Nearly 700 community members have opposed Federation Council's proposal to remove Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags from council chambers in southern New South Wales, with public forum speakers condemning the decision as "heartbreaking".

On Tuesday morning, Federation Council held a public forum following community consultation on its draft Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Protocols document. Under these protocols, all Indigenous flags from the council's chambers in Corowa and Urana would be removed and only flown on "special occasions" such as NAIDOC Week or Reconciliation Week.

During a public exhibition of the document from November to December 2025, the Council received 884 formal submissions responding to the draft protocols.

Of those, 693 submissions (78 per cent) opposed the changes, calling for the continued display of all three flags and existing protocols. Only 100 submissions (11.5 per cent) supported the proposal, while 92 (10.5 per cent) were neutral or incomplete.

Adrienne Hartnett, Corowa resident from the Koa, Wakka Wakka and Kamilaroi nations, stood before Council on Tuesday. Like many other locals, Ms Hartnett opposed the removal of the flags—believing the decision contradicts commitments Federation Council made to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

"I remember reading it and feeling physically sick," Ms Hartnett said, describing the moment she found out the Council was considering removing the flags from its chambers.

"This is deeply disappointing," Ms Hartnett said. "Council talks about building relationships based on trust and respect. It talks about walking alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and building a community that embraces their culture and their knowledge."

"Across Australia, councils, parliaments and institutions display the Indigenous flags as a simple act of recognition and respect. It is not a controversial move," Ms Hartnett told Council.

"What is controversial and heartbreaking is that Councils are deciding whether recognition belongs here at all.

"Keeping the flags in this chamber costs this Council nothing, but removing them would send a very clear message. You now have the opportunity to honour both that oath and the clear will of our community."

Concerns about the impact on First Nations residents were echoed by other speakers.

Olivia Brozecki, Senior Project Coordinator at the Rainbow Network, began her presentation to Council by paraphrasing submission number 190 by a young Aboriginal resident.

"I'm writing because I don't understand why the Council voted to change the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander protocols. It just doesn't make sense to me," she read.

"Seeing the flags fly made a lot of us feel included. It's a small thing, but it means a lot. This vote was the wrong call. It wasn't needed, and it's upset a lot of people, especially young mob like me.

"Please keep the original protocols and let the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags live. It's a simple way to show respect and unity in our community."

Speaking to the Council on her own account, Ms Brozecki also raised concerns that the Council's decision did not represent the interests of its residents, with a majority of submissions opposing the removal of the flags.

"Madam Mayor, when trying to justify your position, you claim that you had many people express strong views, views that align with your own. And yet we now know that of the 884 submissions received by council, 693 opposed your views," she said.

From those submissions, keywords such as "disgusted", "outrage" and "abhorrent" appeared repeatedly. More notably, "shame" was used 88 times, while "racist" appeared 93 times.

Ms Brozecki emphasised that the Council must amend its decision to reflect the majority.

"Clearly, there is a lot of work that Federation Council needs to undertake to regain our trust in your ability to do your job and to admit that the majority of you made a mistake."

Albury City councillor, Geoffrey Hudson, also spoke at the forum in support of the flags flying on behalf of First Nations councillors, Uncle Dominic WY Kanak and Aunty Trish Brown.

"They told me that they were deeply sad and shocked that Federation Council did not meet with First Nations communities before this proposal was brought forward last year. In their words, they feel that First Nations culture is being used as a political formula," he said.

"Federation Council publicly promotes itself as a council that wants to strengthen community connections, but they said it becomes very difficult to build those connections if decisions are made without involving those who feel the impact of those decisions the most.

Federation Council Mayor, Cheryl Cook, reaffirmed her stance at a meeting following the forum, explaining that the original Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander guidelines document "did not include any suggestion or requirement to display or fly the Aboriginal flags.

"I stand by my continued stance, and it always has been, simply about a flag in the Council chamber of Corowa and Urana...and by displaying only the one flag for all people in the chamber of governance, I believe it is appropriate."

The draft protocols were rejected after the Council voted 4-4 with one abstention, counted as a vote against the motion. However, as per council process, the flags would be removed due to an absence of a formal resolution.