Chinese Australians reflect on work in politics, as federal parliament resumes

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3 days ago

Growing up in Queensland, Julie-Ann Campbell looked to Penny Wong as a role model.
The now-foreign minister was one of the only politicians who showed a young Ms Campbell how people who "looked like" her could work in parliament.
"You can't be what you can't see," said Ms Campbell.
Ms Campbell won the Queensland electorate of Moreton, a seat encompassing multicultural communities in Brisbane's south, in May's federal election and is proud of her Chinese heritage.
The Labor politician's family immigrated to Australia from China's Guangdong province in the late 1800s.
As parliament resumed this week for the first time since the election, a record six politicians with Chinese heritage sat in the House of Representatives and Senate.
In addition to Senator Wong in the Senate, five Chinese Australian politicians were elected or re-elected into the lower house in May: Julie-Ann Campbell, Gabriel Ng, Zhi Soon, Sam Lim and Sally Sitou.
The parliamentarians, along with some former Liberal politicians, look back on some challenges they have faced, such as racism and discrimination — and reflect on why diversity in Australian parliament is important.
"I'm proud that my daughter will grow up seeing people who look like her in parliament," said Ms Campbell.
"That makes for a better democracy."
For Sally Sitou, re-elected in the New South Wales seat of Reid, her background, experiences and family history are something she celebrates.
Along with other ethnic Chinese, Ms Sitou's parents fled Laos because of the Vietnam War.
The Labor parliamentarian grew up in the western suburbs of Sydney, never thinking politics was a career path for her — until she heard Bob Carr speak at the opening of the Chinese Lao Association's community hall.
"He gave a really amazing speech about the government's commitment to working together with the local community to support them," she said.
Ms Sitou said her background was now an asset in her work.
"I think it is important that we try to get a lot more diversity of people into politics, regardless of which party," she said.
"I really make my colleagues aware of some of the challenges for multicultural communities and for them to make sure that it is part of the work that they do."
In 2022, Ms Sitou reclaimed Reid in inner-west Sydney for Labor for the first time in a decade.
During that campaign, Ms Sitou said she was targeted because of her heritage.
"There were some people who questioned my loyalty to this country, because of my Chinese background," she said.
"I really made a point of calling it out … I felt like that's something I wanted to do."
In Western Australia, before Sam Lim got into politics, he observed how politicians' views of the Chinese community impacted people.
"As a police officer, I could see that on the front lines, some of the ways the anti-Chinese words and actions of the former government were affecting the community," Mr Lim said.
"Running to be the federal member for Tangney was an opportunity to help change this, and so I said yes."
Tangney is one of Australia's most diverse communities, with more than 160 different ancestries.
People of Chinese heritage make up 16.5 per cent of its population.
Mr Lim, a Malaysian Chinese immigrant, is the oldest of eight siblings in his family, who grew up in a home with a leaky roof, dirty floors and no running water.
He joined the WA Police in his 40s and was awarded Officer of the Year in 2020, the force's highest honour, for his work with multicultural communities during the pandemic.
Mr Lim speaks 10 languages including Malay, several Chinese languages, including Hokkien, and even Burmese, and says he understands how many people from migrant backgrounds think and feel.
"Because I am one of them. I know what's dear to them," he said.
"And I understand their concerns."
For Gabrielle Ng, his Chinese Singaporean identity connects him to Chinese culture, shared by many constituents in the Victorian electorate of Menzies.
Menzies's electoral boundaries were redrawn before the election, leaving it with the most Chinese Australian voters of any electorate in Australia.
Nearly 30 per cent of the electorate has Chinese heritage.
During the election campaign, Mr Ng found that some people, including the media, spoke about the Chinese Australian community as if it was monolithic.
"I've made a point of highlighting the diversity in the Chinese community, with different countries of origin," Mr Ng said.
"Mainland China, Malaysia, Singapore, etc, as well as language groups, cultures and political opinions."
Mr Ng is proud of his heritage and has vivid memories during his childhood of visiting relatives in Singapore, eating at hawker stalls, going to yum cha and enjoying Lunar New Year celebrations.
His father is a Chinese Singaporean immigrant and aircraft maintenance engineer who moved to Australia in his 20s, while his mother was raised in regional Victoria.
He said his experience of racism also shaped who he became.
"I've had some experiences of racism, like being called names in the schoolyard. Especially when growing up, it was very common for people to ask where I was really from," he said.
Mr Ng said there was also the feeling that when politicians attacked Chinese or Asian Australians, "they were talking about me and my family".
On the eve of the federal election, Liberal Senator Jane Hume claimed on television that "Chinese spies" were among the volunteers for a Labor MP's campaign — remarks that drew strong backlash from the Chinese community.
"I think this has contributed to my sense of solidarity with other diverse groups and underdogs in society who might experience discrimination, as well as a strong commitment to multiculturalism," Mr Ng said.
For former Liberal candidate Scott Yung, Senator Hume's comments left him feeling frustrated.
"It's about using language that makes all Australians feel welcome and safe," he said.
"Chinese Australians like my parents have worked hard, built businesses, and contributed through education."
Mr Yung is a second-generation Chinese Australian with family roots in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
Seen as a rising star in the Chinese community after nearly defeating then-opposition leader Chris Minns in a state election, Mr Yung was disappointed to not win the federal seat of Bennelong.
During the campaign, some media outlets reported alleged links between Mr Yung and individuals connected to the Chinese Communist Party.
Looking back, Mr Yung said he wished he had confronted the accusations more directly.
"Politics is dirty, and the truth won't prevail unless you actively share it," he said.
Liberal colleague Gladys Liu knows the toll of political life.
In 2019, she made history as the first female Chinese Australian MP, winning the seat of Chisholm in Victoria.
But scrutiny quickly followed.
Despite winning the 76th seat that secured the Coalition majority, Ms Liu faced relentless questions about her connections to Chinese organisations.
"If I weren't Chinese, there would've been no story to write," she said.
After losing her seat in 2022, the attacks disappeared.
"That confirmed for me — they weren't attacking Gladys. They were attacking the person who held that seat."
Ms Liu was among the first to publicly condemn Senator Hume's remarks, calling them careless and unforgivable.
"Politicians may face baseless attacks, but ordinary Chinese Australians shouldn't," she said.
Gabriel Ng said Senator Hume's comments had a "chilling effect" on people in the Chinese Australian community, making them less likely to participate in politics.
"One of the most despicable things about comments like those made by Senator Jane Hume … is that it makes people feel that if they get involved in politics, they will be treated with suspicion," he said.
"What we want is an inclusive, vibrant democracy where everyone feels free to participate, so that the government can best reflect the will of all Australians."
Senator Hume did not respond to requests for comment.