Lu Manhua's Political Experience

According to Xinhua News Agency, Lu Manhua, a China woman, was successfully elected as a member of the Northern Ireland local council on March 9, 2007. After being elected, she said that she would challenge the local apartheid culture and devote herself to promoting racial equality. According to British media reports, Lu Manhua is the first Chinese MP in Britain and even Europe.

Speak with a Cantonese accent.

Lu Manhua was born in China and moved to Northern Ireland 32 years ago. He is the director-general of Northern Ireland Chinese Welfare Association and a professional social worker. She speaks with a strong Cantonese flavor.

Lu Manhua said that her participation in the election is a continuation of her community service work. Chinese have never felt a sense of belonging in Northern Ireland politics, and she hopes that the voice of Chinese will spread in Northern Ireland politics in the future.

Lu Manhua was nominated by the Coalition party in June 5438+February 2006, and finally joined the Northern Ireland Parliament composed of 108 members together with six other Coalition party members.

As a member of the Alliance Party, Lu Manhua is neither an orange Protestant nor a green Catholic. She said: "I believe in Taoism, not Christianity, and I am not born orange or green." I'm really in the middle.

Bring an alarm when canvassing.

Lu Manhua said that in the past, local Chinese had been neglected in Northern Ireland politics because of racial issues, so she wanted to fight for the right to speak for Chinese. The idea aroused the hatred of racists. Lu Manhua has been harassed by racists since he announced his candidacy. He was kicked in the street and received many threatening phone calls. Some people questioned her candidacy and insulted her, and even extreme right-wing websites posted her photos on their web pages along with some pornographic photos. During the six-week campaign, Lu Manhua walked in the streets of Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland, and went door to door. This area has not only the student living area of Queen's University and the most elegant residential area in the area, but also the Protestant community where racist activities are rampant. The police advised her to carry an alarm with her in case of being harassed by racists. Lu Manhua never backed down, and finally won wide support, winning the third place among the six seats in the South Belfast constituency, far exceeding analysts' expectations. After 30 years of settlement, China people voted for the first time.

The intimidation of extremists can't stop Lu Manhua's determination to go into politics. After her election, she said that many Chinese had lived in Northern Ireland for 30 years before voting for the first time, and they finally got a vote. According to statistics, there are about 300,000 overseas Chinese living in Britain, most of whom are from China and Hongkong, and there are also immigrants from Malaysia and Chinese mainland.

Lu Manhua admitted that many immigrants from China regard themselves as second-class citizens, and many have suffered racial discrimination, but they finally have a representative who can speak for them. She said that she would fight for the rights and interests of more than 10,000 Cantonese-speaking Chinese in the province.