Australia’s \\\'hidden\\\' abusive migrant marriages

Kanya thought she was starting a new life in Australia after arriving from India to marry her husband, but it quickly turned into a nightmare. She was barred from going out on her own, forced to cook and clean for her partner's family, and made to sleep outdoors if she did not complete her tasks. The fate of the 18-year-old, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, mirrors that of others in ‘slave-like’ relationships that Salvation Army worker Jenny Stanger has taken in at a Sydney refuge for trafficked people in recent years. The women came to Australia under the promise of a happy marriage, only to be exploited by their partners. ‘It's an absolute deception on the part of the perpetrator,’ Stanger said a problem involving nearly a quarter of her safehouse's residents. Immigration figures show women in such situations come from China, India, the Philippines and Vietnam among others. ‘Marriage was the tool that was used to exploit the women for profit, gain or personal advantage,’ according to AFP.