Macau
GANG INFORMATION
PROFILE
OFFICIAL NAME:
Macau Special Administrative Region
Geography
Area: 27.5 square kilometers total, with 8.8 sq. km. on a peninsula
connected to China and the southern islands of Taipa (6.4 sq.
km.), Coloane (7.6 sq. km.), and Co Tai (4.7 sq. km., reclaimed
land between Taipa and Coloane) linked by bridge and causeway.
Terrain: Coastline is flat, inland is hilly and rocky.
Climate: Tropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy
from spring through summer.
People
Nationality: Noun--Macanese (sing. and pl.).
Population (December 2004): 465,300.
Population growth rate (2004): 3.7%.
Ethnic groups: Chinese 95.7%, Portuguese 1.7%.
Religions: Buddhist 17%, Roman Catholic 7%, Christian 2%.
Languages: In 1992, the government gave the Chinese (Cantonese)
language official status and the same legal force as Portuguese,
the official language.
Education: Literacy--91.3%.
Work force: Manufacturing--16.4%; construction--8.3%; wholesale
and retail trade, repair, hotels and restaurants--27.1%; financial
intermediation, real estate, and related business activities--8.6%;
public administration, other community, social and personal services,
including gaming--31.8%; transport, storage and communications--6.8%.
Government
Type: Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People's Republic
of China since December 20, 1999 with its own mini-constitution
(the Basic Law).
Branches: Executive--President of the People's Republic of China
(head of state), chief executive (head of government), Executive
Council (cabinet). Legislative--Legislative Assembly. Judicial--Independent
judicial system with a high court (the Court of Final Appeal).
Economy
GDP at 2002 constant prices (2004): $10 billion.
GDP real growth rate (2004): 28%.
Per capita GDP at 2002 constant prices (2004): $21,856.
Agriculture: Products--rice and vegetables; most foodstuffs and
water are imported.
Industry: Types--tourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics,
toys, footwear, construction, and real estate development.
Trade (2004): Exports--$2.8 billion f.o.b.: textiles and clothing,
manufactured goods (especially toys, footwear and machinery &
mechanical appliances). Major markets--U.S. 49%, Hong Kong 8%,
China 14%, EU 22%. Imports--$3.5 billion: consumer goods, foodstuffs,
fuels, and raw materials. Major suppliers--China 44%, Hong Kong
11%, EU 13%, Taiwan 5%, Japan 10%.
PEOPLE
Macau's population is 95.7% Chinese, primarily Cantonese and some
Hakka, both from nearby Guangdong Province. The remainder are
of Portuguese or mixed Chinese-Portuguese ancestry. The official
languages are Portuguese and Chinese (Cantonese). English is spoken
in tourist areas. Macau has ten higher education institutions,
including the University of Macau; 85.5% of the University of
Macau’s 4,708 students are local and 14.5% from overseas.
HISTORY
Chinese records of Macau date back to the establishment in 1152
of Xiangshan County under which Macau was administered, though
it remained unpopulated through most of the next century. Members
of the South Sung (Song) Dynasty and some 50,000 followers were
the first recorded inhabitants of the area, seeking refuge in
Macau from invading Mongols in 1277. They were able to defend
their settlements and establish themselves there.
The Hoklo Boat people were the first to show commercial interest
in Macau as a trading center for the southern provinces. Macau
did not develop as a major settlement until the Portuguese arrived
in the 16th century. Portuguese traders used Macau as a staging
port as early as 1516, making it the oldest European settlement
in the Far East. In 1557, the Chinese agreed to a Portuguese settlement
in Macau but did not recognize Portuguese sovereignty. Although
a Portuguese municipal government was established, the sovereignty
question remained unresolved.
Initially, the Portuguese developed Macau's port as a trading
post for China-Japan trade and as a staging port on the long voyage
from Lisbon to Nagasaki. When Chinese officials banned direct
trade with Japan in 1547, Macau's Portuguese traders carried goods
between the two countries. The first Portuguese governor was appointed
to Macau in 1680, but the Chinese continued to assert their authority,
collecting land and customs taxes. Portugal continued to pay rent
to China until 1849, when the Portuguese abolished the Chinese
customs house and declared Macau's "independence," a
year which also saw Chinese retaliation and finally the assassination
of Gov. Ferreira do Amaral.
