Homeless 'gypsies' protest their right to camp permanently in Golden Bay

Friday, 31 January 2020

A group of homeless people who say they are gypsies are refusing to move on from a freedom camping spot in Golden Bay.

Illegal freedom campers who identify as 'gypsies' are staying at a popular river in Golden Bay and protesting their right to live there.

About eight people have set up semi-permanent campsites at Waitapu Bridge near Takaka in the South Island, a popular freedom camping spot.

Heather Simpson has been told to move on from her three-week long stay by the Tasman District Council's enforcement officer.

However, the 34 year-old originally from Auckland, is staying put and avoiding a $200 fine.

Simpson said they were 'peacefully protesting' for their right to have a place to stay, because they didn't have homes or enough money for fuel and accommodation.

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Heather Simpson is staying at Waitapu River and is part of a peaceful protest to occupy the area because she believes she should have the right to be somewhere if she is homeless.

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'If you kick us out of one spot we're just going to go somewhere else, and many are getting displaced.'

The Freedom Campaign group identify as gypsies and believe they should have a right to stay longer than the current two-night rule. From top left: Tai Eder; Ina Stiehler; Amber Swords; Heather Simpson and Jazz Le Breton.

Simpson is part of a 'travelling community' of colourful people who move around the top of the South Island 'like gypsies' as a way of life.

She sleeps at the edge of the rocky Takaka riverbank on two single mattresses under a mosquito net strung to a tree.

She lives on bread and gets her income from the sickness benefit and busking, and hasn't lived in a house or had a regular job in years.

Simpson prefers to live her life being in nature with a community of like-minded people.

'We are a community with our own culture … part of the [music] festival scene. We come and go but we often congregate in Golden Bay over the summer.'

She said spots they frequented were slowly disappearing.

A new freedom camping bylaw was introduced to the Tasman District in 2018 which saw the tightening of regulations and some popular spots closed down.

At least three friends had already been trespassed and forced out.

It was 'essentially criminalising the homeless'.

Asked if she considered herself 'homeless', Simpson said the answer was 'tricky'.

'Because I don't feel homeless, but when the warden comes and tells me to move on, then I feel homeless.'

Heather Simpson is staying at Waitapu River in her campsite and is part of a peaceful protest to occupy the area because she believes she should have the right to be somewhere if she is homeless.

Jazz le Breton, originally from Christchurch, came to stay at the river because he was out of money and just started working on a kiwifruit orchard.

'Some of us are living on our last fifteen dollars to get us through the week, and a $200 fine … would create even bigger financial problems,' he said.

Freedom camping has caused headaches in Golden Bay for years.

Jazz Le Breton first moved to the river because he couldn't afford accommodation, and has stayed on.

Faeces, litter and overcrowding recently prompted a call by locals to close the site at Waitapu Bridge. However, a council investigation found no public health risk.

This came after local iwi called for a ban on overnight camping there, saying it must be protected from further degradation and pollution.

Another popular spot in Takaka called Reilly St became hot with freedom campers between 2015-17.

Scenes in January at the Waitapu Bridge freedom camping site in Golden Bay.

A 'shanty town' sprung up in the bushes along the river and up to 400 illegal campers a night during the summer sleeping in their cars and tents.

There were also safety concerns about flood risk.

Toilets and rubbish collection facilities were installed at designated spots Waitapu Bridge and Taupata Point in Puponga.

Richard Sixtus is a long-time local and owns the neighbouring River Inn.

He's concerned Waitapu Bridge will get shut down for locals like Reilly St.

'We used to take the kids down there [Reilly St] and swim, and so many locals used to go. The TDC let [freedom camping] go on and on … now they've shut the gates and locked it, and our children can't even drive there and go for a swim.

'Now the same thing is happening again … The hygiene here at Waitapu is disgusting.'

He said if he ran his commercial operation in the same way: 'I'd be closed down as quick as lightning.'

His family felt intimated going down the river.

Tai Eder, who's also staying at the river, said the majority were doing the right thing. However, some had social, mental health and drug problems.

'A lot of it [the nuisance] is people not taking their meds. There will be young fellas from Nelson or Christchurch and they will all congregate and hide here and go AWOL.'

The Tasman District Council's regulatory manager Adrian Humphries said there were rules regarding use of Waitapu Bridge for freedom camping.

It was council's role to make sure these rules weren't broken.

People were entitled to identify as anything they wished. However, they were not entitled to ignore the rules of society if they wished to take advantage of what society offered.

Homelessness was a social issue and for some 'thrust upon them'. For others it seemed a lifestyle choice.

The homeless were referred to social services if council officers came upon them.

'I don't believe that many people choose homelessness as a lifestyle choice, however, if they do they are not entitled to special treatment,' he said.

Humphries said most people were respectful of the rules, but if someone was discovered breaching the bylaw they would be warned to move on.

This could then escalate to a fine and being trespassed. If they still refused to leave the police could arrest and prosecute them.