Macao

Macao ( Macau in Portuguese and Aomen (澳門, Pinyin: àomén) in Mandarin) is a city and administrative area with special statute (CLOSE-CROPPED) of China. It is located at 70 km in the South-west of HongKong and at 145 km of Canton.

Economy

According to the principle also applied to HongKong, of a country, two systems , Macao has an economic autonomy with its own system tax and customs and its own currency, the Pataca, been dependant on the dollar hong-kongais. Private property and freedom of movement of the capital is also guaranteed.

The saving in Macao profits from its free port, the free trade with continental China and its proximity with the province of Guang-Dong, one of the Chinese provinces most dynamic. But in fact especially the casino S constitute the greatest attraction and the primary source of incomes of the territory. They contribute to more than 40% to the local GDP, making it possible Macao to be classified, for Asia, just after Japan, Singapore and Hong-Kong for the GDP per capita. In 1981, the number of players in the casinos was estimated at three million per annum.

The punters of HongKong, the close rich person, can unload in Macao thanks to a service of ferry S which connects the two cities 24 hours a day, the every day. Since its retrocession and the economic development of continental China, Macao saw arriving of the hundreds of thousands of Chinese punters. In 2005, Macao thus accommodated nearly 19 million tourists. The benefit of the casinos gradually exploded, amounting of billion dollars. The territory has also the effect of accommodating many large punters, preferring the tables of plays to the machines with under, these last rather very few being compared with the other world sites of plays. The Chinese government decided to guarantee exclusiveness with Macao in the gaming rooms for the unit in the Chinese territory. This privilege encouraged many private initiatives of construction of casinos and fact of the territory, the Asian Las Vegas. Macao exceeded in September 2006 its American rival for the concerned sums. The frenzy of constructions makes fear a Real estate bubble. A zone of 5 km ², named Cotai was conquered on the sea between the island of Taipa and the island of Coloane, zone quasi-exclusivement dedicated to the play with the construction of several casinos and large hotels but also of theaters and recreational center, Macao trying like its American binocular to diversify its tourist activities.

History of Macao

See also: History of Macao

Macao was a Portuguese enclave in China founded in 1557 by missionaries and commercial Portuguese. The territory had been given to Portugal for the assistance brought to the Empire of the medium in the fight against piracy. It is the oldest European counter in China. Towards 1740, the population of Macao was of approximately: 40000 inhabitants; she will remain on this level lasting nearly two hundred years. Macao remained a turntable commercial of the Far East until the beginning of the XIXe century. In 1845 Portugal made of Macao a zone of Free port. A few years later, the August 22nd 1849, the Portuguese governor Ferreira C Amaral was assassinated, probably on order of China, to have taken many provisions reinforcing sovereignty of Portugal on the territory of Macao. This period marked for Macao the beginning of a decline which was going to last several decades. Then, on February 1st 1887, the Traité of Tianjin (Tientsin) confirmed by China “the permanent occupation and the administration of Macao and its islands adjacent by the government of Portugal”. Nevertheless, Macao started again with péricliter thereafter and, gradually, the international business made place with the industrial activity, tourism and the plays (casinos, greyhound and horse-races).

During centuries of Portuguese administration, the population of Macao became a distinct relatively multicultural company, because it was composed of at the same time Portuguese elements, macanais and Chinese, without neglecting the contributions of the other Portuguese possessions in Asia and Africa. Macao thus developed a mixed indigenous population as well as a very particular culture, with a considerable historical heritage accumulated during four centuries, in particular as regards architecture. Portuguese is always remained the official language of the Administration during all the Portuguese occupation. The governor of Macao was appointed by the president of the republic of Portugal after consultation of the local authorities.

During all first half of the XXe century, China was in full revolution and at the same time cut up by the lords of the war. Macao remained completely with the variation of the evolutions as well political as economic of continental China, except in a very occasional way when revolutionary leaders nationalist or found refuge there. As of the Twenties, Macao knew a large Chinese surge coming from the continent; its population increased quickly with more than 100.000 inhabitants. Surprisingly, the small territory of Macao did not occupy practically any place in the concerns of the Chinese mode.

