更新於 ：2023-04-27 10:28

3月25日中午，我走进位于Homebush的一个投票站，投下了神圣的一票，表达了我对候选人的选择。

尽管最后的民意测试显示，工党的支持率略高于自由党，但我个人认为，自由党在这次大选中失败的可能性很高。不是自由党政府做的不好，而是在于自由党执政十二年了，民意也想换换口味了，也希望给工党一个表现的机会。

民主国家的民众就是这样任性，我可以决定谁执政，做得不好四年之后把你赶下台。而对于华人政客来说，不论加入了哪个党派，每次大选也都是一次表现自己、让社会评判的舞台。

就在大选之前几天，网络上爆出新州年轻的自由党华裔人士Andy Yin 对新州自由党高层的抱怨与投诉，他在一个专访节目中称，作为新州Strathfield选区的候选人申请者，他未被自由党审核委员会（NRC）提名是基于“华人血统”及“种族歧视”。据澳广ABC报道，人权委员会（HRC）也因此接受了Andy Yin的正式投诉，开始进行调查。

该话题在大选日的前夜成为华人社区的热议的焦点，自由党再次面临对华人“种族歧视”的指控。人们相信，这样的热议或多或少会影响到选举结果。

报道称，Andy Yin向参与他的审核面试的五人提出了投诉，包括新州州长Perrottet、新州多元文化厅长Mark Coure、自由党新州董事Christopher Stone、党务经理Wilson Chessell和党主席Maria Kovacic。

自由党在Strathfield选区的候选人最终被提名为John-paul-baladi与工党华裔候选人Jason Li对垒。年轻的Baladi是苏丹裔，很早就加入了自由党，并在Strathfield长大。

Homebush 是Strathfield市政府所在地，在市政府附近有一家别致的咖啡馆，女主人Virginia Cheong 能说一口流利的中文。

“Andy Yin失去提名资格与种族歧视毫无关系。” Virginia Cheong不假思索地说道。

Virginia Cheong 说：“新州多元文化厅长Mark Coure以及Matt Keen和Damien Tudehope都曾来找过我，表示支持我作为Strathfield选区的候选人参选，我也是华人呀。”

原本Cheong女士也可能成为候选人，但她在思考后婉拒了，原因有两个。“首先我与Jason Li很熟，我不想与他竞争；其次自己的生意实在很忙，很难集中精力参选。” 她说。

Virginia Cheong 认为，申请人应该尊重自由党审核委员会的选择，指控“种族歧视”是荒谬的。

“John-paul 是一个诚实负责的自由党人，Andy Yin更注重能力与影响力。” Virginia Cheong说；“Andy Yin很有钱，曾先后捐献了几万给自由党。但他个人的经济创造力不过硬，所以他的财富来源会被调查。”

Cheong女士表示，Andy Yin声称钱来自其父母，但他父母的钱从何而来呢？会不会与中共当局有关联呢？她说，这不是不相信谁，而是NRC 详细调查Andy Yin的财富来源以及与一些公司机构的关系是非常正常、也是非常必要的行为。

说来也算巧合，只是为了喝一杯咖啡，意外地与咖啡店老板Virginia Cheong作了一个五分钟的采访，她鼓励有能力的华人能够积极参政，也认为Andy Yin是一位有前途的年轻人。

我也在投票现场与John-paul-baladi作了简单对话，他就如Cheong女士所言，显得厚道诚实。我环顾四周都是红衣服的拉票人员，问他赢的几率有多高，他笑而不答，只是对我的关心表示感谢。

不知道是自由党团队的管理不善，还是对Strathfield选区缺乏信心，仅看投票站的外围，工党已经占足了优势。

我认为华人参政真的很难，难就难在身后有所在党势力与红色势力同时在发挥影响力，毕竟真正地维护澳洲价值观需要付出勇气与代价。但不管怎样，乐于参政的华人首先应该诚实、目标明确，否则很难获得他人的尊重。

当我准备发布这篇文章时，媒体已经传出消息，大势已去，工党领袖Chris Minns准备发表胜选演说了，这是新州工党在时隔12年后，再次回到历史性的执政舞台，目前，整个澳大利亚就剩塔州还在自由党的掌控中，其馀都已经是归工党了。

25-03-2023

(English Vision)

Racial discrimination? The role of Chinese-Australians in politics

 By Yan Xia

On March 25th, I walked into a polling station located in Homebush and cast my vote in the Australian election. Despite the final opinion polls showing slightly higher support for the Labor party than the Liberal party, I personally believe that the Liberal party has a high chance of losing this election. It’s not because the Liberal party hasn’t done well in governance, but rather because they have been in power for twelve years, and the public wants to try something new and give the Labor party a chance to perform.

