Thehandover of Macau from thePortuguese Republic to thePeople's Republic of China (PRC) officially occurred at midnight on 20 December 1999. This event ended 442 years of Portuguese rule in theformer settlement, which began in 1557.Macau was settled by Portuguese merchants that year during theMing dynasty era and was subsequently under various degrees of Portuguese rule until 1999. Portugal's involvement in the region was formally recognised by theQing dynasty in 1749. The Portuguese governorJoão Maria Ferreira do Amaral, emboldened by British actions in theFirst Opium War and theTreaty of Nanking, attempted to annex the territory by expelling Qing authorities in 1846, butwas assassinated in 1849.[1] After theSecond Opium War, the Portuguese government, along with a British representative, signed the 1887Sino-Portuguese Treaty of Peking that gave Portugal perpetual colonial rights to Macau on the condition that Portugal would cooperate in efforts to end the smuggling ofopium.[1]
On 25 April 1974, a group of left-wing Portuguese officers organized acoup d'état inLisbon,overthrowing the right-wingEstado Novo regime that had controlledPortugal for 48 years. The new government began to transition Portugal into aliberal democracy that was committed to decolonization. The new government carried out such policies, and initially proposed Macau's handover to China at once.[2] However, the Chinese government rejected proposals for an early handover, believing that it would impact relations with Hong Kong.[2]
Nevertheless, on 31 December 1975, the Portuguese government had already withdrew its remaining troops from Macau. In 1976, Both Portugal and the PRC recognized Macau as a "Chinese territory under Portuguese supervision". On 8 February 1979, the Portuguese government decided to break off diplomatic relations with theRepublic of China (ROC, Taiwan), and established diplomatic relations with the PRC the next day. The colony remained underde jure Portuguese rule until 20 December 1999, when its handover to China took place and became the MacauSpecial Administrative Region (SAR) of the PRC. The handover marked the end of almost six centuries of thePortuguese Empire since1415.
On 20 May 1986, the People's Republic of China, along with Portugal, officially announced that talks on Macanese affairs would take place in Beijing on 30 June 1986. The Portuguese delegation arrived in Beijing in June, and was welcomed by the Chinese delegation led byZhou Nan.[3][4]
The talks consisted of four sessions, all held in Beijing:
The first conference: 30 June – 1 July 1986
The second conference: 9–10 September 1986
The third conference: 21–22 October 1986
The fourth conference: 18–23 March 1987
During the negotiations, Portuguese representatives again offered to return Macau in 1987, but Chinese representatives rejected that year (as well rejecting previous requests in1967, 1975, and 1977). China requested 1997,the same year as Hong Kong, but Portugal refused. 2004 was suggested by Portugal, as well as 2007 as that year would mark the 450th anniversary of Portugal renting Macau. However, China insisted for a year before 2000 as theSino-British Joint Liaison Group in Hong Kong would be dissolved in 2000 as envisioned in 1986 (the Joint Liaison Group would ultimately be dissolved in 1999).[5] Eventually the year 1999 was agreed upon.[6]
On 13 April 1987, theSino-Portuguese Joint Declaration by the governments of the People's Republic of China and the Portuguese Republic was formally signed by the Prime Ministers of both governments in Beijing.[7]
The twelve years between the signing of the "Sino-Portuguese Declaration" on 13 April 1987 and the handover on 20 December 1999 were known as "the transition".
On 15 January 1988, the Chinese Foreign Affairs Department announced the Chinese members of the groups that would begin the talk on the issues of Macau during the transition. On 13 April, the "Draft of theBasic Law of the Macau Special Administrative Region Committee" was established during the seventhNational People's Congress, and on 25 October, the committee convened the first conference, in which they passed the general outline of the draft and the steps, and decided to organise the "Draft of the Basic Law of Macau Special Administrative Region Information Committee".[8] On 31 March 1993, the National People's Congress passed the resolution on the Basic Law of Macau, which marked the beginning of the latter part of the transition.[9]
The flags of Portugal and China, countries that were participants in the ceremony.
