A new Australian film, Buoyancy, which draws from the real-life experiences of some of the estimated 200,000 men and boys working in slave-like conditions in the Thai fishing industry, is playing an important role in raising awareness of the need for transparency in the supply chain.

The makers of the film, which is screening in cinemas around the country, have admitted that like most Australians they knew nothing about the slave trade in the fishing industry before they read the script for the film. Since making the film, they have joined calls for the Australian Government to implement a certification standard so consumers can be certain that imported seafood is slavery free. The film has recently been announced as Australia's entrant for ‘best international feature’ in next year's Oscars.

As we know, addressing human trafficking and modern slavery is a pressing issue for our corporate clients because many Australian businesses are integrated with supply chains across Asia, including high-risk countries such as Thailand, India, Bangladesh and Malaysia.

We commend the NSW Government for setting up the current inquiry into the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (NSW) and providing the opportunity to identify and address the potential inconsistencies between the NSW and federal modern slavery Acts.

In our submission to the inquiry, which was informed by a number of our committees, the Law Society outlined its support for transparency in the supply chain of goods and services, as part of a human rights solution to modern slavery.

We also recommended that the implementation of the NSW anti-slavery scheme be supported by a public awareness campaign to reduce the risk of confusion amongst both the business community and general public.

On another issue, online voting for the 2019 Law Society Council Elections will close at 2pm, 21 October 2019. The six successful candidates will be announced at the Annual General Meeting (at 4:30pm on Thursday 24 October 2019 at 170 Phillip Street), which will be followed by the Annual Members Dinner at Sydney Town Hall. 

I am looking forward to joining with members at the Annual Members Dinner, which is without doubt one of the highlights of the Law Society calendar.

Elizabeth Espinosa, Law Society President

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