Macau denies entry to HK writer prior to bridge opening

Yan Pat-to

HONG Kong award-winning playwright Yan Pat-to has been denied entry to Macau on grounds that he practices activities that pose a danger to Macau’s public security.

Yan came to Macau on Monday, ahead of the inauguration day of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.

After arriving at the Macau Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal, Yan waited for approximately two hours at the border before he was given a notification saying he could not enter Macau.

Yan told the Macau Immigration Department officer that he had no problems entering Macau in the past. However, the Macau immigration authority responded that the “rules had changed.”

Later on, Yan revealed more information on his Facebook profile.

“After the immigration officer told me I could not enter, the officer required me to sign a notification which said that I practice activities which jeopardize Macau’s public security. When I asked him how I could jeopardize the Macau public security, he told me he was just making a routine report. Then I asked if I could leave if I did not sign the notification, to which he [the officer] replied by saying no. I did not sign it,” Yan’s Facebook post reads.

The Hong Kong playwright claims that his visit to Macau was only related to a lecture co-organized by the Macau Theatre Culture Institute and the International Association of Theater Critics (Hong Kong).

This was the first time Yan has ever been denied entry to Macau.