The people of a democratic country are capricious in this way. I can decide who governs, and if you don’t perform well, you’ll be kicked out of office after four years. For Chinese-Australian candidates, regardless of which party they join, each election is a stage to showcase themselves and be judged by the general public.

Just a few days before the election, a young Chinese-Australian member of the Liberal party, Andy Yin, made complaints and accusations against the New South Wales Liberal party’s leadership in an interview. He claimed that as a candidate applicant for the Strathfield electorate, he was not nominated by the Liberal party’s National Review Committee (NRC) based on “Chinese ethnicity” and “racial discrimination.” According to ABC News, the Human Rights Commission (HRC) has formally received Andy Yin’s complaint and is investigating it.

The topic became the focus of discussion within the Chinese community on the eve of the election, and the Liberal party once again faced accusations of “racial discrimination” against the Chinese. People believe that such discussions may more or less affect the election results.

Reportedly, Andy Yin filed complaints towards the five people who participated in his review interview, including New South Wales Premier Perrottet, Minister of Multiculturalism Mark Coure, New South Wales Liberal party director Christopher Stone, Party Affairs Manager Wilson Chessell, and Party Chairman Maria Kovacic.

Ultimately, the Liberal party’s candidate for the Strathfield electorate was nominated as John-Paul Baladi, who will compete against the Labor party’s Chinese-Australian candidate Jason Li. The young Baladi is of Sudanese descent and joined the Liberal party early on and grew up in Strathfield.

Homebush is the location of Strathfield City Council, where there is a quaint café near the council building. The owner, Virginia Cheong, speaks fluent Chinese. “Andy Yin losing his nomination has nothing to do with racial discrimination,” Virginia Cheong said without hesitation. “Mark Coure, the Minister for Multiculturalism in NSW, as well as Matt Keen and Damien Tudehope have come to me and expressed their support for me to run as a candidate in the Strathfield electorate. I am also a Chinese-Australian.”

Cheong could have been a candidate herself, but after careful consideration, she declined for two reasons. “Firstly, I am friends with Jason Li, and I do not want to compete with him. Secondly, my business is very busy, and it is difficult for me to concentrate on running for office,” she said.

Virginia Cheong believes that applicants should respect the Liberal Party’s selection process and that accusing them of “racial discrimination” is absurd. “John-Paul is an honest and responsible Liberal Party member, while Andy Yin is more focused on ability and influence,” Virginia Cheong said. “Andy Yin is very wealthy and has donated tens of thousands of dollars to the Liberal Party. However, his personal economic prowess is not strong enough, so that’s why the source of his wealth was investigated.” 

Cheong said that Andy Yin claims his money comes from his parents, but where did his parents’ money come from?  Could it be related to the Chinese Communist Party? She said that it is not a matter of mistrust but that it is normal and necessary for the NRC to investigate Andy Yin’s sources of wealth and his relationships with some companies and organizations.

It was a coincidence that I had an interview with Virginia Cheong for just five minutes while enjoying a cup of coffee. She encouraged capable Chinese-Australians to participate in politics and also believed that Andy Yin is a promising young man.

I also had a brief conversation with John-Paul Baladi at the polling station, who, like Cheong, appeared honest and straightforward. I looked around at the Labor campaign workers in red shirts. When I asked him about his chances of winning, he just smiled and thanked me.

I think it is really difficult for Chinese-Australians to participate in politics, mainly because they face the influence of the party they are in and the influence of the Chinese government. After all, truly upholding Australian values requires courage and sacrifice. But no matter what, Chinese-Australians who are willing to participate in politics should be honest and have clear goals. Otherwise, it is difficult to earn the respect of others.

As I was preparing to publish this article, the media had already reported that the tide had turned, and Labor leader Chris Minns was preparing to deliver his victory speech. This marks the historic return of the NSW Labor Party to the stage after 12 years. Currently, only Tasmania is still under the control of the Liberal Party in Australia, while the rest have all gone to Labor.

25 March 2023