Canberra, Dec 2 (NationPress) Australian authorities have raised concerns regarding a notable rise in cases of forced labour and exploitation throughout the nation.

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) announced on Monday that the number of reported instances of forced labour and exploitation has surged by 140 percent over the past six years, according to information from the Xinhua news agency.

This information was disseminated by the AFP on the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery—a campaign initiated by the United Nations (UN)—to shed light on how criminal organizations prey on vulnerable offshore workers, trafficking them into Australia.

According to Helen Schneider, the AFP's commander for human exploitation, organized crime syndicates view victims of human trafficking as mere commodities, exploiting them for financial gain.

"Criminal groups employ deceptive recruitment strategies to ensnare and force at-risk individuals into these atrocious circumstances, trapping them in unending cycles of debt, forced labour, or domestic servitude," she stated.

"The AFP is the primary agency responsible for investigating this type of crime. We thoroughly examine any reports we receive, but we also encourage the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicions of human trafficking activities to the police," she added.

The AFP indicated that it received 69 reports of forced labour and exploitation during the 2023-24 period, a significant increase from 29 reports in both 2018-19 and 2019-20.

Additionally, the AFP reported a total of 382 reports concerning all forms of human trafficking in 2023-24.