Zahid Safi was warned about the Liberals. Now he is a candidate

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Zahid Safi had lone conscionable arrived successful Australia erstwhile helium was warned astir the Liberal Party.

It was during Friday prayers successful Melbourne’s south-east erstwhile the Afghan-born exile asked a chap worshipper who the “men successful suits” were astatine his mosque that time successful 2013.

Zahid Safi with woman Zinab Husseinkhil and 3 of his six children, Abdulbasit, 4, Rida, 1 and Wesal, 14.

“They told maine it was predetermination time, and it was a campaigner from the Liberal Party and that they were against Muslims and immigrants,” Safi told The Sunday Age.

A decennary on, the 36-year-old is connected a ngo to go the archetypal Muslim MP to correspond the Liberal Party successful national parliament. He’s been preselected to instrumentality connected Labor’s Julian Hill successful the south-east Melbourne spot of Bruce, wherever helium lives with his woman and six kids.

“When we travel here, we perceive to our communities, but unfortunately, our assemblage does not ever person a due knowing of governmental parties and their policies,” helium said.

His preselection, helium says, is impervious that the presumption that the Liberal Party is “not the enactment of multicultural people” is wrong.

Zahid Safi with Federal Member for La Trobe Jason Wood.

Bruce, which includes Doveton, Endeavour Hills, Hallam, Lysterfield South, Narre Warren and Dandenong, is location to much than 24,000 radical of Islamic faith, making it 1 of the largest Muslim seats successful Australia.

Born successful the Laghman state of Afghanistan successful 1987, Safi’s household moved to Pakistan erstwhile helium was a toddler. They lived successful a exile campy for much than a decennary earlier being granted asylum successful Finland successful 2003.

Safi learnt Finnish and went to assemblage portion moving part-time arsenic a translator. He moved to Australia successful 2013, settling successful Dandenong with his Melbourne-raised woman Zinab.

“Through each my acquisition – from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Finland and past Australia – I person recovered Australia to beryllium a home,” Safi said.

“When I came here, I had a consciousness of belonging from time one.”

To person immoderate accidental of winning backmost government, the Liberal Party knows it needs to amended bespeak modern Australia and prioritise greater sex and taste diverseness erstwhile selecting candidates. That was the connection from the party’s post-mortem into its 2022 predetermination thumping: the rank is excessively male, excessively aged and excessively achromatic – and it’s hurting the party’s chances.

While immoderate Liberal women stay frustrated with the party’s efforts to preselect much pistillate candidates, efforts are softly being made to broaden the party's rank basal to amended correspond modern multicultural Australia.

Bruce has been a harmless Labor spot since 1996, but is 1 of respective accepted strongholds successful the outer suburbs being targeted by the Liberal Party successful an effort to offset losses successful affluent Melbourne and Sydney seats it erstwhile safely held.

Labor MP Julian Hill presently holds the spot of Bruce by a borderline of 6.6 per cent.

A elder Labor root told The Sunday Age – speaking connected information of anonymity to sermon interior matters – that the enactment was not “remotely worried” astir losing the spot and was assured the electorate’s ample Muslim assemblage would beryllium improbable to ballot Liberal.

Jim Reed, laminitis of Resolve Strategic which conducts the Resolve Political Monitor for this masthead, said that portion the Liberals’ staunch enactment for Israel whitethorn number against it successful seats similar Bruce, to correspond the outer suburbs parties indispensable bespeak their diversity.

“This is thing the Tories person done good successful the UK, and the Liberals request to travel suit," Reed said.

“The electoral representation is changing. We’ve seen that already with inner-city strongholds falling to the teals and Greens, and it whitethorn besides beryllium existent of the blue-collar seats the Liberals are present targeting.”

But the Liberal Party has had a strained narration with Muslim communities successful caller years, fuelled by a way grounds of interventions and remarks – by candidates, MPs and adjacent enactment leaders – that were perceived arsenic anti-Muslim.

In 1 example, Peter Dutton – present Opposition Leader but astatine the clip migration curate – successful 2016 claimed erstwhile Liberal premier curate Malcolm Fraser had made “a mistake” by allowing Lebanese Muslims fleeing civilian warfare to immigrate to Australia nether relaxed migration laws successful the 1970s.

At the time, Dutton justified his comments – made against the backdrop of a spate of foiled panic plots – by highlighting that 22 of the past 33 radical charged with terrorism-related offences were from second- and third-generation Lebanese Muslim backgrounds.

Safi – who teaches concern studies to planetary students – precocious travelled to Canberra to conscionable Dutton, describing him arsenic an “amazing person”.

He insists the beliefs and values of the Liberal Party align with migrant communities.

“When it comes to immigration, immoderate migrant oregon Australian national would privation to support their community, for their kids and everyone,” Safi said of Dutton’s 2016 comments.

“The Liberal Party were the ones that abolished the White Australia Policy, much precocious they helped much than 4100 Afghans flight wrong 8 days.

“Actions talk louder than words.”

But with the adjacent predetermination to beryllium held successful the archetypal fractional of adjacent year, Safi said helium wanted to absorption connected section issues hurting voters successful his community, including cost-of-living pressures and amended entree to intelligence wellness services.

Cut done the sound of national authorities with news, views and adept investigation from Jacqueline Maley. Subscribers tin motion up to our play Inside Politics newsletter here.