Migrant worker Hendra Adijaya used discarded plywood to build the shack on Bollard Ave, New Windsor. Photo / Dean Purcell
Migrant worker Hendra Adijaya used discarded plywood to build the shack on Bollard Ave, New Windsor. Photo / Dean Purcell
The owner of the property with makeshift sheds and a dilapidated caravan rented out to overstayers from Indonesia has been given three months to remove the structures, which Auckland Council say were built without consent.
A Herald investigation revealed last month up to six Indonesian overstayers had lived for as long as four years in makeshift sheds and a dilapidated caravan in a “shanty town” in New Windsor.
Last Sunday, a visit to the property found a plywood shack in the backyard had been rented out to a new tenant after the previous one fell sick and moved out.
“Auckland Council compliance staff issued the owner of [the Bollard Ave property in New Windsor] with a notice to fix last week,” said Adrian Wilson, Auckland Council’s compliance manager.
“This was for work carried out without a building consent relating to sanitary fixtures, potable water, and cooking facilities in a caravan and shed located on the property.”
Notice issued for work carried out without a building consent relating to sanitary fixtures, potable water, and cooking facilities in a caravan and shed located on the property. Photo / Dean Purcell
Wilson said the notice gives the owner three months to remove the unconsented buildings or pursue legal options to achieve compliance under the Building Code.
“Council staff will revisit the property at the expiry of the three months to check on compliance with the notice to fix,” he said.
The plywood shed was described as “poorly built, uninsulated and leaky” in a complaint by the Migrant Exploitation Relief Foundation (Merf) to Immigration New Zealand.
According to a previous tenant, Hendra Adijaya, an Indonesian overstayer, he built the shed using discarded plywood he got from a construction site and he had been living there for more than three years.
He said between three and six overstayers were housed on the property. One had used a chicken coop in the garden for shelter, and another was living in a dilapidated caravan.
Up to six overstayers have been housed on the property, the Herald was told. Photo / Dean Purcell
Adijaya said the men paid between $120 and $150 in rent, and described staying in the plywood shed as feeling like “living in the Antarctic” on cold nights.
Auckland Council said it was not aware of the existence of the shanty town sheds and dilapidated caravan being used to house people prior to the Herald’s query last month.
It was the latest in a list of cases of foreign migrant workers found living in inhumane conditions in Auckland.
While support and alternative accommodation has been given to exploited migrant workers who came on the Accredited Employers Visa scheme, Immigration New Zealand (INZ) said overstayers would not qualify as they were here unlawfully.
A current tenant who gave his name as Dasuki Kamuri told the Herald he moved into the shack a few weeks ago.
He would not disclose how much he was paying in rent, but said money was paid to a Chinese woman who lives in the main house.
The woman had previously told the Herald the house belonged to her son and she was collecting the money on his behalf.
She claimed that she was not involved in facilitating any tenancy arrangements.
Merf had alleged in its complaint to INZ in January that the Indonesians living there, including Kamuri, had been exploited by a construction company that hired them.
Investigators described the property as having “a dilapidated caravan parked on the front lawn and a poorly built, uninsulated and leaky shed at the rear” and said “both structures appeared unfit to be used as lawful accommodation”.
Merf wants INZ to investigate its complaint, and said it could assist with finding alternative employment for the migrants if they could be made lawful.
An INZ spokeswoman confirmed it was aware of the report, but could not comment without a privacy waiver from the overstayers.
