Prosecutions 66. Human trafficking and worker exploitation takes place in Aotearoa New Zealand and in domestic based supply chains. To date, only a handful of prosecutions have taken place. 67. In 2020 Aotearoa New Zealand saw its first conviction of joint charges of human trafficking and slavery under the Crimes Act 1961 in the case of R v Joseph Agua Matamata [2020] NZHC 1829. The defendant, Mr Matamata, arranged the entry of four groups of victims into Aotearoa New Zealand over the period of 1994-2019. The defendant arranged for the victims to come from his village in Samoa to live with his family in Aotearoa New Zealand. The victims’ movements were controlled through threats of violence and actual violence, they were not allowed to speak to people, to leave the defendant’s property or to communicate with their family in Samoa. They worked long hours in the orchards as arranged by the defendant. The victims included children and young people between the ages of 12 and 19 years old. The defendant was sentenced to 11 years imprisonment for 10 charges of human trafficking91 and 13 charges of dealing in slaves.92 Children 68. The Commission is concerned about lack of protections relating to exploitation, slavery and trafficking of children. We note that one of the key actions included in the National Plan of Action is to “consider amending the Crimes Act 1961 to strengthen provisions for the criminalisation of trafficking in children (under 18 years of age).” 69. In November 2021 the Justice Committee undertook public consultation to amend the Crimes Act 1961 to provide for new offences relating to persons 18 years or older using electronic communications (such as social media platforms) to harm persons under 16, and increase penalties for offences relating to the sexual grooming of children online.93 While this is a positive step, raising the age of those harmed to under 18 years would ensure better protections for children and consistency with Aotearoa New Zealand obligations under the Children’s Convention and Optional Protocol. 70. In March 2022 the Human Trafficking Research Coalition and 15 groups including UNICEF Aotearoa New Zealand, World Vision and Save the Children signed an open letter to the Ministry of Justice and Minister for Children calling for the definition of child trafficking in the Crimes Act 1961 to align with the international definition by removing reference to coercion or deception.94 Sex work industry 71. Section 19 of the Prostitution Reform Act 2003 prohibits temporary visa holders from engaging in sex work in New Zealand. It was introduced as a safeguard against trafficking. Nongovernment reports have stated that the law puts migrant sex workers at risk as they feel unable to report exploitative employers due to the risk of deportation and are unable to seek assistance from health professionals. 91 Crimes Act 1961, s 98(1)(a). Crimes Act 1961, s 98(1)(b). 93 Aotearoa New Zealand Parliament “Crimes (Child Exploitation Offences) Amendment Bill” available at https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/bills-and-laws/bills-proposed-laws/document/BILL_113484/crimes-childexploitation-offences-amendment-bill. 94 Te Waha Nui, Groups fighting child trafficking call for ‘common sense’ law changes in NZ (24 March 2022). 92 19