Let’s be upfront about this editorial. It is not about vilifying homosexual men.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It is about getting the message across that lewd acts in the city’s public toilets is not acceptable behaviour.
Such acts should happen in private, not a public place where unsuspecting members of the public can walk in on them.
This was the case when a Maitland father took his five-year-old daughter into the male toilets at Bolwarra Lookout and saw a man standing by the door with his pants down.
In his words, “It’s pretty bloody disturbing.”
A concerned Hunter woman also contacted the Mercury to warn parents not to let their children use the toilet facilities at Maitland Park on their own after a friend walked in on two men engaged in a sexual act.
It’s alarming to think that a child could have walked in on these men.
People using the barbecue and playground facilities at Maitland Park have a right to use the public toilets without fear of walking in on someone engaged in a sexual act.
This is not the place for such activity and we, as a community, find such behaviour abhorrent .
Central Hunter crime manager Detective John Zdrilic said while there had not been an increase in reports of lewd behaviour at Maitland Park, he did encourage the public to ring police immediately if they witnessed such activity.
Inappropriate behaviour in public areas is to be discouraged and one of the best ways to do that is to report any unsavoury conduct in or around our public toilets to police.
You can call Maitland police on 4934 0200.