| Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs November 2004 Background Note: Macau Flag of Macau is light green with lotus flower above stylized bridge and water in white, beneath arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: one large in center of arc and four smaller. PROFILE OFFICIAL NAME: Macau Geography Area: 16 sq. km. (6 sq. mi.) on a peninsula connected to China and the southern islands of Taipa (3.4 sq. km.) and Coloane (7.2 sq. km.) 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: NounMacanese (sing. and pl.). Population (July 2003 est.): 469,903. Population growth rate (2003 est.): 1.72%. Ethnic groups: Chinese 95%, Portuguese 3%. Religions: Buddhist 45%, Roman Catholic 9%. Languages: In 1992, the government gave the Chinese (Cantonese) language official status and the same legal force as Portuguese, the official language. Education: Literacy95%. Work force: Industry and commerce68%; services12%; agriculture and fishing9%. 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: ExecutivePresident of the People's Republic of China (head of state), Chief executive (head of government), Executive Council (cabinet). LegislativeLegislative Council. JudicialIndependent judicial system with a high court (the Court of Final Appeal). Economy GDP PPP (2002 est.): $8.6 billion. GDP real growth rate (2002): 9.5%. Per capita GDP PPP (2002 est.): $18,500. Agriculture: Productsrice and vegetables; most foodstuffs and water are imported. Industry: Typestourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics, toys, footwear, construction, and real estate development. Trade (2002): Exports$2.36 billion f.o.b.: textiles and clothing, manufactured goods (especially toys, electronics, footwear and cement). Major marketsU.S. 46%, Hong Kong 6%, China 15%. Imports$2.5 billion: consumer goods, foodstuffs, fuels, and raw materials. Major suppliersChina 42%, Hong Kong 15%, EU 12%, Taiwan 7%, Japan 7% PEOPLE Macau's population is 95% 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 only one university (University of Macau); most of its 7,700 students are from Hong Kong. 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 a 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 the procommunist 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, of between 7 and 11 members. The term of office of the chief executive is 5 years, and no individual may serve for more than two consecutive terms. The governor 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 governor 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 27-member body comprising of ten directly elected members, ten 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 2001, pro-Entertainment industry groups won 3 of the ten directly elected seats, pro-democracy groups won two seats, while pro-China parties won four; pro-business groups took the remaining seat. The next election will be held in 2005. The city of Macau and the islands of Taipa and Coloane each have a municipal council. 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 ExecutiveEdmund Ho Hau Wah Secretary of Administration and JusticeFlorinda da Rosa Silva Chan Secretary of Economy and FinanceFrancis Tam Pak Yuen Secretary of SecurityCheong Kuoc Va Secretary of Social Affairs and CultureFernando Chui Sai On Secretary of Transport and Public WorksAo Man Long ECONOMY Macau's economy is based largely on tourism, including gambling, and textile and fireworks manufacturing. Efforts to diversify have spawned other small industries, such as toys, artificial flowers, and electronics. The clothing industry has provided about three-fourths of export earnings, and the gambling industry is estimated to contribute more than 40% of GDP. More than 10 million tourists visited Macau in 2001. Although the recent growth in gambling and tourism has been driven primarily by mainland Chinese, tourists from Hong Kong remain the most numerous. Recently, gang violence, a dark spot in the economy, has declined, to the benefit of the tourism sector. Macau depends on China for most of its food, fresh water, and energy imports. Japan 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 phasing out of Multi-Fiber Arrangement (MFA) quotas, which provide a near guarantee of export markets, over the next few years, will eventually spell the end of Macau's low-end mass production of textiles, which comprise the bulk of the SAR's merchandise export earnings. The best opportunities may lie in providing servicesshipping, finance, legalto 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 GeneralJames R. Keith 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 which 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 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. *********************************************************** See http://www.state.gov/r/pa/bgn/ for all Background notes ************************************************************ To change your subscription, go to http://www.state.gov/www/listservs_cms.html | |
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