AUSTRALIA
PRIMEMINISTER SURVIVES FIRST LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE
Hon. Julia Gillard, MP
On 21 March, amid plunging opinion polls for the government, the then Minister for Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government, Hon. Simon Crean, MP, challenged leadership of the Prime Minister, Hon. Julia Gillard, MP,. The Prime Minister fronted question time and indicated that Mr Crean had been sacked and that she would be holding a ballot for the position of Leader and Deputy Leader at 4.30 p.m. She then invited the Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Tony Abbott, MP, to “take his best shot”. Mr Abbott asked the Prime Minister whether she agreed with the Minister for Regional Australia “that the government is in deadlock and no longer capable of discharging its duty to the Australian people”. Ms Gillard disputed the position and elaborated on the achievements of her government. The leadership ballot resulted in the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, Hon. Wayne Swan, MP, being re-elected
unopposed. In what appeared to be confusion within the Rudd camp, Mr Rudd refused to nominate for the leadership declaring that he was available only if he was called upon unopposed. In February 2012 Mr Rudd lost a leadership contest to Ms Gillard 31 votes to 71. [A report on Mr Rudd’s successful June challenge appears in Issue Three.]
Ms Gillard said concerning her colleagues that ‘I accept their continuing support of me as Prime Minister and Labor Leader, with a sense of deep humility and a sense of resolve. I never sought office for its own sake; I have only ever sought office in the interests of the nation, and to assist our nation to prepare to meet the challenges of the future’. Following the leadership
contest, a group of senior Ministers and party Whips resigned including the Minister for Tertiary Education and the Minister for Small Business, Hon. Chris Bowen, MP, the Minister for Human Services, Sen. the Hon. Kim Carr, and the Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Hon. Richard Marles, MP. The government Whips
THIRD READING: AUSTRALIA
Crimes Legislation Amendment (Slavery, Slavery-like Conditions and People Trafficking) Act 2013
This Act amends the Criminal Code Act 1995 to insert offences of forced labour, forced marriage, organ trafficking and harbouring a victim, and ensures the slavery offence applies to conduct which renders a person a slave, as well as conduct involving a person who is already a slave. The then Attorney-General Hon. Nicola Roxon, MP, noted that with this legislation the “Gillard Labor government is protecting vulnerable women and children and, in some cases, men from trafficking and slavery”. Ms Roxon commented that “people traffickers recruit, transport, transfer, harbour or receive their victims through force, coercion or other means in order to exploit them. This is the modern-day face of slavery. A common factor of contemporary slavery and trafficking—from forced labour and forced marriage to organ trafficking—is the misuse and abuse of power. And such an abuse has no place here in Australia”.
Ms Roxon noted that ‘fortunately, slavery and people trafficking are not common in Australia, but the effect on victims is traumatic and can have lifelong consequences”. In relation to forced marriage, Ms Roxon stated that “as Australia’s first female Attorney-General, I am proud to
be introducing legislation which makes forcing someone into a marriage illegal. It is a serious matter and should be treated as such. Marriage should be a happy event, entered into freely between consenting adults”. The Shadow Attorney-General Sen. the Hon. George Brandis SC noted that “although these offences are described as new, most amount to definitional changes to existing offences in divisions 270 and 271 of the Criminal Code. The important new offences concern the expanded definition of servitude, organ trafficking and forced marriage”. Senator Brandis commented that “organ trafficking is currently covered, though not exclusively, by the human trafficking provisions. These amendments have the support of the coalition and it is to be hoped that the cases to which they will apply will be extremely rare”. In relation to organ trafficking, Senator Brandis stated that “there appears to have been only one discontinued investigation in Australia, although it is estimated that globally up to 15,000 kidneys are bought and sold illegally each year. The trade is allegedly substantial in China, Pakistan, Egypt, Colombia and the Philippines”. In relation to forced marriage, Senator Brandis noted that “according to some estimates, there may be up to 1,000 forced marriages a year involving Australians and it appear to be a growing problem.”
The Parliamentarian | 2013: Issue Two | 143
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