The manager of a shop whose white employee was seen hosing away an Aboriginal man sitting says he was just cleaning up thrown food.
Darwin Tours operations manager Colin Bird alleged the man was involved in a domestic dispute outside the store and police did not arrive for 40 minutes.
The staff member, Robert Marchant, was hosing down the area and, in frustration, sprayed several metres from Jocky Gaibaral, 57, to make him go away.
Darwin Tours employee Robert Marchant seen holding a water hose, spraying in direction of Aboriginal man Jocky Gaibaral
‘There was food waste on the windows, on the footpath, one of the a-frame signs had been picked up and thrown,’ he told Mix 104.9 radio.
‘The perceived lack of action from authorities caused him to take action that, as I said before I don’t condone it and he’s been spoken to about it, I just think that its about frustration, nothing was being done.’
Mr Bird said his employee had few other options to move Mr Gaibaral on other than physically removing him, which may have constituted assault.
‘Racism isn’t any part of this… It doesn’t matter if it’s a black or white issue, it’s a homeless issue, its an itinerant issue. It’s not a race issue,’ he said.
His boss said mr Marchant, was hosing down the area after food was thrown at the shop entrance and, in frustration, sprayed several metres from Mr Gaibaral to make him go away
Since video of the hosing was shared online, Mr Bird said the shop and its employees were abused in numerous phone calls, emails and posts on its now-deleted Facebook page.
‘The abuse that other employees are getting and even the neighbouring shop is getting from anonymous people not willing to give their name, but willing to ring up with abuse and threats is completely unfounded and uncalled for,’ he told the ABC.
‘[They are] threatening physical harm to employees of the business.’
Mr Gaibaral told Northern Territory News he was sitting out the front of the store last week when Mr Marchant came outside with the hose.
Since video of the hosing was shared online, Mr Bird said the shop and its employees were abused in numerous phone calls, emails and posts on its now-deleted Facebook page
‘I was near the door first then they pushed me to the side. It was first thing in the morning. I was cold after that,’ he said.
The video appeared to show Mr Marchant spraying a garden hose in Mr Gaibaral’s direction, though never hitting him, until he got up and walked away after about 40 seconds.
Chief Minister Michael Gunner said he was ‘shocked and upset’ by the footage.
‘This is not what the territory is about. This is now what I grew up knowing and loving about my home,’ he said.