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SCMP

This article was first published on December 20, 1999.
By Niall Fraser and Stella Lee in Macau
China reclaimed Macau after four centuries of Portuguese rule last night, with President Jiang Zemin saying the return was a significant step towards the early completion of reunification.
In an emotion-charged midnight ceremony, some 2,300 guests heard Mr Jiang say Macau’s return, following that of Hong Kong, was crucial to the settlement of the Taiwan issue.
“The implementation of the concept of ‘one country, two systems’ in Hong Kong and Macau has played and will continue to play an important exemplary role for our eventual settlement of the Taiwan question.
“The Chinese Government and people are confident and capable of an early settlement of the Taiwan question and the complete national reunification,” Mr Jiang said.
Reunification with Macau ended 442 years of rule from Lisbon and closed the colonial era in Asia.

The handover ceremony, filled with pomp and ceremony, lasted little more than 16 minutes and marked the final chapter in more than 12 years of largely smooth Sino-Portuguese planning and negotiations.
Mr Jiang stood stock still, head held high, as the Chinese national flag was raised on the stroke of midnight. Members of Lisbon’s honour guard folded away Portugal’s red-and-green flag before marching offstage in the opposite direction to the PLA contingent, led by the soldier who raised the flag at Hong Kong’s handover.

Premier Zhu Rongji and Vice-Premier Qian Qichen, sitting behind Mr Jiang, broke into smiles as the flag was raised inside the purpose-built handover venue near the floodlit waterfront.
Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio, Prime Minister Antonio Guterres and parliamentary Deputy Speaker Narana Coissoro were sombre as the flag came down on their country’s last colonial outpost.
The inauguration of the Macau Special Administrative Region Government and the swearing in of Edmund Ho Hau-wah as Chief Executive took place early today. He described the occasion as “‘a joyous, proud and glorious moment”.
“It was an immensely inspiring experience to see the Macau flag hoisted together with the national flag.” Mr Ho said.

The PLA garrison arrives today to what is expected to be a rapturous welcome.
In his speech, Mr Jiang said the reunification marked “significant progress made by the Chinese people in accomplishing the great task of national reunification”.
His speech was much shorter than the one he gave at the Hong Kong handover. He made no specific mention of Macau’s Basic Law.
Mr Jiang pledged the Chinese Government would unswervingly implement the policies of “one country, two systems” with “Macau people administering Macau” along with a high degree of autonomy.

He added that the Macau SAR would be vested with executive, legislative and independent judicial power, including that of final adjudication.
“Macau inhabitants, irrespective of race or belief, will all be masters of this land, enjoying, as equals, the rights and freedoms guaranteed by law,” he said.
The economic interests of all countries and regions with a stake in Macau would be protected in line with the law and they would have “an even brighter tomorrow” after the handover, Mr Jiang said.
Asked before the ceremony whether he was in a good mood, Mr Jiang smiled and replied in Cantonese: “Yes, yes.”
PLA and Portuguese army honour guards presented arms to their leaders as Macau came to a standstill to witness history in the making.

President Sampaio, speaking just before midnight, called for the Macau SAR to respect individual human and political rights, and said the enclave would “endure as a meeting point between Europe and Asia”.
He said: “Portugal will continue to express its solidarity with Macau, and will remain committed to its future in the conviction that here, too, democracy and freedom are an irreplaceable reality.”

As the clock ticked towards midnight, more than 1,000 people gathered at the Ruins of St Paul and in Leal Senado Square.
Symbols of the change were swift. Just after midnight workers were seen switching the Chinese and Portuguese names of a bank to put the Chinese name at the top. High winds forced the cancellation of the fireworks.


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Macau

Macau returns to China in 1999 after 442 years of Portuguese rule – from the SCMP archive

Chinese and Portuguese leaders attend the handover ceremony of Macau at midnight on December 20, 1999. Macau’s return to Chinese sovereignty ended 442 years of Portuguese rule. Photo: SCMP

Holding China and Macau’s flags, a Macanese girl waits with her mother for the midnight handover ceremony on December 19, 1999. Photo: AP

The front page of the Post on December 20, 1999. Photo: SCMP

Chinese President Jiang Zemin is greeted by Macau’s soon-to-be Chief Executive Edmund Ho (right) upon Jiang’s arrival at Macau’s airport on December 19, 1999. Photo: Reuters

Hundreds of revellers crowd the steps of the Ruins of St Paul in central Macau to celebrate the handover. Photo: Martin Chan

A Portuguese soldier salutes as the Portuguese flag is lowered during the Macau handover ceremony. Photo: AP

A woman waves Portuguese and Chinese flags as she celebrates the handover. Photo: Mark Ralston 

25 years after returning to China, is diversification working for Macau?

Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

Jacky Cheung performs at the Venetian Macao in 2023. Photo: Handout

Tourists take pictures on the steps leading to the Ruins of Saint Paul’s. Photo: Elson Li

Sam Hou-fai will be sworn in as Macau’s chief executive on Friday. Photo: Eugene Lee

How Macau’s fusion cuisine is preserved by dedicated cooks using their ancestors’ recipes

Manuela Sales da Silva Ferreira, owner of the family-run Restaurante Litoral in Macau, is dedicated to preserving Macanese recipes. Photo: AP 

Customers eat lunch at the family-run Restaurante Litoral in Macau. Photo: AP

Manuela Sales da Silva Ferreira’s favourite Macanese dish is baked crabmeat, a dish she learned to make from her mother. Photo: AP

Macanese people traditionally served as a bridge between the Portuguese administrators and Chinese residents of Macau, says Miguel de Senna Fernandes, president of the Macanese Association. Photo: AP 

Can Macau cash out of the casino industry? Nearby Hengqin island offers hope

Hengqin is home to the Guangdong-Macau In-depth Cooperation Zone established three years ago in Zhuhai and jointly run by Guangdong and Macau authorities to promote economic and social integration. Photo: Eugene Lee

Incoming chief executive Sam Hou-fai has made reducing Macau’s reliance on gambling a top priority. Photo: Eugene Lee

A business leader has said Hengqin is “Macau’s greatest potential advantage” compared with bigger business hubs in the bay area. Photo: Xinhua

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China

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Twenty-five years ago, Macau was handed back to China after centuries of Portuguese rule, marking the end of Asia’s colonial era


Twenty-five years ago, Macau was handed back to China after centuries of Portuguese rule, marking the end of Asia’s colonial era.


From our archives

On This Day | Macau returns to China in 1999 after 442 years of Portuguese rule – from the SCMP archive

Twenty-five years ago, Macau was handed back to China after centuries of Portuguese rule, marking the end of Asia’s colonial era