After the victory of the Communists of 1949 in China, the territory of Macao could become again a place of contact with the Occident while serving the Chinese economic interests. However, China, ostracized by the international community, was prevented from recovering its lost territories, which included Macao. This situation will perdura during many years. Meanwhile, Macao knew an explosive growth of its population which passed to more than 200.000.

In 1974, Portugal had sought to return Macao to China, but the Chinese government refused under pretext which a retrocession could have had of annoying effects on the financial health of Hong-Kong (then a British colony). From the legal point of view, Macao became a territory Chinese under Portuguese administration and governed by the organic Statut of 1976 and revised in 1990. As from the Eighties, Macao profited from an economic growth and demographic which made it more prosperous. However, the territory also was marginalized by the economic expansion of Hong-Kong, the creation of the special economic zones and the growing economic integration of the delta of the Rivière of the Pearls. Forever known Macao a democratic activity developed during the Portuguese administration. Moreover, its economy, almost entirely dominated by the plays, was afflicted with a violent criminality, whose social consequences were very important. Nevertheless, Portugal always showed tolerance by making place with the development of the culture, the language and the religion clean at the Chinese community of Macao. Although Macanais are influenced by the Occidental cultures and Eastern, they were identified more like Portuguese (that of the Chinese) and often expressed themselves in Portuguese, even if they had been born in China and generally spoke Cantonese. However, the majority of them did not maintain any bond with Portugal, had never put the feet at it and, consequently, their exposure to the Portuguese culture were completely limited. Actually, in the daily life, they spoke particular Portuguese very influenced by the local speech macanais (a mixture of Portuguese, Cantonese, Hakka and Mandarin). The majority of Macanais sent their children in the schools of Portuguese language in order to receive a standard Portuguese teaching. Parents prohibited even to the children to express themselves in Cantonese within the family. Finally, the governments of China and Portugal arrived from there at an agreement in 1987. The March 31st 1993, the National People's Assembly of the Popular republic of China adopted the Fundamental law of Macao. The December 20th 1999, Macao returned to China under a mode of special administration following the example Hong-Kong: in Portuguese “Região Administrativa Especial de Macau da República Popular da China”. The old Portuguese flags were replaced by the new green flag with white lotus. The flower of lotus stylized represents the people, and his three petals the three islands of Macao. The bridge and the waves are the emblem of the natural environment of Macao. Towards the end of 1998, the total population of Macao had still made an extraordinary good and had passed to some 450.000 inhabitants.

Geography

The area of Macao is located at the south of China, near the province of the Guangdong. The estuary of the Rivière of the Pearls separates it from HongKong of a distance of 65 km. Just opposite Macao, on the dry land, in Guangdong, the special economic Zone is of Zhuhai, which as Shenzhen with HongKong was created at the end of the Années 1980 to support economic development.

Macao is made of a peninsula and islands of Taipa and Coloane. The total surface area is of 28,2 km ², including 8,9 km ² for the peninsula.

Climate

Demography

With 18.182 inhabitants per km ² in 2002, Macao has one of strongest the population densities in the world. Since the retrocession of the country, the near total of European Portuguese left the country, and the majority of the natives chose Portuguese nationality.

Macao has low the Fertility rate in the world.

Transport

The Airline company Air Macau serves, inter alia, the airport lately built on the sea.

The retrocession in China

The transition from mode was, for Macao, quite different from that of HongKong. First of all it occurred two years later (1999), and the example hongkongais reassured the population. Moreover, the two colonies enjoyed different structures and knew not very comparable situations. Macao did not know a democratic activity as developed as HongKong. Moreover, the economy, dominated by the plays, was contaminated by a violent criminality with the important social consequences. Also the decision of Beijing to place units of the popular Armed with release, to do the housework with Macao, was well accommodated. The results were not made wait. The crimes violent one dropped by 70% in 2000 and 45% in 2001. This cleansing had a beneficial effect as much near the population that on the credibility of the city.

Codes

Macao has as codes:

Sport

See also: Grand Prix of Macao de Formule 3

The Grand Prix of Macao de Formule 3 is a test of Formule 3 which is held each year at November on the urban circuit of Guia, in the streets of Macao. Bringing together the best pilots of the various national and continental championships of Formula 3, the GP of Macao has the appearance of a semi-official World cup of Formula 3.

References

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