Our Desk | Let’s work on the graphics

Anthony Lam

Recently, I attended a press conference where the Identification Services Bureau announced the new design of the Macau Special Administrative Region passport. The design did not undergo a huge change, so when I was required to explain this to my editor, I opted for a word popularly used in the car industry, “facelift,” to describe the new design.
At this press conference, I asked the bureau head, Ao Ieong U, if she had thought about inviting Macau designers or artists to help design the passport in the future, citing the policy to encourage the cultural and creative industry which has been here for around a decade. Imagine if Eric Fok’s eye-catching modern interpretation of antique Macau maps was featured on the passport – it could become a distinguishing feature of the MSAR’s travel document.
Ao justified the small change to the design by saying that due to the relatively small number of Macau SAR passports issued, a big change to the design would require special effort and time to make border and immigration personnel aware of the new design.
As Ao Ieong U explained, border and immigration personnel in places such as Macau have to be familiar with the design of foreign passports in order to facilitate secure border control. Their familiarity with identification documents assists in the timely discovery of counterfeit ones, if any.
As a result, if the Macau SAR passport had been drastically changed, the bureau would be required to ensure foreign border and immigration services have knowledge of the new design so that Macau SAR passport holders will not or will be less likely to face hurdles or hassles when they arrive in a foreign country.
Of course, I am totally with the bureau head. The seamless passage through border and immigration checkpoints for Macau passport holders is a consideration that is paramount to the bureau.
The passport has updated several security features in the booklet’s design and “facelift.”
One of the new anti-counterfeit features is found on the data page of the travel document. There is a laser-cut image of the passport holder and two tactile images, one depicting the emblem of the city and the other a lotus flower.
Meanwhile, multicolor UV printing technology was employed on the same page. The encryption technology used in the chip embedded in the page has also been upgraded.
The bureau used the Guia Lighthouse, the Ruins of St. Paul’s and the A-Ma Temple as illustrations on each page. They are juxtaposed with Macau’s three bridges.
At the bottom of each page, the Great Wall and lotus flowers are connected in a series of patterns. Images of fireworks are also UV-printed onto each page.
The “face-lifted” passport will be issued from December 3, a little over a month away. The bureau’s service was also updated, and it will commence e-applications for the passport at the bureau’s e-service booths at several locations in the city on that same day.
Speaking of design, I think greater improvements can be made to the marriage and birth certificates of Macau. Currently, they are simply a piece of A4 paper with information printed by a regular printer.
Again, considering that Macau is a city with UNESCO World Heritage sites, holds the UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy title and has a policy encouraging culture and creativity, this genre of documents, which symbolize the decision of a lifetime to some, deserves better presentation.
Although designs can be a very subjective topic, Macau has had some wonderful ones in all these years. Let’s keep the vibe vivid.