A flag-raising ceremony is held at the Golden Lotus Square for the National Day celebrations last year
Lawmaker Au Kam San has written to the government inquiring about the land title for the four Golden Lotus Square land plots.
Ahead of his question, Au highlighted another case concerning Macau residents’ right to demonstrate.
According to Au, in July, the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau (IACM) denied the notification of demonstration for a protest which was planned at Lotus Square, after explaining that the Golden Lotus Square land plot had been leased for another purpose.
Citing the city’s law, Au said: “Golden Lotus Square is an unrestricted place where tourists and residents can enter, linger, take photos and rest. There are no doubts about this being a space open to the public.” For this reason, Au believes IACM should not have denied the notification.
The square is often used for high-level government events and celebrations, such as last year’s National Day celebrations, which counted the presence of senior officials from the mainland.
Au pointed out that the land plots used to belong to The Sociedade de Turismo e Diversões de Macau, SA (STDM). Later, the government borrowed the land from the company, promising to pay for the land with other land plots.
“If the problem is not solved, that means the four lands are still owned by STDM. Golden Lotus Square […] was leased in 1994. Next year, it will be 25 years since the lands were first leased,” said Au.
The lawmaker asked the government whether it was waiting for the land rights to expire so the government authority could take it back.
“If the land cannot see its development being complete […], the temporary outsource can become a permanent outsource. When the deadline approaches, the government can announce the invalidity of the land title, and therefore take it back unconditionally,” Au said.
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