‘It’s a matter of life and death’: Men in suits are pictured taking blankets away from homeless people on a freezing winter day
- The two men were seen carrying two bags full of blankets and mats on Friday
- One of the security guards and said the blankets were stored in office upstairs
- He said the building manager didn’t want the blankets in front of the building
Men in suits have been pictured taking blankets away from homeless people, before leaving them to sleep through freezing winter temperatures.
The two men were seen carrying two bags full of blankets and mats from outside the QBE building on Queen St in Auckland, New Zealand, on Friday.
The image was shared to Twitter where former Greens candidate Rebekah Jaung raised concerns for the rough sleepers who are doing it touch in the middle of winter.
The two men were seen carrying two bags full of blankets and mats from outside the QBE building on Queen St in Auckland on Friday
One of the security guards said the QBE building manager didn’t want the pile of blankets left in a mess in front of the building – saying they were actually on private property
She said she was ‘overwhelmed’ at the sight and spoke to the security guards who informed her that they would return the belongings if the owners asked for them.
‘They said that they would return the blankets if the owners came back and asked for them,’ she tweeted.
‘But removing them in the first place and not having any plan of letting the owners know where their belongings have been taken is already a breach of rights that would not happen to people who were not marginalised.
‘It’s the middle of winter and taking blankets away from people who are sleeping on the street could be a matter of life or death.’
‘It’s the middle of winter and taking blankets away from people who are sleeping on the street could be a matter of life or death’
NZ Herald spoke to one of the security guards and said the blankets were stored in the office upstairs and said the next shift guards were told to give the blankets back to their owners.
‘I’m human, you know. It’s freezing out there,’ he told the publication.
‘We can’t just take away all their stuff – they’ve got nothing.’
He explained that the QBE building manager didn’t want the pile of blankets left in a mess in front of the building – saying they were actually on private property.
A homeless woman told the publication that when she went to retrieve her blankets but they were given to the wrong people.