On March 26, 1887, the Manchu government acknowledged the Portuguese
right of "perpetual occupation." The Manchu-Portuguese
agreement, known as the Protocol of Lisbon, was signed with the
condition that Portugal would never surrender Macau to a third
party without China's permission.
Macau enjoyed a brief period of economic prosperity during World
War II as the only neutral port in South China, after the Japanese
occupied Guangzhou (Canton) and Hong Kong. In 1943, Japan created
a virtual protectorate over Macau. Japanese domination ended in
August 1945.
When the Chinese communists came to power in 1949, they declared
the Protocol of Lisbon to be invalid as an "unequal treaty"
imposed by foreigners on China. However, Beijing was not ready
to settle the treaty question, requesting maintenance of "the
status quo" until a more appropriate time. Beijing took a
similar position on treaties relating to the Hong Kong territories.
Riots broke out in 1966 when pro-communist Chinese elements and
the Macau police clashed. The Portuguese Government reached an
agreement with China to end the flow of refugees from China and
to prohibit all communist demonstrations. This move ended the
conflict, and relations between the government and the leftist
organizations have remained peaceful.
The Portuguese tried once in 1966 after the riots in Macau, and
again in 1974, the year of a military revolution in Portugal,
to return Macau to Chinese sovereignty. China refused to reclaim
Macau however, hoping to settle the question of Hong Kong first.
Portugal and China established diplomatic relations in 1979.
A year later, Gen. Melo Egidio became the first Governor of Macau
to visit China. The visit underscored both parties' interest in
finding a mutually agreeable solution to Macau's status; negotiations
began in 1985, a year after the signing of the Sino-U.K. agreement
returning Hong Kong to China in 1997. The result was a 1987 agreement
returning Macau to Chinese sovereignty as a Special Administrative
Region (SAR) of China on December 20, 1999.
GOVERNMENT
The chief executive is appointed by China's central government
after selection by an election committee, whose members are nominated
by corporate bodies. The chief executive appears before a cabinet,
the Executive Council (Exco), of between 7 and 11 members. The
latest Exco, appointed on December 15, 2004, has 10 members. The
term of office of the chief executive is 5 years, and no individual
may serve for more than two consecutive terms. The chief executive
has strong policymaking and executive powers similar to those
of a president. These powers are, however, limited from above
by the central government in Beijing, to whom the chief executive
reports directly, and from below (to a more limited extent) by
the legislature. Edmund Ho, a community leader and banker, is
the first China-appointed chief executive of the Macau SAR, having
replaced General de Rocha Viera on December 20, 1999. Ho was re-appointed
to a second term on September 20, 2004.
The legislative organ of the territory is the Legislative Assembly,
a 29-member body of 12 directly elected members, 10 appointed
members representing functional constituencies, and seven members
appointed by the chief executive. The Legislative Assembly is
responsible for general lawmaking, including taxation, the passing
of the budget, and socioeconomic legislation. In the last election,
held in September 2005, pro-entertainment industry groups won
five of the 10 directly elected seats, pro-democracy groups won
two seats, and pro-China parties won four; a former civil servant
took the remaining seat. The next election will be held in 2009.
The city of Macau and the islands of Taipa and Coloane each had
a municipal council until January 1, 2002, when the Civic and
Municipal Bureau was formally established to replace the two municipal
councils.
The legal system is based largely on Portuguese law. The territory
has its own independent judicial system, with a high court. Judges
are selected by a committee and appointed by the chief executive.
Foreign judges may serve on the courts. In July 1999 the chief
executive appointed a seven-person committee to select judges
for the SAR. Twenty-four judges were recommended by the committee
and were then appointed by Mr. Ho. Macau has three courts: the
Court of the First Instance, the Court of the Second Instance,
and the Court of Final Appeal, Macau's highest court. Sam Hou
Fai is the President (Chief Justice) of the Court of Final Appeal.
Principal Government Officials
Chief Executive--Edmund Ho Hau Wah
Secretary of Administration and Justice--Florinda da Rosa Silva
Chan
Secretary of Economy and Finance--Francis Tam Pak Yuen
Secretary of Security--Cheong Kuoc Va
Secretary of Social Affairs and Culture--Fernando Chui Sai On
Secretary of Transport and Public Works--Ao Man Long
ECONOMY
Macau's economy is based largely on tourism, including gambling,
and textile and garment manufacturing. Efforts to diversify have
spawned other small industries, such as footwear, and machinery
and mechanical appliances. The clothing industry has provided
about three-fourths of export earnings, and it is estimated that
the gambling industry contributed more than 50% of GDP in 2004.
