Cato Ridge couple wish they didn't take in displaced foreign nationals
A Cato Ridge farm owner says their decision to take in a group of displaced foreign nationals last year has taken its toll on him and his family.
Andrew Wartnaby and his wife Rae took the decision to provide shelter to nearly 150 foreign nationals after the temporary camps that had been set up in areas including Chatsworth were closed down.
The couple was however ordered by authorities to get the foreign nationals off the farm by September last year because they were breaking municipal by-laws by having them on their property.
Wartnaby says while others have since left Hope Farm, 14 people including two families have been refusing to leave - adding some have been violent.
He's now turned to the courts in a bid to get the group evicted.
"We had an incident about a month ago where they refused to let our family leave the property which was very, very stressful. Since then government has been involved, the United Nations have been involved.
"We've been assured that we will have police presence and protection. There hasn't been any more threats since the government got involved and started helping," he said.
Wartnaby says they took in the immigrants because they wanted to help.
"We really wish we hadn't. It has been way too stressful for our family. It has gone on for far too long. It was initially supposed to be two or three months. It has gone on for ten months now and it has been way too much for a family to cope with," he said.
(File photo)