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The Legality of
Urban Exploration
feat. Laurence Johnson
date. 2017
city. Sydney
The vibrant city of Sydney with a great mixture of modern landscaper and historical buildings is becoming the next top playground for Urban Explorers. After the launching of Russia's Safe Selfie campaign in 2015, government of each country have all paid extra attention of this new deadly trend. Recognising the prominence of the dangerous subculture, Laurence Johnson, Environmental Design Officer at the City of Sydney expresses his great concern for the future of extreme sports.
“Sydney’s rooftops and abandoned places are not playgrounds for the general public,” says Laurence, “it is incredibly easy to lose your grip and hurt yourself and other people.” Being an avid surfer and outdoor enthusiast, Johnson understands that young people are actively looking for unique thrills in their life to define them. But invading private spaces filled with dangers are simply “self heroising”, says Johnson.
But for UrbExer, these sorts of dangers and regulations is what actually drives them. “Why must we follow these absurd rules grounds us in a state of child mentality” says Brody Keen, an amateur Sydney based Urban Exploration Photographer, “I don’t think we’re breaking any rules, all we did was snap a piece of the city to keep it forever.”
Is it Legal?
In New South Wales, entering premises without permission will constitute trespass to land, the activity of Urban Exploration is thus deemed illegal under the Inclosed Lands Protection Acts 1901 and Civil Liability Act 2002. However, the law does not carry any weight if no damages to property are found, and charges may be reduced if the court finds no intention to steal or destroy property. After all, trespass is not a criminal offence, and the person will only be issued an injunction or pay compensation.
Arrests aren't always a deterrent either. If arrested, most Urbexers would walk away from authorities with just a warning. Sincere apologies such as “sorry we are only here for photography” and “we are not intending to steal or destroy any property” are usually enough to release you from further investigations and charges. The City of Sydney has dealt with numerous cases relating to urban exploration but no serious fatal incidents have been recorded. This is largely because of the constant surveillance system Sydney City employed and fast-paced response time from authority on stopping UrbExers from venturing too far, Laurence noted.
In Australia and the U.S., the security system of office buildings is often more strict and thorough. Last year, Transport NSW has announced cooperation with New South Wales Police, together invest millions in Hi-Tech solutions to detect trespassers, including “CCTV cameras at access points, motion activated cameras positioned around the tracks”. However, in other countries especially China and Russia where property management are generally more loose, the security guard may still know nothing even after these UrbExers have stalked off.
For Brody, loose regulation is the main reason he kept doing urban exploration, even after being caught twice by security guards. “We’re not hurting anyone or intending to do anything malicious, all we took was photographs and all that we left are footprints.”
Nancy (@milkshake.zzz) shares similar thoughts. “Maybe there is no reason for the law to impose grievous criminal charge on these UrbExers,” says Nancy, “they truly haven't done anything harmful to the society, nor do they have the intention to do so. And to be honest, they aren't even scared of breaking laws - they are not even scared of death.”
Who owns the space?
Some Urban Explorers go to the extent of seeking validity and protesting the rules against Urban Exploration in hopes of abolishing it. Will Self a prominent UK author defended urban exploration on the Evening Standard: “place-hackers are performing a valuable service by reminding us that the city should, in principle, belong to its citizens, and should mostly – if not entirely – be accessible to them."
Several prominent figures in Urban Exploration like Bradley Garrett, London academic researching the world of urban exploration has strive to fight for freedom and access in world of growing restrictions. Asserting the idea that the general public should be able to participate in how their own cities are built and shaped.
The Future of Urban Exploration
For City of Sydney authorities, this would mean implementing tougher laws to disinterest people to get in this subculture. "Boundaries and regulation must be emplaced to ensure the public's safety" Laurence stated.
Nonetheless, the continuing legal debate between UrbExers and city regulators has raised public awareness over the ownership of city space as well as the controversy of democratic and public safety.
The increasing participation from young generations, inspired by social media, has made it difficult to define the legitimacy of such activity. Despite the fact that a lot more research and evidence are needed to support law-making process, public consensus should be a detrimental factor in justifying this emerging subculture.
What do you think?
“Place-hackers are performing a valuable service by reminding us that the city should, in principle, belong to its citizens, and should mostly – if not entirely – be accessible to them."
-Will Self
Image from @6ixty4our on Instagram
Urban Exploration has greatly evolved since the early 'pure' days that Laurence described. Today, Urban Explorers are no longer venturing into abandoned derelict places but live working places like underground train tracks and construction sites. The success of first generation Urban Explorers in gaining traction online would inevitably inspire a new breed of Explorers.
But now the stakes are higher, with newcomers determined to have their own mark in the world, they would need to venture new extremes to outperform their predecessors.
Image from @6ixty4our on Instagram