AN INDIGENOUS Blayney woman is using National Reconciliation Week to call on Blayney Shire Council to reconsider its position on flying the Aboriginal flag.
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The flag is currently only displayed inside the council chambers but Nyree Reynolds will write to council in the coming weeks, asking for it to be flown permanently at Heritage Park.
Ms Reynolds first raised the issue in 2002 and made several pleas to council, asking for the flag to be flown outdoors.
"It's reconciliation week and it isn't flying - those actions speak louder than any words," she said.
"People come through Blayney and I think it would be very nice to have it flying."
Ms Reynolds said she feels the council is ignoring her and not taking the issue seriously.
"I've written letters, I've been to a council meeting... all this since 2002 - it's been 10 years," she said.
"The attitude is 'leave it alone' but I won't stop because Bathurst flies it [the flag], Orange flies it and Cowra flies it.
"I'm so sick of them [the council] ignoring me."
Two flagpoles sit unused at Heritage Park and one of those was purchased specifically to fly the Aboriginal flag on special occasions, Ms Reynolds said.
"They didn't fly it during NAIDOC Week last year and they haven't even flown it for Reconciliation Week.
"It's about acknowledging the original custodians of the land - to me that's what Heritage Park is about," Ms Reynolds told the Blayney Chronicle.
"You can't have white heritage without black heritage before it.
"To me it looks like Heritage Park is exclusively for the white heritage because they won't fly our flag.
"People say 'Oh if we do this we need to acknowledge everyone's flags' but my response is that none of them were the original custodians of Australia."
Ms Reynolds said given the council "does no cultural activities", she wondered if it is that hard for it to fly a flag.
"It's been 20 years since Mabo, Kevin Rudd apologised and this isn't about asking for money or land rights - it's a flag and it isn't an issue," she said.
Responding to Ms Reynolds' concerns, Blayney Shire Council general manager Glenn Wilcox said the council is not required to fly the Aboriginal flag.
"The flag is permanently flown inside," he said.
"If council flew the Aboriginal flag at Heritage Park, someone would have to go down and take it down each day and the Australian flag would also have to be flown there."
Mr Wilcox said the council does help out with NAIDOC Week celebrations, which are run at local schools each year.
National Reconciliation Week runs from May 27 to June 3.
The theme this year is 'Let's Talk Recognition' with a focus on how Australians can better recognise each other, and the contributions, cultures and histories of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
