A Pinjarra family of eight is stuck in limbo after receiving an eviction notice for last Thursday morning which has not yet been actioned.
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The Abrahams were told they had to leave the premises by 10.30am on Thursday, August 18 or be forcibly evicted.
Police officers arrived at the property on Thursday morning ready to evict the family.
But by Friday the family was still in the house.
The Abraham family said had the eviction been upheld they would have had no other options for accommodation, with the Department of Housing refusing to offer assistance due to what they deem numerous issues with anti-social behaviour, assaults and vandalism in the past.
“Police are regularly called to the property and have made numerous arrests,” Department of Housing service manager Greg Cash said.
“A paramedic attending a recent incident at the property was assaulted.
“Housing’s own staff have been threatened when attempting to deal with this tenancy.”
The property – a two-bedroom unit on Williams Road – is currently occupied by John Abraham, who is listed as the sole tenant, as well as several other family members.
Mr Abraham’s parents, Elder and Barbara, are also staying on the premises illegally, according to the Housing Department.
The couple were blacklisted from public housing in 1994 due to their “extremely poor tenancy history”.
“They still have a debt of more than $10,000 from their former tenancies,” Mr Cash said.
However, Mrs Abraham disputes the decision, and said they had no input into Housing’s choice to refuse them.
“They had a meeting without even telling us, without our consent,” she said.
“We couldn’t defend ourselves.”
Mrs Abraham said it was unfair to evict the family – which includes several children, as well as a person with a disability – when they had no other options.
She also said the 1994 ban on access to public housing was too long, and did not allow people to prove they were capable of managing a residence.
“How can they let it go for 20, 25 years? It should be five years, and then try people out in nice, decent homes,” she said.
“We’re 65 and 66 [years old]. We’re the Indigenous people of this country, and we can’t even put our foot in a decent home.”
Mrs Abraham accused Pinjarra real estate businesses of refusing her family assistance based on their race, making it more difficult for them to find a new home.
“You can go down to any of the real estate business here, they’ll look at you and say, ‘No’. Anywhere you go," she said.
“About three or four houses have been wrecked, because of young kids going in and smashing everything up. And because they’re black, all the white people assume because you’re a black person, you’re going to do the same thing.
“They won’t even look at you. It happens time and time again.”
The Department of Housing lists one of their main issues with the residence as overcrowding, with extended family members regularly coming in and out of the unit.
However Mrs Abraham said the issue was caused by a misunderstanding of the Aboriginal family structure.
“”I’ve got 45 grandchildren now with great-grandkids coming up,” she said.
“They all like coming home to me. That’s why, at times, there’s a lot in the place.
“The young kids go to school down the road, and they’re asked, ‘Are you from Williams Road where you’re all laying on top of one another?’. They have no idea. They see us and just assume.”
Mr Cash said the department had “repeatedly endeavored to engage with this family to communicate the risk posed to the tenancies by the overcrowding, property damage, debt and most recently serious disruptive behaviour”.
“The tenant has received significant, ongoing support from the Housing Authority’s Aboriginal Customer Support Officer, the Department of Child Support and Family Protection, the Day Dawn Advocacy Centre and a number of other organisations.
“Housing will not contemplate further assistance for this family without demonstrable evidence of a change in the family’s ability to manage a tenancy and payment of their outstanding debts from previous tenancies.”
John Abraham also owes the Department of Housing $15,500 for repairs and water consumption charges.
Child Protection director general Emma White said the department was unable to discuss specific cases for reasons of confidentiality.
“However, the Department works closely with the Housing Authority to prevent the eviction of families with children wherever possible,” she said.
“The Department’s role is to assess whether children are at risk and assists with referrals to homelessness accommodation and other support services where required.”
When contacted for comment, the Department of Housing spokesperson said it was up to the discretion of the court bailiffs not to proceed with the eviction.
The Abrahams said they were in talks with Tenancy WA over whether or not they should appeal the decision in the Supreme Court.