Beijing: The Chinese community in Australia shouldn't let itself be viewed as little more than a "cash cow" by both federal parties it gives donations to, according to Huang Xiangmo, one of the country's most prolific political donors.

Mr Huang, chairman of property developer Yuhu Group and a highly-influential figure in Australian-Chinese business circles, has attracted widespread media scrutiny after donating more than $1 million to both sides of politics since 2012, including contributions apparently directed at Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and former Trade Minister Andrew Robb.

Rubbing shoulders: Chairman of Yuhu Group Mr Xiangmo Huang, Chinese Ambassador to Australia Mr Zhaoxu Ma and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

He has done so juggling roles as chair of the Australia China Relations Institute at the University of Technology, Sydney, while simultaneously heading "patriotic groups" with close links to the Communist Party. He has used his position as head of the Australian Council for the Promotion of Peaceful Reunification of China to urge local Chinese-Australians to advance Communist Party core interests, including the opposition of Taiwan and Tibetan independence.

"The Chinese community is still inexperienced when it comes to participating in politics, and in making political donations," Mr Huang wrote in a commentary for the Chinese state-run Global Times newspaper on Monday, in his capacity as ACRI chairman. "We need to learn … how to have a more efficient combination between political requests and political donations, and how to use the media to push our political requests.