Living in Public Space: A Human Rights Wasteland?

Names have been changed to respect privacy.

See Langton Marcia , ‘The Long Grass People of Darwin’, (1998) 11(4) Parity 24; Griffith Mary-Lyn , ‘By the By!’ (1999) 24(5) Alternative Law Journal 245. See also Day Bill , ‘A View from the Long Grass’ (1999) Parity: ‘The Mayor of Darwin recently announced that Aboriginal drifters and “white trash” would be harassed and driven from the city. “Tourists like to see Aborigines but begging is getting worse” he told the Northern Territory News on February 11, 1999. The mayor called for a revival of the harassment campaign which began on Clean Up Australia Day in 1996 when the Darwin homeless were blamed for the city's litter problems. Later the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory advocated that Aborigines creating a nuisance in public places should be “monstered and stomped on by the community”’ (NT News, 17 April 1997).

The terms ‘homeless’ and ‘homelessness’ are used extensively in this article. However, many people who are categorised as homeless consider public space to be their home and would not categorise themselves in this way.

Chamberlain Chris and McKenzie David , ‘Understanding Contemporary Homelessness: Issues of Definition and Meaning’, (1992) 27 Australian Journal of Social Issues 274. See also Chamberlain Chris , Counting the Homeless: Implications for Policy Development, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra, 1999.

Chamberlain Chris , Counting the Homeless: Implications for Policy Development, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra, 1999.

Strategic Partners Pty Ltd, Technical Forum on the Estimation of Homelessness in Australia: Final Report, 2001, p.15.

Chamberlain Chris , Counting the Homeless: Implications for Policy Development, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra, 1999, p.38.

See Memmott Paul and Fantin Shaneen , The Long Grasser: A Strategic Report on Indigenous ‘Itinerants’ in the Darwin and Palmerston Area, 2001, p.63, highlighting the problems of definition and methodology regarding assessing the nature and extent of homelessness, particularly amongst Indigenous communities in the urban Darwin setting.

Goldie Cassandra , ‘Homelessness, Public Housing and Racial Discrimination in the Northern Territory’ (2001) 15 Parity 18; Indigenous Housing Association Inc, ‘Submission to House of Representatives Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs Inquiry into Needs of Urban Dwelling Indigenous People’, 2000; Memmott Paul and Fantin Shaneen , above, ref 8.

As at 28 November 2001, the estimated waiting periods for public housing in Darwin were: 31 months for one bedroom for a non-pensioner; 30 months for one bedroom for a pensioner; 3 months for two bedrooms; 10 months for three bedrooms; and indeterminate for four bedrooms.

Coleman Anne , Five Star Motels: Spaces, Places and Homelessness in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane, PhD Thesis, School of Social Work and Social Policy, The University of Queensland, 2001, p.3 (citations omitted).

Griffiths Mary-Lyn , ‘By the By!’ (1999) 24(5) Alternative Law Journal 245.

Darwin City Council, ‘Public Places Procedures Incorporating General By Law Work’ (undated).

See NT News, 21 June 1999. As a result of the introduction on 1 January 2002 of the Fines and Penalties (Recovery) Act 2001 (NT), the imprisonment of people living in public space for non-payment of the fines is no longer probable.

See, for example, Goyma v Darwin City Council [1999] NTSC 146, which was an attempt to have by-law 103 declared invalid on the administrative law ground of unreasonableness. A complaint against the Darwin City Council, challenging the validity of by-law 103 as being in contravention of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth) is currently before the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission.

Commonwealth Advisory Committee on Homelessness, Working Towards a National Homelessness Strategy, 2001. In 1998, the Council to Homeless Persons Australia recommended that ‘a national statement of rights be developed for people who are homeless as a basis for Commonwealth, State and Local Government in framing legislation and ordinances’ <http://www.chpa.org.au/fedbud.html> at 2 August 2002.

Memmott Paul and Fantin Shaneen , above, ref 8.

Coleman Anne , above, ref 11, p.138.

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 19 December 1966, (1980) ATS 23 (entered into force generally 23 March 1976 and entered into force for Australia 13 August 1980).

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 19 December 1966, (1976) ATS 5 (entered into force generally 3 January 1976 and entered into force for Australia 10 March 1976).

See, for example, The Government of the Republic of South Africa & Ors v Grootboom & Ors (2000) 11 BCLR 1169, where the South African Constitutional Court dealt with the interpretation of s.26 of the Constitution. Section 26 provides: (1) Everyone has the right to have access to adequate housing. (2) The State must take reasonable legislative and other measures, within its available resources, to achieve the progressive realisation of this right. (3) No one may be evicted from their home, or have their home demolished, without an order of court made after considering all the relevant circumstances. No legislation may permit arbitrary evictions.

See National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, Illegal to be Homeless: The Criminalisation of Homelessness in the United States, 2001; Foscarinis Maria , ‘Downward Spiral: Homelessness and its Criminalisation’ (1996) 14(1) Yale Law & Policy Review 1.

875 F. Supp. 1055 (SDNY 1995).

See, for example, Austin Cassandra , Rights for the Homeless, 1996; Sidoti Chris , ‘Housing as a Human Right’, Paper presented at the National Conference on Homelessness, Council to Homeless Persons, 4 September 1996; Gaudron Mary , ‘Human Rights for the Homeless’ (1999) 8a Human Rights Defender 17.

For example, a ‘homelessness strategy’ has been developed or is in development at a Federal level and at a State level in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and Western Australia. See Department of Family and Community Services, National Homelessness Strategy: A Discussion Paper, 2000.

Sackville Ronald , Homeless People and the Law, 1976.

If you are interested in joining the National Homeless Persons' Legal Network, email the author at email: Cassandra_Goldie@fcl.fl.asn.au