Transfer of the sovereignty of Macau
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The transfer of the sovereignty of Macau from the Portuguese Republic to the People's Republic of China (PRC) occurred on December 20, 1999.
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[edit] Background
The Portuguese merchants began to settle in Macau as early as during the Ming Dynasty. In 1583, the Portuguese residents established its own assembly to enforce autonomous rule without the permission of the Chinese government. However, Portugal still remained to be paying the Ming Dynasty (later the Qing Dynasty) 25 kilograms of silver annually as the ground rent. Because of the Portuguese settlers and the activities of Japanese Wokou, the Ming Dynasty have strengthened its controll over Macau between 1608 to 1614. On 1623, the Portuguese Government appointed D. Francisco Mascarenhas as the Governor of Macau. At first, it was only responsible for the defense of Macau, and the Fortaleza do Monte was constructed. In 1749, the Qing Government of China issued the complete guideline and carved the Portuguese version on a stela in the Edifício do Leal Senado. However, the Governor of Macau, which represented the nation of Portugal, gradually took over the power of the Senado.
[edit] The talk
On May 20, 1986, the People's Republic of China along with Portugal officially announced that the talk on the matters of Macau will begin on June 30 in Beijing. The Portuguese delegation arrived in Beijing in June, and was welcomed by the Chinese delegation led by Zhou Nan. In the welcoming speech, it was stated that the "Talk between China and Portugal on the matters of Macau is going to be a talk between two partners, not a talk between two opponents." The negotiation between China and Portugal on Macau officially began.
The four conferences were all held in the Chinese capital Beijing, and were held separately in:
- The first conference: June 30 - July 1, 1986
- The second conference: September 9 - 10
- The third conference: October 21 - 22
- The fourth conference: March 18 - 23, 1988
[edit] The transition
The twelve years between the signing of "Sino-Portuguese Declaration" on April 13, 1987 to the transfer of sovereignty on December 20, 1999 was known as "the Transition".
On January 15, 1988, the Chinese Foreign Affairs Department announced the Chinese members of the groups that will be begain the talk on the issues of Macau during the transition. On April 13, the Draft of the Basic Law of Macau Special Administrative Region Committee was established during the seventh National People's Congress , and on October 25, the committee convenned the first conference, in which they passed the general outline of the draft and the steps, and decided to organize the "Draft of the Basic Law of Macau Special Administrative Region Information Committee". On March 31, 1993, the National People's Congress passed the resolution on The Basic Law of the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, which symbolized the beginning of the latter part of the Transition.
[edit] The transfer
In the afternoon of December 19, 1999, the 127th Portuguese Governor of Macau Vasco Rocha Vieira lowered the flags in Macau, which sets for the prelude of the ceremony. The official transfer of sovereignty was held in the midnight that day at the Cultural Center of Macau Garden. The ceremony began in the evening and was ended in the dawn of December 20 in the ceremony for the establishment of Macau Special Administrative Region.
The evening of December 19 began with dragon and lion dance. The slideshow of the historical events in Macau was then displayed, which included the mixture of the religion and race between the East and the West, and society of the unique native Portuguese born in Macau. The last performance led the audience to Macau in the modern era. At last, 422 children that represents the 422 years of Portuguese history in Macau was presented along with several international stars to perform "Praise for Peace".
[edit] Influence
The transfer of the sovereignty of Macau was a significant historical event of Macau, as it symbolized the return of Macau to China. Because of the transfer and the One country, two systems was considered to be successful, the Macau Special Administrative Region, Legislative Assembly and the Judiciary were all put into practice accordingly under the regulation of the Basic Law.
The steady growth of the Macau Special Administrative Region benefited from the support of the Government of China. Since the establishment of the region, the public security have been improved, and the central government even designated Macau as the city to expand gambling-related tourism. The introduction of Individual Visit Scheme policy made it easier for Chinese inland residents to travel back and forth; in 2005 alone, there were more than 10 million of Chinese tourists, which made up 60% of the total number of tourists in Macau; the income of the gambling houses in Macau reached up to 5.6 billion USD.[1] On July 15, 2005, the Historic Centre of Macau was listed in the World Cultural Heritage. The increasing development of tourism became a major factor on the rapid development of the economy of Macau.
[edit] See also
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