Earlier today, I had a conversation about the Voice Referendum with my immigrant mum. Knowing that I would struggle having the discussion in Mandarin, I prepared some prompts and decided to turn it into a guide.
Please comment with any additions/corrections to my translations, and any tips you might have on talking about the Voice Referendum with migrant and CALD families!
1. 你知道澳大利亚今年将举行一个‘土著和托雷斯海峡岛之声’(The Voice) 的公投吗?
Nǐ zhīdào àodàlìyǎ jīnnián jiāng jǔxíng yīgè ‘tǔzhù hé tuōléisī hǎixiá dǎo zhī shēng’ (The Voice) de gōngtóu ma?
Do you know about the Voice Referendum being held in Australia this year?
2. 这次公投对我来说非常重要。我可以聊聊吗？
Zhè cì gōngtóu duì wǒ lái shuō fēicháng zhòngyào. Wǒ kěyǐ liáo liáo ma?
This referendum is very important to me. Can we chat about it for a moment?
3. 这次公投是关于是否需要修改宪法，建立一个‘土著和托雷斯海峡岛之声’的机构，来承认澳大利亚的原住民。
Zhè cì gōngtóu shì guānyú shìfǒu xūyào xiūgǎi xiànfǎ, jiànlì yīgè ‘tǔzhù hé tuōléisī hǎixiá dǎo zhī shēng’ de jīgòu, lái chéngrèn àodàlìyǎ de yuán zhùmín.
This referendum is about whether we should amend the Constitution to create an ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice’ body in order to recognise the First Nations People of Australia.
4. 通过公投，The Voice 就会成为代表原住民的常设机构，确保在相关政策的制定等各个方面，原住民的声音被听到。
Tōngguò gōngtóu, The Voice jiù huì chéngwéi dàibiǎo yuán zhùmín de chángshè jīgòu, quèbǎo zài xiāngguān zhèngcè de zhìdìng děng gège fāngmiàn, yuán zhùmín de shēngyīn bèi tīng dào.
Through the referendum, The Voice will become a permanent body representing First Nations Peoples, ensuring that their voices are heard in all aspects of policymaking on issues relevant to First Nations livelihoods.
5. 这个机构的建立需要公投得到‘双重多数’的选票：就是全国多数选民必须投赞成票，并且至少四个州的多数选民也必须投赞成票，所以每一票都很重要。
Zhège jīgòu de jiànlì xūyào gōngtóu dédào ‘shuāngchóng duōshù’ de xuǎnpiào: jiùshì quánguó duōshù xuǎnmín bìxū tóu zànchéng piào, bìngqiě zhìshǎo sì gè zhōu de duōshù xuǎnmín yě bìxū tóu zànchéng piào, suǒyǐ měi yī piào dōu hěn zhòngyào.
The establishment of this body would require a ‘double majority’ of votes in the referendum: a national majority of voters must vote yes, and a majority of voters in at least four states must also vote yes, so every vote counts.
6. 因为尽管原住民在这片土地上已经六万多年了，但是由于历史上遗留下来一系列有害的政府政策，他们的代表权并没有受到宪法的保护。相比澳洲移民，原住民在教育、工作、生活等方面没有同等的机会；他们在各个方面仍然面临不利的待遇。
Yīnwèi jǐnguǎn yuán zhùmín zài zhè piàn tǔdì shàng yǐjīng liù wàn duō niánle, dànshì yóuyú lìshǐ shàng yíliú xiàlái yī xìliè yǒuhài de zhèngfǔ zhèngcè, tāmen de dàibiǎo quán bìng méiyǒu shòudào xiànfǎ de bǎohù. Xiāng bǐ àozhōu yímín, yuán zhùmín zài jiàoyù, gōngzuò, shēnghuó děng fāngmiàn méiyǒu tóngděng de jīhuì; tāmen zài gège fāngmiàn réngrán miànlín bùlì de dàiyù.
Because although First Nations Peoples have been on this land for more than 60,000 years, their right to representation is still not protected by the Constitution due to a series of harmful historic government policies. Compared to Australian immigrants, First Nations Peoples have less opportunities in education, work and all aspects of life; they still face many kinds of disadvantageous treatment.
7. 在公投日，选民将被要求对这个问题投赞成或反对票：“一项拟议的法律：修改宪法，通过设立一个为原住民及托雷斯海峡岛民发声的建言机构，承认澳大利亚原住民族群的地位。您是否赞成这项修改提议？”
Zài gōngtóu rì, xuǎnmín jiāng bèi yāoqiú duì zhège wèntí tóu zànchéng huò fǎnduì piào: “Yī xiàng nǐyì de fǎlǜ: Xiūgǎi xiànfǎ, tōngguò shèlì yīgè wèi yuán zhùmín jí tuōléisī hǎixiá dǎo mín fāshēng de jiànyán jīgòu, chéngrèn àodàlìyǎ yuán zhùmín zúqún dì dìwèi. Nín shìfǒu zànchéng zhè xiàng xiūgǎi tíyì?”
On referendum day, voters will be asked to vote yes or no on this question: “A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice. Do you approve this proposed alteration?”
8. 在投票日你可以在任何投票点投票。这些通常在学校、教堂和社区礼堂或公共建筑。投票站的位置会在AEC网站上公布。公投还会提供邮寄投票、提前投票和移动投票。
Zài tóupiào rì nǐ kěyǐ zài rènhé tóupiào diǎn tóupiào. Zhèxiē tōngcháng zài xuéxiào, jiàotáng hé shèqū lǐtáng huò gōnggòng jiànzhú. Tóupiào zhàn de wèizhì huì zài AEC wǎngzhàn shàng gōngbù. Gōngtóu hái huì tígōng yóujì tóupiào, tíqián tóupiào hé yídòng tóupiào.
You can vote at any polling place on polling day. These are usually in schools, churches and community halls or public buildings. The location of these polling places will be posted on the AEC website. Postal voting, early voting and mobile polling will also be available for the referendum.
9. 虽然这次投票的结果可能不会对你的生活有直接的影响，但也可以把这看作是你作为一个公民的责任，要让这个国家变得更加平等。
Suīrán zhè cì tóupiào de jiéguǒ kěnéng bù huì duì nǐ de shēnghuó yǒu zhíjiē de yǐngxiǎng, dàn yě kěyǐ bǎ zhè kàn zuò shì nǐ zuòwéi yīgè gōngmín de zérèn, yào ràng zhège guójiā biàn dé gèngjiā píngděng.
While the outcome of this vote may not have a direct impact on your life, you can still view it as your responsibility as a citizen to (vote and) make this country a more equal place.
10. 10月14号就是公投日。我非常鼓励你那天抽些时间去投赞成票，让我们的国家变得更加公平。
Shí yuè shísì hào jiùshì gōngtóu rì. Wǒ fēicháng gǔlì nǐ nèitiān chōu xiē shíjiān qù tóu zànchéng piào, ràng wǒmen de guójiā biàn dé gèngjiā gōngpíng.
October 14th is the day of the referendum. I highly encourage you to take some time out of your day to vote yes and make our country a fairer place.
