HARASSMENT OF PROPRIETORS
Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of dysfunctional land tenure
is the harassment of proprietors which arises when there
are conflicting, hidden interests on land.
These harassments can be classified as either "malicious" in that
the clerical workers effecting the scam are directly or
indirectly profiting from dysfunctional land registration
or this harassment can simply result from the fact that there
are multiple files and accounts linked to the one address.
An example of harassment arising from debt collection
is shown in the following example. It is not suggested that this harassment is of
the "malicious" kind, however it is still harassing in effect as the recipient is not
being allowed the full time in which to respond.
In this case the Collection Agency has "jumped the gun"
by sending out a collection notice "a bluey" as they are
called in Tasmania dated 16/05/96 some seven days before the final
payment date of 23/5/96 stipulated by Telstra.
It should be noted that in the statement of "Disclosure
of Personal Information" Telstra says that "if this debt
is referred to our collection agent, we will need to advise your personal
information and bill details to that agent."
However it is obvious that by the time I got this notice, the
collection agency was already aware of the personal details kept
by Telstra.
This does indicate that there is a lack of supervision over the personal
details kept by Telstra and how these details are released to collection
agencies.
