THE AUSTRALIAN FLAG

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The Australian flag was first flown in 1901 and is a symbol of of national identity and pride.  It was specifically designed and created as a flag of a new nation.

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The Australian flag is a flag that represents all Australians and is the standard for the Australian army – a standard soldiers have died “under” and in this regard should be considered a sacred flag for all Australians.

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There should be no flag flown on a continuous basis alongside the Australian flag

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A national flag is a flag that represents and symbolizes a given nation. It is flown by the government of that nation, but usually can also be flown by its citizens. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island flags have been proclaimed "National flags" but do NOT represent or symbolize the nation of Australia.

 

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THE ABORIGINAL FLAG

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The Prime Ministers guidelines provide that the Aboriginal flag should be flown during NAIDOC Week and Reconciliation Week."

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The Aboriginal Flag was first raised on 12 July 1971 at Victoria Square in Adelaide and was designed for the Land Rights movement.  It was not designed as the flag of the Aboriginal people [see Aboriginal - A European construct]  It was also used at the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in Canberra in 1972.

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It was a flag that became a symbol of land and Aboriginal Rights.

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The labor party in 1995 proclaimed this flag of activism and race a National flag.

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At many places you will see Australian flag and alongside that flag they fly the Aboriginal flag on a continuous basis.  There appears to be no valid reason why a flag of race would be flown alongside the "sacred" flag of Australia.  Misguided views for flying the flag may include :

a)    showing support for Aboriginal people - there may be many ways to better support Aboriginal people than flying a tokenistic flag and it is completely incorrect to elevate this flag of race to a flag of the people of Australia;

b)    we are on aboriginal land - the land is now Australia.  Whichever group inhabited the land prior to settlement, they did not consider themselves in any way a pan continental aboriginal nation - unless the Aboriginal group has exclusive native title for the land now where flying their flag would be appropriate;

c)    a politician gave it to me - flying the flag should be flown in accordance with the Prime Ministers guidelines.   

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THE TORRES STRAIT ISLAND [TSI] FLAG

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It is even stranger to see the TSI flying alongside the Australian flag on a continuous basis.

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The TSI are a remote group of islands of the Cape of York.  TSI have exclusive ownership of the islands and it would be perfectly normal for them to fly their flag there - much as any state or community would.  

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The labor party in 1995 proclaimed this flag of a remote region and race a National flag.

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TSI peoples became part of Queensland and then Australia.  They were annexed [taken over] by Queensland in 1879 when there were already 2.2 million people in the colonies.  They were not a first peoples - the peoples were never dispossessed.  The TSI lands were added over 100 years after the first settlement of New South Wales.

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They are an indigenous race acquired by annexation - at annexation there were 4,000 people which was the maximum population the islands could support [for thousands of years]  - there are now over 80,000 people that identify as TSI people.

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There is no reason why this flag would be raised to the same standard as the Australian flag.

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The Australian flag represents all Australians.  The Aboriginal and TSI flags represents only people that identify as those races living within the nation of Australia.