Helen Sham-Ho
Helen Wai-Har Sham-Ho OAM (Chinese: 何沈慧霞; pinyin: Hé Shěn Huìxiá) (born 9 September 1943) is a former Australian politician.
Early life and education[]
Of Bao'an Hakka ancestry, Sham-Ho was born in Hong Kong. She migrated to Australia in 1961.
She earned a Bachelor of Arts and a Diploma of Social Work from the University of Sydney, graduating in 1967,[1] and earned an LL.B. at Macquarie University.[2]
Her first marriage produced two daughters; her second marriage was to Robert Ho on 15 December 1987. In 1982 she had joined the Epping Branch of the Liberal Party.[3]
Political career[]
In 1988, she was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Council for the Liberal Party. She was the first Chinese to be elected to an Australian parliament. She continued as a Liberal MLC until 1998, when she resigned from the party to sit as an independent. She retired before the 2003 election.[3] In 1992 she became one of the eminent Australians serving on the original Foundation Council of Australians for Constitutional Monarchy.
Community service[]
Since her retirement she has been involved in various fund-raising activities in her local community.[4] Sham-Ho is a long-time advocate of Chinese unification and has been involved with various events linked to the Chinese Communist Party's United Front Work Department.[5]
References[]
- ^ "2012 Australia Day Honours". The University of Sydney. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
- ^ "Chris Lilley and His Aussie Heroes - Macquarie University". Archived from the original on 25 April 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
- ^ a b "The Hon. Helen Wai-Har Sham-Ho (1943– )". Former Members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
- ^ Belongings: Post World War 2 migration memories & journeys Archived 4 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine Andrea Fernandes, NSW Migration Heritage Centre, 2008.
- ^ Joske, Alex (15 December 2017). "Bennelong byelection: The influential network targeting the Turnbull government in Bennelong". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 27 December 2019. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
| Authority control: Biographical dictionaries |
|---|
 | This article about a Liberal Party of Australia politician is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by . |
- 1943 births
- Australian monarchists
- Australian politicians of Chinese descent
- Hong Kong people of Hakka descent
- People from Bao'an County
- Independent members of the Parliament of New South Wales
- Living people
- Macquarie Law School alumni
- Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council
- Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of New South Wales
- Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia
- University of Sydney alumni
- 21st-century Australian politicians
- Women members of the New South Wales Legislative Council
- Liberal Party of Australia politician stubs