NSW council votes to stop flying Indigenous flags and enforce permissions for Welcome to Country
The Australian, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags fly together from several government buildings across Australia. (Flickr: Len Matthews)
In short:
NSW's Federation Council has voted to stop flying the Indigenous flag in its chambers and on its flagpoles.
The council says removing Indigenous flags and insisting on permission to conduct a Welcome to Country would "promote civic neutrality".
What's next?
Submissions to the council proposal close on December 24.
A NSW local council has voted to stop flying the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags and enforce a permission system for Welcomes to Country at public events.
Federation Council in the Riverina said the decision to ditch the flags from official council chambers and flagpoles followed extensive community feedback.
"We work on a very neutral basis, and that one symbol provides that neutral space to look after the entire shire and many ratepayers have spoken to us across the duration of the year," Mayor Cheryl Cook said.
"The feedback that I have been getting is that there is a need to go back to a civic neutral space."
At a meeting last month, councillors voted five to four to change council protocols to remove Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags from chambers in Urana and Corowa, and all council flagpoles across the shire.
Welcome to Country ceremonies will now also require council approval for special events.
Council stopped short of banning the flying of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags during NAIDOC and Reconciliation Weeks.
Cheryl Cook says the flag debate has sparked lots of discussion. (Federation Council)
Councillor David Harrison opposed the decision, warning it might send a negative message.
"I don't clutch my pearls and say, 'That's a divisive thing.' I actually see it as a celebration, as a recognition," he said during the council debate.
Federation Council has chambers at Urana and Corowa, the home of federation. (ABC News: Philippe Perez)
A symbol of respect
Kamilaroi woman Cheree Toka successfully campaigned to have the Aboriginal flag permanently displayed on Sydney Harbour Bridge.
"It's to honour the ancestors who lived, fought and survived here and reminds the nation of the land they stand on, to ensure Aboriginal identity is not made invisible for a second time," she said.
Cheree Toka says flying the flags signals to young people that they belong and have a right to feel safe and be heard. (AAP: Daniel Munoz)
She said the reasons Federation councillors put forward for the flags' removal were flawed and that she "respectfully disagreed" with the decision.
"Flags are not population markers at all, they are statements of recognition and respect,"she said.
"We don't just disappear or become less traditional owners because our population is small, and we most definitely don't stop belonging to our land simply because more settlers moved in."
Ms Toka said flying the flag on government buildings and landmarks symbolised Indigenous peoples' longstanding presence in Australia before colonisation and that removing them had "nothing to do with being neutral".
"Especially for our young mob … seeing the Aboriginal flag in places of authority signals we belong here and we have a right to be heard and feel safe in the spaces that shape this country," she said.
It was not until 2022 that federal MPs agreed to fly the Australian and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags side by side in both chambers of parliament.
Federation Council has voted to display just the Australian flag in its meeting chambers. (Federation Council)
Flags important for representation
Flag Society of Australia vice-president Tony Burton said while both the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags were relatively modern, they had been gazetted and should be considered important, as they had a specific intent to represent First Nations people.
He said there was precedent for having two national flags, citing Bolivia, which used its tricolour flag of red, yellow, and green but also the multicoloured Wiphala flag, which represented some Indigenous peoples in South America.
"Aboriginal people were not consulted on [Australia's flag] at all,"he said.
But Mr Burton said flags could be "dangerous".
"They incite passions, especially in places like Israel and Palestine, and [a similar] local instance can be attributed to the Eureka flag and the Eureka Stockade, which many say is a chequered story," he said.