江邦固: 保守党”贩卖恐惧”争取华裔选民

 

在最近的联邦大选中代表自由党出战万锦于人村选区的江邦固律师是为数不多的第一代华裔移民候选人之一，同时也是被寄予厚望的明星候选人，在她以数千票之差败给保守党候选人Bob Saroya后，许多人都深感意外。

Lawyer BangGu Jiang, was one of the few first generation Chinese Canadians running for Liberal MPs in the Markham Unionville riding in the recent federal election.  She lost to Conservative candidate Bob Saroya by a few thousands votes. As a star candidate, her loss has surprised many people.

 

江邦固在加拿大享有一份辉煌的职业生涯。她1989年移民加拿大，在2013年被任命为约克区警政委员会委员，并获颁英女皇钻禧纪念奖章。

Jiang has enjoyed a remarkable career journey in Canada. She immigrated to Canada in 1989, was appointed to the York Regional Police Services Board in 2013 and is a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal recipient.

 

在大选结束几周后，我在一个社交场合上碰到了江邦固，她似乎并没有因为大选落败而气馁 ，而是表示她将会继续参选。

A few weeks after the election, I met Jiang in a social function. She seemed not a bit discouraged by her loss, and said she is willing to run for office again. 

 

江邦固称：“这是一段非常难得的人生经历，我从来都没有为参选而后悔，这一经历让我获益良多，让我有机会获取大量信息，也得以了解上上下下各界人士的想法和顾虑。”

“It was a lifetime experience, and I’ve never regretted of runn9ing for a minute… I had a great run,” says Jiang. ”It gave me the opportunity to access a lot of information, allowing me to understand the opinions and concerns from people in all walks of life.”

 

但江邦固同时也谴责了保守党的竞选策略，称保守党在竞选宣传中贩卖恐惧仇恨，藉此帮助保守党候选人获胜。

But Jiang condemns the Conservatives’ campaign tactics, alleging that the messages in the campaign ad have turned to mongering fear and hate in order for the Conservative candidate to get ahead. 

 

江邦固称：“保守党知道大多数华裔都对关注大麻、妓院和早期性教育问题非常敏感，因此他们通过散布相关信息故意误导选民，使得人们对自由党候选人望而却步。”

"Conservatives know that majority of Chinese are very concerned about marijuana, brothels, and early sex education. So they intentionally misled voters by distributing the messages to scare people off from voting for the Liberal candidate,” says Jiang.

 

据CBC报道，保守党在针对多伦多和温哥华的华裔和旁遮普裔选民所进行广告宣传中指责联邦自由党党领特鲁多赞成售卖大麻给儿童，扩展毒品注射站，并在社区开设妓院等。

According to CBC report, a Conservative ad campaign in the riding targeted at Chinese and Punjabi-speaking voters in Toronto and Vancouver that claims Justin Trudeau supports the sale of marijuana to children, the expansion of safe injection sites and the establishment of neighbourhood brothels. 

 

而这一广告宣传运动获得前联邦保守党党领哈珀的充分支持。

The campaign ad was supported by Stephen Harper:

 

哈珀在总理办公室发出的书面声明中提及联邦自由党党领时称：“特鲁多不肯承认毒品对家庭和社区造成的损害。”

"Justin [Trudeau] refuses to acknowledge the damage that drugs do to families and communities," Harper, referring to the Liberal leader, said in a written statement from his office. 

 

声明还称：“他想允许街头店铺售卖大麻，增设毒品注射站，并推行危险的误导性政策，而这只会让儿童更容易接触到毒品。”

"He wants to allow the sale of marijuana in corner stores and increase the number of heroin injection sites, dangerously misguiding policies that would only make drugs more accessible to our children." 

 

江邦固称，保守党散布的信息显然是专门针对其选区内的华裔和旁遮普社区，比如某些发往选民家中的竞选传单就试图利用自由党富有争议的“厕所法案”误导选民，让他们误认为如果自由党上台执政，就会允许男女同厕同浴。

Jiang said it's clear the Conservatives are distributing messages that specifically targeted the Chinese and Punjabi communities in her riding.  Some campaign flyers sent to voters’ homes tried to use Liberals’ controversial “Bathroom Bills” to mislead them into believing that men would be allowed to use women’s washrooms if the Liberals get elected.

 

但是这些信息似乎对华裔候选人造成了更为直接的影响，并在某些华裔选民中获得了保守党渴望的结果。

But these messages seemed to have more direct impact on Chinese Canadians and succeeded in eliciting desired reactions from some of the Chinese voters:

 

江邦固称：“在我上门走访选民时，一些人的反应令我感到震惊，他们对自由党政策的指责可谓极其无理和荒谬和以致令我目瞪口呆，无言以对。”

 “When I knocked on voters’ doors, I was shocked by some of their reactions,” said Jiang. “Their accusations against the Liberals’ policies were so insane, so ridiculous and so unfounded that left me stunned and speechless.”

 

江邦固说：“厕所法案成为许多人关注的焦点，大麻和妓院问题也让很多人深感困扰，有许多选民都担心他们的房产价值会因此受到影响。有一位选民甚至当场质问我说‘如果特鲁多在我家附近开设妓院，我还怎么卖房？！’”

“The Bathroom Bill became the top concerns among the many, and Marijuana and Brothels also bothered a lot of people. Many voters worried about their implications on their property values,” says Jiang. “One voter even asked me point blank:  ‘if Justine Trudeau sets up brothels in my neighbourhood, how could I possibly sell my home?!’”

 

虽然负面竞选策略在竞选活动中屡见不鲜，但却不能跨越道德底线。背叛加国诚实与诚信价值观的卑鄙竞选策略让人嗤之以鼻，同时也是对选民智商的侮辱。善于玩弄权术的政客会导致国家走上邪恶危险的道路。

While negative tactics are commonly used in the election campaigns, there is an ethical line that cannot be across. Dirty tactics that betray the Canadian value of truth and honesty are disrespectable and insult voters’ intelligence. Controlling and manipulative politicians would lead the nation on an ugly and dangerous road.

 

江邦固希望在下次联邦大选中看到其选区选民的政治敏感性和政治洞察力有所提高。

Jiang hopes that her riding’s political sensibilities and awareness will grow in the next federal election. 

 

她称：“提高华裔选民的政治洞察力至关重要，在我看来这是打造一个强大而又政治成熟的华裔社区的唯一途径。”

“Raising political awareness of Chinese Canadians is critical, and I believe it is the only way that we can build a strong and politically-sophisticated community.”