The opening of the gambling sector since 2002 has led to significant
new investment in casinos, hotels, and related facilities. More
than 16.7 million tourists visited Macau in 2004. The recent growth
in gambling and tourism has been driven primarily by mainland
Chinese and tourists from Hong Kong.
Macau depends on China for most of its food, fresh water, and
energy imports. The European Union and Hong Kong are the main
suppliers of raw materials and capital goods.
Over the longer term, the relocation of manufacturing operations
from Macau to the neighboring Chinese province of Guangdong will
extend to textiles and garment production as China's entry into
the World Trade Organization (WTO) gives the mainland increased
direct access to international markets. Mainland competition,
along with the 2005 end of Multi-Fiber Arrangement (MFA) quotas,
which had provided a near guarantee of export markets, will eventually
spell the end of Macau's low-end mass production of textiles,
which has comprised the bulk of the SAR's merchandise export earnings.
The best opportunities may lie in providing services--shipping,
finance, legal--to facilitate mainland exports through Macau to
the rest of the world, and conversely inflows of goods and investment
to the mainland. Gambling tourism is also an important area of
potential economic growth and foreign exchange earnings.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
Macau's foreign relations and defense are the responsibility of
China. China has, however, granted Macau considerable autonomy
in economic and commercial relations.
U.S. REPRESENTATION
The U.S. Government has no offices in Macau. U.S. interests are
represented by the U.S. Consulate General in Hong Kong.
Principal U.S. Officials
Consul General--James B. Cunningham
Deputy Principal Officer--Marlene J. Sakaue
The American Consulate General is located at: 26 Garden Road,
Hong Kong (tel. 011-852-523-9011) (FAX 011-852-845-4845 (consular);
001-852-845-1598 (general).
TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program provides
Consular Information Sheets, Travel Warnings, and Public Announcements.
Consular Information Sheets exist for all countries and include
information on entry requirements, currency regulations, health
conditions, areas of instability, crime and security, political
disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. posts in the country.
Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends
that Americans avoid travel to a certain country. Public Announcements
are issued as a means to disseminate information quickly about
terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas
that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers.
Free copies of this information are available by calling the Bureau
of Consular Affairs at 202-647-5225 or via the fax-on-demand system:
202-647-3000. Consular Information Sheets and Travel Warnings
also are available on the Consular Affairs Internet home page:
http://travel.state.gov. Consular Affairs Tips for Travelers publication
series, which contain information on obtaining passports and planning
a safe trip abroad, are on the Internet and hard copies can be
purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government
Printing Office, telephone: 202-512-1800; fax 202-512-2250.
Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may
be obtained from the Office of Overseas Citizens Services at (202)
647-5225. For after-hours emergencies, Sundays and holidays, call
202-647-4000.
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department
of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S.
passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778).
Customer service representatives and operators for TDD/TTY are
available Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Eastern Time,
excluding federal holidays.
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia.
A hotline at 877-FYI-TRIP (877-394-8747) and a web site at http://www.cdc.gov/travel/index.htm
give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations
or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety
for regions and countries. A booklet entitled Health Information
for International Travel (HHS publication number CDC-95-8280)
is available from the U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington,
DC 20402, tel. (202) 512-1800.
Information on travel conditions, visa requirements, currency
and customs regulations, legal holidays, and other items of interest
to travelers also may be obtained before your departure from a
country's embassy and/or consulates in the U.S. (for this country,
see "Principal Government Officials" listing in this
publication).
U.S. citizens who are long-term visitors or traveling in dangerous
areas are encouraged to register their travel via the State Department’s
travel registration web site at https://travelregistration.state.gov
or at the Consular section of the U.S. embassy upon arrival in
a country by filling out a short form and sending in a copy of
their passports. This may help family members contact you in case
of an emergency.
Further Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov,
the Department of State web site provides timely, global access
to official U.S. foreign policy information, including Background
Notes and daily press briefings along with the directory of key
officers of Foreign Service posts and more.
Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance
and market information offered by the federal government and provides
trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process,
and more.
STAT-USA/Internet, a service of the U.S. Department of Commerce,
provides authoritative economic, business, and international trade
information from the Federal government. The site includes current
and historical trade-related releases, international market research,
trade opportunities, and country analysis and provides access
to the National Trade Data Bank.
