On the day of the general election day, David (left) arrived at the scene at midnight. At the end of the six-point vote at the end of the night, he will also act as a watchdog for the Liberal Party to supervise the counting. Supplied: David He
In the federal general election, there is no doubt that the candidate for each constituency is a "a star" of interest, and there is a dedicated "Assistance Mission" behind each "a star", that is, the countless volunteers that are in silent dedication.
In order to be able to win the election, the volunteers worked tirelessly, selflessly, and were busy without pay. They are the indispensable group in every election. They are dressed in uniforms and they are also the most eye-catching scenery of each polling station.
The campaign is not a stand-alone campaign, and each candidate must have a team to help carry out a series of activities. Volunteers are at the forefront of the front of the election. They are two-way speakers, building a bridge of communication between voters and candidates. In this election, multiple districts in Melbourne have Chinese candidates, and their volunteer team naturally have fewer Chinese faces. He David, Chen Shaofang and Fan Shuming are three of them.
David: The Chinese have reached a time when it can make a contribution to society
David Ho has been to Australia since 1990. At the age of 13, he set foot on the land with his father, who came to study in Australia. To this day, he has lived in this country for 29 years. In this election, he joined the volunteer team of Liao Yueh, the Liberal Party candidate for (Chisholm).
He told journialist that it was hard for volunteers to do volunteer work. On the day of the general election, he arrived at the polling station in his charge at midnight and started the day's work. In his view, the job of the volunteer is to help the local community by helping the candidate.
"I have been in Australia for a long time. I think it is time for Chinese to make a contribution to this society in Australian society, not just to care about their own lives and their own business. Chinese are now very powerful, but they are not as politically involved in mainstream Australian society as any other ethnic group. In recent years, we have advocated Chinese participation in politics in multicultural communities, so I am very happy this time because no matter which party it is, we can see Chinese coming out to run for election, "David he said in an interview with ABC Chinese.
David he has a full-time job, so he doesn't have much time to volunteer every day. "We basically have meetings at night, and we communicate through social app, and we have to see each other in two or three days." "he said.
David Ho says the experience of election volunteers will enable him to better integrate into mainstream Australian society. (Supplied: David He)
He took part in the campaign from beginning to end, including a message, a call to the voters and the placement of a polling station. According to him, there are nearly 200 volunteers in his volunteer team.
David learned a lot about the work of the volunteers. "I just don't understand why I'm going to volunteer, but I'll see a lot of Australian local people like to volunteer. through this experience can be truly integrated into the mainstream society,", he said. At work, many voters will ask him a few questions, and David believes that this can be seen as a way of thinking about the mainstream culture in Australia.
"In the western culture, when looking for a job, you will see if you have made a volunteer, have no social experience, not just the academic achievement, many people just come to feel that they are not in the Australian society, but do volunteer work, You'd really like the country of Australia's democracy and blend in with their culture,", he said.
Speaking of why he chose to support the Liberal Party, Mr. David said the free party's policy was more appropriate for the Chinese, especially those who made small business, and he thought the freedom of the Liberal Party was closer to the idea of family and education and the Chinese culture.
David Ho believes participation is the most important and calls on more Chinese to integrate into the society by volunteering. He also said he enjoyed volunteering and said he would continue to do the next general election.
Chen Shaofang: if you don't make a sound, you won't be heard.
Ms. Chen Shaofang came to Australia at high school, and has lived here for 16 years. She is currently engaged in accounting in Melbourne. In the general election, she joined the volunteer team of the Chtham House Labour Party candidate, Yang Chiu-hui.
Although she is working in the daytime, she does not feel hard at night, but she thinks that the work of the volunteers is of great significance to the Chinese community. ABC News: Kai Feng
According to Ms. Chen, she was involved in many of the volunteers' work in the general election, including telephone communication with Chinese-American voters every night, and on-the-door visits to the voters' families and so on.
She also needs a full-time job, she takes two hours a day to volunteer work, but she doesn't feel tired, and she thinks she's doing a very important job.
