Macao Special Administrative Region: Annual report 2013

Since the handover of Macao to the People’s Republic of China in 1999, the European Union and its Member States have closely followed political and economic developments in the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) under the ‘one country, two systems’ principle. In line with the commitment given to the European Parliament in 1999, an annual report is issued on developments in Macao. This is the 12th such report, covering developments in 2013.

The EU believes that the ‘one country, two systems’ principle, enshrined in Macao’s Basic Law, continued to work well in 2013. The rights and fundamental freedoms of Macao’s people were respected. Economic policy continued to follow market-led principles, guided by the rule of law. Further progress was made on promoting transparency and good governance.

Macao’s political governance system became more democratic, with additional directly elected seats in the 2013 Legislative Assembly election. The EU hopes further progress will be made in this regard, eventually leading towards universal suffrage for electing the Chief Executive and the Legislative Assembly. It is keen to work with Macao to strengthen the judiciary and improve the regulatory and institutional framework for doing business.

Bilateral relations between the EU and Macao continued to deepen. In 2013, the EU and Macao celebrated the 20th anniversary of the entry into force of the Agreement for Trade and Cooperation. The anniversary was marked by a visit to Macao by the President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, in November 2013. Trade and investment relations expanded significantly and were mostly problem-free. The EU and the Macao SAR signed a Horizontal Air Services Agreement, creating an EU-wide legal framework for developing civil aviation relations with Macao.