NORTHERN District Community Health’s request to fly the Rainbow flag on council-managed community flagpoles annually is in breach of Gannawarra Shire’s own flag flying policy.
Flying the Rainbow flag in 2023 garnered great dissent in the community then, why do it again? The definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result. Promoting this agenda only encourages outrage and leads to discrimination. We witnessed this last year.
The request to fly the White Dove flag for reconciliation on International Human Rights Day in December 2023 was to recognise discrimination against all members of the community. Councillors refused the request despite gaining more signatures than the Rainbow flag petition.
The current LGBT+ political agendas are not council business, the state of our roads, drainage, etc are council concerns.
The Rainbow flag conflicts with the council’s “new” flag policy under section 3.8. Who did request the first flying of the Rainbow flag in GSC in 2022, Rainbow Local Government, a political organisation.
Council’s flag policy states, council will not enter into agreements to raise flags with parties: that are associated with religious, political or extremist groups or which may incite unrest or ill-feeling within the community; which we witnessed after flying of this flag last year.
I ask how flying this flag would recognise the social, inclusive, cultural, environmental, economic or historical matter of local, state and/or national significance that has a direct relevance to the Gannawarra Shire Council community?
If the White Dove flag (which encompasses every aspect of the flag policy) could not be raised, neither can this LGBT+ flag, which is lucky to meet at most two of the criteria and conflicts with three of the restrictions.
Council needs to concentrate on its role/job for the whole community, which is wanting enough at the moment, rather than be involved with extreme political groups especially using other organisations to push an agenda under disguise in an attempt to bypass rules.
What minority group was excluded in the last three years? The Shire’s vision for social inclusion was cast to the wind as they discriminated against the unjabbed, which I believe did not stop infection or transmission.
This blatant breach of one’s human rights has been proven for what it is with successful legal action in South Australia, New South Wales and Queensland in the past six weeks and $6.8m plus being paid out in Victoria for jab injuries under Workcover.
Council cannot fly the Rainbow flag again without flying the White Dove flag. Unless our elected councillors wish their legacy to be blatant hypocrisy.
Annette Hollingworth
Koondrook
