There were periods of harassment and abuse. The neighbour had trespassed on Michael's property numerous times. And he threatened to gouge Michael's eyes out. And twice he had threatened to slit his son's neck. It's pretty rough up there. It all started when a young Indian man came to fix Michael's air-conditioning. It was 35 degrees and his ladder went missing. He was stuck on the roof for some time. Not funny. Following the advice of police, Michael installed security cameras. The neighbour was caught peeping through the lounge room window. View it here - Trespass on Property. The neighbour has been charged with two counts of trespass. He has been convicted of one charge, and the other is pending before the court. Michael has also obtained a personal protection order.
Michael says NT Housing has done nothing about the neighbour that threatened his son. If NT Housing are able to pick and choose which matters to follow up, this could lead to an abuse of power. NT Housing has also said Michael has a history of violence. They referred to an incident that took place in November of 2003. A racist neighbour had been targeting Michael's family. There were many instances of racial taunting and abuse. Michael was called a "gin jockey" and "nigger lover" and his son was called a "black nigger." This is not on.
And one day, the neighbour threatened Michael with murder. Fearful for his life, Michael went to his front gate and yelled out, "If you want anymore trouble I've got this to protect me". He had a nullah nullah. The police turned up and charged Michael with assault. Michael went with the police after they threatened to lock up everyone in the household, and take his children to welfare. The matter went to court and Michael was found to be innocent. The court held that Michael was not guilty of assault. Michael tells me that the Magistrate found that the witnesses were not reliable. The Magistrate apologised to Michael for his ordeal. A local legal service later submitted a complaint to the NT Police.
A condition of Michael's tenancy agreement is that tenants cannot cause or permit a nuisance or interference with reasonable peace and privacy. Before the matter went to Court, NT Housing had arranged for a meeting with Michael to discuss water charges. He was handed a letter. The letter stated NT Housing had received complaints about poor behaviour and Michael would be evicted if any further complaints were received.
The problem is that NT Housing did not comply with the principles of natural justice. Michael put in a complaint about the lack of procedural fairness. This is eventually acknowledged. Mr Hoban says, 'In hindsight the letter handed to Mr Barry at that interview could be seen as reacting to the letters of complaint without hearing his side of the story. We were aware of the pending Court hearing and could possibly have tempered the letter to reflect that.'
The NT Policy on Anti-Social Behaviour clearly states that 'tenants will be provided with the opportunity to respond to allegations/complaints made against them'. But NT Housing decided to act before the matter was heard in court. Michael requested an apology from NT Housing. That didn't happen. Michael also asked for his record to be rectified. That didn't happen either.
The other issue is that the incident occurred ten years. But it is still on file. In the criminal law system, convictions are spent after a period of ten years. But not in public housing. And despite Michael being found innocent, NT Housing still used the complaints to brand him as anti-social. All the complaints NT Housing received related to this one incident. Turning to the complaints that were made. Here is one example.
The problem is that some neighbours make complaints out of dislike, or as here, because of racism. People aren't stupid. They know if they make enough complaints they can force someone out of public housing. We have been talking about bullying in schools and in the workplace. But we haven't talked about bullying in relation to housing. A researcher coined the term 'mobbing' in relation to bullying of an individual of a group. Bullies usually pick on someone with less power than they do. We need to distinguish bullying from genuine neighbourly concern. See how this overbearing landlord treats this bullied and frustrated tenant. It goes to show the bad treatment of tenants is a global issue.
The neighbour had complained about an instance of domestic violence. They said a male visitor to Michael's house had punched a female visitor. I feel extremely uncomfortable about NT Housing considering complaints of this nature. Putting this particular situation aside, tenants in domestic violence situations might be deterred from calling the police for help. The last thing victims of domestic violence need is to lose their housing. And more generally, tenants might not call the police for help in difficult situations out of fear of being branded anti-social and being evicted.
Allegations of loud music is also problematic. I heard of a case that went to tribunal. Tenants were alleged to have had an out of control party. As it turns out, they had their parents over for dinner. I don't think tenants should be punished under housing law if they are compliant with other laws with respect to noise.
Michael has a good reputation. Most are scared to challenge NT Housing, but some have come forward with references. Neighbours have attested he takes care of his home, and he is a good father and carer.
So here, I have dealt with the allegations of nuisance. In the next instalment, I will look at three other eviction notices Michael received.
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