One speaker was Caroline Gowers, Executive Director of Project Respect, a Victorian based organisation that is a specialised support service for women with experience in the sex industry, including those who have experienced trafficking. They connect to and create community; offer free, confidential, non-judgemental support, amplify the voices of women with diverse lived experiences and build the capacity of workforces to provide appropriate support. The other speaker was Professor Jennifer Burn Director, Anti-Slavery Australia, Professor of Law, University of Technology Sydney. Both women provided us with an academic basis for our advocacy and proposed practical action. Individual members and our network of associates and organisations were invited to hear the call to action – along with NCWV.
Carolyn Gowers, Executive Director of Project Respect, a 20 year-old Victorian based organisation and a registered charity. Project Respect is an intersectional feminist, non-faith-based organisation positioning trafficking and sexual exploitation as a global, gendered and structural issue. It is a specialised support service for women with experience in the sex industry, including those who have experienced trafficking.
Carolyn gave an overview of the services and support that Project Respect offers, including free, confidential, non-judgemental support, safe community lunch and gardening activities, amplification of the voices of women with diverse lived experiences and building the capacity of workforces to provide appropriate support.
Carolyn emphasised that one of the most important things for women seeking support is less about the service or support being sought, but more the feeling of being genuinely believed that can make all the difference, and how being stigmatised can be a significant barrier in women accessing support. She described how complex many situations can be, and the increasing challenges COVID has brought, such as visa instability leading to domestic trafficking and inability to escape family violence, and noted that COVID has resulted in marginalised women suffering increased vulnerability at the same time as reduction in support and services
Carolyn spoke passionately about human trafficking for sexual exploitation, giving recent experiences from the field; included supporting women in recognising their experiences as trafficking, supporting them to access recovery services provided by other agencies, and working to raise recognition around the seriousness of domestic trafficking (and what it looks like). She went on to describe some of the highly publicised cases reported in the media at the moment.
Carolyn gave an overview of the ‘Modern Slavery Action Plan’ that has been in place since Project Respect became a member of the National Roundtable on Human Trafficking and Slavery in 2008. Current plans include partnerships with civil society organisations, working in partnership with NGOs, development of a Victim and Survivor Engagement and Empowerment Strategy and Community and Services Sector Education. However, she noted that most goals of the ‘National Action Plan to Combat Modern Slavery 2020-25’ have not been met nor funded, with the Modern Slavery Act “watering down” the approach to trafficking for sexual exploitation.
2017 was the last year that federal funding was received by Project Respect and while grants had been applied for, these had not been received even with ongoing work recognised. Carolyn spoke about the impact a lack of funding has on targets and goals, with staff spending time chasing grants, less time on advocacy and support, reducing opportunities to utilise expertise in working holistically with a connected system. Carolyn expressed profound concern that “Project Respect’s financial position is at critical levels and we will struggle to survive without funding.”
Caroline provided information about capacity building training which can help to increase understanding of supporting women with diverse experiences in the sex industry which includes short courses and e-learning courses, links to these and other contact information can be found at link to Project Respect.
She also added information on ‘Orphanage Trafficking’, Kate Van Doore's book.
