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3 August 2025
On Sunday 3 August 2025, the NSW Anti-slavery Commissioner, Dr James Cockayne, delivered an opening address at a Black Day commemoration marking the 11th anniversary of the Yazidi Genocide, calling for urgent action to support survivors and ensure justice is served.
Speaking at the Black Day commemoration, Dr Cockayne honoured the resilience of the Yazidi community and condemned the ongoing impacts of the genocide committed by ISIS in 2014, which led to the death, displacement, and enslavement of over 400,000 Yazidis.
“This was genocide with chilling precision,” Dr Cockayne said. “ISIS bureaucratized rape and violence, creating “guideline” pamphlets for fighters and using digital platforms to buy and sell human beings.”
While acknowledging international efforts to prosecute perpetrators, the Commissioner stressed that justice remains incomplete. Over 2,600 Yazidi women and children are still missing and many survivors living in Australia continue to face barriers to healing and support.
During his address, Dr Cockayne labelled it as “absurd” that Yazidi survivors “are not eligible for the schemes in place to support victims, including the federal government’s Support to Trafficked People Programme” because their enslavement did not happen on Australian soil.
The Commissioner called on the Australian Government and the Australian Federal Police to do more, both to support families searching for missing loved ones and to investigate Australians allegedly involved in ISIS crimes.
“Where are the prosecutions in Australia? Why are alleged perpetrators of the Yazidi genocide walking free in our community?”
He also urged reforms to allow survivors of international slavery crimes access to existing victim support schemes, and greater investment in long-term recovery through cultural preservation, mental health services, and economic empowerment.
“Survival is not enough,” Dr Cockayne said. “We must transform surviving into thriving.”
Drawing connections between the struggles of the Yazidi community, the dispossession of First Nations peoples and ongoing atrocities globally, such as those in Gaza and Xinjiang, Dr Cockayne reaffirmed a shared responsibility: “In defending the rights of the most vulnerable among us, we defend the foundations of our common humanity.”
The NSW Anti-slavery Commissioner is an independent statutory officer charged with combating modern slavery in New South Wales. He reports not to the NSW Government, but to the NSW Parliament. The Commissioner’s role was established by the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (NSW), which was supported by all political parties and came into effect in 2022. The Commissioner’s functions include monitoring government procurement and promoting efforts to reduce modern slavery risk in government supply-chains, promoting good practice, policy advocacy, and providing direct support and assistance to victims of modern slavery.
If you or someone you know needs help or support, please reach out for assistance.
Call 1800 FREEDOM (1800 37 33 36) for confidential support and advice for victims of modern slavery
Timothy O’Connor | [email protected] | 0448 449 219
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