The official handover was held at midnight on that day at theMacao Cultural Centre Garden purpose-built Temporary Pavilion. It was designed by Vicente Bravo Ferreira and constructed with a cost ofMOP$60million, measuring 20 metres (66 ft) high and covering an area of 6,000 square metres (65,000 sq ft).[10][11] The ceremony began in the evening and ended at dawn of 20 December.[12] At the same time, an all-night official celebration gala was held atBeijing'sTiananmen Square to mark this occasion.[13]
Like the stage and chairs and podia of theHong Kong handover ceremony two years before, the big green stage and chairs and podia in the pavilion were designed by renowned American professional stage designer, Donato Moreno. The left podium was attached with theNational Emblem of the People's Republic of China, while the right podium was attached with the lesserCoat of arms of Portugal (Without the laurel, like the one on the Portuguese national flag). Both podia were located at stage centre in front of the chairs of the main representatives (5 for each country) and beside the flagpoles (2 for each country, taller ones for the sovereign state and the shorter ones for the territorial flag of Macau, correspond to the sovereign state it is under at the time during the ceremony). Unlike Hong Kong, Macau did not have a colonial flag, so the flag of theMunicipality of Macau was used to representPortuguese Macau at the ceremony. This flag was also used to represent Macau at international sporting events prior to the handover.[14]
(16:30 Macau Time/8:30 Lisbon Time) – GovernorVasco Joaquim Rocha Vieira departed from his residence at Santa Sancha Palace for his office at Praia Grande Palace.
(17:00 Macau Time/9:00 Lisbon Time) – Lowering of the nationalflag of Portugal at Praia Grande Palace, during which the Governor receives the flag.[20][21]
(18:00 Macau Time/10:00 Lisbon Time) – The cultural event began withdragon andlion dances. These were followed by a slideshow of historical events and features of Macau, which included a mixture of the religions and races of the East and the West, and the unique society of native Portuguese born in Macau. In the final performance, 442 children who represented the 442 years of Portuguese history in Macau were presented along with several international stars to perform the song "Praise for Peace".
(19:50 Macau Time/11:50 Lisbon Time) – A cocktail reception was held, but due to strong winds, the waterfront firework display could not be held as planned.[22]
(21:00 Macau Time/13:00 Lisbon Time) – Official pre-ceremony banquet.
(23:58:30-23:59:40 Macau Time/15:58:30-15:59:40 Lisbon Time) – TheFlag of Portugal and the Flag of theMunicipality of Macau were slowly lowered to the Portuguese national anthemA Portuguesa, symbolising the end of Portuguese colonial rule in Macau.
(00:15 Macau/Beijing Time) – President Jorge Sampaio, Prime Minister Antonio Guterres and other Portuguese officials flew out by anAir MacauAirbus A320 fromMacau International Airport toBangkok'sDon Mueang International Airport.[24][25] President Sampaio was scheduled to start his two-day visit to Thailand before heading to East Timor. But due topneumonia, he shortened his stay in the Thai capital, postponed his East Timor trip and went back toLisbon, Portugal the next day.
(01:30 Macau/Beijing Time) – A swearing-in ceremony was held at the Macao Cultural Centre for various MSAR officials including Chief ExecutiveEdmund Ho, Secretary for Administration and JusticeFlorinda Chan and Secretary for Economy and FinanceFrancis Tam.
(10:00 Macau/Beijing Time) – The new Macau government hosted a celebration for 3,000 guests. Newly appointed Chief Executive Edmund Ho makes his inaugural speech.
(12:00 Macau/Beijing Time) – People's Liberation Army troops from the Macau Garrison arrive by land.
(13:00 Macau/Beijing Time) – Parade of various Macau-based organisations and institutions.
After the handover of Macau to China, the Macau Special Administrative Region, theLegislative Assembly and the Judiciary were all put into practice accordingly under the regulation of the Basic Law.
The introduction of theIndividual Visit Scheme policy made it easier for Chinese mainland residents to travel back and forth. In 2005 alone, there were more than 10 million tourists from mainland China, which made up 60% of the total number of tourists in Macau. The income from the gambling houses in Macau reached almost US$5.6 billion.[26] On 15 July 2005, theHistoric Centre of Macau was listed as aWorld Cultural Heritage site. The increasing development of tourism became a major factor in the rapid development of theeconomy of Macau.
