise forced marriage as a serious form of exploitation and also a crime.

The offences apply to a range of marriage and marriage-like relationships, including registered relationships and those formed by cultural and religious ceremonies. The offences have extended geographical jurisdiction and can apply to conduct that occurs either inside or outside of Australia if the offender is an Australian citizen, resident or corporation. Those involved in organising a forced marriage involving a child, including friends, family members, wedding planners, for instance, face up to seven years imprisonment if convicted. If a child is trafficked overseas for the purposes of a forced marriage, the maximum penalty increases up to 25 years imprisonment. It is indeed a very serious offence.

We know that child marriage is a serious problem, particularly in Africa and many parts of the Indo-Pacific region, including places like Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, some parts of Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and other places. In Australia, reports of child and forced marriage have not been limited to any specific cultural, religious or ethnic group. While a small number of cases are reported in the family law jurisdiction, community groups suggest that the actual number of those affected is much greater.

Anti Slavery Australia reports that between the introduction of legislation preventing forced marriage in March 2013 and May 2014, the Australian federal police had received 10 referrals for suspected forced marriage matters, nine of which were for children. A similarity between child brides overseas and those in Australia is the discriminatory ideas around the value of girls and women in society, and it is the legacy of entrenched age and gender-based discrimination against girls. A common view is that once girls have reached puberty, their duty is to marry, produce children and care for the household.

Poverty has also played a key role in driving child marriage. Parents frequently decide to marry their daughters as children because they believe it is the best thing for the child and the family. It acts as a financial survival strategy in communities and families experiencing economic hardship, emergency or crisis.

In addition to the commonwealth criminal code, Australia also has other legislation relevant to early and forced marriage. The Marriage Act 1961 includes provisions whereby a marriage may be void if the consent of a party was not real or the party was not of a marriageable age, and there are other details around that. Australia also has in place civil measures to prevent children being taken overseas for the purposes of exploitation, so there are court orders and suchlike. The Australian—

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: Point of order, Mr President. There are clearly meetings happening in the chamber. Question time is still happening.

The PRESIDENT: Point taken. If you want a meeting, you can go outside in the hallway. A minister is talking and answering questions.

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS: Point of order, Mr President. The minister has not mentioned a single South Australian government response, and the question was: what is this South Australian government or its agencies doing?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: I have not finished my answer. The Australian Federal Circuit Court can make orders to prevent a passport being issued for a girl or that require a person to deliver a child or accompanying adult's passport to the court or that restrain the removal of a child from Australia and place the child's name on an airport watch list.

In relation to South Australia, we have legislation here. Although legislation does not currently refer specifically to forced child marriage, a victim of a forced marriage may be subject to specific conduct that could be covered by an existing offence under South Australian law. For example, a forced marriage may involve child abuse, domestic violence, rape, abduction or kidnapping. Physical restrictions may also be imposed on the victim that may amount to an offence of false imprisonment. Situations may also include the confiscation, destruction or theft of a passport and other belongings of the victim.

It is an offence in South Australia to take away or detain a person against their will by force with the intention that the victim should marry or have sexual intercourse with a person. The offence attracts a maximum penalty of 14 years' imprisonment, etc. There is an aggravated offence as well. South Australian legislation also makes it an offence for a person to employ, engage, cause or permit a child to provide or to continue to provide commercial sexual activities. That offence carries a penalty of life imprisonment.

The law is obviously one part of the holistic social response. The Red Cross in South Australia has established a human trafficking and forced marriage SA agencies' network to discuss how our agencies can continue to work together to address the issue of human trafficking and forced marriage in South Australia. The Australian government also provides funding to the Australian Red Cross for the Support for Trafficked People program, and this program provides comprehensive and intensive support to any person identified by a law enforcement agency as a potential victim of forced marriage.

Anti-Slavery Australia received Australian government funding for an e-learning course on human trafficking, slavery, etc. The course is designed for the wider Australian community and frontline workers, including teachers, counsellors, healthcare workers, child protection officers and law enforcement. In addition, there has been a national roundtable on human trafficking and slavery, and there is work coming out of that. You can see there are lots of different approaches to address this very difficult problem, and we continue to raise people's awareness of this issue throughout different agencies and organisations and to remind people of their basic rights.