Non-Chinese nationals will not be able to run in upcoming elections for the Legislative Assembly (AL), at least according to the interpretation of the director of the Public Administration and Civil Service Bureau (SAFP), Eddie Kou.
“Regarding the residents that do not have Chinese nationality they don’t have the capacity of eligibility,” Kou said in response to a media inquiry on the topic during the press conference that launched the public consultation on the amendments to be enforced to the electoral laws for the AL members and the election of the Chief Executive (CE).
Addressing the same topic at a later stage, the Chief of Office of André Cheong, Lam Chi Long, tried to backpedal somewhat on the opinion expressed by Kou, stating that in the current law in force there is no specific mention of nationality as eligibility criteria, adding that it is too soon to say what will be the concrete provision of the new law, as it is just now entering a period of public consultation and “we need to hear what the members of the public have to say on it,” he remarked.
Although the proposal to establish as an eligibility criterion the possession of Chinese nationality is not clearly stated in the public consultation document, it might come as a consequence of the main goal stated by the Secretary for Administration and Justice, André Cheong for the laws’ revision, which is, to establish mechanisms and rules to ultimately ensure that “only patriots can govern Macau.”
Possessing Chinese nationality is already a criterion of eligibility in the case of bids for the CE post but not for lawmakers’ posts.
This matter already created some controversy during the last elections for the AL when it was noted that, to take the post, candidates running in AL elections would have to pledge allegiance to the People’s Republic of China, something that in the eyes of many would not be possible in the case of foreign citizens.
During the public consultation period, which lasts for 45 days, members of the public can submit opinions through the dedicated website (https://cs.elections.gov.mo) or by more traditional means such as by letter (to SAFP), phone (8868 8866) of fax (8987 0011/8987 0022).
As usual, a series of eight public hearing sessions will also be organized, including six dedicated to different professional sectors and two open public sessions.
Lost in translation: What Kou said about the issue of eligibility
Due to a possible confusion in translation from Cantonese to Portuguese during the press conference last Thursday, in which the government of the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) presented the public consultation document for the amendment of the election laws for the Chief Executive as well as for the Legislative Assembly (AL), we have quoted, in our previous edition, the director of the Public Administration and Civil Service Bureau (SAFP), Eddie Kou, as saying that “permanent residents of Macau who do not have Chinese nationality don’t have the capacity of eligibility” for the AL elections.
It has come to our attention that such a sentence was not said in the speech of director Kou (in Cantonese), and we clarify that what he said was, “As Secretary [for Administration and Justice, André] Cheong has just introduced, regarding those who did not have election rights in the previous election, [there were regulations concerning] upholding the Basic Law and pledging allegiance to the Macau SAR, there were also regulations concerning assuming office as officials or foreign lawmakers. Therefore, [being] a Macau SAR resident is a requirement [to run in the elections].”
The Times reporter who attended the event quoted correctly what was said in the Portuguese translation of Kou’s words.
Editor’s Note: Macau Daily Times coverage of Thursday’s press conference was accurate using the official translation – the only means available for a non-Chinese speaker to do their job. We do not, however, blame the translator who inadvertently became confused while simultaneously translating a live speech in the Q&A period which is, by nature, unpredictable. These translators are doing a very difficult and vital job for the community, making it possible for two completely different worlds or languages to meet. However, our obligation is to restore the truth. PC
