A few points:
1.
I would distinguish between being on land unlawfully and
being on land lawfully but behaving ‘suspiciously’. As an
instance of the latter I would put my own experience in photographing Superb
Parrots within (them not me) the Belconnen police precinct. In the latter
case (and particularly overseas) it is best to be cautious, and conciliatory,
even if the official response is unreasonable.
2.
As to the first (being there unlawfully) we might draw a
distinction between ‘government’ and ‘private’
land. The regulation of access to govt land can be quite
complicated. On the one hand are public parks and, in the ACT, ‘nature
parks’. Walk on these, as you wish. However, under both Cth
and ACT legislation there is provision for ‘posting’ of prohibited
areas, where there can be quite heavy penalties for entry. Apart from
that, some specific areas might be subject to prohibitions against unauthorised
entry eg railway precincts or closed ‘nature reserves’ (possibly
some parts of Jerra flood-plain under current proposals). Otherwise open
areas, very extensive ones, were temporarily closed after the 2003 fires.
3.
Rural leaseholds are clearly private land that should not, as a
general rule, be entered without permission. While notices such as ‘Trespassers
Prosecuted’ cannot mean what they say, since entry is not an offence,
they serve notice – like ‘Private Property’ or ‘No
Entry’ - that entry could lead to a confrontation .
4.
All this leaves a lot of room for grey areas eg: (a) public
land that is the subject of a licence for some private purpose (eg stock
grazing), (b) areas that are strictly ‘private’ but where the owner
has no ongoing interest or habitually tolerates entry, (c) access roads that
are really public but that a leaseholder wants to treat as ‘closed’
– perhaps because they only serve private land.
5.
For that reason, for myself I have been careful not to give
assurances that fellow birdwatchers are free to range over such greyish areas.
This can lead to someone insisting on a non-existent right to go on land.
Also, circumstances can change. An otherwise relaxed landowner might have
their patience exhausted by anti-social behaviour (shooting, vandalism,
rubbish-dumping).
6.
In cases where someone’s entry has been challenged it is
not always possible to give general advice about whether the challenge was
justified or not. I was once subject to an outrageous claim by a security
guard that entry to Campbell Park proper was prohibited. On the other
hand, the person with paid-for grazing rights at the Newline paddock
could - if it came to the point – assert a right to have his sheep graze
without interference.
7.
Unfortunately, as the population of Canberra increases, and as more
and more fringe land is alienated or pressed into service for some purpose or
other and – surely I am right is assuming this – there are more and
more paddock-walking bino-toters, expect more stories about the occasional bit
of friction here and there.
From:
[
Sent: Tuesday, 22 May 2007 10:51 AM
To:
Subject: [canberrabirds] Re: suspicious [SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
My best effort
was being investigated for deer rustling near the Santa Rosa Winery near
Currency Creek/Goolwa in S Aust. I'm quite proud of that one. I'm not sure how
many deer we could have stuffed in the boot of the Kingswood. I guess the site
of four youthful birdos is enough to raise concern. My Mum had to placate the
authorities back in Adelaide while we continued on our merry way birdwatching
all day oblivious to the trail of suspicion that we had left. One of my friends
use to practice his French Horn on trips but not on this occasion. That
definitely had potential to raise the ire of locals along with baying of hounds
etc.....
cheers
Richard
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"Michael
& Janette Lenz" <>
21/05/2007
06:15 PM
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To
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"chat
line" <>
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cc
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Subject
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[canberrabirds]
suspicious
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Guess we all
have stories to tell.
Mine was being taken
for a suspicious character staring into people's balconies in Berlin (yes,
there were swallows) - but I guess bird watchers are not known for sartorial
elegance anyway.