For Portugal, the handover of Macau to China marked the end of thePortuguese Empire and itsdecolonisation process and also the end of European imperialism in China and Asia.[27]
The border with the mainland, while now known as the boundary, continues to be patrolled as before, with separate immigration and customs controls.[33]
Macau citizens are still required to apply for aMainland Travel Permit, in order to visit mainland China.[34]
Citizens of mainland China still do not have theright of abode in Macau, except if they were born in Macau (before or after the establishment of the SAR).[35] Instead, they had to apply for a permit tovisit orsettle in Macau from the PRC government.[36]
Macau continues to operate as a separate customs territory from mainland China.[37]
Macau remains an individual member of various international organizations, such asAPEC andWTO.[38]
Macau continues to negotiate and maintain its own aviation bilateral treaties with foreign countries and territories.[39] These include flights to Taiwan.[40]
Macau citizens continue to have easier access to many countries, including those in Europe and North America, with Macau SAR passport holders having visa-free access to 117 other countries and territories.[43]
Foreign nationals, including Portuguese citizens, are allowed to hold high-level positions in the administration, except the office of Chief Executive; those who will apply for Chief Executive position will have to be naturalized as Chinese.[44] This was in contrast to Hong Kong, where such positions were restricted to citizens of the SAR.[45]
Members of the existingLegislative Assembly, who had been elected in 1996, remained in office until 2001, although those who had been appointed by theGovernor were replaced by those appointed by the incoming Chief Executive.[46]
Foreign nationals, including Portuguese citizens, are still allowed to stand for directly elected seats in theLegislative Assembly.[47] This is in contrast to Hong Kong, where foreign nationals can only stand forindirectly elected seats in theLegislative Council.[48]
Macau continues to have morefreedom of the press than mainland China despite the growing influence of Beijing and Hong Kong journalists being refused entry.[51]
Macau continues todrive on the left unlike mainland China, all of which has driven on the right since 1946, or Portugal and most other Portuguese colonies, which switched to the right in 1928.[56]Vehicle registration plates continued to follow theold Portuguese format, with white characters on a black plate.[57] This had been discontinued in Portugal in 1992.[58]
Portuguese-influenced place names remain unchanged, although their unrelated Chinese equivalents are already in use; for example,Avenida Almeida Ribeiro is known as San Ma Lou or "new road".[69]
Portuguese monuments remain, although the statue of former GovernorJoão Maria Ferreira do Amaral was taken down in 1992.[70] The statue is now located at the Bairro da Encarnação,Lisbon, Portugal, where it was placed in December 1999.[71]
The former Portuguese military drill, marching and words of command in Portuguese remain in service among disciplinary forces, in contrast to Hong Kong where Chinese foot drills were adopted in 2022.
The floor on the ground level continues to be officially referred to by the Portuguese abbreviation R/C (rés-do-chão).[72]
Portugal was now represented in Macau by thePortuguese Consulate-General, also accredited to Hong Kong.[89] This had responsibility for matters relating toPortuguese nationals. However, residents of Macau born after 3 October 1981 were no longer entitled to Portuguese nationality.[90][91]
The words "República Portuguesa" no longer appear on postage stamps, which now display the words "Macau, China".[94] ThePortuguese coat of arms had already been removed fromMacanese pataca banknotes and coins issued since 1988.[95]
TheUniversity of Macau was relocated to a new campus onHengqin Island in 2009.[103] This was under the jurisdiction of the Macau SAR government, which had leased a plot of land forMOP$1.2billion until 2049.[104]
^"João Ferreira do Amaral".Sítio da Câmara Municipal de Lisboa. Lisbon City Hall.Archived from the original on 16 August 2017. Retrieved1 October 2017.A mudança da administração do território macaense implicou a transferência da estátua para Lisboa, que foi inaugurada no Bairro da Encarnação, em Dezembro de 1999.
People's Republic of China
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Martti Ahtisaari,President of Finland[16]
David Andrews,Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ireland[17]
Xanana Gusmão,East Timor Resistance Leader
Chris Patten,European Commissioner for External Relations (also formerGovernor of Hong Kong)
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