Bangkok: Australians are likely to be soon banned from supporting orphanages in countries like Cambodia.

A parliamentary committee sitting in Canberra has been flooded with reports of mistreatment of institutionalised children that some MPs believe amounts to human trafficking and modern slavery.

Sinet Chan, left, was rescued from a Cambodian orphanage by Australian Tara Winkler, right. Sinet Chan has given harrowing testimony to a parliamentary inquiry in Canberra.

The committee is considering recommending a world-first clause in a Modern Slavery act that would aim to cut the supply of Australian money to the institutions and redirect it to help reintegrate children into their home communities.

MPs are also considering making it a criminal offence to organise trips for Australians to visit orphanages across the world where an estimated eight million children are living.