"I think the work of the volunteers is good for the Chinese community, and if you don't sound, you won't be heard, and the sound of your voice will be drowned."
'It's a matter of concern,' she said, by calling the voters every night, '"What they need is that I can help them to sound, and I think the Chinese are being bullied in some cases if they're not in an obscure way," said. According to Ms. Chen, the voters in contact with her are more concerned about the daily life problems, such as the cost of daily living, investment, the education of children, and the issue of live a return life. And the experience of this volunteer also evokes Ms. Chen's own political ideal.
Ms. "If possible, I'd like to go on the way to politics. The two candidates in my district were both Chinese and female, so it was a big incentive for me," said.
Ms. Chen said she might also think about politics, 'said Ms. Chen, who was inspired by the two Chinese women candidates in the district. (ABC News: Kai Feng)
Talking about the choice of the Labour Party, Ms. Chen is of the view that the relationship between the Labour Party and the Chinese is relatively close. "I think the Liberal Party is a bit racist, and the Labour Party may be better in this respect. in a more equitable way,", she said.
There are many volunteers from different cultural backgrounds in the team, and she is very happy to work together. "there is no estrangement, communication is smooth and friendly," he said.
Mr. Fan acknowledged that the information he had received in the general election was a partial one-sided, and he said he had the opportunity to listen to a wide range of voices. (Supplied: Shuming Fan)
Mr. Fan, from Shenzhen, China, has been living in Melbourne for five years, and is now a volunteer for Liao 'e's campaign team this year. As of March, he was in the campaign with the team, one of which was to release the brochure to the voter's mailbox. Mr. Fan recalled that he had delivered 1000 copies a day and began to work early in the morning and had been black at the end of the day.
While Mr. Fan, an international student, does not have the right to vote, he is of the view that taking time to take part in the democratic politics of Australia is still very important. "As a student, to be faced with the problem of looking for work, it is necessary to expand the circle of our own, to know more people. I'm not an outgoing character, being a volunteer can communicate with a stranger, exercise itself,", he said.
Fan Shuming also said that participation in the general election can understand different political cultures, in his view, there are many big differences between Australian politics and China.
"China cannot participate in politics for all. In China, we feel that politics is far away from ourselves, but there are votes in Australia, and it is multi-party ruling. Different people support different political parties, so we can hear all kinds of voices."
'He'll meet a lot of different people when he's running the campaign,' Mr. Fan said. Some of them are supporters of the Labour Party, who will come up to see them as a Liberal, and they're not good with their theoretical liberals, but Mr. Fan thinks it's normal, '"Because political tendencies are people's freedom," said.
Mr. Fan said that he had been in contact with the Liberals in the general election, so he admitted that it would be a partial one-sided when receiving the message and expressed the opportunity to listen to a wide range of voices.
"Although all I hear is that the Liberals are good, there will be a feeling that the Liberal Party is not good, a political party can't be all right, it's just that we have to make a trade-off. It is important to have our own master in politics, and we have the ability to judge independently."
However, Fan Shuming also noticed that there are some drawbacks in Australian democracy. He believes that sometimes Australia will not be able to continue and implement many policies because of the frequent elections. "The two major political parties will launch many policies. However, sometimes they have changed the government without waiting for the implementation of the policy. Therefore, this is also a reason for the relatively slow social and economic development here. In contrast, China ' s one-party dictatorship can develop rapidly. ," He says.
Mr. Fan-ming (left-hand) won't be able to vote in this year's federal election, but he finds it important to take time to take part in the Australian democratic politics. (Supplied: Shuming Fan)
Speaking of the district where he works, Fan Shuming said Chisham is a district with more Chinese, and that Chinese can have a greater impact on the development of the district on the economic. "in recent years, there have been more and more Chinese immigrants, so there must be Chinese candidates to listen to their voices and help them change," he said.
"some Chinese immigrants are not very good at English. At the same time, more Chinese tend to keep their thoughts in their hearts than westerners, so they need someone like Liao Yue-e or Yang Qianhui who speaks Chinese and has social app. It is very important to listen to the voices of Chinese and help them express their wishes. "