Editing History of Macau (section)

== 1949–1999: Macau and the People's Republic of China ==

When the [[Chinese Communist Party]] (CCP) came to power in 1949, the CCP declared the Protocol of Lisbon to be invalid as an "[[unequal treaties|unequal treaty]]" imposed by foreigners on China. However, Beijing was not ready to settle the treaty question, leaving the maintenance of "the status quo" until a more appropriate time. Beijing took a similar position on treaties relating to the Hong Kong territories of the United Kingdom.

Following World War II, the United Nations expected its member states to relinquish any colonies. Portuguese Prime Minister [[António de Oliveira Salazar|Antonio Salazar]] sought to resist UN pressure to relinquish Macau.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=84}} In 1951, the Salazar regime eliminated the phrase "colonial empire" from its constitution and sought to re-characterize Macau not as a colony but as an [[Political divisions of Portugal#Former regions|overseas province]] of Portugal, which it viewed as part of a plural-continental but nonetheless unified and indivisible Portuguese state.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=84}}

During the [[Korean War]], Macau was a major site for the smuggling of arms into China to avoid United Nations mandates.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=82}} After the [[Korean Armistice Agreement|armistice]], Macau became a semi-official gateway for [[North Korea]]'s diplomatic and financial interests, with a Macau trading company serving as North Korea's de facto consulate in Macau.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=82}}

During the 1950s and 1960s Macau's border crossing to China [[Portas do Cerco]] was also referred to as ''Far Eastern Checkpoint Charlie'' with a major border incident happening in 1952 with Portuguese African Troops exchanging fire with Chinese Communist border guards.<ref>{{cite book |last=Wordie |first=Jason |year=2013 |title=Macao – People and Places, Past and Present |location=Hong Kong |publisher=Angsana Limited |isbn=978-988-12696-0-7 | pages =6–7 | chapter=1. Portas do Cerco }}</ref> According to reports, the exchange lasted for one-and-three-quarter hours, leaving one dead and several dozens injured on the Macau side and more than 100 casualties claimed on the Communist Chinese side.<ref>{{cite news |date=31 July 1952 |title=Macao Portuguese Fire Over Border |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article49044158 |newspaper=The West Australian |location=Perth |publisher=Perth, W. A. : A. Davidson, for the West Australian, 1879 |access-date=2 December 2013 }}</ref>

In 1954, the [[Macau Grand Prix]] was established, first as a treasure hunt throughout the city, and in later years as a formal car racing event.<ref>{{cite web | author=Grand Prix Macau | url=http://archive.grandprix.gov.mo/mgpc/subpage.php?id=528&lang=en | title=THE 50s: All THAT BEGINS | access-date=30 December 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131226022048/http://archive.grandprix.gov.mo/mgpc/subpage.php?id=528&lang=en | archive-date=26 December 2013 | url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 1962, the gambling industry of Macau saw a major breakthrough when the government granted the ''[[Sociedade de Turismo e Diversões de Macau]]'' (STDM), a syndicate jointly formed by Hong Kong and Macau businessmen, the monopoly rights to all forms of gambling. The STDM introduced western-style games and modernised the marine transport between Macau and Hong Kong, bringing millions of gamblers from Hong Kong every year.<ref name="Macau economy">{{cite book |title=The Macau Economy|last=Chan|first=S. S.|year=2000|publisher=Publications Centre, University of Macau|location=Macau|isbn=99937-26-03-6}}</ref>

Riots broke out in 1966 during the [[Cultural Revolution]], when local Chinese and the Macau authority clashed, the most serious one being the [[12-3 incident]].<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=84}} This was prompted by government delays in approving a new wing for a Communist Party elementary school in Taipa.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=84}} The school board illegally commenced construction. the colonial government sent police to stop the workers, and several people were injured in the conflict.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=84}} On December 3, 1966, two days of rioting occurred in which hundreds were injured and six<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=84}} to eight people were killed, leading also to a total climbdown by the Portuguese government.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=kebmyB-5-IYC&q=de+facto&pg=PA34  ''Portugal, China and the Macau Negotiations, 1986–1999''], Carmen Amado Mendes, Hong Kong University Press, 2013, page 34</ref>  The event set in motion de facto abdication of Portuguese control over Macau, putting it on the path to eventual decolonization.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=84–85}}

[[File:12-3 Incident Apology.jpg|thumb|220px|The Portuguese governor of Macau signing a statement of apology under a portrait of Mao Zedong.]]
On 29 January 1967, the Portuguese governor, José Manuel de Sousa e Faro Nobre de Carvalho, with the endorsement of Portuguese prime minister Salazar, signed a statement of apology at the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, under a portrait of [[Mao Zedong]], with [[Ho Yin]], the chamber's president, presiding.<ref name="Maxwell">[https://books.google.com/books?id=99mDi7KYa1oC&dq=kuomintang+macau+1967&pg=PA279 ''Naked Tropics: Essays on Empire and Other Rogues''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160321220809/https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=99mDi7KYa1oC&lpg=PA279&ots=1ElNjmIq6u&dq=kuomintang%20macau%201967&pg=PA279#v=onepage&q=kuomintang%20macau%201967&f=false |date=21 March 2016 }}, Kenneth Maxwell, Psychology Press, 2003, page 279</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=A guerra e as respostas militar e política 5.Macau: Fim da ocupação perpétua (War and Military and Political Responses 5.Macau: Ending Perpetual Occupation) |url=http://media.rtp.pt/descolonizacaoportuguesa/pecas/macau-fim-da-ocupacao-perpetua/ |website=RTP.pt |publisher=RTP |access-date=1 January 2020}}</ref> Two agreements were signed, one with Macau's Chinese community, and the other with mainland China. The latter committed the government to compensate local Chinese community leaders with as much as 2 million [[Macanese pataca|Macau pataca]]s and to prohibit all [[Kuomintang]] activities in Macau.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=85}} This move ended the conflict, and relations between the government and the leftist organisations remained largely peaceful.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Macau (09/08) |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/outofdate/bgn/macau/101177.htm |access-date=2024-07-03 |website=U.S. Department of State}}</ref> This success in Macau encouraged leftists in Hong Kong to "do the same", leading to riots by leftists in Hong Kong in 1967.

After the 1974 [[Carnation Revolution]] overthrew the dictatorship of [[Marcelo Caetano]], Portugal began a formal process of decolonization.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=85}} Over the next several years, it made two offers to return Macau and China rejected both.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=85}} In 1979, Portugal and China established formal diplomatic relations and reached a secret agreement to characterize Macau as a Chinese territory under Portuguese administration.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=85}}

In 1994, the [[Ponte de Amizade|Bridge of Friendship]] was completed, the second bridge connecting Macau and Taipa.<ref name=MacauMuseum/> In November 1995, the [[Macau International Airport]] was inaugurated.<ref name=MacauMuseum/> Before then the territory only had 2 temporary airports for small aeroplanes, in addition to several permanent heliports. In 1997, the [[Estádio Campo Desportivo|Macau Stadium]] was completed in Taipa.<ref name=MacauMuseum/>

Over a three year period in the late 1990s, as wave of gang violence referred to as the casino wars occurred in Macau.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=11}} The casino wars were largely attributable to rival [[Triad (organized crime)|Triad]] groups who sought to gain control of Macau's illicit industries before Portugal transferred the territory back to China.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=11}} The Portuguese authorities of Macau mostly failed to address the violence, which resulted in 122 deaths, or to catch those responsible.<ref name=":132" />{{Rp|page=11}}